(No tear sheet)
Leon Uris’ book, Trinity, fictionalizes the history of Ireland’s conflict with England. It brings out that the battle is not primarily over religious issues, but does involve people associated with Christian denominations. Unfortunately, many people blame the church, religion in general, or even God, rather than putting it where it belongs.
Hundreds of years ago, the poor people in Ireland suffered abuse at the hands of those with money. The upper class not only exploited them, but ridiculed their faith and made fun of their culture. They fought back in a conflict complicated by potato crop failure, intermarriage between factions, and other circumstances.
Today, only those familiar with history understand the roots. The rest of the world looks at Ireland’s conflict as senseless slaughter, or revenge, or a control thing, or lust for violence. Even as talks continue between groups of Republicans and Democrats, Protestants and Catholics, there seems no end to bombing and killing. What will bring peace to Ireland?
Ireland is not the only battleground with religious overtones. In a different kind of conflict, a pastor is asked to resign from a local church even though some want him to stay. Those in control, are just as adamant that he leaves. The others wonder what they can do? Do they leave the church? Do they confront? Do they retaliate?
Or suppose a man is unfaithful to his holy marriage vows. His wife is hurt and angry. He refuses to apologize but says he wants to come back. She is upset, vindictive and wants to get even. What should be holy has disrupted into a domestic battle.
Whether large or small, all conflicts have only one lasting solution. It is not cease fire or settlement, although those happen. Neither is it a matter of one side winning and the other losing. It is God’s simple solution: forgiveness. With it, both sides win.
Contention is sometimes uncomplicated: one person initiates a strike and makes another person the victim. Most injured people who have not done anything to provoke a conflict or perpetuate it feel like striking back, but God says, “Do not retaliate, vengeance is mine.” Getting even is not one of His options.
If an injured person’s pain turns to anger and then bitterness, God also offers this note of caution, “See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many.” Bitter anger is not one of His options either. Instead, God says, “If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you.”
In situations like the one in Ireland, conflicts are more complex. Years of “I touched you last” heap pain on all sides. Some people may not even be sure why they hate others, they just hate them. However, if peace will happen, someone has to say, “I quit. Even though I am hurt and justifiably angry, I choose to stop fighting, stop getting even . . . and forgive.”
The next step that person must take is this: “I have been wrong and hurt you also. Will you forgive me?” While asking forgiveness is risky (what if the other side keeps shooting?) there is far greater probability for peace this way than taking the avenue of revenge. Besides, God honors those who obey His commands. Anyone who has seems to be a loser if they seek to forgive will gain because God bestows His blessing on peacemakers.
Seeking forgiveness does seem like a simplistic solution; however, if anyone is hurt, angry and drowning in bitterness, it will be the most difficult thing they have ever tried to do. In fact, without realizing the deep forgiveness God offers them, it is unlikely any angry, bitter person can do it.
Showing posts with label power of forgiveness. Show all posts
Showing posts with label power of forgiveness. Show all posts
Wednesday, May 10, 2017
Friday, February 24, 2017
Amazing power of forgiveness ............. Parables 554
April 15, 1997
Kiyoko Tanimoto, a survivor of the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima, met one of the bomber pilots at a Christian meeting in the United States. All over again, bitter hatred filled his heart. Then, listening to the pilot, he realized the man’s own horror of that event. As a Christian, Tanimoto was able to forgive the pilot.
Corrie Ten Boom, survivor of a German death camp, saw one of her former guards in a church service. She remembered his cruelty toward her sister and herself, but when he held out his hand to her, she asked God to help her greet him. In the name of Jesus, she was able to forgive.
Forgiveness is God’s universal medicine. It cures anger and restores relationships. It powerfully melts animosity between the bitterest of enemies and brings them together as friends. It has also been known to cure anxiety, depression and fear.
Yet the most common response to insult or injury is not forgiveness but retaliation. On a large scale, the wars in Bosnia are a centuries old deadly game of I-touched-you-last between three nations seeking revenge on each other for past atrocities. In the Middle East, the Arab-Jewish conflict goes back 4000 years to rival half-brothers, Abraham and Ishmael.
On a personal level, retaliation produces physical conflict, marital splits, even murder. Children and adults battle over rights and toys. Couples stand before judges and claim irreconcilable differences. Nicole Brown Simpson no doubt lost her life because of retaliation. Those caught in revenge refuse to say “I forgive you” yet forgiveness would change statistics.
