The Pursuing Passion of Our Risen LordSample

God Pursuing Us in Our Unforgiveness

We saw how Jesus pursued his disciples in their fears. Today, we are going to talk about how Jesus pursues his disciples to receive forgiveness and to be forgiving of others. After Jesus’ death, they were afraid and they went into hiding. So, Jesus after his resurrection, went and met them and gave them his peace. But he also realized they were overwhelmed by all the incidents that happened the last two days which had caused their hearts to become hardened towards their offenders. And so, what did Jesus do?

In John 20:21 and onwards, we read, “Again, Jesus said to them, 'Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, I am sending you. And with that he breathed on them and said, Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone's sins, their sins are forgiven. If you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.” Jesus understood that the grace that they really need now is to forgive their offenders because they are going to be proclaimers of Christ's forgiveness. And if they have to proclaim the forgiveness of Christ, they themselves should feel forgiven and in return should be forgiving people in the same spirit that Jesus showed on the cross of Calvary.

When he was raised up, the first word that came out of his mouth was “Father, forgive them for they do not know what they do.” And that is the spirit he wanted to impart to his disciples. And so, he breathed into them. His spirit was needed so that they might have the spirit of forgiveness to be given to people around them. So, my dear friends, God is willing to pursue his children in order that we might become forgivers of others.

I remember a case that came to me many years back. This lady was not from the Christian faith. And she was struggling to forgive her husband who was into an extra-marital affair. But her husband after coming back said that he wanted to live with her again. But she was not able to forgive. She came to me and asked, “PC, tell me, why should I forgive? He has offended me. I didn't do anything that deserves all this. Why should I forgive?”. Now as I heard that question, I knew she was struggling. I told her that what helps me to forgive is the fact that Christ has forgiven me. I told her that I wouldn't even deserve to counsel her if God would have counted my sins against me. My dear friends, after I said that, she looked at me and said, “That makes a lot of sense to me”.

So, my dear friends, if you are struggling to forgive someone or if you are wondering how can my forgiving of others be compensated? I want to tell you that Jesus has compensated for the sins of the whole world through the cross of Calvary. He has forgiven you so now you can graciously forgive others. Receive the forgiveness that Christ gives and be willing to forgive. Only forgiven people can forgive others. May God help you to receive forgiveness and to forgive as He pursues us for His glory.

Prayer

Thank you, Lord Jesus, for reminding me that you love me so much and that you have forgiven me. Thank you for pursuing me with love and empowering me to forgive others. In Jesus' name, Amen.