I have appreciated the response to the questions. So here is number three which is more of a statement than a question.
We forgive but we feel by being nice we are approving the lifestyle?
Again I would say that forgiveness is not the same as approval. As a child of God I do not have a choice whether to forgive or not. Jesus makes it clear that we are to forgive unconditionally. When Jesus was hanging on the cross He did not say that if they sought forgiveness then He would forgive but He forgave them knowing what they were doing was wrong. Did He approve of what they were doing? There is no condition given for forgiveness.
Jesus says that we are to forgive before we go to that person. Then why go? Forgiveness has already happened. We go to let them know that what they did was wrong but you have released them, you have no power over them. You cannot make them repent. You have done your part.
Again, what do you think? Thanks Pastor for your comments.
4 comments:
I’m not convinced that Jesus expects us to forgive ‘unconditionally’… rather we are to ‘model’ His forgiveness (see Matthew 6:12b; Ephesians 4:32; Colossians 3:13 and note the little word “as” in each one!). We are to forgive in the same manner as He forgives, and so it follows that we must first understand how God forgives if we are to know how to forgive. Now, while God’s offer of forgiveness is universal - in that He extends it to all of humanity - God is not a universalist who chooses to forgive all men for their sin against Him. God forgives only those who turn to Him in repentance and who put their trust in Him. The reality of forgiveness is only for those who accept the conditions of faith and repentance (1 John 1: 8-9). Therefore, if God’s forgiveness is conditional, and if we are to model Him, our forgiveness will also be conditional. Of course we too should freely offer forgiveness and seek reconciliation, but can we really forgive those who are not repentant? As I said before, fully understood, forgiveness is a commitment to restore a broken relationship. The ultimate aim of forgiveness is to restore relationship, but a relationship can only be fully restored when both parties are willing … as in the case of the prodigal son and his father … I rest my case, your honor! Pastor Gord
I have some comments by Erwin Lutzer from his book Cries from the Cross that I will post this afternoon. God's forgiveness is conditional but we are not God. We cannot hold out without bitterness creeping in as we live in a Genesis 3 world. I can see that God's forgiveness is a model but we are not God.
You are, of course, correct to state the obvious ... we are not God! However, as I indicated in several scriptures, we are to forgive as God forgives. In an ideal world this would mean complete reconciliation and restoration between two parties, where repentance and forgiveness meet ... but when that is not possible because one person will not accept responsibility in the matter, I agree that our 'as God' response is to still genuinely offer forgiveness, and then move forward as if that has been recieved ... i.e. being "reconciled to the unreconciled". It's been an interesting discussion so far, and I look forward to Sunday night ... I'm of the persuasion that the father in the story had forgiveness in his heart long before the prodigal returned, and even if he (the prodigal) had not repented and sought the fathers forgiveness, he (the father) would have nonetheless forgiven him and offered him that forgiveness.
Another issue of course, is that our sinning against each other is really sinning against God, and ultimately it is His forgiveness that we need to seek ... :as the son said "Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you ..." I also appreciated Erwin Lutzer's comments, and like yourself, he's right to point out that if forgiveness is not sought, the offended party still has an obligation to choose to forgive and release the matter to God ... Pastor Gord
You bring up repentance and that is where we want to go with the parable on Sunday evening. I must say that I have enjoyed the discussion this way. Thanks so much for your insights and response. I also know that others are reading our comments so we are making ourselves transparent by doing this. Thanks again for your encouragement.
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