Freedom in Forgiveness

I have been doing some Old Testament reading this month, and have been reading in Genesis the incredible story of Joseph being sold into slavery by his brothers, being thrown into prison for a crime he didn't commit, interpreting the dreams of Pharaoh which led to him being not just released from prison but put in charge of all of Egypt, and eventually the reunion with his brothers and Father and an incredible story of forgiveness. No matter how many times I read this story, I am moved and challenged by Joseph's example. The people that should have loved him most and treated him best, his family, did an unthinkable thing and yet he chose to forgive them, treat them graciously and generously, and even recognized how God had used what they'd done for good saying in Genesis 50:20, "You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives." He looked beyond himself, his pain, his hurtful past and saw the goodness of God. His story makes our sometimes petty disagreements seem foolish and small, huh?

I have also been reading The Bondage Breaker by Neil T. Anderson and was struck by what he said about forgiveness in his book: 

"Forgiveness is a choice, a decision of your will. Since God requires you to forgive, it is something you can do. Sometimes it is very hard to forgive someone because we naturally want revenge for things we have suffered. Forgiveness seems to go against our sense of what is right and fair. So we hold on to our anger, punishing people over and over again in our minds for the pain they've caused us. But we are told by God never to take our own revenge (Romans 12:19). Let God deal with the person. Let him or her off your hook because as long as you refuse to forgive someone, you are still hooked to that person. You are still chained to your past, bound to your bitterness...Until you let you let go of your anger and hatred, the person is still hurting you. You can't turn back the clock and change the past, but you can be free from it. You can stop the pain, but there is only one way to do it -- forgive."

And also: (something that I had not totally thought of before or heard expressed this way)

"Forgiveness is agreeing to live with the consequences of another person's sin. You are going to live with those consequences anyway whether you like it or not, so the only choice you have is whether you will do so in the bondage of bitterness or in the freedom of forgiveness. No only truly forgives without accepting and suffering the pain of another person's sin. That can seem unfair and you may wonder where the justice is in it, but justice is found at the cross, which makes forgiveness legally and morally right. Jesus took the eternal consequences of sin upon Himself. God 'made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him' (2 Corinthians 5:21). We, however, often suffer the temporary consequences of other people's sins. That is simply a harsh reality of life all of us have to face."

We all have experienced hurt and pain and have struggled with bitterness and unforgiveness. I pray that you (and I) can experience the "freedom of forgiveness" as we learn to forgive others.