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Cleaning Out Our Case Files
Forgiving can be a hard thing to do! A person’s actions or our own mistakes can leave deep emotional scars. Sometimes we believe we have forgiven but the pain keeps returning. We find ourselves again pulling up case files in attempts to justify our actions.
What are case files?
In court, when a case is brought before a judge, each person works to affirm their innocence, and one person is ultimately declared guilty. We keep mental case files on ourselves or on people who have hurt us. Our files contain evidence of guilt and justification for our actions. Every time the situation is brought up, we quickly whip out those case files. We recount in our minds why another person is guilty, and we are innocent.
Why do we need to clean out our case files?
For some reason, this never seems to satisfy. It only seems to grow that ache and discomfort in our hearts. Why? Because those case files are keeping us held in the past by one of two ways.
#1 Shame
No matter how hard we try to justify ourselves, we all know deep down that we are guilty. Romans 3:23 states,
“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”(NKJV).
Even in our very best human attempts to justify ourselves, we fall short. Instead of dealing with the sin and our portion of the case file, we try to hide or deny it. As a result, we enslave ourselves to living in the past. We continually walk in shame and insecurity, feeling that if others saw our case file they too would turn their back on us. If our shame came from a situation involving another person, we may also use our case files to prove that person’s guilt and our innocence.We excuse ourselves while rigidly holding to a grudge. In so doing, we blind ourselves from the change we need to make to be free from constantly standing in a place of judgement. Sounds like no fun, right?
Does God keep case files?
Often the top reason we keep case files out of shame is because we have not yet fully accepted the forgiveness Christ offers. We feel like we have done too much or we have committed an unforgivable felony. When we hear messages of Christ’s forgiveness, up comes our mental case file. We use what we consider to be unforgivable actions as a shield to keep God out. Why let someone in who is just going to judge us and cause us to feel more shame?
In John chapter 8, a woman who was caught in the act of adultery was brought before Jesus. The people who brought the woman to Jesus expected Jesus to condemn her. They were ready to stone her and give her the justice she deserved. Instead of condemning her, Jesus told the people that the person without sin could cast the first stone. One by one everyone left her with Jesus. Jesus then asks her where her accusers are. This question draws an interesting distiction between the people who were her accusers and Jesus. Jesus went against what was expected of Him, and instead of accusing and condemning, He forgave her and gave her a chance to start over. Revelation 12:10 points out that our accuser is not Jesus but Satan. Satan is the prosecutor who stands day and night bringing up our case files before God. Jesus acts as our defendant, and He is pretty good at what He does. In Psalms 103:12, we learn what God has done with our case files.
“As far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us.”
If we surrender our case file to God, He is ready and willing to remove it so far from us that it cannot even be found.
How do we clean out our case files?
Acknowledge and Confess
One way we can let go of our case file is to stop running from it and face it. Pray through your case file, confess every detail to God, and ask for His forgiveness. Confessing our case files helps us face our fear that God will reject us for our sins. One of the awesome things about God is He never rejects us when we bring a repentant heart to Him. We read in 1 John 1:9,
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
People of God who walk in the light will also show us this same love and forgiveness. Do not be afraid to also confess your sins to people who will extend forgiveness and pray for you. James 5:16 encourages,
“Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much” (NKJV).
Repent
Secondly, we must repent – turn away from our sins.
“God’s promise of unconditional love gives us the freedom to be real with God.” (click to tweet)
What do we do with that freedom? In today’s world and even in the Bible, people abuse God’s promise of unconditional love. In our minds, we may think, “If God loves me unconditionally, I can do whatever I want.” In Romans 6:1-2, Paul rebukes Christians for this mindset stating:
“What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it?” (NKJV).
God desires to set us completely free from our sins to the point where sin is dead – no longer present in our life. His love gives us the power we need over sin not to just deal with it but to kill it.
#2 Revenge
We may also hold case files from a motive of revenge. Sometimes we do not see the people who have hurt us most deeply receive any punishment. In response, we hold on to their file waiting for the chance to present our case and bring this person to justice.
What if someone is found guilty?
These files are tough. It is perhaps the hardest to forgive a person who has taken advantage of our innocence. In the Bible, God reminds us that in these cases He is the judge.
Forgive
We must forgive by letting go of our right to be angry and seek justice. While we only hold one case file, God holds them all. He alone knows what sentence needs to be handed out. God is the judge and the justifier, not us. He already judged that in spite of our sins when we confess and repent, He will give us grace. We must show others that same grace. Matthew 6:14 tells us:
“For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will forgive you”(NKJV).
God’s love gives us the power to stop looking back to see who is innocent or guilty. We instead look back to see God’s blessings and how far He has brought us. This gives us hope and reassurance to keep fighting the good fight.
Want to Study this Further?
For more on forgiving yourself, you can read the story of David and Bathsheba 2 Samuel 11-12, Psalm 51
For more on forgiving others, you can read the story of Joseph Genesis 37, 39-50
I would love to hear your observations from what you study or have studied. Comment below what advice you would give to someone struggling to forgive themselves or others.
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