Forgiven

"Truly I say to you, that all the sins shall be forgiven to the sons of men, and evil speakings with which they might speak evil, but whoever may speak evil in regard to the Holy Spirit hath not forgiveness..." Mark 3:28-29

These were the words of Jesus prior to what he accomplished on the cross. "It is finished" or "completed" or "accomplished" or "fulfilled" were the words that he spoke on the cross just before he gave up his spirit. I believe that Christ's death on the cross was for all mankind. I believe that he stood in as sacrifice for all mankind. Jesus was sent to die not to satisfy the justice of God, but to satisfy the death wish the enemy has for all mankind. He took our place so we wouldn't have to suffer and die as he did. Therefore the justice of God is grace. That by His blood any man may have forgiveness of sin and everlasting life. For Jesus even said that he came not to judge the world but to save it!{Jn 12:47} The only judgement ever given by God{in the OT} was exile and separation. Death and disease etc was the judgement of the enemy{the devil}. On the cross Jesus opened the door so that no one had to be separated, both during our time on earth and for eternity. He paid the price for every mans freedom once and for all. That door remains open so that anyone who chooses to walk through may do so. Final judgement is only up to God and will not come until we enter eternity. I have a feeling he will be far more gracious than any human on the planet!

{After the Resurrection} Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you; as the Father has sent Me, I also send you. And when He had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, their sins have been forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they have been retained." John 20:21-23

Now, we know for sure that this verse does not mean that any man can absolve any other man of sin; only the blood of Jesus can do that. So what does it mean? Well I think in light of the verse above it means FORGIVE! In light of the verse above we know that Jesus forgave all mankind their sin on the cross. The atonement for all mankind's sin lays waiting for them, but each man must choose to accept it. Each man must agree for himself that the only way to the Father is through Jesus. But that doesn't mean that those who haven't accepted it aren't forgiven. That is to say, a contract has been drawn up for every man and has been signed with the blood of Jesus. Now every contract awaits the agreeing signature of each man.

TRAUMA...Life In The ER

What injury or trauma has your identity received? If you have one that comes to mind lets use an analogy and say that "that" particular trauma was your shot in the leg. Something in your emotional life that has injured you but didn't kill you. Are you with me?

So what was your initial trauma? It could have been physical abuse, sexual abuse, mental abuse. You may have been neglected or rejected by someone. Maybe it was a divorce or death of a loved one. Or it could have been negative reinforcement "you're ugly", "you're stupid", "you're weird", "you're fat", "you're a loser". Ringing any bells? This is the initial attack of the enemy on your life...usual at a young age.


So now now you are lying on the floor, shot in the leg. You are still alive but bleeding fast. Now since the devil can't kill you he uses the freewill of other humans to inflict trauma. To bleed you to death over time. So when no one comes to your aid or you don't get up and try to find help...you just sit there and bleed. This is where the anger, shame, low self esteem and unforgiveness set in. More time passes, more blood loss. You start to self destruct. You self medicate with pills, drugs and alcohol. You may start cutting yourself, starving yourself. Anything to speed up the march to death. You may even try just that...suicide. You don't secede. You are still just bleeding out.

Now anger is turning to bitterness, shame has become self loathing, unforgivness gives way to hatred. No one comes to save you, and you don't try to find help. You begin hating God. You begin hating everyone. Everyone has let you down. You may even become the abuser at this stage. Hurt others the way you were hurt. You try to take control of the perpetrator by becoming one. You tell yourself "I am in control now. No one can hurt me...I hurt YOU." All the while you are near death due to your blood loss, laying in your own puddle of blood.

The wound is now infected with anger, bitterness, shame, and self hatred. You don't have much life left in you. You have grown cold towards others, and your heart has hardened. No one has come to help you. Even if they did you would push them away. You have refused to ask for help...until now. One last chance...now or never...you are left with only two choices. Cry out to God and LIVE or succumb and DIE. So, you cry out.

Instantly God applies a tourniquet of forgiveness. This bandage stops the bleeding and pulls you back from the clutches of death. You see this breaks the bonds of the enemy. When Jesus died on the cross He took the keys of death back from Satan. Now Jesus bleeds in your place. That is part of the message of the cross. Jesus taking our wounds upon Himself that we may be healed and have everlasting life! Awesome!

So in that instant bleeding from your wound is halted and the healing process ensues. God medicates you with forgiveness, grace and love. You in turn accept the medicine. You decide to put yourself in situations of healing. Renew your mind, body and spirit. Keeping your eyes on Jesus you immerse yourself in active rehabilitation of your trauma. Worship, prayer and the Word. Most importantly you realize that the healing process takes time. You must be patient and make the choice each day to keep that bandage on. Surround yourself with people that support you anywhere you can find them. DON'T ISOLATE! Satan loves to sneak back in at any opportunity and rip that bandage off. So make sure to keep the bandage on for the duration of the healing process. Don't be tempted to pick at the scab in self-pity and doubt. That will only induce bleeding and prolong the healing. It also hands control back to the enemy and takes your eyes off of our Great Physician God.

So when do you you know when it is OK to remove the bandage? Well your Physician God can help you with that. I think this is different for everyone and different according to how severe the trauma was to begin with. There is no doubt there will be a scar. I could be an emotional scar or even a physical one. Jesus had all power to be brought back from the dead, but he did not allow his scars to totally disappear. His scars tell the story of his triumph over death and the grave. So your scars don't tell of your death but of your new life. I believe one of the final stages of healing is using your scars for the glory of God. This can be by ministering to others in the same situations. Telling them your story, your testimony. It could be by being a good parent or spouse. Breaking the cycle of trauma in your family. Really anything that God is glorified through the choices of your new life in Him.

Don't forget to minister to yourself! Don't take on the spirit of the abused or the abuser. You are no longer that person...you are a new creature in Christ. You have been healed. Let your life and actions reflect that healing. The enemy is always just around the corner waiting to shoot you in the leg again. So if for some reason you have a slip up or a new trauma ensues....DON'T let yourself bleed out. Ask God to get that bandage on right away. Don't give the enemy the pleasure of watching you bleed to death. Choose life!