Forgiveness - Jaymian Reimer

Forgiveness matters because people matter. Relationships are where life gets real, but relationships are also where pain gets real. The closer somebody gets, the more they can hurt, and the natural response is to push people away, get old and cranky, and decide a dog is safer than people. Forgiveness stands against that road because people, not stuff, carry eternal value.

Psalm 103 shows God as compassionate, merciful, slow to anger, and full of unfailing love. God removes sin “as far as the east is from the west,” not just a little ways down the road. The picture is two lines shooting away from each other forever. God does not keep sin nearby so He can pull it back out later.

Hebrews 10 grounds that forgiveness in Jesus’ one sacrifice, good for all time. Christ has made perfect those who are being made holy, and God says He will remember sins and lawless deeds no more. Grace does not leave room for people to crawl back into trying to atone for themselves. Christ has already done the work, so confession receives what His blood has already secured.

First John 1 keeps the door plain and open. Sin cannot be denied without lying, but sin can be confessed because God is faithful and just to forgive and cleanse. God does not forgive because somebody finally feels bad enough or works hard enough. Christ looks at His people through His sacrifice, and His blood covers them like rose-colored glasses.

Matthew 18 turns the question around. Jesus tells the servant forgiven millions that mercy received must become mercy given. Forgiveness cannot stay at lip service, because Christ calls for forgiveness from the heart. Mercy is not based on whether the other person deserves it, because nobody comes before God deserving the mercy already received.

Ephesians 4 shows unforgiveness like a cancer. Bitterness starts when a person cannot think a good thought about somebody else. Rage and anger follow, then harsh words and slander, until evil behavior blows everything up. Kindness, tenderheartedness, and forgiveness are the cure, and the earlier that cure gets applied, the less damage gets done.

Colossians 3 adds humility, gentleness, patience, and room for each other’s faults. Jesus’ upside-down kingdom does not call people to become doormats, but it does call them to separate the problem from the person. The problem may need confrontation, but the person remains God’s precious son or daughter. Forgiveness may take repetition, like making a new rut in the brain or getting a body worked back into place, but Christ can replace a stony, stubborn heart with a tender, responsive one