A God of Infinite Chances
A Word on Forgiveness by Chris Bunton
I hear
Christians say this a lot. “God is a God of second chances.” Every time I hear it, it is like a punch in the face;
because I need a God of infinite chances. And so do they, despite what they
might believe.
They seem to often believe that if you don’t drink,
smoke or chew, or run with girls that do, that you’re ok. If you haven’t been
arrested for DUI or drug possession you’re ok. If your marriage is still
intact, or you haven’t been fired, you’re ok. They often ignore the sins of pride,
gluttony, idolatry, lust, covetousness, and un-forgiveness. They think that
since they only sin a little that they are not one of those people who need a
second chance. They are in God’s good graces, and no harm shall come to them.
But, they are wretched and poor and do not even see it. They don’t realize that
they need third, fourth, fifth, and thousands of chances, just like me, and you. They are blind to the
fact that every day, they need infinite chances, yet they only want to give
others one more chance.
Jesus said “I say not unto thee,
until seven times: but, until seventy times seven”---Matt. 18:21-35. He said this after Peter asked Him how many
times he should forgive his brother. “Up to seven times?” Peter had asked.
Then, Jesus gives a parable showing how we are to forgive others, and how God
is angry that we do not.
But, there is an under lying lesson;
it shows us how often God forgives us. We read the parable and we think it’s
one time. And it is. But, it is a forgiveness we experience and work through
every day, even though He forgave it all already. We have no right to hold
things against others because of what God forgives us of everyday.
It’s not easy to forgive. It’s
certainly not easy to forgive the way God forgives. Ask, yourself, “What if God
forgives me the way I forgive others?” Maybe He doesn’t answer your prayers
because you ignore others who have wronged you. Sure you forgive, but you never
forget, right? Fool me once, right? I fall into the same trap.
But God is not like that. He
forgives. He lets us off the hook. He throws our sin into the deepest sea and
remembers it no more. He removes our sin from us as far as the east is from the
west. It’s gone. Never to be brought up or remembered. That’s God, and that is
what we are to work to do. That’s godliness. Being like God. It’s being like we
want God to be toward us. It’s hard, and we can’t do it on our own, we have to
let Him do it in us, and through us. But, we must be willing and we must take
that first step, and He will come rushing in. He works to fix us.
God is a God of infinite chances. He
is a God of growth, a God of design and building. He doesn’t quit. God is not a
quitter. He doesn’t say “Oh well, you messed up this time. I’m done with you. I
didn’t see that coming. I came and died for you, but I never imagined you would
do THAT! Are you kidding me? Pack your stuff and get out. Get out of my house.”
Nope, He washes you when you turn to
Him. He doubles down His efforts, and works even harder to mold you. He is
there. It is God’s goodness that brings men to repentance. No matter what, turn
to Him, and do not run away. Talk to Him, and be real with Him. Tell Him,
what’s up. He already knows, but He wants you to see it, and come to agreements
with Him on it. By confessing it to Him, over and over and over again, it gets
old. It starts to work out of you. It gets less and less, as He works.
Trust
Him.He is working. He doesn't throw us away. He grows us and heals us and helps us.
He gives us Grace, and wants us to give it to others.
Praise Jesus.
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Bio: Chris Bunton is a writer, poet and blogger from Southern Illinois. He has published in several magazines, and has written a poetry eBook called “Against the Man” and an Addiction Recovery eBook called “Made Free: Overcoming Addiction“ His newest book is called "The Future is Coming" and is a collection of dystopian short stories.
Follow Him on Medium: https://chris-bunton.medium.com/
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