For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins. v.s. 14-15
Today we turn a new corner in our journey through Lent. The portion of this journey will carry us throughout the entire coming week. The path for this portion of the journey is uncertain, at times dark, formidable, scary, and filled with turns we can't see coming. It's the path toward forgiveness.
There is no easy fix, no magic, no presto-chango, no sure fire methods to forgiveness. It is a sloppy, messy, dirty and painful journey. It drudges up emotions we have worked hard to forget. It often looms larger than our capabilities. It taxes our emotional resources and tempts us to run and hide. It is for some the "impossible task." Truth be told, in some cases it might even be thought to be irresponsible, unnecessary, or even enabling by some.
There is no smooth, easy path for moving through forgiveness and into the land of God's peace.
And yet...as followers of Jesus, his words beckon us beyond our resistance. Even that may be too subtle. His words seem to command us to tear down the barriers and walls of resistance. Reading the above portions of Matthew, we are struck with the seriousness of this command. This word has a sharp and prickly edge to it. Such statements are not meant to tickle the ears of the masses. He draws the line in the sand and suggests that the faithful will cross that line. In fact, if you read further into the next chapter...we come to discover that the crossing of this line and stepping into this difficult journey becomes the point where many exercise their opt out clause. (Matthew 7:13-14)
Forgiveness for the Jesus-follower is a non-negotiable.
It is requisite to the on-going experience of God's grace. Again, that doesn't make it easy. It is an art to be learned, a discipline to be practiced, and an act of grace-filled courage. Forgiveness looks different in each situation. It requires us to take God's lead and muddle through the rough, curvy paths of woundedness and betrayal, broken trust and physical torment. It plums the depths of our suffering and anguish in hopes that on the other side is peace and reconciliation which are God's gifts of faithfulness to those that hazard the journey.
Throughout the next few days, we will take God's lead. For many of us, this week is the primer to a longer more involved journey, but every journey must start somewhere. I make this promise to you that I will not run dismissively over your pain.
My prayer is that you would allow God to unlock the hidden pain in your life. That you might let the healing light of God's grace shine in those dark places. I pray also that emerging from this journey that you would again make yourself available to others, trusting, embracing, and loving those around you without the pain of past wounds overshadowing the hope of what lay ahead
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