… apart from Me, you can do nothing. — John 15:5
Are we prescribing problems or solutions?
Let me give you an example. Suppose a man comes to us and says, "I hate my father." (This is a pretty common discovery once people start getting honest with themselves.)
Suppose we say, "You need to forgive your father."
Have we offered a solution?
No. We have simply restated the problem. He hates his father. He is holding on to the anger and cannot release his father from his father’s offenses (real or imaginary).
But suppose we help this man find his anger, figure out why he is angry, and figure out what why he is unwilling to give that anger to Jesus. Suppose we hold all of that up to Jesus in our honest helplessness to do anything apart from Him.
Now we have offered the Solution. We have brought Jesus to the place of need. There is a reason why this man cannot let go of his anger, and Jesus knows what to do with that reason.
Is forgiveness the solution? No. Jesus is the Solution. Forgiveness is just the outcome. By the way, the forgiveness that comes when Jesus is applied to the problem is far different than the teeth-clenching, hand-wringing, "I-just-gotta-forgive-him-whether-I-feel-like-it-or-not" forgiveness that comes when people mistakenly think that obedience is a solution. When Jesus is the Solution, forgiveness is a delight, because our hearts have been transformed to look like His heart.
Be encouraged!
Dwight
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Dwight Clough is the author of four Christian books and is an active member of Lake City Church in Madison. This devotional is also available via email and you may review the archives back to 2002. To contact Dwight or Kim, use their contact form. You may also support their ministry.