Unlimited: Jesus Can Forgive Even Your Greatest Sin
Dec 14, 2016 1155
Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they do (Luke 23:34).
Because He died for the sins of the world, Jesus wasn’t thinking just of the people who had physically crucified Him. He was thinking of a lost and broken world. He wasn’t thinking of Himself. He was thinking of you.
It’s only human to sometimes doubt God, and to question whether He even thinks about us. At those times, remember Christ’s words at Calvary. If Christ thought about you then, surely He is thinking about you now.
When Jesus asks the Father to forgive us, the reason that He gives is, “for they don’t know what they do.”
However, in the days before His death, Jesus had in effect told the Jews that they knew what they were doing. Their sin was all the greater because they had been given light and they claimed to understand it (e.g. John 9:35-41). How could He now forgive them?
Like us, those who crucified Him knew in part, and in part they didn’t know. But Christ’s great heart of love looks with mercy on our ignorance and weakness, in His willingness to forgive even the greatest of all sins (Mark 3:28). How is this possible? Because the Cross brings together the greatest sin (2 Cor 5:21), and the greatest love – and love won. – Eliezer Gonzalez
Eli’s Reflection: Love has to win in my life and in your life too. Can you think of an aspect of your past where love hasn’t won yet, and where forgiveness hasn’t happened? I know it can be hard to forgive through the pain of a wounded heart. But what is one step you can take today to start to let love win, and to be able to forgive, or be forgiven? Pray for strength to do it, and take that step.
Leave a Reply