“I Won’t Forgive You” has such a final atmosphere about it. It has that forever feeling to it. A closed door in your face hearing all the locks being pushed into place while standing there and it feels like rain. Almost, like you have died, been buried, and forgotten becoming no more and non-existent. A very sad and depressing place to have in your mind, heart, and soul. “I Won’t Forgive You” can be spoken words, looks from the eyes, or other body signals conveying the message as your eyes take permanent pictures in your mind of the pain you caused them and your heart goes into sad silence.
“I Won’t Forgive You” comes from family, friends, and even strangers you have hurt, but it also can come from your own heart. The pictures and videos inside your head playing back the memories of the pain you caused over and over beating against you like ocean waves smashing into the rocks. You feel stuck with something that can never be changed no matter how much you wish you could travel back in time.
“I Won’t Forgive You” attacks from the outside and on in the inside and no one can see your thoughts of regrets, repentance, and remorse on the inside. They judge you when they see you with the knowledge of your wrong doings in the front of their mind. You feel like spiritual rocks are flying through the air hitting you with such a hatred force. People hang onto the things you have done with a death grip towards you and you feel so bad that the thought of death would be a good thing because you feel there is nowhere else to go.
Your memories take you back to clearly seeing how you hurt someone really bad. You have many thoughts of how stupid, “why did I not stop“, “why did I not just leave“, “what was I thinking“, and then the replies come to your mind “you were not thinking“, “you wanted to prove a point“, “you had to finish what you started“, and “you were so selfish and who cares about others“. The battlefield in your mind has all the players from judges, witnesses, accusers, and wanna be executioners coming at you in your thoughts. You feel like hell is inside your mind tormenting you before your time.
You find yourself hungry for answers, solutions, or things you could do to make things better. You find yourself always looking around for something solid in your life to grab ahold of to stop the world from spinning around. The outside looks dark and the inside looks dark. Then it hits home “I need help“, but “where do I go“, and “who has the real answers“?
I can’t go to people because I get that same look of disgust, the “I can’t believe it“, or the “I have no clue how you are feeling“. Later on as time goes by, walking past them I can see the knowledge they have of me just below the surface of their face. I know I am looking for a special someone who can look beyond me, what I’ve done, and guide me in the direction of doing better everyday. There is truly only One who has this ability. I’ve got to go to Him.
Have you ever thought about giving God a try? You have tried everything else why not give God a try? What is absolutely amazing is God sees all things and still wants to help us. There are all kinds of people in the Bible God helped. You can find yourself in the Bible in all kinds of ways. God offers a peace that goes beyond all understanding of mankind and will help guard your heart, mind, and soul in Jesus Christ.
“In” Jesus Christ is the key to finding someone who will truly forgive you and take you in as you are. People are on the outside of you and do not know what is truly going on the inside of you. With Jesus it is a two way street of you getting forgiveness and born again experience inside of Him and His Spirit inside of you. A roommate in your soul like no one you have ever known.
Jesus will be patient, kind, and understanding all the days of your life, whereas people will come and go. Jesus will not leave you nor forsake you (Heb. 13:5, Jn. 10:28). Isn’t that cool to have someone who will never leave you? You can say or ask any question in your fellowship with Him and He will guide you to answers in His word to help with whatever you are struggling with when people will not give you the time of day.
If you do give God a try my advice would be to lock yourself into believing God and His word only. When it comes to His word, the Bible, make sure if anyone tells you something Biblically don’t trust them. I know that sounds strange, but if you research it yourself and rings true then your personal effort makes it more of your own between you and God. You know how people are in doing their best and being sincere, but even with their best intentions can be absolutely wrong and fall short of the greater plan of God.
If someone tells you something they say it is of the Bible allow God who is your best friend the chance to show you if it is true or not. Don’t let anyone, ANYONE, get in between you and God. The reason I say this is because people tend to pull scriptures from different areas of the Bible to form a watered down and less than perfect walk with God. You don’t want to take a chance with your soul like that. People are people and God is beyond people because even good people can have the attitude of “I Won’t Forgive You” , God can.
The people who believe God can forgive you, but they cannot are divided within their spirit. They don’t want you around them. They don’t believe over a period of time you could prove to them God has changed you. You would think church people would understand being saved by grace from their own sins. You would think they could relate to a sin filled life and now forgiven. You would think they would be advocates for restoring someone who has sinned, but not all of them are. It is understandable for precautions, but the reaching hand of faith to restore should still be present and trust in a powerful God to take care of things.
