Are You Sorry?

It seems to me the hardest thing in the world anyone has to do is to say that they are sorry for something. To apologize seems tantamount in many people's minds to being a loser. Don't admit to your husband you made a mistake or he will have the upper hand. Throw someone under the bus at work or you could get in trouble. By the time one becomes a teenager, they have learned not only not to apologize but, the art of placing blame on parents, teachers, or society. Speaking of society, it has created huge legal ramifications to admitting fault. Doctors in the Untied States for example, are terrified of getting caught in a mistake. What about admitting you did a crime in court and apologizing? Well, some people would rather lie and see if they can get away with a crime by using a crazy defense. Apologies only hesitatingly come when it could help reduce the time one would spend in jail. So, why would you do it, apologize that is?

Apologizing will have ramifications in our life. According to the New Oxford American Dictionary an apology is defined as a regretful acknowledgement of an offense or failure. We can see that the essence of apologizing is to admit a wrong and then to take responsibility for that wrong-doing. There will be consequences which can run the gamut from loosing a relationship, a job, or going to jail. But, most of the time we will not have so severe an outcome. Perhaps, we will be put on probabation. Maybe, our friend will forgive us and continue on as before.

However, apologies do embarrass us because they bring us the realization of our fallen humanity. We don't like that. We think ourselves better than we are and struggle to accept that we are sinners. But, what else could explain everything that you have seen in your own life or in the history of the world? The word sin comes from the lexicon of archery. It connotes missing the mark that you are aiming for. The fact is we sin against others and others sin against us.

Actually, we do it multiple times every day. We might miss the mark by flirting with someone even though we are dating someone else. In anger, we may have lashed out wrongfully at a child today. There are so many things that we can do wrong. The list of things is endless. Christianity reflects this reality when it showcases  an array of characters in the Bible and lists their wrongdoings. We see that some of them are sorry for what they have done and others are not. We have that choice of course. We can go through life flipping people off and deflecting responsibility taking. We can blame things on others, Adam did (Genesis 3:12-The man (Adam) said, "the woman you put here with me-she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.") and King Saul did it too. (1 Samuel 15:24- "Then Saul said to Samuel, "I have sinned; I have indeed transgressed the command of the Lord and your words because I feared the people and listened to their voice." 

Or, we can follow God's lead and acknowledge our wrongdoings and ask Him and others for forgiveness. Jesus says in Luke 5:32- I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance." I can definitely say at this point in my life, that I wished I could go back and say I'm sorry to some people for some things that I did. Don't you feel that way too? Some things seemed really important at the time but don't matter at all to me now. Some people that I loved passed away without reconciliation occurring. It's a real tragedy when that happens.

The Bible even goes so far as to encourage us to communicate our feelings to someone when they have hurt us. It encourages us to be patient in the forgiveness process as well. So watch yourselves."If your brother or sister sins against you, rebuke them; and if they repent, forgive them. Even if they sin against you seven times in a day and seven times come back to you saying I repent,' you must forgive them."-Luke 17:3-4

A relationship in good standing with God and one another is contingent upon repentance and forgiveness. What relationship is not touched by the need for repentance and the seeking of forgiveness? Many people who don't feel the need to apologize often end up alone with only their pride to comfort them. What cold comfort that is. Revelation 2:5-Consider how far you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place.