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Lenten Meditations 2009
The Christian doctrine of sin, properly understood, can be a great resource for human hope, but what is that doctrine?
*Timothy Keller. The Reason for God.
Today's Scripture
“Come now, let’s settle this,” says the Lord.
“Though your sins are like scarlet,
I will make them as white as snow.
Though they are red like crimson,
I will make them as white as wool."
*Isaiah 1.18 (NLT)
21 His son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against both heaven and you, and I am no longer worthy of being called your son.’
22 “But his father said to the servants, ‘Quick! Bring the finest robe in the house and put it on him. Get a ring for his finger and sandals for his feet. 23 And kill the calf we have been fattening. We must celebrate with a feast, 24 for this son of mine was dead and has now returned to life. He was lost, but now he is found.’ So the party began.
*Luke 15.21-24 (NLT)
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Okay, sure, Lent is about confession and repentance. But there is Good News when we do that - We can move on and not keep looking back. That is part of the Good News in the Christian teaching on sin. And the doctrine of sin lets us accept sin is not always due to intention or willfulness; sin is, also, often due to our weakness and ignorance. Sometimes sin is rebellion, at other times it is more like our English word "mistake."
Just how many times do we need to confess something to move on? One time. True Love says, "Okay, great. Now, let's get back walking along. Bygones are bygones."
Even as pride can keep us from honest repentance, a false humility can keep us wallowing pridefully in a past sin. Imagine, you can use all that wallowing way in a helping others way.
Walter Hilton, the eminent Augustinian mystic (d. 1396), wrote about our not living in regret about past sins, in his The Parable of the Pilgrim:
Do not think of your past sins, for that will harm you and favour your enemies; but make haste to go on your way as if nothing happened. Think only of Jesus, and of your desire to gain His love, and nothing will harm you.
When the son comes home in the Parable of the Prodigal Son - which is better the Parable of the Father's Love - the Father refused to treat the son like a servant. He immediately reinstated his son fully to the rights of sonship.
Now, for that to happen, the son needed to accept the offer. And for the son to enjoy the forgiveness of his dad, he needed to forgive himself. To forgive yourself is to release yourself from the past. Sure, there may be consequences to what we did or said, but that does not mean we are to anchor ourselves in remorse by thinking again and again of it.
Now, yes, true repentance does not mean using this kind of teaching on Grace as an excuse to ignore something and not deal with it. Divine forgiveness can entail a period of purification through ongoing prayer about something, a period of contrition, and, possibly, making amends to another, or others.
Hilton teaches for us to keep our mind on our relationship with Jesus. He says continuing to think on past sins will "harm" us. Have you ever been helped by continuing to mull over something you should not have done?
This will, also, "favour your enemies." How might this be? Well, some persons do not want you to "succeed" in the spiritual Life. They are envious of you, and your ardent Love. They may even wish you ill, if you have hurt them - that is called malice. Someone may keep reminding you of something you did back then, somewhere, sometime. Likewise, evil spirits can use accusation to attack and tear us down. Remember, the meaning of "devil" is "accuser."
How do we go on? Focusing on our priority on growing in Love in Christ, and for others. The moment you feel tempted to hug up close to something that is past, something you have dealt with in repentance, Hilton says, "make haste ... to go on" as if you had never committed the sin.
The other side of "I was wrong" is "You are free." Amen.
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Are you failing to move on from a wrong you committed in the past? Try breaking the pattern by thinking, the moment your mind returns to it, of your love and desire for Jesus.
Do you know someone who keeps reminding you of something you did or said in the past, not "letting" you forget? How might you be free of the blame?
Is there someone to whom you keep bringing up a past failure he or she committed - at least in your view? Are you willing to cease doing that blaming and let the person know you will not do that again?
Have you had a moment when a past misdeed had no more power of you? What does that feel like?
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*This writing ministry is the offering of Rev. Dr. Brian K. Wilcox, of SW Florida, a Pastor in the United Methodist Church, and Senior Chaplain for the Charlotte County Jail, Punta Gorda, FL. To contact Brian, write to barukhattah@embarqmail.com .
*The writing of Hilton is dated 1910. Burns Oates @ Washbourne Ltd. This writer quoted it from the introduction of of Blessed Henry Suso. The Book of Wisdom. See Christian Classics Ethereal Library: http://www.ccel.org/ .
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