From your friends at

Flaming Sword Communications Group

“a practical approach to faith”

Genesis 50:19-20
“But Joseph said to them, “Don’t be afraid. Am I in the place of God? You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.”

This week’s THEOLOGICAL FOCUS is on FORGIVENESS

Many theologians aptly describe the lack of forgiveness as a cancer. This is absolutely the best analogy I’ve seen on this subject. Far too often, we think of forgiveness as being an unmerited gift for those who may not deserve it. We do this because below the surface, we often keep emotional score cards as we deal with other people. Well, if Jesus did that with us, there would be no hope whatsoever. No matter how “good” we may think we are, we all fall short of God’s standard of good. We all sin, that’s for sure.

There is much to discuss regarding the subject of forgiveness. Volumes have been written on this subject by theologians and many others. But we at FSCG believe in first discussing the “big picture” elements of the Christian faith before we do any “deep dives” into complex theology. The supremacy of Christ is more important than anything else. With that in mind, please consider what may be the most basic element which must be eliminated before you can truly forgive anyone.

Revenge.

How many movies, books, and TV programs have we all enjoyed where the bad guys are paid back for their evil? You may be telling a little fib if you deny the satisfaction we feel at retribution being emphatically issued to evildoers. As far as I can tell, that’s a righteous feeling. We all should hate evil. But that’s not the issue. What’s at issue is who gets to administer the punishment. 

Yep, you might’ve guessed it. This is God’s job, not ours. 

Two quick things to think about this week:  (1) If we control our lust for revenge and realize it belongs to God, and that it’s His responsibility to judge evil, this will this emancipate us from the emotional negativity which is a constant bedfellow of the desire for revenge. (2) Have you, yourself, done something which perhaps might be considered evil by someone else? 

Most of us inevitably resort to the fallacy of the “north of Hitler” morality syndrome. We think we’re good people on a scale somewhere better than Hitler, so we think we’re okay. We think we’re good. We can become impressed with our own goodness. The problem is that we’re all flawed and in need of God’s grace. When I’m feeling the desire for revenge, I remind myself that it doesn’t belong to me. It belongs to my heavenly Father. Also, I’m far from being an angel, myself. I’ve hurt others, and I need their forgiveness.

Please think about removing any unforgiveness in your heart. It’s a cancer to your soul and is definitely the playground of the evil ones. Read the scripture above once again and see that God can use the evil that has come against you for an ultimate good. It’s important to not try to take that away from the Lord. It belongs to Him.

Have a great week!

Vengeance belongs to God, not any one of us