So why not let’s forgive everyone?

Matthew Hurley — Thu, 25 Nov 2010 08:12:23 +0000

I once corresponded online with a Christian friend who felt he had no obligation to forgive an unbeliever who had been trash-talking him in an online discussion—a religion debate thread, no less—on a forum we both frequent. Some atheists in the debate had a tendency to defamatory slurs on Christianity in lieu of real arguments, and my friend complained of one such instance. The other guy said “sorry,” but with the semi-taunting remark that, being a Christian, that meant he’d have to forgive him, right? My friend replied that he wasn’t convinced of the sincerity of the apology, and would therefore postpone forgiveness.

My problem with this, and the reason I personally messaged him about it, is that even unbelievers often evidence better charity than this, comporting themselves with goodwill even in heated disagreements. But they act only out of an intangible sense of sporting or intellectual solidarity. To employ the classic how-much-more argument, shouldn’t we Christians be legendarily quick to forgive? I think the excuse often given, and the misconception I want to address, is that we don’t have to forgive someone unless, or until, they’re truly repentant.

To begin with, forgiveness is different than reconciliation, meaning that you don’t have to wait for them to ask before you forgive them. Some might place the distinction between being prepared to forgive, and actually forgiving (once the other party has sincerely asked forgiveness), but I submit that these are different ways of getting at the same thing. Being prepared to forgive someone really just means you’ve forgiven them, otherwise you’re still holding something against them, whereas you should love them enough to pursue reconciliation.

In the above scenario, I told my friend that it didn’t seem very Christ-like to withhold forgiveness, to which he responded that God doesn’t forgive us unless we truly repent. My best answer was that we’re not God, which I think is a valid point. But more than that, I think God deals with us in a more forgiving way, though repenting of our sins is essential to being in fellowship with God, and conviction is how God brings us back because we are His atoned-for children. But if I were to die suddenly with unrepented sins, I don’t think I’d be cast into utter darkness or serving time in purgatory. And, on a more basic level, “God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). Simply put, if God didn’t forgive us before we deserved it, we’d be screwed.

I was recently inspired to consider this topic again by a sermon on handling conflict, the telos of which was that we are told to forgive as we’ve been forgiven, or else God will do to us as the unforgiving servant of Matthew 18. The man in the parable was forgiven an impossible debt; we likewise, who have been forgiven much, are called to forgive much in return. And this fits nicely with a Thanksgiving theme, since I technically still have half an hour of “Turkey Day.” We’ve been forgiven everything, so we have no excuse for ungratefulness. We’ve been forgiven everything, so why not let’s forgive everyone, everywhere, everything?

That last line and the following excerpt, which I’ll end with, are from the lyrics to “bullet to Binary (pt. two)” by mewithoutYou:

We all well know
We’re gonna reap what we sow
But grace, we all know
Can take the place of all we owe
So why not, let’s forgive everyone, everywhere, everything
All the time, everyone, everywhere, everything

All the time, everyone, everywhere, everything…

He’ll make right what man made wrong

Matthew Hurley — Fri, 25 Dec 2009 20:37:28 +0000

For Christmas, I thought I’d post the lyrics to “a Stick, a Carrot & String,” a profound and poetic Christmas song by mewithoutYou. Incidentally, I seem to have had the same post idea as this guy. Merry Christmas!

The Horse’s hay beneath His head
our Lord was born to a manger bed,
that all whose wells run dry
could drink of His supply.

To keep Him warm the Sheep drew near,
so grateful for His coming here:
You come with news of grace,
come to take my place!

The Donkey whispered in His ear:
Child, in thirty-some-odd years,
You’ll ride someone who looks like me (untriumphantly).

While the Cardinals warbled a joyful song:
He’ll make right what man made wrong,
bringing low the hills,
that the valleys might be filled!

Then Child, asked the birds,
well, aren’t they lovely words we sing?
The tiny Baby lay there without saying anything.

At a distance stood a mangy Goat
with crooked teeth and a matted coat,
weary eyes and worn,
chipped & twisted horns.
Thinking: Maybe I’ll make friends some day
with the Cows in the pens and the Rambouillet,
but for now I’ll keep away –
I got nothin’ smart to say.

But there’s a sign on the barn in the Cabbagetown:
When the rain picks up and the sun goes down,
Sinner, Come Inside! With No Money, Come and Buy!
No clever talk nor gift to bring
requires our lowly, lovely king,
come, all emptyhanded, you don’t need anything!

And the night was cool and clear as glass
with the sneaking Snake in the garden grass,
as Deep cried out to Deep, the Disciples fast asleep.

And the snake perked up when he heard You ask:
if You’re willing that this cup might pass
we could find our way back home,
maybe start a family all our own…
but does not the Father guide the Son?
Not my will but Yours be done!
What else here to do?
What else me but You???

And the snake who’d held the world,
a stick, a carrot and a string, was crushed
beneath the Foot of Your not wanting anything.

YouTube link.

A terrible crash and a joyous boom

Nathaniel Robertson — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 02:08:34 +0000

I wanted to showcase a contrast that came to me during today’s Christmas service at Christ Covenant Church. Pastor Tollefson described Christ’s birth as a great boom (including the angel choirs, of course) that put a fear in Satan and a battle in his future. This great boom in turn reminded me of the mewithoutYou song January 1979, the full lyrics of which can be found here. The beginning of the song runs like this:

January 1979, saw a terrible crash
And I couldn’t help but laugh
My ear pressed against the past
Like a glass on a wall of a hospital photograph
My forehead no longer sweet
With holy kisses worthy of your fiery lips
I was floating in a peaceful sea
Rescued by a sinking ship

From what I’ve read on the internet, and it makes sense to me, Aaron Weiss is referring to his own birth (former member Daniel Pishock was born the same month, too). He calls it a terrible crash because he, a sinful being from birth, as we all are, entered the world. I’m not all sure about the middle bits, but the last two lines, from what I’ve read, refer to his seeming innocence before birth and then his pick up by a ship; a seeming rescue, but one from a sinking ship, that is, our nature of sin in a sinful world. I think the whole song does have more on this theme of life, like the line “My life is a cup of sugar I’ve borrowed before time began and forgot to return.” (And to diverge slightly, I must say I’ve found SongMeanings helpful for understanding mewithoutYou. I have thought of some insights on my own, but mewithoutYou has very profound and pithy lyrics, and outside sources are helpful to me in understanding them.)

So anyway, I wanted to draw that parallel between the terrible crash of sinful birth and the great joyous boom of sinless birth. Two types of noises. Lots of the first, one of the second, but for us the second should far outshine the first, since Christ’s death atoned for all of us, while each of our births might bring some joy of life, but do not ultimately save anyone and are really futile in comparison. We might have our terrible little crashes but they are nothing in the face of Christ’s perfect virgin human birth.

mewithoutYou – a broken mold

So why not let’s forgive everyone?

He’ll make right what man made wrong

A terrible crash and a joyous boom