During Jesus time on earth, not less than one time He reminds his followers about forgiving each fellow man. An illustration He made: If a man hurts you seven times a day. Each time that man hurts you he asks for forgiveness. Jesus said, you must forgive that person. A little bit curious, Peter asked: "Does it mean that we must forgive a person up to seven times a day?" Jesus replied: "Not only seven times but seventy times seven times."
From this message we learn a lesson that we must forgive each others' sin continuously without any condition. Often we human being have conditions in forgiving others. The first time a person hurts us, we say: its alright. The second time, we said: you should be careful. The third time he hurts, we said to him: Don't you ever hurt me again or else I will hurt you back. This situation happens to each and everyone of us. Our condition of forgiving others is limited to three times.
Let us think about Jesus when He was hang on the cross where people hurled curses on him beside hurting his body. Do you know what was His reply? "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do." In the same way when Stephen was stoned to death. Before he breathed his last he cried out in a loud voice: "Lord, do not charge them with this sin." Jesus and Stephen set two examples for us to follow. Not to keep people's wrong deeds but to be reconciled to each other.
Forgive means to humble oneself to each other or to say "sorry". If we submit ourselves to each other as Jesus submit himself by allowing people to nail him on the cross, there will be peace in this world.
Finally, learn to forgive and to bless others.
HIDDEN BEAUTY
13 years ago
Very good examples of forgiveness. I noticed that Jesus is harsh with the religious teachers... any comment?
ReplyDeleteThe wages of sin is dead but the gift of God is eternal life. The forgiveness of sin means free from the punishment of hell. However, the punishment for that wrong doing remains unchanged. For instance, the parable of the Lost Son in Luke 15:8-32. He has sinned against his father and God. So, he repents by turning 180 degrees, forget what is past and struggle towards what is ahead.
ReplyDeleteOn his way back to his father, he felt the torment of shamefulness for wasting his father's properties, inferiority complex as the son a well known father and hated by his own sibling.
Looking into that parable, it is cruel, stupid, harsh and ridicule to admit our own sins to someone who knows or unknown to you? It is better to be tortured physically rather than mentally. But as that's the only way to be reconciled to his father, he has to face the reality. As a result, his father receives his with open arms, putting on him a new garment, new sandals, ring on his finger and slaughter a fatten calf to celebrate his coming home.
This story illustrates the religious teachers who pretend to be looked more religious, knowledgeable and regularly present in the synagogues. In fact they are hypocrite, smartly dressed in the synagogues but they are metaphorically a beautifully decorated coffin with a rotten corpse inside. As a penalty for their hypocrisy, Jesus tends to be harsh to them. In fact they have received praises as rewards for their hypocrisy. On the other hand, they also have to face the worldly punishment before the actual torment of hell.
In the same way if our children committed something wrong and they say sorry, we as parents will forgive them. However, they have to pay the penalty of their wrong doings.
Another example, Adam and Eve, after sinning against God, all the generations of men have to suffer the consequences of sins as a result of these two persons. Of course Jesus died on the cross to forgive the sins of the world but we have to suffer our own sins.
The top 15 Christian statements/quips are as follows:
ReplyDelete1. God wants spiritual fruit, not religious nuts.
2. Dear God, I have a problem, it's Me.
3. There is no key to happiness. The door is always Open.
4. Silence is often misinterpreted but never
Misquoted.
7. Do the math .. Count your blessings.
8. Faith is the ability to not panic.
9. If you worry, you didn't pray . If you pray, Don't worry.
10. As a child of God, prayer is kind of like calling Home everyday.
11. Blessed are the flexible for they shall not be Bent out of shape.
12. The most important things in your house are the People.
13 When we get tangled up in our problems, be still. God wants us to be still so He can untangle the knot.
14. A grudge is a heavy thing to carry.
15 He who dies with the most toys is still dead.
My personal favorite is #14 but we should never make light of the act of FORGIVING - it takes away the heaviest and the longest-standing grudge. Like someone said, "Keeping a grudge is like drinking poison and hoping your enemy will die...."
Blessings.
As a mortal being, forgiveness seems impossible in our every day life. How to forgive that someone if he or she hurts or harms you or your family or love ones.
ReplyDeleteBut, when Jesus was on the cross of Calvary, being tortured by His enemies, He prayed to His Father: "God, forgive them for they do not know what they are doing."
Curse and you will be cursed,
Forgive and you will be forgiven.
Let us learn together to live the life that God wants us to be.
Blessed