CHURCH PEOPLE – Believed To Be
A highly religious person in the church known as a Pharisees invited Jesus to dine with him. This same Jesus who ate with sinners and publicans. When they were both reclined at the table a woman had came in behind them. She went straight to Jesus with her head down over his feet. Her heart was breaking and the tears began to flow as she watched her tears drip upon the feet of Jesus. Each tear had in it “I’m sorry“, “I’m sorry“. The tears began to saturate his feet making them wet. She knelt down using the only thing she had, which was the hair of her head to wipe the feet of Jesus. Each strokes of her hair wiping away the dirt had “forgive me“, “forgive me“. She started kissing his feet with “God has come“, “God has come“. She anointed His feet with the perfume she brought with her believing “salvation has come“, “salvation has come” (Is. 52:7). This was a powerful thing for her to do. Her beaten down sin filled life did not feel worthy of anything higher than the dirt on Jesus feet.
The actual scripture: Luke 7:36 “Now one of the Pharisees was requesting Him to dine with him, and He entered the Pharisee’s house and reclined at the table.” v37 “And there was a woman in the city who was a sinner; and when she learned that He was reclining at the table in the Pharisee’s house, she brought an alabaster vial of perfume,” v38 “and standing behind Him at His feet, weeping, she began to wet His feet with her tears, and kept wiping them with the hair of her head, and kissing His feet and anointing them with the perfume.”
The highly religious church leader saw this woman doing what she was doing “…said to himself, “If this man were a prophet He would know who and what sort of person this woman is who is touching Him, that she is a sinner.” (Luke 7:39) People see the outside of us and judge us, but they do not see the inside of us – God does. Simon had the attitude towards the woman “I Won’t Forgive You“, you sinner and Jesus should know better.
I SEE HER – DO YOU SEE HER?
The religious leader knew who she was. He knew what kind of sins she was committing in the city. He could see the woman crying her tears onto Jesus feet. He could see her kneel down wiping Jesus feet with her hair. He could see her kissing his feet while applying the perfume to Jesus feet. He was seeing a sinner woman touching Jesus that he would say for himself, “don’t touch me you sinner“, but he could not believe or accept a man of God such as Jesus not coming to the same conclusion that this woman is a vile sinner like he did.
We see people on the outside every day. We have seen people play games and deceive others that they have changed just to slide back into their old habits, which forms a distrust or doubt. We do not see like Jesus sees. We could even give people the benefit of the doubt and let them prove over time they have changed, but some like the church going Biblically educated leader Simon could only see the forever unforgivable sinner woman.
LET ME HELP YOU SEE
We all need help in seeing the truth about others and ourselves. We are surface watchers of body language and word listeners. God always wants to help us to see past the surface of all things, but it is a natural reaction of the flesh to judge to quickly and not allow the Spirit of God to show us first.
And Jesus answered him, “Simon, I have something to say to you.” And he replied, “Say it, Teacher.” “A moneylender had two debtors: one owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. When they were unable to repay, he graciously forgave them both.” “So which of them will love him more?” Luke 7:40-42.
Simon the Pharisees locked onto the parable Jesus was telling and not thinking of the woman crying onto Jesus feet, wiping them with her hair of her head, kissing, and applying the perfume to them. He focused on the two people who owed money to this bank. One of them owed 500 and the other 50. The two people were doing their best to pay their debts, which was beyond both of them to pay. The one who owed 500 had to confess to the banker he could not pay it. The banker had mercy and forgave his debt of 500. The other one went to the banker and said he could not pay the 50 and the banker forgave him also of his 50. Which one left the banker’s building loving him more for his forgiveness? Which one do you feel like the 50 or the 500? Which one of the debtors remind you of Simon and the other the woman with Jesus being the banker?
ARE WE ON THE SAME PAGE?
Simon was not sure where this was going, but the logical answer was, “I suppose the one whom he forgave more.” Jesus said to him, “You have judged correctly.” (Luke 7:43). We all have at one time or another owed something to someone. Money is a common thing in life to owe someone along with other things. We all have experienced the in debt feeling. Some have known it more stronger than others. The answer was clear, the one who was deeper in debt would love the banker more.
NOW THE TRANSITION
Jesus turning to the woman having Simon to follow his gaze said, “Do you see this woman?” Simon saw this woman enter in with tears dripping, hair wiping, lips kissing, and perfume applying to Jesus feet a sinner in the city that everyone knows. Jesus applied another view into Simon’s mind of the two debtors owing money one with 500 and the other 50 as the banker forgave them both. Simon now has two visions in his mind side by side. The woman he saw physically and the two debtors he saw mentally. Now, the transition of understanding merging as one.
This was a custom of that day Jesus was about to remind Simon when you invite someone to your house with all the dust and dirty roads. Jesus said, “I entered your house; you gave Me no water for My feet, but she has wet My feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair.” v45 “You gave Me no kiss; but she, since the time I came in, has not ceased to kiss My feet.” v46 “You did not anoint My head with oil, but she anointed My feet with perfume.” Luke 7:44-46.
