Forgive and Forget

Those who say they will forgive but can't forget, simply bury the hatchet but leave the handle out for immediate use. -Dwight L Moody

The Bible speaks of god forgiving our sins so much that it as if he casts them as far as the east is from the west (Psalm 103:12). When it comes to Christian forgiveness, I covered a lot in "Forgiven People Forgive" and I got a whole lot of flack for that. I wanted to address some of the overall and underlying issues related to forgiveness, especially the concept of forgiving and forgetting.

Moody's quote deals with our human tendency to not feel settled with all that God does with others. We seem fine with what God has done with our sins, but we want justice for what others have done. We want God to do more with them than us. Unfortunately, that's not what we are called to do.

But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.

- Matthew 6:15 (NIV)

Jesus did not ask for us to judge others (Luke 6:37). He said we should forgive the sins of others. Our duty and obligation is to offer grace as it has been given to us as well as mercy as it has been given to us. Let God be the judge. If it doesn't seem to be working out with someone, turn it over to God. Let it go. If you really had things the way you think they should go, you would have to call for yourself going through the same measure that you would measure others (Luke 6:38).

Forgive and forget. Leave the rest of it in God's hands. He can handle it much better than you.