Isaiah Chapter 66 verse 2 (NIV-UK)
Has not my hand made all these things,
and so they came into being?’
declares the Lord.
‘These are the ones I look on with favour:
those who are humble and contrite in spirit,
and who tremble at my word.
Luke Chapter 18: Verses 9-14(NIV UK)
To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else, Jesus told this parable: ‘Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: “God, I thank you that I am not like other people – robbers, evildoers, adulterers – or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.”
‘But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, “God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”
‘I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.’
From our very earliest years we are taught to say sorry when we do something wrong. Yet even as a wee tot, we are reluctant to do so, and often only go through the motions of doing so because we’ve been told we have to.
Having spent ten years as an NHS Complaints Manager I have learned that a sincere and effective apology is one that communicates genuine empathy, remorse, and regret as well as a promise to learn from your mistakes. In other words, you need to really believe you did something wrong and feel sorry for the hurt you caused or the problem that resulted from your actions. A polished, well scripted letter or speech that simply ticks the boxes does not always reassure the person on the receiving end that lessons have been learned.
That got me thinking today. Why are we so reluctant to apologise, and why is it often so hard to say sorry? Perhaps because the devil understands the power of forgiveness and he doesn’t want us to experience it. We see in Isaiah that God says He looks with favour on those who come with a humble and contrite heart, and who are genuinely repentant. Jesus showed this too when He told the parable of the two men praying. It was the tax collector who went home forgiven.
Being forgiven when we have genuinely apologised lifts a weight from us. We know that from experience, and the greatest release is knowing the forgiveness from God and the chance to start again. God never casts up to us those things He has forgiven us for. That’s another important lesson. If someone has genuinely sought our forgiveness, we must as Christians, give it freely, and never cast it up to them in future. The devil, on the other hand, continually reminds us of all our faults and failings. He wants to try and rob us of the gift of forgiveness. That’s why we need to keep short accounts with God. He wants us to live in the freedom and power of the forgiveness that Jesus died to secure for us.
Dear Lord,
I will always be eternally grateful for the forgiveness You have shown me, in Your mercy and grace. Help me to be slow to anger and quick to forgive, but always quick to put things right when I have done wrong. I ask in Jesus’ Name. Amen.