HDC’s ministry is designed to prepare individuals to engage their relational world, their oikos (the Greek word for “household”), with the tremendous news of God’s grace.
Looking at Joseph this weekend was a great reminder of the need to forgive others. And though we spent some significant time on the subject, there is no way to cover everything that needed to be said. One of those topics that could use clarification is the relationship between forgiveness and trust.
At the same time, forgiveness does not require that we place ourselves in the line of fire time and time again. In the story of Joseph, he likely had forgiven his brothers long before they showed up in Egypt. However, the full restoration of the relationship required a measure repentance. Joseph was not going to make himself vulnerable again until he knew that they had truly changed. Joseph had no resentment issues that we can discern, but he also had no desire to be violated again. In other words, forgiveness precedes a restored relationship. But for a relationship to be restored, one must acknowledge the wrong they have done. Once that is done, an individual has the opportunity to earn back the trust that was lost and in doing so, restore the relationship to its fullest.
HDC’s ministry is designed to prepare individuals to engage their relational world, their oikos (the Greek word for “household”), with the tremendous news of God’s grace.
HDC’s ministry is designed to prepare individuals to engage their relational world, their oikos (the Greek word for “household”), with the tremendous news of God’s grace.
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