Standing Strong |
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Isaiah 11:6 2 Thessalonians 2:15 |
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Is Forgiveness Enough? |
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Yom Kippur. The Day of Atonement. Atonement and forgiveness are so often interchanged. But here’s the catch: forgiveness and atonement are not the same thing! We need both forgiveness and atonement.
For example, if my daughter scratched the paint on my brand new motorcycle and came to me and asked for forgiveness, I could forgive her but the motorcycle is still damaged. She will still see the scratch on the bike and a little part inside of her will feel guilty every time she sees the bike. Things will still not be right between us.
Now, what if she scratched the motorcycle but scheduled the time for it to be repainted and was going to pay for it? Now, she’s making things right. She is atoning for what she did. Why would she do this if she already knew she was forgiven? What if I had already arranged for the painting and had paid for it? Now what? To not have natural consequences for her actions leaves her with cheap grace and keeps our relationship from being as close as it can be.
Yet atonement alone also does not work. “Will you forgive me?” are the four most powerful words you can utter. In atoning for your sins, you take action to right the wrong you have committed. This takes care of the little guilty feeling you would get every time you were reminded of your wrong-doing. In asking for forgiveness, you humble yourself before the other person and follow G-d’s command. If the other person refuses to forgive you, then they carry the weight of your sin before G-d. To be right before G-d, you must ask for forgiveness and atone for your sins.
Yom Kippur. The Day of Judgment. A day to afflict your soul before the L-rd. In the ten days leading up to Yom Kippur since Rosh HaShana, the Days of Awe, we were to search our hearts and approach anyone we have wronged in the past year, through commission or omission, and ask for forgiveness. Before we come before G-d with our sacrifice and petitions for forgiveness we must first make things right between man. On Yom Kippur, we come before G-d in complete humility entreating Him to show us any sins which we have committed that we did not remember so that we can atone for them and ask our brothers for forgiveness, thus starting the year with a clean slate.
Numbers 5:6-8 clearly commands us to atone for our sins both between man and man and between Man and G-d. “Speak to the Children of Israel saying: When a man or woman commits any sin that men commit, to commit a trespass against the L-rd, and that soul is guilty; then they will confess the sin which they have done; and he will make restitution for his guilt in full, and add unto it the fifth part thereof, and give it to him in respect of whom he has been guilty. But if the man has no kinsmen to whom restitution can be made for the guilt, the restitution for the guilt which is to be made will be the L-rd’s, even the priest’s; besides the ram of the atonement, whereby atonement shall be made for him.” The ram was the offering to be made to the L-rd to atone for your sins before G-d. We are still to atone for our sins between each other. If we cannot find the person or any of their kin, then we still must make atonement, that atonement would then join the ram in being an offering to G-d.
So much for the age-old phrase “It’s better to ask forgiveness than permission.” Forgiveness is only half of the bargain. Now that you know you need to make atonement as well, in conjunction with asking forgiveness, it seems a lot easier to ask permission.
Just think of how much better off the world would be if we all took the time every year to go to everyone we have wronged through commission or omission and to not only ask forgiveness, but to also atone for what we have done. The best way to work toward making the world as it should be is to follow G-d’s plan. That includes relationships between people and people as well as between people and G-d. Atonement and forgiveness allow for the closeness designed by G-d and sought by all.
Selah. |