| | Forgiveness"If you forgive the failures of others, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you don't forgive others, your Father will not forgive your failures."
Mat 6:14-15
Jesus has finished instructing his disciples in prayer. But like many a teacher, he wants to emphasize the important points. So immediately after the prayer, he talks again about forgiving others. This is so that we will realize the importance of such forgiveness.
Note, please, the order of forgiveness. We are to forgive others first. This is not something related to our initial conversion and baptism, but rather in the daily walk of the Christian—indeed, it relates to our prayer life. God understands us perfectly. He is not going to forgive us first—because if he does, then we will conveniently forget to forgive others later. He knows how deceitful the human heart can be.
Chrysostom said that the strongest resemblance we can have to God is in forgiveness. All other virtues can be found in what the world calls a "good" man. Forgiveness is the divine virtue; it comes from God himself. So then, let us examine just how God forgives:
-He forgives completely. He does not forgive some of our actions and hold back on others; rather, as we forgive and repent, he forgives each, every and all sin.
-He forgives always. It does not matter how many times we sin, his patience with us is never exhausted. The repentant sinner is always received at the throne of grace.
-He forgives to bar further sin. By his aid he keeps us from sinning again; by his forgiveness he removes the temptation to cover up, covering the first sin with a greater one.
It is a test of our faith that we forgive in the same way. Do you pick and choose among the offenses against you which you will and won't forgive? Then God will do likewise with you, carefully selecting the ones you must face on Judgment Day. Has your forgiveness run out for one particular sinner? God's forgiveness of you will have the same limit. When you forgive, do you do so to help your brother from doing it again? Then God will likewise aid you.
God is very fond of using the yardstick by which you measure others to measure you. If you are a merciful Christian, then he is the merciful God. Christ hammered home the point here. He wants you to be merciful, so that in the Day of Judgment you too may say, "Mercy triumphs over judgment."
Go to www.pastorant.com
|
| | Posted 3/1/2006 5:23 PM - 1 view - 2 comments
- recommend
  - recs0
- give stars
- votes0
- share
- email
 - sent0
|
