In the well known event of Jesus meeting Zacchaeus the whole of the town and many Jewish leaders were appalled when Jesus chose to visit a tax collector over them. Tax collectors tended to steal money and were Jews working for the Romans, so they were severely hated in society. Jesus forgave him despite this, showing us that Jesus wants to save all lost people.
In the parable of the Lost Son, it illustrates that everyone can have forgiveness no matter how great his or her sins. Jesus is telling us through this parable, that if we know we have sinned and ask for repentance, God will forgive us, even if we don’t deserve it. In the parable, the father represents God, who forgives the most terrible sins and the lost son represents us, as God’s people. The Pharisees are depicted as the eldest son. In this instance the eldest son is angry and enraged as he thought that it should have been him receiving all the father’s joy and wealth. He had kept to the house rules, by doing what his father wanted and therefore he expected a reward for doing so. In the same way the Pharisees thought that by carrying out their specific practices and keeping their rules, they were the only people who deserved heaven.
As we all know, forgiving people today causes great difficulties within our local society and on a worldly scale. On September 11 2001 there were major terrorist attacks in New York by the al-Qaeda group. The American President, George W Bush, reacted to this by declaring a war against all terrorists. There was great debate on how to react to such a horrific event and no one is certain whether war was the right decision to make. Although the terrorist attacks were great atrocities, with many losing their lives and others injured, personally I don’t think that declaring a war was a very responsible action. Whilst America was at war, hurt and bloodshed increased and although it helped with a few problems a lot more were uncovered.
Old Testament laws suggest that you should seek revenge for how you were wronged - "an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth”. In the New Testament though, Jesus encourages us to “turn the other cheek”, suggesting that if we are sinned against, it is better to forgive than to strike back. Jesus teaches us that by forgiving people, this can prevent us from being bitter and helps to set us free. By doing so there is less chance of us seeking revenge. Forgiveness is also a sign of acceptance that something has been done for a reason, and cannot be changed. A vivid example of this is of how Gordon Wilson publicly forgave the bombers, who killed his daughter. Here he remembers Jesus’ teachings to “turn the other cheek” rather than retaliating against the bombers in rage and painful remorse. Some do believe that forgiveness can stop people from being bitter and hateful towards others. Some, on the other hand are of the opinion that if you forgive some one, that person will think they have got away with their actions and just sin again. The forgiveness of sins in our world today is extremely hard to do as revenge is easier and in some cases an instant reaction to a wrongdoing. If people chose not to forgive for example the September 11th attacks, nothing is gained and more is lost. In saying that, if nothing was to be done about the attacks, the terrorists might have continued bombarding the country until they got the reaction they wanted. There are many outcomes when choosing to forgive or not forgive. We as a society need to be sure to make the right choice more often as it could be more beneficial in the long run than wanting revenge.