Conflict between people is an extension and symptom of a deeper conflict—the battle between man and God. The Bible says that “We like sheep have gone astray. We have turned to our own way.” In that turning away from God we demonstrate our animosity toward Him.
“Whoa,” some would say. “I am not anti-God.” Perhaps there is no consciousness of animosity, but God says, “There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one... There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
Our sinful, self-seeking ways create a separation or a rift and even blindness to it. Because of sin’s hold on us, we are not inclined to built a bridge across the gap and even if we were, we cannot by ourselves restore the relationship.
However, God has made the first move. The Bible says, “While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” In his loving kindness and desire for reconciliation, God opened the way for us by having His Son take the penalty we deserved. “God reconciled the world to Himself through Christ, not counting men’s sins against them.”
Such forgiveness does not white-wash our rejection of God and His commands. If God could just say, “Oh, sin doesn’t matter” there would have been no need for Christ to die. Sin is serious, just as the atrocities and violence of people against other people is serious.
Because of our sin, we deserve God’s wrath but the Gospel says He offers forgiveness because His Son bore our punishment. It is for Christ’s sake that God can choose not to hold our sins against us.
The ultimate sin by which we will all be judged, is whether or not we trusted in Christ. Therefore, God’s offer of forgiveness and eternal requires a response of faith and trust. When we respond that way, we experience forgiveness and “peace with God.”
That peace produces an overflow. We know forgiveness and can therefore offer it to others and as we do, this wonderful “medicine” not only cures conflict but eliminates retaliation.
Kiyoko Tanimoto, a survivor of the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima, met one of the bomber pilots at a Christian meeting in the United States. All over again, bitter hatred filled his heart. Then, listening to the pilot, he realized the man’s own horror of that event. As a Christian, Tanimoto was able to forgive the pilot.
Corrie Ten Boom, survivor of a German death camp, saw one of her former guards in a church service. She remembered his cruelty toward her sister and herself, but when he held out his hand to her, she asked God to help her greet him. In the name of Jesus, she was able to forgive.
Forgiveness is God’s universal medicine. It cures anger and restores relationships. It powerfully melts animosity between the bitterest of enemies and brings them together as friends. It has also been known to cure anxiety, depression and fear.
Yet the most common response to insult or injury is not forgiveness but retaliation. On a large scale, the wars in Bosnia are a centuries old deadly game of I-touched-you-last between three nations seeking revenge on each other for past atrocities. In the Middle East, the Arab-Jewish conflict goes back 4000 years to rival half-brothers, Abraham and Ishmael.
On a personal level, retaliation produces physical conflict, marital splits, even murder. Children and adults battle over rights and toys. Couples stand before judges and claim irreconcilable differences. Nicole Brown Simpson no doubt lost her life because of retaliation. Those caught in revenge refuse to say “I forgive you” yet forgiveness would change statistics.
Conflict between people is an extension and symptom of a deeper conflict—the battle between man and God. The Bible says that “We like sheep have gone astray. We have turned to our own way.” In that turning away from God we demonstrate our animosity toward Him.
“Whoa,” some would say. “I am not anti-God.” Perhaps there is no consciousness of animosity, but God says, “There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one... There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
Our sinful, self-seeking ways create a separation or a rift and even blindness to it. Because of sin’s hold on us, we are not inclined to built a bridge across the gap and even if we were, we cannot by ourselves restore the relationship.
However, God has made the first move. The Bible says, “While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” In his loving kindness and desire for reconciliation, God opened the way for us by having His Son take the penalty we deserved. “God reconciled the world to Himself through Christ, not counting men’s sins against them.”
Such forgiveness does not white-wash our rejection of God and His commands. If God could just say, “Oh, sin doesn’t matter” there would have been no need for Christ to die. Sin is serious, just as the atrocities and violence of people against other people is serious.
Because of our sin, we deserve God’s wrath but the Gospel says He offers forgiveness because His Son bore our punishment. It is for Christ’s sake that God can choose not to hold our sins against us.
The ultimate sin by which we will all be judged, is whether or not we trusted in Christ. Therefore, God’s offer of forgiveness and eternal requires a response of faith and trust. When we respond that way, we experience forgiveness and “peace with God.”
That peace produces an overflow. We know forgiveness and can therefore offer it to others and as we do, this wonderful “medicine” not only cures conflict but eliminates retaliation.
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