Receiving And Giving God's Forgiveness Is One Of The Central Themes Of The Easter Story by Karin Peavy

Receiving And Giving God's Forgiveness Is One Of The Central Themes Of The Easter Story
by: Karin Peavy

Via an email, I learned that in 2007, stand up comedienne Kathy Griffin, while accepting an Emmy, told the audience that a lot of people thank Jesus for their awards but He had nothing to do with hers. Griffin then told Jesus to "suck it" and declared that her Emmy was her God now. Later, Griffin said she was only parodying various personalities who give Jesus praise for their award as if, she quotes, "Jesus doesn't have anything better to do than to make sure that someone got their People's Choice Award or whatever."

Griffin may have been joking but I find her statement distasteful. I believe that God does bless Christians with success so that they can openly give God the glory. So, it's actually less about getting an award and more about giving their testimony. Griffin essentially made fun of those testimonies. So, I certainly understand the email author's indignation. I agree with the author that we need to take a stand when our faith is publicly ridiculed. As a friend pointed out, when gay people are mistreated many rush to their defense. I have also observed that whenever racial comments are made (such as Seinfeld's Michael Richard's repeated use of the "N" word) African American leaders come out of the woodwork. But it seemed no one was that interested in coming to Jesus' defense except for Miracle Theater's ad in USA Today chastising the comedienne and the network's refusal to broadcast Griffin's remarks.

â–ºStill, I can't help but wonder if there's more to be learned here. Somehow I am reminded of these famous words from Jesus' own mouth while He hung on a cross for humanity:

"Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do."

â–ºMaybe, just maybe God wants every Christian who reads the above mentioned email to know they should forgive Kathy Griffin because she does not realize the seriousness of what she said. It doesn't appear that she knows the Lord and is therefore blind to spiritual things. Perhaps we can, in addition to not watching Kathy's TV show or buying tickets to her performances as the e-mail's author suggests, add her to our prayer list.

â–ºYou see, during this Easter season, I really do believe we need to remember one of its central themes: receiving and giving God's forgiveness.

â–ºNo, I am not excusing Griffin but let's take into account that we were once non-Christians, insensitive to the things of God. How many times did we take the name of the Lord in vain or make fun of Christianity before embracing it? Even if we were raised in the church and have been Christians all of our lives, we have and continue to fail miserably. And, make no mistake. God finds our disobedience just as distasteful, disrespectful and crude as we find Kathy Griffin's comments. Yet, our loving Heavenly Father time and again forgives us. He wipes our slate clean and forgets the wrongdoing as if it never occurred. Hallelujah! What a Savior!

â–ºI passed the email on to a few friends. One of them wrote back to say that Griffin is the neighbor of someone she knows, that she is often rude and stirs up trouble for the neighbors. She added that Griffin does not sound like a happy woman. This is my point exactly and all the more reason we should keep Kathy Griffin in our prayers.

â–ºStanding up for our faith is a noble act indeed and appropriate as the Lord leads. However, there is one mandate that we have been given that we simply cannot neglect. This command is the embodiment of everything Jesus stands for and that is to LOVE which is the fulfillment of God's law.

â–ºSo, my desire is that we would all become more compassionate towards those who do not know the Lord - even those who defame His name. That doesn't mean compromising our values- it means looking beyond that person's fault and seeing their need. The Father extends this same mercy to us each and every day. Freely, we have received; freely we should give (Matthew 10:8).

About The Author

Karin Peavy uses her pen to help change lives. Her inspirational and faith-boosting writing can be found in her book, Hot Chocolate For the Spirit and her ezines titled What is God Up to Today? and Words of Encouragement. To discover how Karin's writing can help you live your best today, visit http://www.karinpeavy.com.