Simon, are you seeing the two debtors? Does Simon have less love of the 50 and the woman has the greater love of the 500? Did Simon cherish Jesus as much as the woman did? People judge other people today without seeing the whole picture or even giving them a chance to know the whole truth. People judge from a 50 debt perspective upon someone else who has lived a 500 hundred in debt life.
We need to allow God to speak to us the transition and the merging of truth to see past the “I Won’t Forgive You“. The bottom line is God loves you and me beyond the understanding of man. Why should we let mankind stop us from crying at the feet of Jesus on our own terms, humbly wiping His feet, kissing His feet for not stomping us with judgment, and pouring anointed oil of perfume in gratitude we have not been kicked to the street like others have done us?
Do you see how important it is to have a personal walk with God and His word. There are all kinds of things in this world constantly wanting to get in between us and God to tare us down. There are all kinds of things that want us to let down our guard and accept a lesser walk with God attempting to wedging between God and us proclaiming it is no big deal.
SEE AS GOD SEES
You are about to step inside the eye sight of God towards us. When all others say, “I Won’t Forgive You” this is how God sees you. At this point does anyone else’s opinion matter greater than God Almighty? No!
Jesus said to Simon, v47 “For this reason I say to you, her sins, which are many, have been forgiven, for she loved much; but he who is forgiven little, loves little.“
The power of your gratitude and humbleness decides the depth and strength of your love towards God. Simon was living a pleasant life with a daily routine of acceptance, while the woman was living a life of “I Won’t Forgive You” you filthy sinner. You can safely unleash your love towards God without being embarrassed. With God the sins in your life is no laughing matter, but needs the attention of forgiveness.
Jesus focused on the woman, v48 “Then He said to her, “Your sins have been forgiven.” v49 “Those who were reclining at the table with Him began to say to themselves, “Who is this man who even forgives sins?”
When God speaks we must hear Him past people and mankind’s opinion. Mankind will box God into small and limited ideals that fits between man’s ears. This is why the “I Won’t Forgive You” comes into play in this world. Now, the people were looking at Jesus questioning sins being forgiven. Jesus was a man who had God inside him healing people, casting out devils, and raising people from the dead. “…Who is this man…” was answered daily by his actions just like this woman was judged by her daily actions, but God forgave her.
v50 “And He said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.” The amazing part here is no matter the size of your sin your faith trusting God is greater. Her faith was not wasted, cast aside, or even mocked, but cherished by God. No matter who may say, “I Won’t Forgive You” God will say, “I Will Forgive You“. Salvation was not yet given at the time of this woman because Jesus had not paid the sin debt with his blood, death, burial, and resurrection, but it was on its way.
NO ONE ELSE WILL – I WILL
The activation day of the plan of salvation started in Acts 2:37 when the people asked, what should they do? Peter told them to v38 “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” Peter had already received the Holy Spirit speaking in another language he had not learned, which is what got all their attention in the first place. v39 Peter told them this plan of salvation is a promise for them and their children and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself.
God knows to be truly and completely forgiven it takes His blood and His Spirit that He created and placed in Jesus. God knows His blood can wash away any sin and His Spirit can guide you through any troubles life may throw at you. No matter the “I Won’t Forgive You” that you face in life God will love you beyond what any person could ever do in this world. He can go places inside our hearts that no person could ever go and what better person to trust than God.
Trust God right now like that woman and enter into His presences as she did into that house with a repented heart professing and releasing all your sins she ever committed at the feet of Jesus. Commit yourself to being baptized in Jesus name in water baptism to wash away all your sins and seek Him to fill you with the power of His Holy Spirit like He started on that day in Acts chapter 2. God has not changed nor has His plan of salvation from that day with Peter to our present day, only mankind has changed.
Repenting – I surrender to you God – I can’t do it alone – I believe in You, God – I worship You, God
Water Baptism – Jesus Name – Applies the Blood of the Lamb of God – washing away all sins – Born of Water
Holy Spirit – Mind/heart/Soul on God – Trusting His Spirit – Speak as He gives the words – Born of Spirit
It takes the living power of God’s blood in Jesus to pay the debt of sin for death and God’s Spirit in Jesus to guide us into how we ought to be and all truth about God, ourselves, and the world around us. Man will always fail us and some will have in their heart the “I Won’t Forgive You” just stay away from me and mine, but God will take you into his home where you will NEVER be alone. Don’t live for God through a man or a woman on earth, but live for God directly through your relationship with Him and His word.
As a man walking towards God we must accept the doors people close could be a door God opens or we may find ourselves on the other side of that closed door asking God to let us in and forgive us of our quick judgments. Just as this woman committed sins known throughout the city, we who are on this spiritual path to change must work on helping to restore those with a spirit of understanding and gentleness touched with their infirmities like Christ did for all of us. It is a mature thing and a level of spirituality with God to truly bear one another’s burdens. It takes God’s help into changing us into a people who fulfills the law of Jesus Christ (Gal. 6:1).
“I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.” Philippians 4:13