"For Your Mercy is great above the heavens. And Your Truth reaches to the clouds."(108:4)
There are often times when reading the Psalms I breath a sigh of relief. Many times the curses the psalmist wants to call down on his enemies seem very harsh and unforgiving. Only because of our Christ, I have never came to this place of wanting any type of vengeance upon those who have hurt me. Sometimes it is hard to understand how we should take this kind of language in the different Psalms in the face of Christ's teaching about loving our enemies and doing good to those who hurt us.
However, two important points are clear: the psalmist left vengeance in The Hand of The Lord, and he also clearly understood the reality of wickedness. We must remember that forgiveness is not saying, "It wasn't really bad." True forgiveness does not pretend that sin did not happen; it recognizes evil, and then releases the desire for vengeance into God's hands. God has promised that He will judge the wicked in the end.
How I rejoice in knowing we have such an ABBA. In knowing, no matter our sins. Or when they have and do occur. When "in" Christ", all sins are forgiven. We live life standing on and in His Truth. His Truth which transforms our heart and gives us such freedom.
In the end, it is only because of His Grace we will not be judged as "wicked". We instantly became covered by The Blood of our Savior from the moment we accepted Him into our heart. His gifts of Grace, Mercy and Forgiveness begin transforming our heart, causing us to pray for "all" to have an intimacy with Him. And for some - those prayers are from afar.
We are instructed no matter the actions of others, we must forgive. (This doesn't mean "forgetting" and subjecting yourself to the mistreatment.) Our ABBA knows, it is only through the forgiving of others, we then overcome feelings of anger, bitterness, or revenge. Forgiveness can heal spiritual wounds and bring the peace and love only our God can give. It enables us to view "all" through the eyes of our Savior.
"All". Whom are made in His image.
To the world, it totally doesn't make sense to be as Christ. The world will look upon this act as a weakness. In reality, it takes super God strength to forgive and extend mercy and grace. To live going against the grain - shining His Light into the darkness.
Just as He has done with the darkness of our hearts in the act of forgiveness.
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