WE CAN’T HIDE

“The eyes of the LORD are in every place, beholding the evil and the good.”

Proverbs 15:3

King James Version

A man who was mean to his wife and children and beat them when he was drunk said “What I do in my own house is my business”.  That is not a true statement because everything we do is God’s business and we can’t hide from Him even if we close the door.  If we aren’t doing something wrong, we wouldn’t have any reason to hide from God.  I think that we sometimes forget that God knows everything.  He sees everything we do and He hears everything we say.

We read in the Bible.  “Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence?  If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there.  If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me.  If I say, Surely the darkness shall cover me; even the night shall be light about me.  Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee; but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to thee” (Proverbs 139:7-12).

Just as we can’t hide from God no matter where we go, we also can’t hide our thoughts or what is in our heart from Him.  God sees everything.  He hears everything and He knows everything.  If we have allowed unforgiveness, bitterness, hatred, jealousy, resentment and all other things that hurt God and break His heart to remain in our heart, He sees them and it hurts Him and breaks His heart.  I wonder how many times we hurt Him and break His heart because we refuse to forgive people who have hurt us.

If God can forgive us for what we did to His Son and Jesus can forgive us while still hanging on the cross with the blood flowing down His body, how dare you and I allow hatred, resentment and unforgiveness to remain in our heart?  If ever someone had a right to hate and not forgive, it is Jesus but He loves us so much that He asked God to forgive us.  What kind of love is this?  It is a compassionate and an unconditional love that comes from the heart of our precious Saviour.

We read in the Bible.  “And when they were come to the place, which is called Calvary, there they crucified him, and the malefactors, one on the right hand, and the other on the left.  Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment, and cast lots” (Luke 23:33, 34).  Think about it, Jesus didn’t have to forgive us and He didn’t have to walk that long lonely road to Calvary and allow them to crucify Him for our sins.  Yes, He didn’t have to forgive us and He didn’t have to stay on the cross but He stayed on the cross because He loves us unconditionally.

Ray Overholt wrote the hymn “Ten Thousand Angels”.  “They bound the hands of Jesus in the garden where He prayed; They led Him thro' the streets in shame. They spat upon the Savior so pure and free from sin; They said, "Crucify Him; He's to blame. He could have called ten thousand angels To destroy the world and set Him free. He could have called ten thousand angels, But He died alone, for you and me.”  The next time someone hurts you and you refuse to forgive him or her and allow resentment and hatred to remain in your heart, remember Jesus forgave you for your sins. 

Jesus was beaten beyond recognition, spat on, cursed, mocked and suffered pain and agony that you and I will never know and He still forgave you for your sins so how can you refuse to forgive the ones who have hurt you?  How we must hurt our precious Saviour and break His heart many times because we refuse to forgive the ones who have hurt us.  It is time we stop hating people and start loving unconditionally as Jesus has commanded us to love others.

We read in the Bible “A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another” (John 13:34, 35).  If Jesus comes back for us today, are you ready to meet Him or will you have to hang your head in shame because you haven’t forgiven the ones who have hurt you?

Joanne Lowe

August 3, 2019