Micah 3:1-8; Acts 24:1-23; Luke 7:36-50 The one who has had much forgiveness loves much. The truth is that weve all had much forgiven. Stupid choices in our misbegotten youth. Stupid choices we were supposed to be too mature to make. Harsh words spoken. Harsh words thought without speaking. Decisions to live down to expectations. Ignoring a visible need. Demanding our own way. Much has been forgiven--by God, by our friends, by our families, even by our enemies. Weve been forgiven far more than we want to acknowledge. So why doesnt that translate into great love? Ive been forgiven for my bullheadedness over and over again by my family--so why do I find it so hard to love them, or my neighbor, or the other political party, when theyre being bullheaded? Maybe its because Ive accepted the forgiveness, but not done anything with it. Forgiveness is great. But its supposed to be the first step in a process, and too often we make it the last step. The first step--because it invites us to change who we are, and how we deal with things. Repentance and amendment of life is supposed to be the follow-up to forgiveness--disciplined change. Replacing the old habits with new ones, totally different ones. Which takes effort, on a sustained basis. Forgiveness leads to love, but probably only if we make we change our hearts and thoughts and deeds as a result of the forgiveness. Otherwise, its just a free pass to turn around and do the same thing again, or to despise those people who forgave us in the first place.
Posted on: Thu, 09 Oct 2014 13:25:29 +0000
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015