Forgiveness: Beauty from Ugliness

In his commentary on Luke, theologian N.T. Wright pens this:

"The Kingdom that Jesus preached and lived was all about a glorious, uproarious, absurd generosity.  Think of the best thing you can do for the worst person, and go ahead and do it.  Think of the people to who you are tempted to be nasty, and lavish generosity on them instead.  These instructions have a fresh, springlike quality.  They are all about new life bursting out energetically, like flowers growing through concrete and startling everyone with their color and vigor."

As we approach Christmas we see a short view of the life of Christ:

1) He had to leave Heaven and the presence of the Father in order to come to a corrupt and painful world marked with hate and greed.
2) When he was born the King wanted to kill him
3) He was born outside to an unmarried poor couple.
4) He came preaching a message of forgiveness of sins and then people wanted to kill him
5) During much of his ministry there is a group of self-proclaimed "God's people" that plot to kill him
6) The climax of his life happens when he is imprisoned, beaten close to death and hung on a cross with no real charges or real trials
7) He is betrayed by one of his own 12 disciples
8) The other 11 disciples scatter and don't support him in death
9) With his last words Jesus asks God's forgiveness for those who are there killing him

I believe that forgiveness is very important to God and a marker of a person who is in the Kingdom of Heaven.

Comments

Unknown said…
Great quote. Thanks for sharing it!
December 10, 2010 at 3:17 PM
Joe said…
I think that forgiveness may be one of the hardest of all of Jesus' example to understand and to emulate. Your notes on Jesus' life of forgiveness strikes a chord today... thanks!
December 14, 2010 at 10:13 AM
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