The word redemption is one of those "50 cent" words you don't randomly throw around for the simple reason people might think you are an unapproachable intellectual, or in other words "to big for your own britches." Let me see if I can summarize redemption in an easily understood way. To be redeemed means to be
forgiven, the core of Christianity. The
two words are interchangeable.
Here is how Catherine Marshall organizes the two ideas - "Forgiveness has two sides that are inseparably joined: the forgiveness each of us needs from God, and the forgiveness we owe to other human beings. Most of us prefer not to face up to the fact that God's forgiveness and man's are forever linked. Jesus warned us that if we want the Father's forgiveness, there is only one way to get it: Start the flow of forgiveness between heaven and earth by forgiving our brother from the heart."
The flow of redemption - heaven to human heart - was never meant to have dams installed, slowing or stopping the flow of redemption from our own hearts to those who need to experience reconciliation from us. Isn't the concept of giving someone the "other cheek" meant for us to ignore our natural impulse to stay angry or to get even?
Growing up I had a coach that used to have his athletes write on their chest - CH_MP. After the game was done the athlete had to decide whether to place a "U" or an "A" in the blank. To truly understand the concept of reconciliation with forgiveness, especially towards an enemy, being a CHAMP means first being a CHUMP. This is not a recipe for being weak, it is a recipe for knowing that the ingredients of true forgiveness and reconciliation will cost us first because we are the agents of pursuit. We are the engineers that disassemble the dams and allow the grace of reconciliation to flow into us and through us to our enemies.
A daunting task? You bet! One that cannot be accomplished without first admitting personal weakness and laying it before the Lord in prayer seeking His assistance to accomplish a painting that we cannot visualize on the canvas.
Randy
Redemption, as I see from your blog is hard to define. Merry Christmas and a very redemptive year. Did I use it correctly?
ReplyDeleteYes, you did use it correctly, and thank you, I pray the same for you and your family.
ReplyDeleteI think redemption is easy to define but hard to perform and even harder to determine where or with whom redemption needs to be performed, and even harder yet to be the person of courage that takes initiative to seek out forgiveness even when they are a victim.
Thanks for the comment.
Randy