BY VIRGINIA BRANDT BERG
forg iveness “LORD, MAKE ALL THE BAD PEOPLE GOOD,” a young boy prayed, “and then make all the good people nice.” Unfortunately, in this imperfect world, sometimes we have to live around people who aren’t always good, and other times we have to live around generally good people who aren’t always nice. We’ve all been in situations where we feel we’ve been unjustly treated or misjudged, and we almost certainly will be again. At times like that, it’s good to remember that we, too, haven’t always been good or nice. “Judge not, that you be not judged,” the Bible says, “for with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.”1 That should make us a little more thoughtful about our attitudes toward others, especially those who have wronged us, for exactly what we give will be exactly what we receive. “Therefore you are inexcusable, O man, whoever you are who judge, for in whatever you judge another you condemn yourself; for you who judge practice the same things.” 2 Perhaps you feel that you have to do something about the wrong that’s been done to you, to hurt others as they’ve hurt you, but don’t do it; don’t bear a grudge. Nothing will sour your disposition and ruin your happiness like letting bitterness creep into your heart. Beware “lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become ACTIVATED VOL 9, ISSUE 10 | www.activated.org
defiled.” 3 It is far better to forgive and forget that injustice you’ve suffered. Pity and love and pray for those who hurt you, and then leave matters in God’s hands.4 God knows all about it, and His Word speaks with finality regarding our forgiving those who wrong us, no matter how unfair it all seems. Jesus said, “If you do not forgive men their [wrongs], neither will your Father forgive your [wrongs],” 5 and “My heavenly Father also will [punish] you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his [wrongs].”6 You can’t do that yourself; it’s not in your human nature to forgive. It has to be Jesus working in and through you. Tell Him about it, ask Him to cleanse your heart of any animosity or bitterness that may be festering, and turn the situation over to Him completely—and don’t take it back the next time you think about that person or situation. Only then is He able to go to work on your behalf, to heal your spirit and help you move on. This usually isn’t what we feel like doing, but it’s God’s solution. If you’ve been hurt, He waits to help you, He wants to help you, and He will. But you must set things in motion. You must forgive.• 1
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Matthew 7:1–2 Romans 2:1 3 Hebrews 12:15
Matthew 5:44–48; 1 Peter 3:9 Matthew 6:15 6 Matthew 18:35 5
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