PRIVILEGED POSITION

“From among all the families on the earth, I have been intimate with you alone. That is why I must punish you for all your sins!” Amos 3:2 (NLT)

Wow! Israel strikes again! God chose them to be His people. He promised Abraham he would be the father of all nations. God didn’t have to choose them. But, he did—and not because they deserved special treatment. They had laid claim to this status but they forgot what God had done for them…and needed to be reminded of the facts. I am not so different from the Israelites. I also need his nudge at times.

I was discussing divorce and forgiveness with a friend of mine last evening. Both of us have been down this road and have some less than wonderful things to say about our exes. We were both scarred with emotional abuse during our marriages and our ex-husbands still know how to push our buttons. Forgiveness did not come easy. But, we each have worked hard to do so. As we talked about the fear of being controlled by them again, she made a degrading statement about her ex—something I have done many times as well.

As I listened to her words, God made it clear to me I held a privileged position of being forgiven—just because I asked. As I thought about that fact, God showed me how degrading comments about another person are part of the retaliation process…not forgiveness. Making someone look bad to another person is a prideful act that strikes back instead of moving forward.

Pride in a privileged position ruins us! Am I sitting in such a comfortable position that I cannot remember what God did for me? There will always be those individuals we don’t believe deserve the same grace he gives us…but that is not our choice. I will remember that it belongs to him. And I will strive to afford the same privilege of grace and forgiveness to everyone.