The Hardest Thing Jesus Ever Did

I teach children of divorce about forgiveness. To demonstrate the burden and weight of unforgiveness, we put a sack of gravel in backpacks and have the children consider a time when they found it difficult to forgive someone or something in their life. When the children have something in mind, they are given a backpack of gravel and they have to carry it on their backs the rest of the session (about 1 ½ hours) and are not allowed to take it off. Throughout the session they consider various aspects about the load they bear. Sometimes it feels lighter.  Sometimes they find rest but the burden is still there. Some loads are heavier than others. And doing regular things is more difficult with this burden on their back; everything seems more labored than without it. They definitely feel weighed down by this baggage of unforgiveness.

Last night, we were teaching the kids this lesson when something very profound stood out to me. I recalled the tremendous offenses I have forgiven in my life and considered all that Christ forgave of me. I couldn’t think of a way to emphasize to the kids just how difficult forgiveness is and what all it involves. These kids won’t even fully realize the depth of injury some people have caused until they are adults and see the unforgiveness they still harbor handicapping their everyday lives. I wanted to assure the kids that Jesus knows it may be the hardest thing they’ll ever do. That’s when the Spirit shed a new light on the Truth.

Of all the persecution, heartache, fatigue, humanness, compassion, and teaching Jesus did, the very hardest, most grueling and excruciating experience He ever went through was FORGIVENESS. The forgiveness process required Him to accept the sins of every man and pay the price for each and every one, to bear the burden sinners should have carried. Forgiving others was by far the hardest thing Jesus ever did. The sins of others changed His life forever and the lives of everyone around Him. Every sin you can think of and then some impacted Jesus. He absorbed the impact of everyone else’s sins.  Then He made the incomprehensible decision to forgive!

Have you been impacted by someone else’s sins?  Have you bore the burden of unforgiveness when the offender was long gone and clueless of their impact in your life?  Is the weight of stones that have been hurled at you weighing you down and keeping you from living the life you’ve longed for?  We are not God. We can’t take on someone else’s sins in an attempt to save that person. We mustn’t try to hang onto offenses in hopes to somehow control the other person. What we can do however, is realize what the children of divorce are learning, that Jesus completely understands that forgiving is likely the hardest thing they’ll ever have to do, but it MUST be done if we are to experience the true freedom found in Christ alone.

The kids made a list last night of all the reasons why they need to forgive others. When they took off their backpacks, they placed them on the floor under the name “Jesus” written on the chalkboard. They were told to think about who or what they needed to forgive and some of the kids chose to say it aloud. Most of the kids who did said, “My dad,” and off came the baggage of unforgiveness at the feet of Jesus. How about you? Why do you need to forgive? Who do you need to forgive? It’s a process that begins with a decision. What will your forgiveness look like? Begin to catch the vision for it today!