Forty Days Full - An Invitation To Real Life

times?” Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy- seven times.” (Matt. 18:21)

As an ambassador of reconciliation, it is essential that we re- present the mercy of God as he has shown mercy to us. Peter thought he was being generous by offering to forgive seven times. Jesus taught a lifestyle of forgiving the offender no matter how may offenses they caused. This is contradictory to Moses' law of an eye-for-an-eye and a tooth-for-a-tooth. Forgiving someone doesn't mean you invite them home to babysit your children. It is a decision of the heart to no longer hold a debt against them. Remember, we’re part of a debt reduction plan. We have been forgiven a debt we could never repay. We are a living demonstration of heaven’s realm. We have the power to bring the ways of heaven to those we love and serve. You may be given the opportunity to display the mercy of heaven to a broken life. Have you been cheated? Have you been taken advantage of? Have you been abused? Have you been lied to? Have you been betrayed? Has someone broken a covenant with you? Then you’ve been given an opportunity to display heaven. But the message you preach may not be with words. Your love and kindness when faced with sinful actions will extend the Father’s reach. In heaven, the life of a single soul is worth the life blood of the Son of God. Our inconvenience is a small thing compared to God's desire for reconciliation. Our personal pain is a price worth paying when weighed against a life rescued from hell. We have the answer to sins committed against us...it's the blood of Jesus. Let’s take up the cause of reconciliation, not just with words, but also in our actions.