POINT BLANK (BE WARNED)

Proverbs 28:13 (AMP) – “He who covers his transgressions will not
prosper, but whoever confesses and forsakes his sins will obtain
mercy.”

Inability or unwillingness? It has to be one or the other.

Frankly, I really don’t see the mystery.  People either believe or
don’t believe in God. They suffer or prosper in life because of their
decision.

Is it THAT difficult to determine?

The inability or the unwillingness becomes for me a topic for the ages.

We are talking about being a FORGIVING person here.

HOWEVER, we must tackle another subject to get to that one. We must
address a person being FORGIVEN first.

Perhaps this is YOU today. The “unhappy or disillusioned believer”.
You have been so cold and so dead in your heart that you have wondered
how you could be that way.

Well, to me it’s rather simple. You are not a forgiving person because
you have not been forgiven yourself.

Being a person who is quick to forgive transgressions that have been
perpetrated against yourself is a character trait that is ONLY found
in people of God and followers of Jesus Christ.  I’ll bet that shocks
some people today. I think there are a fair number of so called
“believers” in this world who harbor grudges and hatred with the best
of them.

Or how about callous indifference?

Callous indifference. Now…there’s a spin on an unforgiving attitude.

The hard shelled. The unaffected. Nothing moves them. They can crush a
spirit and wreck a friendship and a relationship without ever, ever
feeling one shred of remorse before or after the deed. Churches are
split and broken up over infighting with each other over the most
petty differences. Acid tongues. Dirty looks. Secret plans that
include sinful gossiping. Oh, indeed it happens. It can extend
generations. FORGIVING never enters the picture. In fact, it’s not in
the vernacular. It’s a foreign concept. “Forgive? Did you see what
he/she did to me?”  Oh, we saw alright. The entire ugly picture has
been played out in wide screen technicolor. It has reached the big
screen in Heaven. EVERYBODY has seen it including the Host of Heaven.

See, what I’m saying, and I admit this is a bold statement, is that
this behavior cannot possibly be carried on by a “TRUE BELIEVER”, and
the wake up call intended here is that in God’s eyes there is ONLY the
TRUE believer. I know, I know. But c’mon, who do you think Jesus is
talking about who are on the “wide and narrow paths”, or those who
will say “Lord, Lord”? Too many of my colleagues are afraid to preach
those.

The TRUE BELIEVER is one who has been forgiven and in turn becomes a
forgiver themselves. This only occurs by recognizing ones sinfulness
and turning to God asking forgiveness and obtaining it. Why do you
think it’s called being “Born Again”? Because it is so radical a
spiritual change that the evidence of it is as startling as being
physically born.

They moved the Doomsday Clock ahead and closer to Midnight by two
minutes yesterday. About a week after I had said that I sense time is
getting too short to sit on the radical truths of God. Not that I put
any stock in such secularized nonsense as “Doomsday” scientific
predictions, but let’s face it, the world indeed has one foot on the
proverbial “banana peel” when it comes to sliding down the slippery
slope of annihilation.  Guess what is at the root of it? That’s right.
Mankind’s inability to acknowledge God, receive forgiveness, and in
turn becoming forgiving.

There. I just identified the root problem of the entire world. Go
ahead. Admit it. Snicker if you will. Some of YOU don’t believe me do
you? Others know EXACTLY what I mean and share the same sentiment. The
TRUE BELIEVER sees it. The…uh…let’s see…MARGINALIZED believer
(who’s BELIEF is being changed toward popular world culture) does not.
Surely the totally unable and unwilling do not.

If that is shocking to you then you either haven’t been listening to
your pastor or you’re in the wrong church.

Sorry if this sounds negative, but until you are confronted daily by
human heartbreak and their unwillingness to accept the ONLY thing that
can possibly help them, I ask you “FORGIVE” me the brevity and point
blank delivery.

Friends (enemies), we are on the short-short. The sand in the
hourglass is sifting out quickly.

Really, it is time to stop flapping the gums and start grabbing some
lapels and shaking at least the ones you really care about making it.

Since I’m on a roll that will surely ruffle some feathers today, let
me leave you abruptly with the scariest passage in the Bible:

Matthew 6:14-15 (AMP) – 14 “For if you forgive people their trespasses
[their reckless and willful sins, leaving them, letting them go, and
giving up resentment], your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15
But if you do not forgive others their trespasses [their reckless and
willful sins, leaving them, letting them go, and giving up
resentment], neither will your Father forgive you your trespasses.”

What do REALLY think that means?

Doc