Forgiveness

The ten most important words in the Bible, issued by God, to God…that are incontrovertible by Gods laws…the ten commandments…that are presumed dead in most areas of society today. Those ten words were made for us, not by us, but were meant to be the highest degree of what we should be and do.

Sadly, such a large faction of humans these days are looking for a payday without proof, soliciting a false narrative that pits men against men, women against women, women against men and men against women. If there is ever a time in the history of humans where antagonism is key…we have found it, we procure it, we value it and we keep it to ourselves as though it is treasure AND we don’t believe this treasure claimed by another is as worthy as our own.
If I show you my penny and you in turn show me yours and then I claim that mine is better, more important, worth more because of my own reasonings, I now have a beef with which I can deny your worth in front of our common family and friends and, even worse, tell people you don’t even know how worthless your claims are. That is called calumny and we have forgotten just how wrong that is.

Let’s say I walk down the street ahead of you and I address a crowd of people and tell them just how horrible a person you are, truth or untruth, it is all the same.

“What if it is truth and it is meant as a warning?”
There is seldom (if ever) a story told that does not include embellishment. If there is one word placed inappropriately or for added flair to the story and that story centers on one individual (or a group), it has been embellished with calumny and calumny is wrong and is a sin. If we have ever told someone about another person and it has no will to protect or serve as protection, it is gossip, gossip is calumny and, again, calumny is wrong and a sin.

“What if it was backed up by fact?”
Joe Shmoe* spent six years in prison for armed robbery.
Joe served his time and was released back to public life.
You heard from Mary Canari that Joe was in prison and told John LeBonn, John told Chet, Chets wife told her friends at the guild, the guild passed it along to John Q. Writer whom owns the local paper who publishes that Joe is a thief released into their community and we should beware.
Joe can’t find a place to live, work, anything…and it happened the same way in the last three towns he attempted to live in.
Joe was wrong in the armed robbery event.
Joe lost contact with his child and is not allowed to see her any longer.
Joe was out of work when he robbed the store that had the medicine his daughter needed and had needed for weeks.
Joe was caught.
Joe served his time.
Joe applied himself in prison and obtained his GED and an Associates Degree in prison.
Joe ministered in prison and got other inmates to apply themselves in positive forms.
Joe was able to get ten men to get their GEDs and Associates Degrees. Those ten men didn’t get out of jail at the same time as Joe and were able to bring others to positive motion who brought others to the same motion and it continued perhaps through ever.
Joe had a mentor in prison who brought him to better himself.
Joes hard work and the work and ministry of his mentor have now been flushed down the proverbial toilet and none of the positive motion will be mentioned in the news that people love because we love to see failure beyond our own, especially grand failure with great gesture, embellished with fancy accounts (lies), even fancier build ups (lies) to the fancy accounts (lies) that end in a spray of fireworks (lies) that all draw the oohs (I bought it) and ahhs (I passed it on) of those involved. It was never even noted that the pharmacy owner found Joes needs, forgave him, got the medicine for Joes daughter and had asked the prosecutor to drop the charges against Joe. The forgiveness ended with the one person who was actually in harms way.

“What if nobody listened?”
Do you scroll through the news stories on the internet? Which stories stop you and make you read them? The more sensational or racy headline stops everyone who is looking for that gossip and even those who aren’t but have become intrigued. It’s human. I can open up Google™ for a recipe and the newsfeed follows and something catches my eye. I go to read it forgetting that I wanted my cheesecake recipe until I have read six other stories connected. Google™ made out with their advertising skills and got paid, I now have something to add to tomorrows coffee time at work and I forgot to make the cheesecake. There is a reason people like storytellers and music made by storytellers. If you stopped eighty people coming out of a concert and asked them the beginning four notes that were played in a certain song I would guess one or two people would know. Ask those same people the words to the song…I’d guess at near eighty would know them and sing them to you as best they could.
People listen, period. Choose your words as though you are speaking about yourself and the whole world is listening.

