Sometimes What Seems Right, Is

There is a path before each person that seems right, but it ends in death. [Proverbs 14.12]

There is an obvious understanding of this passage that I believe is good. The gist of the verse is that we might think we know what is right, but, in the end that decision leads to death. The most common understanding of this is that we should think through all our decisions for the big picture so that we might avoid pitfalls only seen if we consider the future. Good lesson - end of story, right?

Before I ever started reading today, I was already, again, considering forgiveness (see previous two days' posts). Even as I read familiar and favorite passages that I read every day before the OYCB reading, I began to read forgiveness into them...Here is one in particular:

We are human, but we don’t wage war as humans do. We use God’s mighty weapons, not worldly weapons, to knock down the strongholds of human reasoning and to destroy false arguments. We destroy every proud obstacle that keeps people from knowing God. We capture their rebellious thoughts and teach them to obey Christ. [2 Corinthians 10.3-5]

What is war? At its root, it is unforgiveness! Most commonly, one nation cannot forgive what another nation does, so they go to war. Individuals do the very same thing. But Paul points out that our mighty weapons (which are not worldly) are superior. Could we not imagine, just for a moment, that our weapons can be summed up in forgiveness? Certainly human reasoning does not come up with such a conclusion and therefore its false arguments are powerless against forgiveness. 

But look at what is said next. Paul points out that we destroy every proud obstacle that keeps people from knowing God. What if that proud obstacle has nothing to do with others, but instead us? What if our forgiveness of others destroys the proud obstacles within us that otherwise insist on fussing, fighting and going to war? And then look at the rest of what Paul says... those proud obstacles keep people from knowing God. Very clearly put: Our proud resistance to forgive others prevents them from seeing Jesus Christ, Who on His cross, FORGAVE! In other words, we capture people in their rebellious thoughts by teaching through our example of Christ's forgiveness - we teach them by our example to obey Christ JUST AS CHRIST TAUGHT US BY HIS EXAMPLE!

So, let's go back to the subject passage from Proverbs above. Human reasoning (as addressed by Paul) is what seems right to us. See where this is going? It seems right that fussing, fighting, and going to war is the way to ...well, ... get our way. But Jesus did not model that solution for us, did He? Even though, to His disciples, it seemed right to fight in resistance, Jesus waged His war by submitting to the Cross.

What if the path that seems right to the child of God is to forgive, as did Jesus on the Cross, which "ended" in death?

These thoughts started today as I read 2 Corinthians 10.3-5 before reading my daily OYCB reading. They were further ignited when I read Proverbs 14.12 and I pretty much knew then I would be writing on this topic. But, what really sealed the deal for me was what I read further in to my OYCB reading:

There is a path before each person that seems right, but it ends in death. [Proverbs 16.25]

Yep, its the exact same sentence a couple chapters later! Confirmation?

One might argue that I have lost my objectivity and ability to see anything but forgiveness everywhere I read. It might be said that I am interpreting everything through forgiveness glasses. Well, let me confirm that deduction: Forgiveness is EVERYTHING to us. Jesus is the FORGIVER. JESUS said:

“You search the Scriptures because you think they give you eternal life. But the Scriptures point to me! [John 5.39]

If indeed the Scriptures all point to Jesus, then the Scriptures all point to forgiveness.

Father, may I be found praying for the world You love today on my cross, as Jesus demonstrated for me on His, “Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing.”