Walking the talk

And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you - Ephesians 4:32

One of the most difficult aspects of Christianity is the subject of forgiveness.

Our pride makes it very difficult to receive it for ourselves because we feel unworthy of it which is partially true but the even greater challenge is giving it away to someone who has wronged us personally.

Regardless of the struggle Jesus gave us a great example to learn from the example of his life and that of Judas Iscariot.

Then He appointed twelve, that they might be with Him and that He might send them out to preach, and to have power to heal sicknesses and to cast out demons: Simon, to whom He gave the name Peter; James the son of Zebedee and John the brother of James, to whom He gave the name Boanerges, that is, “Sons of Thunder”; Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, Simon the Cananite; and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him - Acts 6:16

Jesus appointed Judas as part of his twelve disciples knowing beforehand that Judas would eventually betray him and assist in having Jesus crucified.

And yet Jesus still chose to forgive him despite everything he did. Some would argue that things were already set in place and that it had to happen this way to fulfill the prophecies of the Old Testament which I do not disagree with that aspect.

The other side of this subject brings forth two elements that can't be ignored which are free will and faith.

Jesus and Judas both had an independent freewill to act and do as they pleased. The key difference between them was the matter of trusting faith which resulted in humble obedience or disobedience.

Let's look at two scriptural examples for both of them.

Jesus - saying, “Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done.” - Luke 22:42

Judas - Then he threw down the pieces of silver in the temple and departed, and went and hanged himself -Matthew 27:5

We see clearly that Jesus chose to obey God's commands to become the sacrificial lamb for all mankind resulting in complete forgiveness.

Judas acted selfishly without faith and rejected Christ's offer of forgiveness and full atonement.

The key to forgiveness in my humble opinion is faith. Without it, we are just like Judas who did great works but without faith was unable to forgive himself let alone receive Christ's offer of forgiveness for all his sins.

But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him - Hebrews 11:6

Forgiveness will always be a challenge to receive and give away but if we have faith in his promises he is faithful to work them out in and through us.