Imagine having someone in your life who
continuously did things to betray your trust. Now imagine that this person came to you after each transgression and begged for your forgiveness. How would you react? If you're like me, you'd likely offer forgiveness a few times. But if the pattern continued, it would become increasingly difficult to forgive.
Isn't it odd, then, that in our relationship with God we expect a different standard? We
continuously do things which stray from God's will. And each week in worship, we prayerfully go to God in confession and ask God for forgiveness. But the difference is that God
continuously forgives us. Each week we rightfully leave with the assurance that God has pardoned us.
Perhaps this doesn't shock us because we are accustomed to the idea that God demonstrates extravagant forgiveness
: no sin is too great for God's forgiveness, and no matter how many times we err, God is always there to offer forgiveness. We might
continuously stumble, but God
continuously stands ready to forgive. If anything could be rightfully characterized as "good news," this is it.
But here's where things get difficult: in our
two Scripture readings for this week, Christ calls on us to practice this sort of forgiveness in our own lives as well. Apparently God takes this whole "on earth as it is in heaven" stuff pretty seriously!
Join us this Sunday as we continue our sermon series, "The Four Sides of Forgiveness." Together, we will explore how we can better model God's forgiveness in our own lives.
I look forward to worshiping with you.
Yours in Christ,