The man was turned over to the authorities for “a crime” that was purely posturing to remove him from being able to remove the comforts they had gotten accustomed to.
The authorities attempted to prove his guilt by beating him into submitting to what his accusers brought forth.
Even with his head bleeding and his skin and muscle being torn from the bone, this man never submitted
The authorities then attempted to release him. The cries from the throngs of people pushed forth that he must be executed for this crime (because of he said, she said) which he had been cleared of.
In an attempt to clean his hands of the whole situation the authority gave them a choice of releasing this man or releasing a murderer into their community. If you don’t think the media has control over the greater populations thinking and actions, you had best think again. They chose that the murderer be set free into their community.
The place where his death sentence was to be committed was a distance away. He was told that he would carry the very same poison that would take his life once he walked that road to its end. They lined the streets to watch. His sentence would be the end of their harshness and carelessness to an innocent man but they would get the most out of it that they could. He was within spitting distance so they spit upon him. (Just think about our returning servicewomen and men from Vietnam if you are sure this wouldn’t happen). They threw stones at him and they even tried to get his friends hurt. His friends were terrified they would be treated the same and all but one hid away. That one true friend we should all be! He not only carried that death potion but he was transfixed on his goal of getting to that station where they would apply it. He fell from his injuries but he got up each time and pursued that poison to be applied! Was he not sane? Had they knocked a screw loose in and during his beatings? Who runs towards death? Who would drag their beaten and bleeding body to the site of their own death…but someone who had to accomplish something greater than death. That poison, the cross, was applied with true animosity by pounding metal spikes through his body to attach him to that cross. He didn’t fight them. He allowed them. Did he cry out with pain? I’d bet on it. He was fully 100% human just as He was fully 100% God. He was not 50/50 as some would assume. He felt the pain as humans do but, only God could have endured all of the pain from the beatings, the thorned crown forced into the skin and bone on His head, the Green Mile He would trudge, fall and crawl. The emotion welled up within Him of being falsely accused of a crime and the same people who witnessed Him heal their own people then spitting on and cussing Him, laughing as He fell, knowing “that’s gonna leave a mark”.
Jesus told His Disciples this (from John 12:32) “And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” Little did they know that it was not to be lifted up to a place of honor (do you watch the awards shows of whom people lift up actors and musicians with such fanfare?) but it would be nailed to a tree and that tree lifted up thus Him being lifted up…and that tree would not stay standing on the ground, so there was a pit dug into the ground where they would allow that tree with the person attached to it to fall into that pit until it stopped jarringly at the bottom. I can well imagine where His hands and feet were spiked to the tree must have ripped as it hit the bottom of that pit. And still, this Son of God, hanging between two thieves who rightfully were placed where they were, one to His right and one to His left. The one on His left continued to berate Him and scorn Him. The man to the right took to His defense telling the other to stop and realize they are in the midst of something (someOne) greater than themselves…and this criminal asks Jesus forgiveness. He knows he will die soon but he needed to know his eternity would not be the reckoning of his actions during his life here. Jesus not only forgives this man to His right but establishes that he will be in Heaven with Him this day!!!
Jesus looks out among the crowds administering to His death, all those who spat on Him and threw stones and insults. He remembers they freed a murderer instead of the Savior. He sees the soldiers who ripped His body with the whips and other tools of torture. He sees the soldiers who are now drawing lots for the clothing they removed from His body before attaching Him to that tree. The artists always place a wrap around His waste. You know that any humiliation would not have been complete without removing all of His clothing entirely, right?
I am sure that He saw and spoke to His mother and His friend Mary and His Disciple John as it was noted but even if there were a dozen people who admired Him at that time, in that place, they were well outnumbered by the vast crowd who wanted to witness His death. You and I both know what it feels like to be in front of someone who dislikes or even hates us. Imagine the town gathering to hate you…and before Jesus expires with the words “It is finished” He asks this:
“Forgive them Father for they know not what they do”
The ten most important words in the Bible, issued by God, to God…that are incontrovertible by Gods laws…the ten commandments…that are presumed dead in most areas of society today. Those ten words were made for us, not by us, but were meant to be the highest degree of what we should be and do.

Forgive.
Seek forgiveness…even if the offended does not allow it, God will.
Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors.
It counts for and against us.
Count right!

I wish you peace!
~b
Shine Today™

*Joe Shmoe is a fictional character utilized to make a point in a fictional story that has many similarities to real life