Scars and Forgiveness

I can only hope you’ve never visited a fortune teller who sought to tell you about your life by examining the lines on the palms of your hands.  But I AM at that point in my life where the scars on my hands CAN tell a story!  As I scrutinize just one hand, I first notice the large scar from nearly slicing off a finger while making baked beans for a picnic as a young teenager.  Oh, it healed up OK, but it sure left a mark!  Then there’s the faint scar on the back of another finger that I got while watching a band concert with my dad in the city park.  Isn’t it crazy how stuff happens?  And finally, there’s the nice scar across the back of my hand that I got by gouging it on a piece of car trim while on vacation with friends.  Life leaves scars whether we live dangerously or not.  ALL of these events were mundane and took place long ago, yet I see the residual damage daily.

So it is with SIN.  Every act of sin leaves some kind of mark on our lives.  Others may not see all our sin-scars because some might be in inconspicuous places.  But they are there.  WE see them when we look carefully.  The broken relationships that we just couldn’t, or wouldn’t, fix.  The deeply hurt feelings that we never expressed, nor confronted.  The insecurities formed from years of being reminded of our supposed inadequacies.  And even when we DO confront the issue of sin in each of those circumstances, the scars remain.  We may do our Christian duty and forgive those who hurt, or damage, or disappoint us.  We each may have sought forgiveness for the same.  But forgiveness doesn’t eliminate the scars – it just affirms that Jesus’ blood covers all sin. 

King David, that “man after God’s own heart”, was more like us than we like to admit – and I’m speaking about the “sin-part”, not the “heart-part”.  In Psalm 51, he confronts the reality of his own sin:

Wash away my guilt and cleanse me from my sin.  For I am conscious of my rebellion, and my sin is always before me…Purify me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.  Turn Your face away from my sins and blot out all my guilt.  God, create a clean heart for me and renew a steadfast spirit within me…Restore the joy of Your salvation to me, and give me a willing spirit.

David’s guilt was a constant reminder of his sin.  But the gash of sin still leaves a scar, even when it’s healed (and forgiven).  He knew God could remove the punishment for that sin through forgiveness, but the result of his sin still remained.  David lost a child, lost a kingdom, and lost his reputation – all sin-scars that never faded.

What if you’re on the receiving-end of sin?  Can we accept that every sin should be forgiven?  The apostle Peter assumed there must surely be a limit to forgiveness.  He asked, “Lord, how many times could my brother sin against me and I forgive him? As many as seven times?”  But Jesus said, “I tell you, not as many as seven…but 70 times seven.”  (Matthew 18:21-22)

It would seem that the answer to Peter’s question is that we should forgive as often as Jesus does.  Since His forgiveness flows from that fountain overflowing with cleansing power, we should be glad, like David, that we are washed “whiter than snow.”  I have no doubt that David went to his grave knowing he was forgiven, but with an aching in his heart over the sin-scars he bore.  What about MY sins?  Forgiven by God.  Mostly forgiven by those I’ve hurt.  Always present in my sin-scarred body.  Do you think that’s why we get a new body in heaven??

Waiting to be scar-free,

Jacob