The Forgiveness Series – Article 16 of 71

In this segment of “The Grunge Kid,” we learn why we need not concern ourselves with seeking revenge when we’ve been wronged. God sees to it that sins are accounted for on Judgment Day. God also deals with sin right here on earth. God’s Word tells us, “Whatever a man sows, that he will also reap.” This principle is as certain as the rising and setting of the sun. As long as our offender lives on this earth in an unrepentant state, he or she will never experience genuine joy or peace.

The teenage girl who had been sexually molested for years by her grandfather had grown uncommunicative and had withdrawn almost entirely from everyone around her. No one believed her story. Her grandfather enjoyed the respect of his colleagues, his fellow church members and the people in his community. The adults in her life had truly violated her sense of right and wrong.

Most of us experienced a similar kind of disgust when the O. J. Simpson trial was being conducted. Despite the fact that he denied his guilt and was acquitted of the crime, two people were killed, and there is still a murderer walking the streets of Southern California or elsewhere. We wanted to see justice prevail for the people who died, but there has been no justice.

I told her that God holds us accountable for every thought, word and action.

This 15-year-old girl believed that her grandfather had gotten away with his crime against her, and her heart was being consumed by a desire for revenge. She desperately needed to hear the principles of biblical forgiveness. First, I shared with her the scriptural principle that God holds us accountable for every thought, every word and every deed. Then I explained to her that God designed a place where sin would be paid for. That place was on the cross, where Jesus took upon Himself God’s penalty of wrath for the sins of all the redeemed in years past, in the present and in years to come. I went on to tell her that sin will be accounted for on Judgment Day at the end of time.

She needed to understand that God deals with sin while we are on this earth.

However, the truth that she needed most to hear at that moment was the fact that God deals with sin right here on earth, right now. This girl needed to grasp the truth that her grandfather had not gotten away with one single offense that he had committed against her during that seven-year period.

I told her about the reaping and sowing principle, and I showed her Galatians 6:7, “Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap.”

She had been deceived. She thought that her grandfather had gotten away with his sin. God is not mocked. What that man did to that young girl was mockery in the sight of God.

We sometimes deal with difficult relationships in our lives. Perhaps it is a work associate or a boss. Maybe it is a husband or a wife. For parents, it could be a rebellious teenager. We can be assured that they will not get away with their harsh, selfish, disrespectful attitudes.

God’s Word tells us, “Whatever a man sows, that he will also reap.” This principle is as certain as the rising and setting of the sun.

I told her that God was going to get her grandfather in His perfect timing.

Then I shared 2 Thessalonians 1:6 with this young girl, “It is only just for God to repay with affliction those who afflict you.”

I told her, “Your grandfather may still have his money, but if he doesn’t acknowledge God as the source of his wealth, his money will be a curse to him. The fact that he finds his security in materialism is the very thing that will most likely keep him from repentance.”

She needed to understand that as well. However, there was yet one very important principle that she needed to comprehend before she would be ready to biblically forgive her grandfather.