Good morning and welcome to Our Daily Walk.
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Sue had done all that she could do but it seemed to make no difference. Several years had passed since the incident occurred. A friendship had been ruined as her best friend seduced Sue’s husband and contributed to their divorce. Her friend had never apologized for the affair. In fact, she had continued to see Sue’s husband up until after the divorce, but then she went after someone else and moved away.
Sue’s life was never the same after that. The security of a stable home, the love of a trusted spouse, the hope of a story book ending—all had escaped her.
She hadn’t seen her ex-husband in over a year. Although their relationship as husband and wife was ended, he had apologized on several occasions for his betrayal. It was difficult, but Sue had forgiven him and put that part of her life behind her.
However, Sue’s friend had never shown any sign of remorse. Each mention of the topic of forgiveness at church caused Sue to have a nagging feeling. She wanted her friend to live the right kind of life. And she wanted to forgive her. But how could she forgive her for something that she didn’t regret doing?
The burden of this unresolved situation was wearing Sue down. She had to find a resolution to this. She could not continue to carry this issue with her.
But then one day Sue was reading Luke’s account of the crucifixion of Jesus. When she came to verse 34 she saw the Lord’s answer to her situation. Jesus was dying on the cross. Yet despite the fact that these people were actively killing Him, Jesus had the following to say. “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.”
How could Jesus be willing to forgive people as they were actively sinning against Him? The key is that Jesus would not be present to see the day when these very people would realize what they had done. He would not be there in person when they would cry out to Peter and the others on Pentecost saying “what shall we do?” Acts 2:37
So Jesus exhibited His forgiving spirit to them in hopes of the day that they would repent and seek to be right with God. Stephen also did the same thing in Acts 7:60. Stephen, the first Christian martyr, had just preached a powerful sermon. But the people rejected his words, threw him out of the city and they were stoning him to death. Yet his last words were, “Lord, do not charge them with this sin.”
In both cases the concern was with the people eventually being forgiven even though they were actively sinning at the time. Jesus and Stephen certainly didn’t condone what was being committed, but they had done all they could. Their last thoughts were to let it go to God. The rest was between these people and their Creator.
That’s when Sue decided to lay this burden down. She prayed once more to God and this time she prayed that her former friend would one day repent of her sins and seek God’s forgiveness. She might never see her friend again, but she had found peace by knowing that she had done all she could and then had let it all go to God.
On Our Daily Walk today, may we seek to always have a spirit of forgiveness and may we live so as to never stand between another person and heaven.
Our thought for the day: “He who has mastered the grace of forgiveness is far more triumphant than he who has managed to see that no wrong to him is gone unavenged.” Lloyd D. Mattson.
May God bless you on your daily walk.
© Our Daily Walk, Mike Baker, 2007. Permission is granted to copy these articles provided they are not sold and the author's name and copyright are included.
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