Recently I had the joy of going along to some community days which had been organised by local churches where I live over the course of a week. At one of these days I met someone who shared they carried shame for something they had done and who asked for prayer. As we prayed one word came strongly into my mind. This was the word “forgiven”. Total, absolute forgiveness. Paid in full. And I spoke this word gently over and over, along with some words from the bible that came into my mind. “He was pierced for our transgressions and crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him and by his wounds we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5). “There is no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus”(Romans 8:1). As I spoke the word “forgiven” in love, along with these words from the bible, God did a work with the person I was praying with, and afterwards they said they felt so much lighter and their face was radiant.

The load of guilt and shame is a heavy load and Jesus says “come to me all you who are heavy laden and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). When Jesus encountered the woman who was caught in adultery he said to her “go and sin no more” (John 8:11). He did not say remember your past and be condemned. And he said to her accusers “he who is without sin .. cast a stone..” (John 8:7) and one by one they dropped their stones. We all fall short. The message of forgiveness is life transforming, healing and brings freedom. As we come to know how much Jesus loves us and what he did for us on the cross we can encounter this forgiveness.

Time and time again over my years as a Christian I have heard of lives turned around by the love of Christ. Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever. I know in my own life God has worked as I have said sorry and changed my ways. It is when we know how Jesus has forgiven us that we then find it easier to forgive others. As we take the plank out of our own eye and deal with what is in our back yard there is a shifting and God works to help us do what we thought was impossible. Forgiveness is never condemnation. Condemnation is not of God. God is kind and wants all to come to him and encounter his forgiveness and love.