Feb
20
Forgive and Embrace
Filed Under Devotional
I have been a regular watcher of NBA basketball this year which hasn’t been the case for some time. As a result, my wife is watching more with me and creating some funny situations. It used to be that she would scold me for getting upset or yelling at the TV. Now that she watches more, she’s the one getting annoyed with the referees and quizzing me about whether teams can appeal bad calls.
It’s also given me opportunity to start discussing some of the unwritten rules. All sports have them, but you don’t learn them until you observe for a while. There’s the fact that if there is any doubt about who caused the foul, the superstar will get the benefit of the doubt. There’s the fact that if you play physical defense, you’ll get away with more by the night’s end. There are also some gentlemanly rules about not running up the score and not showing up an opponent.
These unwritten rules grow out of a need by the players to police themselves and keep the games somewhat civil. They know the things they can let go and the things they have to hold other accountable for.
This is not a bad attitude about life. While we can certainly point to all of the times when others have crossed the letter of the Law and impacted us, you will find that you have few friends if you bring them all to light. After a while it just sounds like the kids in the backseat screaming, “He’s touching me!”
“He who covers over an offense promotes love, but whoever repeats the matter separates close friends.” Proverbs 17:9
This is not license to ignore the Law, but to recognize that forgiveness can build better relationships than judgement. And, really, who are we to deny forgiveness after what we’ve received from God?
“Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” Ephesians 4:32
Don’t look for opportunities to accuse and condemn. Forgive and embrace.