“For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” -Jesus
Onto what am I holding? From whom am I withholding forgiveness? To whom am I denying grace?
By doing so, in essence I am saying, “Go to hell.” Harsh? Fine.
By doing so, in essence I am saying, “I am better than you.”
“My sin isn’t so bad that God should withhold forgiveness from me…but yours is.”
Do I really feel that way? Honestly, sometimes I do.
Should I objectively feel that way? Absolutely not.
“All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” -Paul (sinner and former persecutor of Christians)
“Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone’s sins, they are forgiven.” -Jesus
Wow, that’s powerful! And radical! OF COURSE it came from from Jesus!
So who will you be? Grace-filled and grace-giving? Or empty and stingy?
These first 5 days are about introducing the main themes, and the challenges get more direct starting next week. But that’s a pretty big challenge in itself.
Will I personify God’s grace to those around me?