Forgiveness

A young man who was alone on a bus was staring intently out the window. He was in his mid-20’s, he had a nice looking and kind face. His dark blue shirt was the colour of his eyes. His hair was short and neat. Occasionally he looked away from the window and the anxiety on his face touched the heart of a grandmotherly women sitting across aisle. The bus was approaching the outskirts of a small town, when she was drawn to the young man. She scooted across the aisle and asked permission to sit with him. They engaged in a bit of small talk, when he confessed,  “I’ve been in prison for two years  and got out this morning. I’m going home!”

The words tumbled out, “I was raised in a poor but proud family. My crime brought family shame and heartbreak. It has been two years since I have heard from them. They are too poor to travel and probably felt too uneducated to write.” He said he stopped writing when he received no answers.

Three weeks before his release he desperately wrote one more letter and told them how sorry he was for disappointing them and asked for forgiveness. He had explained he was going to be released and would catch the bus home, the one that passed their front yard. He said he would understand if they were not able to forgive him and would make it easy for them by asking for a signal from the bus. If he was forgiven and was able to come back home, they were to tie a white ribbon around the old apple tree in the front yard. If the signal was not there he would stay on the bus and leave town and their lives forever.

As the bus neared his street, the young man became more anxious to the point of being afraid to look out the window because he was sure there would be no ribbon. After listening to his story the women said, “would it help if we trade seats, I’ll  sit near the window and  look for you?” The bus went a few more blocks then she saw the tree. She gently touched the man’s shoulder and choking back tears said, “Look! The whole tree is covered with white ribbons!”

This is the message from the cross. God still loves us and is willing to invite us home from the prison of sin and the wilderness we have been in. No, more than that, he offers us a place in His family forever.

Apart from that, there is another side to forgiveness. If we don’t forgive others, we lock ourselves in the prison of unforgiveness. Not forgiving is like drinking poison while hoping the other person will die. If we cannot forgive, the bitterness, resentment, anger, and hatred, makes whatever that person did to us even worse. The prison of unforgiveness is where you will do more damage to yourself than what the person that may have hurt you did!

Jesus forgave His enemies at the cross “Father forgive them…” He spoke. But forgiveness is not easy. The pain and damage done to us by others can be devastating, leaving us hurt, crippled and broken. Holding on to bitterness, anger, and resentment is more damaging than the first grievance experienced and makes healing much harder, or even impossible. Read the Lord’s prayer Matthew 6:9-13. Notice that forgiveness is a bridge that we must cross because we ourselves are forgiven.