Forgivness and Trust

This post has been a long time coming. I first wanted to write about this after a sermon in our church on November 14, 2010. Yes, last year. Then, in another sermon on August 7, 2011, a different sermon touched on a similar theme. So, I thought it was about time that I wrote about this. The surprising thing to me is that I had never thought about this before but my son says he knew this already. The Child is father of the Man.

One of the basic teachings of Christianity is that we should forgive others as we have been forgiven by God.

Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony. Colossians 3:12-14 New Living Translation

But I always found this hard to do. How could I forgive people over and over and allow them to do bad things to me again? This is what I needed to learn more about and these two sermons helped me a great deal. There is a difference between forgiving someone and trusting them. Forgiveness is a gift but trust is earned. We are to forgive even if it isn't earned. Again, this is just what God has done for us. But we don't necessarily need to trust the people we forgive - until they earn our trust. When we forgive people, we are giving up on hatred and retaliation. But it doesn't mean we allow them to take advantage of us. We are allowed to not trust them until they prove themselves.

But when he saw many Pharisees and Sadducees coming to watch him baptize, he denounced them. “You brood of snakes!” he exclaimed. “Who warned you to flee God’s coming wrath? Prove by the way you live that you have repented of your sins and turned to God. Don’t just say to each other, ‘We’re safe, for we are descendants of Abraham.’ That means nothing, for I tell you, God can create children of Abraham from these very stones. Matthew 3:7-9 New Living Translation

This made it so much easier for me to forgive. When I realized I didn't necessarily have to trust that person in order to forgive them, it allowed me the freedom to forgive. Not that forgiving is always easy but this definitely makes it easier. If you'd like to see these two sermons for yourself, look at People and Trust and People We Don't Like. I think our minister will explain it better than I can.