"FORGIVE THEM" Are you Kidding Me!!

                                   

The Gift of Forgiveness is for you! 

FORGIVENESS does not excuse behaviour,

Nor can it change what they have done.

FORGIVENESS can prevent your compassionate heart 
from turning to stone. 

Sim Rushton

Aug 16, 2015   Luke 11: 1-5 - 2 Samuel 11 David and Bathsheba,

“Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.”  Some translations use the word 

trespasses instead of debtors.  We recite that line as part of the Lord’s Prayer most Sunday 

mornings in our church, and yet no matter how familiar it is, that phrase, those words, they 

often stick in my throat, “Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.”    It reminds me 

that God expects me to forgive myself and others just as He has freely forgiven. But I think it’s safe 

to say that for most of us, our track record when it comes to extending grace and 

forgiveness to self and people who have wronged us is probably quite mixed.  Listen to this modern

day parable. 

One very hot day, two companions were walking along a sea shore.  A heated argument broke out during the conversation and one companion slapped the other on the face. The slap brought with it, a deep and painful affliction.  The recipient stopped, bent down and wrote this in the sand, “today my best friend slapped me in the face”.    As they continued their journey, they came upon a quiet cove and decided to cool off in the clam waters.  The one who had been slapped became caught in an unseen strong current, drifted and began to drown.  The other companion swam out to save the afflicted one.  When they got safely to shore, the afflicted one wrote this on a stone, “today my best friend saved my life .”  Perplexed the other said “after I hurt you, you wrote in the sand, and now you write on stone, why”? When your best friend hurts you, write with regret in sand, where the winds of time can slowly erase it.  When your best friend does you good, write with gratitude on a stone where the winds of regret have little or no effect and it will always be there to carry you through.   

We cannot change our past but we can learn to forgive ourselves and others.   What we can change is our future.   A future drenched in gratitude will last a lifetime, and gratitude will become your companion for eternity.

Often I am asked this question: What if it’s too late to extend forgiveness, because the person who hurt me, is dead or gone? What do I do if the person I hurt  is no longer around to hear my apology or my plea for forgiveness? 
May I make a suggestion here: either way share your burden of guilt with someone 

whom you can trust, someone non judgemental.  Now I know that many of you might 

think that someone would be hard to find but there is always someone we can share 

with.  Be specific and completely candid.   Use Prayer to confess openly the wrong 

and the guilt you have been carrying.    Prayer and the presence of an understanding 

heart, meaning some affirming, a non-judgemental individual can provide the relief 

you so desperately need.    Folks we need each other, we were meant for each other 

and it started with the first couple,  in the very beginning, it was and still is the will of 

God.   We need to learn on each other.  click and listen                           “Lean On Me”

Lets use the example of King David from 2 Samuel chapter 11.  Take some time to read the 

story and refresh your memory.  After David had indirectly caused the death of Bathsheba’s 

husband, Uriah, his guilt was enormous.  Adultery, a child out of wedlock on top of murder was crushing him. 

Finally, he broke his silence and sought God’s forgiveness, but Uriah 

was not there to hear his confession.  He had been dead almost a year. The broken king 

David, called on the prophet Nathan and poured out his guilt, Nathan assures David that his 

sin was forgiven, but reminds David that forgiven sin will not eradicate the consequences of 

his actions.   We too must not make that mistake of thinking that repentance will eradicate 

our past, for the scars of the past will crop up from time to time, and we will still need those 

reminders written in stone to get us through.    

Death or geographical distance can seem to disrupt the critical act of reconciliation between 

two people.   But let us never forget that God’s grace is greater than anything that can 

separate us from each other, even death.   It is never too late to surrender your burden, 

asking for or offering forgiveness.   Remembering that Jesus invites us to come “Come all 

who are heavy laden and I will give you rest.”  You see, sometimes the suffering we 

encounter is not necessarily all for us. GOD sometimes restores us and allows our 

sufferings to become a testament of His Greatness to encourage and lead others to Him.  

Part of loving God means praising Him because he does the work of forgiveness with you.  

The timing must be right, your whole heart must be in it, you must be ready, then your 

surrendered can and will take place and you will fell the the lightness as your burden is 

lifted.  A person who is truly reconciled to God and others will not have to say anything nor 

is there any need to go out of their way to show it, for they will began to speak from the 

heart, and the heart will reveal their truly awakened character.