SATURDAY – QUESTION AND ANSWER 

SATURDAY – QUESTION AND ANSWER 

Question #1.  My mate has hurt me so badly, how can I ever forgive him/her?

Answer #1.  After Christ was betrayed, jeered, tried and unfairly convicted.  He finally suffered the cruelest indignity.  The only perfect man who ever lived was hung on a cross with two other criminals.  Below Him, soldiers mocked Him and stripped Him of His clothing while passerby sneered.

Yet Christ responded in an incredible way.  Even at that moment, while suffering the most terrible abuse, He said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do”  (Luke 23:34).  His response holds three lessons.

1.  Forgiveness embraces the offenders.  Christ offered forgiveness to the very people who hurt Him the most.  And that’s not all.  He offered it to them while they were still hurting Him.

2.  Forgiveness initiates.  God desired your fellowship so much that He took the initiative in forgiving you.  He did not wait for you to earn it (as if you ever could).

3.  Forgiveness gives up all rights to punish.  God canceled your debt against Him.  You deserve to die as the penalty for your sins.  But, Christ paid the penalty as a substitute for you.

If you ever have trouble forgiving your mate, just remember what Christ did for you—and that you didn’t deserve it.

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