Forgiveness

          Forgiveness is a wonderful gift.  Things like:

1. My earthly father’s forgiveness for the time my friend and I polished his car with sandpaper. 

2.  My sister in law was forgiven by her father for taking the car out for a joy ride when she was in the eighth grade.

3.  Moses was forgiven for murder and not circumcising his sons.

4.  King David was forgiven for the murder of Uriah in order to steal his wife.

5.  Peter was forgiven for denying the Lord three times.

6.  St. Paul was forgiven for the execution of many in the early church.

There are too many examples both in my memory and the Biblical literature to list here.  There are many things in our lives, large or small, for which we need forgiveness (even those things which we don’t remember or didn’t realize were wrong).  None of us are perfect; no not one.[1]  We were born into a sinful world and we are tempted daily. 

 

          People have gotten it wrong: God is not good, He is perfect.  There are good people in the world that are not perfect.  There are good hot fudge sundays in the world that come close to being perfect.  God, on the other hand, is perfect and responsible for all things good, created in the world and in Heaven.  Because God is perfect, He cannot lie.  He said that there is one way to the Father and it was through Christ.[2]

 

          Because God is perfect, He cannot abide sin.  He gave us free will, and for four thousand years, He tried to lead us to Himself, and what is best for us.  We, however, are not perfect and many times make choices that are not the best for us.  When your child is wandering around aimlessly and having difficulty in finding where you want him to go, you gently take him by the hand and lead the way.  This is like what the Father did for us with Jesus.  Since we couldn’t find a way to live successfully under the law, He supplied His Son to lead the way.  He didn’t come to do away with the laws of God, but to sacrifice Himself to cover the price for our transgressions of those laws. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was

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[1] Romans 3:23

[2] John 14:6