The Miracle of Genuine Forgiveness

Romans 12:18- "If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone."

Peace with others is a wonderful thing, but not always possible. Peace always begins with God. If we aren't at peace with God, then we can never have peace with ourselves. If we aren't at peace with ourselves, then we can never have peace with others. It seems that all the beauty contestants say that their wish is for world peace. Great idea, but it's a pipe dream if God isn't at the center of it. Without God in my life, I hate myself and everyone and everything I come into contact with. Without God, all of creation is a potential enemy. Once God is in the picture, it changes my view of all of creation. Even when there is inevitable conflict, because I have peace with God and with myself, I can and should have a different view of those with whom I'm in conflict.

Matthew 5:44: "But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you."

Romans 5:8: "But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us."

If God can love me to the point of dying for me while I was His enemy, then He gives me the supernatural power to love those with whom I have conflict. That doesn't mean that we have to agree or approve of them or their actions. It doesn't mean that we have to act like everything's cool and sing kumbaya and pretend to be friends. It does mean that we should pray for God's best for their lives, not enter into gossip about them, and keep no record of wrong. This is NOT humanly possible. That's what makes it a God thing. If you want proof for the existence of God, then look no further than this. If, as a believer, you can love your enemy, that is as much proof of the supernatural as walking on the water. Today, I'm stepping out of the boat.

Smugness

Have you smuged anyone lately? Smugness is the opinion that our own views are always right, and it's our mission in life to prove others wrong. God calls us to "do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly." Smugness is the opposite of humility. Smugness is a certainty that our view is right, that our approach is justified, and that the ends justifies the means.


In a recent project that I've thrown myself into, I made it clear that I believed that I was following God's call in my life. I still believe that, but I'm also very aware of my own failings and weaknesses. Because of this, I asked my wife to hold me accountable and my pastor to let me know if they felt that I was straying into questionable territory or generally making a fool of myself and tainting my testimony. Humility is about recognizing that there's only one God and I'm not him.

This short article from Sojourners is right on the mark. There are things about which we can have certainty, but that list is very short. When it comes to the other things, we need to be willing to say "From what I understand, this is what I believe, but I'd like to hear what you think." In the church, it's supposed to be a case of iron sharpening iron, which means that we need to hear each other out with an open mind and heart, consider the rare possibility that we don't have all the answers ( or at least that the answers we have, may not all be correct ), and not draw lines in the sand so easily. I've certainly been guilty of that over the years. Only God has all the answers, and when we are more concerned with winning arguments then openly hearing other people out, then we give credence to the world's opinion that Christians can't seem to get along with anyone.

I've moved into a place in my walk with God where I've told Him that my answer is yes to anything He wants, but along with that comes the realization that I have to be willing to allow Him to tear me down to the very foundation of my being and rebuild me ( politically, socially, artistically, philosophically, culturally, intrinsically ... anything which constitutes my identity ). There's a lot of garbage and nonsense bouncing around in my noggin that doesn't serve me or the kingdom, so I have to daily ask Him, "Is my view on this issue or my response to this problem Your view or mine?" I have a pretty good idea that when I disagree with someone, and I'm more concerned about proving them wrong, than with getting the mind of Christ, there's still a lot of work ahead. My heart felt apologies to anyone who has been a victim of my drive by smugings. I don't have all the answers, but my hope is that if I develop a truly Christ like humility that I'll be more successful in pointing people to someone who does have all the answers.