Radical Forgiveness

I often get accused of preaching some pretty in-your-face, hard, convicting sermons. Really? A nice guy like me? Am I so uncouth as to preach, "Turn or burn!" "Repent or be damned!" Well, if I do, it's only because that's what is in the Bible. I try to accurately reflect and portray what the Bible passage I am preaching from says.

And when you read the Bible, you find that God is pretty radical in His hatred of sin. Even Jesus, often portrayed as His nice guy Son, seems to have that same hatred for sin; so much so, that He even equates the thought of sin to be the equivalent of actually committing the sin. In the sermon on the Mount, for instance, Jesus writes:

"You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not
murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.' But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother 2without cause shall be in danger of the judgment. And whoever says to his brother, 'Raca' shall be in danger of the council. But whoever says, 'You fool!" shall be in danger of hellfire." Matthew 21-22 (NKJV)

That's a tough passage. Now, I've never killed anyone. But from what Jesus has said, I am guilty of murder. One hasty comment said in anger, and boom - I am guilty. I can't feel good about that.

Likewise, Jesus said the same thing about adultery, taking it from the actual act to the thought behind the act. He said this:

"You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not commit adultery.' But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for has already committed adultery in his heart.' Matthew 5:27-28 (NKJV)

Again, I have never committed adultery, and by the grace of God, I never will. However, from what Jesus said, If I let my eyes and thoughts wander, I and every other red-blooded male are considered adulterers. He has condemned the whole race of us. But Jesus doesn't stop there, in the very next verse, He gives this advice: "If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish than for your whole body to be cast into hell." Matthew 5:29 (NKJV) That's how radical Jesus views sin. He hates sin with a passion. And the pages of Scripture are filled with these unrelenting demands for how we should live our lives. So guilty I stand. Guilty we all stand before a just and holy God.

When Jesus is confronted in John 8 with a woman caught in the very act of adultery, standing in front of Him red faced and guilty, you would expect Jesus to read her the riot act and throw the book at her. Yet, He simply says, "Go, and sin no more." John 8:11 (NKJV) Likewise, Jesus had taught in Luke 9:62, "No one having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God." But when Peter turned back and denied Him three times, Jesus quickly, lovingly forgave him and recommissioned him for ministry. That is the kind of radical forgiveness Jesus offers. His holy wrath against sin is balanced by His love for sinners so much that he took upon Himself our punsihment.

John 3:16, that ever famous and popular verse, says it so well, "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life." Isaiah brought out this truth in Isaiah 53:6, "All we like sheep have gone astray, but the Lord laid on Him the iniquity of us all." These are the twin truths. We all stand guilty before God and deserve hell. Those who believe in God's Son, Jesus, are offered radical mercy and forgiveness. Have you believed?

But we should also be willing to offer that same kind of radical forgiveness to those who have sinned against us. Do we have the kind of love that covers sin? Proverbs 10:12 says, "Hatred stirs up strife, but love covers a multitude of sins." Are we willing to forgive our spouse who has wronged us? Or our children? What about those in our church or community? If we seek to have the mind of Christ, we will learn to hate the sin that dwells within us, and we will learn to forgive radically.