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"Reality is that when we hold onto the bitterness of offense all we are doing is causing ourselves damage. Forgiveness frees us from having to carry the weight of the offense for the rest of our lives."
As quoted from the book "Victor - Breaking Free From a Victim-Based Society" by John H. Hovis Page 212.
Offense is a growing cancer in our world today. It is because of the bitterness that is there because of the various offenses we perceive that we so easily classify our culture as a Victim-Based Society.
Just like the disease I compared offense to, being trapped in cancer robs us of the freedom to live fully. Unlike cancer though, there is a guaranteed remedy to offense that can eliminate the effects of the disease that threatens to take the best life has to offer. The remedy to offense is forgiveness.
The more I think about that last statement, the more I see it to be true. Chemo-therapy is a common treatment of many of the cancers that we face today. Chemo is an interesting disease treatment method. It is based on the theory that, with enough poison introduced into the body, the out of control growth of the cancer cells can be turned, making remission possible.
There are a lot of similarities to forgiveness as a treatment to offense when compared to chemo as a cancer treatment. Just like Chemo, forgiveness is pretty much an indiscriminate way of treating the disease. Though chemos have been developed to better target just unhealthy cells, most chemos cause damage to healthy cells as well. In general, forgiveness is kind of the same way. Though we might be targeting one element of offense with forgiveness, the impact of this powerful disease treatment method goes way beyond just what we think the target might be.
It is when we take the cure for offense in larger and larger doses that the healing properties of forgiveness really come into play. You see, offense is a disease of the mind as well as of the heart. As forgiveness is applied, we correctly assume that the bondage making effects offense has on our heart will be minimized and ultimately reversed. What we sometimes forget is that forgiveness also works on our minds.
It is from that place of thought that we really need the cure of offense. Though forgiveness might be just what is needed to soften our hearts towards the kinds of situations that hurt us in the first place, it is in the mind where the issue of bondage and freedom reside. With enough of the cure for offense, our minds start to turn in ways were the negative thoughts that have been the result from a particular offense begin to change. It is amazing how much good a victor can have in this world when their thinking has been set free by taking ample doses of forgiveness.
The Bible is filled with scriptures discussing forgiveness. I think God is pretty serious about the cures this amazing treatment brings to the life of a victor. Check out today's reading with me now.
The Bible is filled with scriptures discussing forgiveness. I think God is pretty serious about the cures this amazing treatment brings to the life of a victor. Check out today's reading with me now.
Lord, by such things people live;
and my spirit finds life in them too.
You restored me to health
and let me live.
Surely it was for my benefit
that I suffered such anguish.
In your love you kept me
from the pit of destruction;
you have put all my sins
behind your back. Isaiah 38:16-17 (NIV)
Near the beginning of our reading, it says, "You restored me to health and let me life." Those who have had the amazing gift of remission when fighting cancer feel the weight of these words found in Isaiah. Can't you feel the gratitude in that sentence? It isn't too hard to understand the relief a person who has come through so much has when they can make that statement.
I believe God wants us all to feel that way in just about all that we do in this world. He wants us to realize how easy it is to be restored to health when offense is concerned. He wants us to realize that it is when we put some things behind us that we can begin to live in the fullness of the freedom victors are suppose to have. We can't live that way when the sins of those who have offended us remain right before us like they do when we haven't forgiven.
I had an interesting thought that I almost didn't include in today's presentation. Frankly it kind of sounds blasphemous on the surface. I'm going to say it anyways because I think it makes the point that I believe I'm suppose to get across today. I believe God is serious about forgiveness because of the freedom it affords. Not only is He serious about forgiveness because it makes us free, but I believe that He is so serious about forgiving us because it sets Him free as well.
Good, no lightening bolts yet! Let me keep going. You see, we have done a lot to offend God. He created us, for goodness sake, and we have turned out backs on Him. That kind of rejection, that kind of disrespect, that kind of affront is akin to almost any of the things that have been done to you that has brought offense into your life. If God continued to hold a grudge against us for not treating Him correctly, I believe He would be in just as much bondage as we feel in our lives when the bitterness of offense is allowed to linger in our lives as well.
I think God forgives for two reasons. First of all He loves us. Secondly, He forgives because it brings a level of freedom in His life that we too could benefit from in our lives. Since we are created in His image, maybe those reasons for forgiveness need to be part of our existence as well. Even if we forgive because we want freedom and we want that freedom as a result of a growing love for ourselves, I believe we are living like God when we apply those motives to the issue of offense in our lives.
Offense is a cancer that is eating away at the very fabric of our society today. Don't let that cancer rob you of the fullness of the freedom God intends for you to live out. Take every opportunity to forgive. As you let forgiveness be more and more what drives you, you will begin to see the power of freedom that makes love have the kinds of impact that this world needs so desperately. Live the life of a victor today. Forgive and find freedom in all that you do.
and my spirit finds life in them too.
You restored me to health
and let me live.
Surely it was for my benefit
that I suffered such anguish.
In your love you kept me
from the pit of destruction;
you have put all my sins
behind your back. Isaiah 38:16-17 (NIV)
Near the beginning of our reading, it says, "You restored me to health and let me life." Those who have had the amazing gift of remission when fighting cancer feel the weight of these words found in Isaiah. Can't you feel the gratitude in that sentence? It isn't too hard to understand the relief a person who has come through so much has when they can make that statement.
I believe God wants us all to feel that way in just about all that we do in this world. He wants us to realize how easy it is to be restored to health when offense is concerned. He wants us to realize that it is when we put some things behind us that we can begin to live in the fullness of the freedom victors are suppose to have. We can't live that way when the sins of those who have offended us remain right before us like they do when we haven't forgiven.
I had an interesting thought that I almost didn't include in today's presentation. Frankly it kind of sounds blasphemous on the surface. I'm going to say it anyways because I think it makes the point that I believe I'm suppose to get across today. I believe God is serious about forgiveness because of the freedom it affords. Not only is He serious about forgiveness because it makes us free, but I believe that He is so serious about forgiving us because it sets Him free as well.
Good, no lightening bolts yet! Let me keep going. You see, we have done a lot to offend God. He created us, for goodness sake, and we have turned out backs on Him. That kind of rejection, that kind of disrespect, that kind of affront is akin to almost any of the things that have been done to you that has brought offense into your life. If God continued to hold a grudge against us for not treating Him correctly, I believe He would be in just as much bondage as we feel in our lives when the bitterness of offense is allowed to linger in our lives as well.
I think God forgives for two reasons. First of all He loves us. Secondly, He forgives because it brings a level of freedom in His life that we too could benefit from in our lives. Since we are created in His image, maybe those reasons for forgiveness need to be part of our existence as well. Even if we forgive because we want freedom and we want that freedom as a result of a growing love for ourselves, I believe we are living like God when we apply those motives to the issue of offense in our lives.
Offense is a cancer that is eating away at the very fabric of our society today. Don't let that cancer rob you of the fullness of the freedom God intends for you to live out. Take every opportunity to forgive. As you let forgiveness be more and more what drives you, you will begin to see the power of freedom that makes love have the kinds of impact that this world needs so desperately. Live the life of a victor today. Forgive and find freedom in all that you do.
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