Is forgiveness motivational?

FORGIVE us our debts as we also have forgiven our debtors.

“Where sin increased grace increased all the more.” These words from Romans 5 v 20 sum up the essence of the Good News as proclaimed by the Apostles and always taken as the motif of Paul’s ministry.

The Corinthian Church was a good example of the grace of God overcoming the evident abundance of sin in that sea-port and University city of the first century world.

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The Corinthian was always depicted on the stage as a lay-about and a drunk.

To “Corinthianize” would have been in today’s parlance “to go to the dogs”.

The Apostle, conscious that “not many mighty, not many noble were called” was consious too, of the triumph of grace among them, and wrote: “Do not be deceived. Neither the sexually immoral nor idolators nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of you were.” 1 Cor 6 v 9-11.

And all this through grace, which was well defined by the Puritan Thomas Goodwin.

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He said, “Grace is more than mercy and love. It is superior to them. It denotes not simply love but the love of a sovereign, transcendently superior one, that may do what he will, that may freely choose whether he will love or not love. There may be love between equals, and an inferior may love a superior but love in a superior is what the superior may do if he wills.

“In such a one love is called grace, and grace is an attribute of princes: they are said to be gracious to their subjects whereas subjects cannot be gracious to princes.”

Grace is God’s redeeming love flowing down to debtors.

One of my favourite Abraham Lincoln stories is the one involving Roswell McIntryre, who deserted the Union Army during the Civil War. Such an act was punishable by death. At his trial he admitted his guilt and although he promised to be loyal in future he was sentenced to death.

Only a presidential pardon would save him. Out of pity for the young man, Abraham Lincoln not only pardoned him but wrote a note allowing him to return to his regiment. It read: “4 October 1864 - Upon condition that Roswell McIntyre of the Sixth Regiment of New York Cavalry, returns to his regiment and faithfully serves out his term, making up for lost time or until otherwise discharged, he is fully pardoned for any supposed desertion, and this paper is his pass to go to his Regiment. A. Lincoln.”

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How did Roswell McIntyre handle this offer of pardon? In the government records in Washington this document is well preserved, with this notation across the outside: “Take from the body of Roswell McIntyre at the Battle of the Five Forks, Virginia 1865.”

The Battle of the Five Forks was reckoned to be one of the last confrontations of the Civil War.

In December 1936 in the midst of the Abdication crisis involving King Edward and Mrs Simpson, the Prime Minister, Stanley Baldwin made a radio broadcast outlining to the British people the serious choices facing the king

In that broadcast, when referring to the king, Baldwin quoted from “Hamlet”:

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“His will is not his own, He himself is subject to his birth. He may not as unvalued persons do, Carve for Himself, for on his choice depends

“The safety and health of the whole state.”

The forgiven sinner, united to Christ in grace “is subject to his birth” and the Christian birthright is holiness and growth into Christ-likeness.”