I will rise

There's a peace I've come to know
Though my heart and flesh may fail
There's an anchor for my soul
I can say "It is well"

Jesus has overcome
And the grave is overwhelmed
The victory is won
He is risen from the dead

And I will rise when He calls my name
No more sorrow, no more pain
I will rise on eagles' wings
Before my God fall on my knees
And rise
I will rise

There's a day that's drawing near
When this darkness breaks to light
And the shadows disappear
And my faith shall be my eyes

And I hear the voice of many angels sing,
"Worthy is the Lamb"

- Chris Tomlin, "I Will Rise"

This has been one of my favorite songs over the past few years. Every time it comes on the radio or Pandora, I stop and really listen to the words of the song. It's incredible. 

Last night in Bible study, Kaila went through the parable of the unmerciful servant. As we were studying this, we were reminded that we have been forgiven much.  The king's servant owed him millions of dollars in modern day equivalence and he "took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go." [Matthew 18:27].  WHAT?! Who would do that? What's more surprising is that the servant who was let go quickly forgets what has been done to him and wants to throw one of his servants in prison because he owes him a significantly lesser amount of debt, but doesn't cancel it. 

Let's examine this a little more. The king canceled the debt of his servant then the servant doesn't cancel the debt owed to him by another servant. Thinking of this in terms of us and Jesus, it's remarkable. Jesus is the King. On the cross, He paid everyone's debt in full. Think about that for a minute. As I think of my life and how much I owe to my holy and perfect God, it's unmeasurable. Now, multiply that by humanity and that's an intense amount of debt; BUT, Jesus paid it all! None of our debt remains to be owed, we are completely set free from that burden of needing to pay to a just God. So we are the king's servant in this parable. We have been forgiven much, but we forget quickly how much and then we do not forgive our brothers and sisters. We are hypocrites  when we do not forgive others. 

This hit me hard last night because a few weeks ago, a friend hurt me and I did not want to forgive her. She repented and was sorry, but I didn't want to let it go that easily. I was so wrong and didn't even think about how much I have been forgiven. Who am I to do such a thing? I am the king's servant. Praise God for grace and forgiveness. 

"God has forgiven you such a great debt, that any debt owed to you is absolutely insignificant in comparison. No man can possibly offend me to the extent that my sins have offended God. This principle must be applied to little things done to us, but also to the great things done unto us." - David Guzik