Author C.S. Lewis wrote, “Everyone says forgiveness is a lovely idea until they have something to forgive.” Hi, I’m Tom Ellsworth from Sherwood Oaks Christian Church with a minute message.
You’ve heard it quoted many times, “To err is human; to forgive, divine.” The value of that statement is realized in the fact that we are never more like God than when we forgive. In its simplest form, the Bible’s theme is the story of man’s incredible need for forgiveness and God’s incredible sacrificial efforts to provide it. One cannot over-estimate the power of forgiveness.
Marghanita Laski was a well-known twentieth century novelist and literary critic. In a television interview not long before her death in 1988, she made this comment, “What I envy most about you Christians is your forgiveness; I have nobody to forgive me.” God’s grand promise is this – the burden of our guilt can be washed away in Christ. And once we have experienced the freedom that forgiveness brings, we in turn can learn how to forgive.
You see, forgiving others truly helps us. Carrying a grudge is hard work; learning to forgive releases that burden. Forgiveness, then, is a double blessing – being forgiven and forgiving others truly sets us free!