As a counselor, I have developed a teaching, well several teachings, over the years, but oddly enough, I have never heard many of these concepts taught behind a pulpit; (or for that matter, read in a book, or shared over lunch somewhere.)
The teaching I have in mind, in terms of this
journal entry, relates to the topic of Forgiveness.
The Lord’s Prayer includes the passage, “And forgive
us our debts, as we forgive
our debtors.” The implication is that unless we forgive those who have offended
us, we have little or no hope of being forgiven. There is what I will refer to
here as a “proximate correlation.”
Forgive the other guy’s sins, and your sins are also eligible to be
forgiven. In another place Jesus says, “If you do not forgive your brother his
sin, neither will your Father forgive you.”
(and)
“If we confess our sins He is faithful and just to
forgive us our sins, and will cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1st
John 1:9)
It seems to me that there is an inherent contradiction
between God’s style of forgiveness, and the style He expects us to adopt and
exercise.
For you see, the implication seems to be that we are
to forgive anyone and everyone their sins whether or not the offender asks us for forgiveness.
And yet in the case of the Almighty, the implication
seems to be that we are required to
ask for forgiveness before
He will exercise His forgiveness.
Considering this contradiction I have only been able
to glean one apparent rationale for it.
God knows our frame that we are dust, and He
understands that forgiveness is simply good for us. While God has no need for
some special unction that requires forgiving those who refuse to ask, (and
indeed, sin cannot enter heaven) He understands that our heart, our spirit, our
mind always and continually stands in need of cleansing and sanctification, and
that the best way to usher bitterness and resentment out the front door is to
first divest one’s self of those things which we have harbored in the secret
recesses of our souls, and subsequently to offer forgiveness to those who has
ravaged our lives, as the result of words or deeds; whether or not they ask
Another contradiction or difference between God’s
style of forgiveness and the one which he vested in us is His ability to forget
once He has forgiven. In Psalm 103:12, we read, “As far as the east is from the
west so far has God removed our sins from us, (and remembers them no more.)”
While we, as human beings, have the inherent ability
to forgive, we cannot forget the other person’s transgressions; (short of
developing Amnesia or Alzheimer’s Disease.)
It appears, then, that while God granted us what I
refer to as a “Forgiver Mechanism,” He withheld a trait, (which He possesses)
from us; and that is a “Forgetter Mechanism.” We forgive. God both forgives and
forgets. As a result, we are commanded to forgive, and, by our words and
behavior, “act like” we have forgotten.
Well, just some of the variables surrounding the
dynamic of forgiveness.
“Father God, give me the wherewithal to adopt your
plan of forgiveness in my life; a plan you set in motion before you made the
worlds. For I know that it is only in the spirit of forgiveness that I can
possibly hope to walk in the pathway which you have laid out before me, and
impact those whom you came to save. In Christ’ name, Amen.”
There is another facet of Forgiveness I have never
heard preached from the pulpit.
“As far as the east is from the west, so far has God
removed our sins from us, (and remembers them no more.”) Psalms 103:12
Based on this and other scriptures we can be assured
that God has both a “Forgiver Mechanism,” and a “Forgetter Mechanism.” (How’s that
for a concept?)
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to
forgive us our sins, and will cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1st
John 1:9
However, as human beings we don’t need to read any
particular passage of scripture to understand that whereas God has two
forgiveness mechanisms, He only presented us with one of the two mechanisms; a Forgiver Mechanism. Short of a diagnosis of dementia, or
amnesia, (or death) we simply don’t have the wherewithal to forget the insults, hurts and sins
perpetrated against us by others. And of course, the lack of a Forgetter
Mechanism often jeopardizes our ability to exercise the Forgiver Mechanism.
Quite a dilemma.
As children of God we are left with only one
recourse. If we are committed to living as Jesus lived, and wish to emulate His
empathy and personality, we are called upon to forgive by words and action, (or sometimes the lack of action.) We are called upon to
practice “on purpose” forgiveness.
“Commit your works
unto the Lord, and your thoughts
will be established.” (Proverbs 16:3)
Forgiveness begins with words, (or as the previous
scripture implies with works.) The thoughts, emotions or mindset of forgiveness
may have to (and hopefully will) follow. And if the emotions that “feel” like forgiveness never catch
up, that may have to be okay.
I cannot tell you why God failed to give us both
Forgiver and Forgetter Mechanisms; the same attributes of forgiveness which are
inherent within Himself.
I can tell you that our Lord calls upon us to
emulate His own Forgetter Mechanism by “behaving
as if” we have forgotten, and practicing
“on purpose” forgiveness on a daily
basis.
by William McDonald, PhD. Copyright pending
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