The Healing Power of Forgiveness

Prayer-Soldier · Posted: Sat Sep 16, 2017 11:52 am Post subject: The Healing Power of Forgiveness

The Healing Power of Forgiveness

Scripture:

Anger and fury are both of them abominable, and the sinful man shall be subject to them.

He that seeks to revenge himself, shall find vengeance from the Lord, and he will surely keep his sins in remembrance. Forgive your neighbor if he has hurl you: and then shall your sins be forgiven to you when you pray. Man to man reserves anger, and does he seek remedy of God? He has no mercy on a man like himself, and does he entreat for his own sins? He that is but flesh, nourishes anger, and does he ask forgiveness of God? Who shall obtain pardon for his sins?

Remember your last things, and let enmity cease: For corruption and death hang over in his commandments. Remember the fear of God, and be not angry with your neighbor. Remember the covenant of the most High, and overlook the ignorance of your neighbor.
(Sirach 27:30-28:1-7 NABRE; Ecclesiasticus 27:33-27:1-9 DR)

For none of us lives to himself; and no man dies to himself. For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; or whether we die, we die unto the Lord. Therefore, whether we live, or whether we die, we belong to the Lord. For to this end Christ died and rose again; that he might be Lord both of the dead and of the living.
(Romans 14:7-9)

Then came Peter unto him and said: Lord, how often shall my brother offend against me, and I forgive him? Till seven times? Jesus said to him: I say not to you, till seven times; but till seventy times seven times. Therefore is the kingdom of heaven likened to a king, who would take an account of his servants. And when he had begun to take the account, one was brought to him, that owed him ten thousand talents. And as he had not wherewith to pay it, his lord commanded that he should be sold, and his wife and children and all that he had, and payment to be made.

But that servant falling down, besought him, saying: Have patience with me, and I will pay you all. And the lord of that servant being moved with pity, let him go and forgave him the debt. But when that servant was gone out, he found one of his fellow servants that owed him an hundred pence: and laying hold of him, throttled him, saying: Pay what you owe. And his fellow servant falling down, besought him, saying: Have patience with me, and I will pay you all. And he would not: but went and cast him into prison, till he paid the debt.

Now his fellow servants seeing what was done, were very much grieved, and they came and told their lord all that was done. Then his lord called him; and said to him: You wicked servant, I forgave you all the debt, because you besought me: Should not you then have had compassion also on your fellow servant, even as I had compassion on you? And his lord being angry, delivered him to the torturers until he paid all the debt. So also shall my heavenly Father do to you, if you forgive not every one his brother from your hearts.
(Matthew 18:21-35)

Reflection:

As we pursue our days, we have many reasons by which we may justify rising up in anger against another. We are tempted to believe that we may draw justice through vengeance, but the reality is that instead of reducing injustice, vengeance only serves to add to the heap which plagues the world. If we are to seek mercy for where we have failed God and any who surround us, we must become more concerned with the giving of mercy than for the expectation of it.

It is easy for us to hold others to standards to which we do not hold ourselves. It is easy for us to take offense at the slight or perceived slight of another, yet we give no thought to our own acts of arrogance, neglect, indifference, or even hate. It is easy to rise up in anger to an injustice directed against us, but we fail to see the darkness that our desire for retribution seals within us. Though we may be justified in our pain, love calls us away from anger so that it will not become nourished into hatred; a darkness which can grow to pass from generation to generation.

We are tempted to wear the badge of injustice with vengeance in mind, but if we are to expect mercy for the injustices produced at our hands, we must be willing to offer forgiveness for the injustice we perceive. It is only through the hand extended in compassion and forgiveness by which we may end the seasons of destruction and bring forth the seasons of healing and building. There is no hope for justice through the dark heart of hate. What is right and just begins with the heart of love. Forgiveness is the first step away from the darkness of anger and towards the light of compassion, civility, and love.

As we bring forth the light of love for another, so too do we bring it forth for ourselves. It is through arrogance and anger by which enemies are grown, but it is by hands which reach out to help one another by which friends may be formed. In the scheme of time, our life here is brief; therefore, why should we waste it in pain and suffering when we have the opportunity to share in blessings.

Our choices ripple through the hearts which surround us and the hearts which surround them. Let us let the love God desires of us to be our guide. Let us share in the happiness of love rather than the misery of hate. If we feel the darkness grow within us, let us seek a place to pray. Let us reach out to the One who suffered for all; who suffered so that we might receive mercy, who suffered for our salvation. Let us ask Him to help take the darkness away. Let us turn our choices over to that which He asks of us, the choice to love Him and one another. (Matthew 22:36-40)

Though we may be wronged, we must ask ourselves, what is the price of our desire for vengeance? What will we gain over what we lose, not just in the moment, but for the eternity to come? Is the grudge that we hold worth the weight it forces us to carry? Is it better to grow the number of our enemies over the number of our friends? It is not wrong to express our hurt, but we only increase our pain as we dwell upon it. If we believe we lack the strength to forgive, then, let us ask God to grant us that strength.

In His teaching of love, Jesus did not tell us that we need to stand weak in the face of abuse, but that when we are faced with injustice, we have the opportunity to demonstrate the strength of our heart. He told us to turn the other cheek (Matthew 5:39). It was an instruction, not to demonstrate weakness, but from which to demonstrate a greater strength, the strength of forgiveness and love. In so doing, we give light to the evil, but perhaps more importantly, we do not give place for evil to fester within our hearts.

Though injustice may cause anger to swell within us, let us not look for the fight, but for the opportunity for peace. Let us remove the fuel of evil, the darkness of hate. Sometimes evil offers us no choice, such as when the defenseless are threatened, but let us always look first to the opportunity to bring forth the light of love.

Questions for further reflection:

In what ways do we allow anger to rule our choices?

In what ways may we seek the strength to do what is right and just?

In what ways may we build the strength of love within our hearts?

May the peace and blessings of the Lord be with you always,
Prayer Soldier