Forgiveness

Normally when I hear the word "forgiveness," I think of the Ryan Reynolds/Amy Smart movie Just Friends. In the film, Ryan's character works in the music business, and his boss wants him to follow around a braindead socialite that he's looking to sign to his record label. During a flight to Paris, Samantha James (the aforementioned socialite) has started working on a song entitled "Forgiveness." It seems like the only thing she's done is sing the first verse of the song since they left. She sings it again. Then again. She then imagines if Bono sang it with her. Again and again and again and again. Then she sets the plane on fire. Hilarity ensues for the rest of the movie.

Back to her song. The first line of the song, "Forgiveness is more than saying sorry" is rather poignant, given the context that it's presented. When looking at Jesus, forgiveness is so much more than us saying that we're sorry for sinning. Forgiveness is the acceptance of what Christ did for us. The entirety of it. His life (sinless), death (brutal), and resurrection (miraculous) were all prophesied by the prophets and fulfilled in the Son of God so that every sin could be wiped away. As a mere, sinful man, I can't imagine what Jesus must have felt to forgive not just my transgressions, but all of humanity's. Every thing leading up to and following his death on the cross. There's a saying that when someone has a difficult decision to make, the "weight of the world" is upon their shoulders. With Jesus, it literally was.

No, there is no "logical" way to explain his sinless life, death, and rising from the dead other than the simple fact that he was an incarnate deity--the Son of God. There doesn't need to be some man-made, scientific, rational explaination for what happened. The supposed "logic" of man is mere folly to God as it is. One act of obedience led to the departure of condemnation for sins. There is now NO condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. How is that an allegorical or ficticious writing? It seems quite blunt to me. Christ died and rose again so that our sins could be forgiven.

With that all being said, that means forgiveness is real. It means it's tangible. It also means that sin and all that it entails is real. We're weak creatures. We're not inherently good--we're inherently sinful, therefore "bad." We need Him. I thank God for His grace, mercy, and love that He freely gives to us. It's something that is so simple, yet so often contested and debated. The price has been paid in full. With that entire scope, it almost seems foolish that we struggle to accept His forgiveness (and admit that we need it), as well as forgive those in our lives who wrong us. I'm just as guilty of harboring hurts and pain. They seem rather inconsequential in comparison to what Jesus must have felt to forgive everybody who was, is, and is to come. Wow. It blows my mind.

Even in my walk with Christ now, I struggle to accept His forgiveness. Why am I so special? Why are any of us? We are worthy because He loves us. Everything that this world deems as "love" fails. The one true love? Never. I thank God for loving me enough to forgive me, even when I'm ready to write my life away. It sounds selfish, but everybody is worthy of that love and acceptance into the King's arms. If you have yet to experience that love, I urge you to run to Him. He wants to know you so that he may love you and show you how to live a life full of His love.