Dave's Diary

Daily Readings: Luke 17 and Psalm 33

 ³ So watch yourselves. If your brother or sister sins against you, rebuke them; and if they repent, forgive them. ⁴ Even if they sin against you seven times in a day and seven times come back to you saying “I repent,” you must forgive them.’

“You must forgive them.”

When we hear Jesus command us to forgive those who sin against us, even when their “repentance” seems to be a complete sham (I mean, who genuinely repents yet commits the same sin seven times in a day?) our reaction would probably be either, “I can’t do that!” or “I won’t do that!”

That’s precisely why Jesus followed up His command with two striking teachings.

The first addresses, “I can’t!” It tells us that even when the command to forgive seems as impossible as commanding a mulberry tree to be uprooted and plant itself in the sea, we actually can do it! It is not impossible. We just need to call on the Lord in faith to help us, and He will. With the Lord, forgiveness is always possible.

The second addresses, “I won’t!” It tells us that we actually don’t have the right to say “NO” to His command, any more than a servant would have the right to sit down after a long day’s work and expect the Master to serve him. Jesus is our Lord and Master with absolute rights over our lives. We gave Him those rights when we surrendered to His Lordship after all. So to obey His command and forgive is simply a matter of doing our duty to the Lord who actually knows far better than we do what is best for us and what will lead to abundance of life.

Life application: Live in an attitude of forgiveness today. Do not hold on to any grudges, but release those who sin against you, as freely as the Lord has forgiven you. Trust that the Lord knows best; obey His command; and rely on His strength to empower you to forgive.