To Forgive or not to Forgive?

Which is harder to forgive ourselves or to forgive others?

When questioned about how many times we are to forgive someone, seven times? Jesus answered not seven times but seventy times seven. In other words there are not limits to the amount of forgiveness we are to offer. Which is all well and good unless you're the one being asked to forgive, then rubber really hits the road. What's that saying about getting burned... So Jesus challenges us to forgive all things all the time... no limitations on what or who receives our forgiveness. Since Jesus pulled it off at the cross we have at least one example, and don't give me the of course he could do it because he is Jesus stuff. If the writer to Hebrews talks about Jesus being tempted in every just as we are yet was without sin, Heb.4:15 Jesus' saying no to temptation was not due to his divine nature, but within his human ability. His forgiveness is powered by his humanity and not his divinity.

Jesus expects us to follow his example when it comes to forgiveness.

We are to forgive others and forgive ourselves... which means that we are also to forgive ourselves seventy times seven times.If there are no limits regarding the number of times we are to forgive others, then there are no limits as to the number of times we are to give ourselves. However, if we were to forgive others the way we forgive ourselves, there is a strong possibility that others may never be forgiven.

We just seem to be able to forgive others more readily than we forgive ourselves. Some how it seems easier to let the other guy off the hook while keeping ourselves firmly impaled. I am not quite sure why. Lack of self forgiveness clearly leads to self loathing, and self incrimination, not mention sabotaging our self worth. Why someone likes to point at a personal failure, whether it is faith related or moral, and beat themselves up with it repeatedly makes no sense. Yet from the people I talk to, lack of self forgiveness is the norm not the exception. From their perspective it is easier to forgive others than it is to forgive ourselves.

Could it be that we hang on to these past failures as a fall back position in case things take a turn for the worse. We become our own scapegoat, and who wouldn't expect otherwise... It validates the worst we think of ourselves, and cancels out whatever goodness might have crept in.

Perhaps the inability to forgive ourselves is one more outworking of the story in Genesis when we chose to know for ourselves what is right and what is wrong, of who to forgive and who not to forgive- including ourselves.

Lest we be without hope- Jesus has an app for this too.