Pastors Blog

...so that, on the contrary, you ought rather to forgive and comfort him, lest perhaps such a one be swallowed up with too much sorrow. 2 Co2:7

We discussed 2 Corinthians 2 in our bible study on Tuesday night. This scripture reminded us of the importance of reaffirming someone after their repentance from sin. The Corinthian church decided to drop the hammer in discipline, but didn't want to welcome the repentant back into the church. What a shame to the cause of Christ when this happens! Jesus has forgiven and welcomed us back time and time again, but so often there are those who follow the older brother in the prodigal son story Jesus told. They don't deserve the grace and mercy! No, they don't, but neither do I.

What causes someone to hold on to their hurt? Personal grievances can be hard to forgive. The man in the chapter hurt a lot of people by his immorality, and they found it hard to offer grace after all the hurt he caused. Yet, Christ died for that sin as well.

How do we let it go? The only way is to look at Jesus and remember that His sacrifice is not only for you and your failings toward Christ, but also for someone else's as well. By not forgiving, we are really saying that Jesus' suffering and death wasn't enough for their sin against you. May we be a church that forgives and forgets, and see what God can do with one that He has restored!