31Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. 32Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. (Ephesians 4:31-32)
Have you ever wondered why you should forgive someone who wronged you? There have been times in my life when someone has deeply hurt me. I didn’t want to forgive and I wondered why I should. Holding onto unforgiveness can feel so safe, even so justifiable. Forgiveness seems to require opening myself up to being hurt again, which is the last thing I want to do. So, what reason is there for forgiving someone who wronged you? If you’re a Christian who seeks to live according to biblical guidance, then there is a simple answer to this question. You should forgive because the Bible says so. Ephesians 4:32 makes this clear, even though the command to forgive comes as a participle (“forgiving”) following the main imperative (“Be kind”) Other passages in Scripture make a similar point (see Matthew 6:12-15; Luke 6:37; Colossians 3:13). But Scripture doesn’t merely command us to forgive and leave it at that. God’s word also provides a rationale and a motivation for forgiveness. In Ephesians 4:32, forgiving is an expression of kindness. As followers of Christ, we are to be people who treat others kindly just as God has treated us kindly. One way to do this is by forgiving them when they wrong us. Next, we are to be compassionate, which may also help us to forgive. When we see people as one-dimensional wrongdoers, we might find it hard to forgive them. But if we get inside their shoes, inside their hearts, we may be encouraged to forgive. Perhaps someone says mean things to you. His behavior was not right. But you know that he had been hurt by the far worse meanness of his own father. He was acting out of pain deeply embedded in his memories. When you allow yourself to feel the struggles of his wounded hearts, you find it easier to forgive him. This doesn’t excuse his behavior. He isn’t merely a helpless victim, but someone who is making poor choices. Yet his choices are reflections of his brokenness, for which we feel truly sorry. We forgive someone who wronged us because Scripture commands it. Also, because we are to show kindness to others and to feel compassion for them. Kindness and compassion help us to forgive. Yet this is not the whole story. Notice the final phrase, “just as in Christ God forgave you.” This phrase provides a rationale and a model of forgiveness, and motivation for forgiveness. We are to forgive, not because of our inherent graciousness, nor because the one who wronged us has done something to deserve forgiveness, but because of what God has done for you in Christ. You are to forgive as a response to God’s gracious forgiveness given to you through the cross of Jesus Christ. Why should you forgive others? Because God first forgave you. There’s a solid rationale for forgiveness. The phrase “just as in Christ God forgave you” also shows us a model of forgiveness. In Ephesians 1:7-8, we read, “In [Christ] we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace that he lavished on us.” Similarly, Ephesians 2:4-7 reveals that even when we were dead in our transgressions, God made us alive with Christ “because of His great love for us,” because He is “rich in mercy,” and because of “the incomparable riches of His grace expressed in His kindness to us in Christ Jesus.” Forgiveness flows freely from God’s grace, mercy, and love. So, God models for us what forgiveness looks like. Plus, by forgiving us, God motivates us to forgive others. The more we take in how God has forgiven us in Christ, the more we will be encouraged and empowered to forgive others. The more we let the model of God’s forgiveness in Christ guide us, the more we will want to forgive graciously, mercifully, and lovingly. The more we experience the freedom of God’s forgiveness, the more we will be free to forgive others. So, one of the most compelling reasons to forgive is the fact that God has forgiven us, thus showing us how we should act toward others and moving us to forgive even as God in Christ has forgiven us. Help me, dear Lord, to forgive others because You have forgiven me. May my experience of Your forgiveness set me free to forgive others graciously, for their sake and for mine, and for Your glory. Amen. Comments are closed.
|
Archives
April 2024
Categories |