Scripture: Jeremiah 33:8
I will cleanse them from all the guilt of their sin against me, and I will forgive all the guilt of their sin and rebellion against me.
Thought for the Day: Before his death, Lewis Smedes was a professor at Fuller Seminary. He wrote extensively about forgiveness, but one of my favorite quotes is: “The first and often the only person to be healed by forgiveness is the person who does the forgiveness… When we genuinely forgive, we set a prisoner free and then discover that the prisoner we set free was us.” In the Jeremiah passage, the prophet is the voice of God and speaks of how the sin and rebellion of the people are forgiven by God. God understands the power of forgiveness to change the one who is forgiven, but equally important is how God refuses to be controlled or imprisoned by our mistakes. God is concerned about the brokenness of humanity, but the wholeness of God cannot exist alongside bitterness. Let us learn to do the same!
Prayer: As you have forgiven me, Lord, may I find the spiritual capacity to be a force of forgiveness in the lives of all those around me. Amen.
