Forgiveness

Exercise for kids (and grown-ups):

Multiply 7 x 70....490

Start a list: date, person, offense.
To forgive is a verb. Forgiveness is a noun. It's active, not passive. God does it. God forgives. And he keeps forgiving. Jesus' words, "Your sins are forgiven" brought physical healing to people.

When you forgive someone write it down & cross it out. You could also cut 490 strips of paper, and throw them away but if we keep a cross out list we might see a pattern to the things that offend us and patterns to our own sins that need forgiveness. When you get to 490 start again . . .

But think about something. If God asks us to forgive like that, He must be doing that, too. If He asks us to keep His commandments, He must be keeping them, too. If He asks us to turn the other cheek, He must be doing that too. If He asks us to bless those who curse us and love those who hate us . . . He must be doing that, too, all the time . . . God of generations, God of heaven & earth . . . I'm not saying He doesn't get angry & shake generations, heaven, & earth but imagine all the blessing that's going on. Imagine all of the people God loves . . .

from a slightly different angle

Matt 38-48 (NIRV)

All that Jesus said & did, all that He was, represented God - "I and the Father are One." "That which I see my Father doing, I do." Even when push, came to shove, came to crucifixion, He lived the words He spoke . . .

If you take all that Jesus said and substitute: "God can ask us to be like this because this is the way God is -" from throwing tables, to healing, to turning the other cheek - the hard stuff...

We assume (we've always learned) that all the things Jesus told us, all God's rules... this is how we're supposed to act...Is it more empowering to understand/know/see that He can ask us to do these things because this is how God acts? This is how God behaves? This is who God is. . .the God we believe in...the God we trust...the God who made us...Father, Son, Holy Spirit?