Jul 10
28
SECRET SIX
Practice “forgiveness” and gratitude continually.
Is this what you say?
Everyone knows that we’re supposed to forgive, but few of us know how to forgive.
Few of us who call ourselves Christians understand that Jesus gave clear and actually quite simple instructions as to how to forgive – the only challenge is in the translation.
For example, the English word “forgive,” as used in the Bible is translated from two words in the original language. One of these words means, literally, “send away forcibly,” the other word means, “release,” or as we would say, “let go of.” Therefore, the word “forgive,” with all the traditional baggage that is tied to it, is wholly inadequate to express the concept of “forcibly sending away” and “releasing.” We are also still left with the question, sending away and releasing what?
Another challenge is the habit of some English-speaking people to say, “I can forgive, but I cannot forget.” On a practical and emotional level if I am unable to forget a wrong (either perceived or very “real”) that somebody perpetrated against me – I can say that I forgive, but in a very real sense, unless I have forgotten the incident, I am only kidding myself when I say, “I forgive.” I am holding myself in bondage to judgment.
I have seen the lives of people profoundly transformed (even healed from long term sickness and disease, as well as all kinds of emotional ills) when they get rid of such memories of wrongs perpetrated against them by following Jesus’ instructions. Not by suppression or denial, but by actually getting rid of the memory of such incidents.
What Jesus said in the original language in the Gospel of Mark is crystal clear – but how it has been translated into English has left us with some fuzzy thinking. The syntax of the original language makes it almost impossible to make an understandable (to modern American ears) translation – particularly if we insist upon a word-by-word and word-for-word translation from the original language.
The following is a very accurate American English translation of what Jesus was quoted as saying in a passage and in keeping with the original language – in context as well as literal content.
Throw it Violently Into the Sea!
“You must get rid of spiritual obstacles by authoritatively commanding them to be gone while holding a picture in your mind that you are lifting them up over your head and throwing them down into the sea. If you will do this without allowing contrary thoughts to cause you to waver from continually and emphatically speaking this while visualizing them as being already gone – they will be gone if you do not stop doing this until they are gone.”
“But don’t think you can do this if you are holding anything against anyone. If you are holding onto any judgment or criticism toward anyone for something you perceive they have done to you, you must send away and release these thoughts of judgment and criticism in this same manner (throwing them down into the sea), so that you can live in the perfect release from all judgment and criticism that your perfect Dad in the spirit realm has already provided for you. But if you do not release everyone from your judgment, you cannot walk in your perfect Dad’s release.”
That there is a lot of verbiage that is at first difficult to “wrap our minds around” in the foregoing is apparent, but going through the exercise of reading it repeatedly until the concept and the words are thoroughly digested is recommended.
Again, this is a literally accurate translation from the original language. Jesus spoke metaphorically about a “mountain.” “Mountain” is the literal English equivalent of the word he used in the original language. From the context, however, it is obvious that he was talking about a “mountain of stuff” that stands in our way of something and how to get rid of it – not getting all tangled up in discussions about “moving mountains.”
Another word used in almost all translations is “doubt.” The word in the original means divided in thought and can also mean, “To be interfered with by dividing spirits.” Our religious preconception about “doubting” is that it is wrong to doubt. NOT SO! Honest doubt will drive us to persevere in pursuing SPIRIT to get answers instead of being mired in feelings of guilt. But the word here as stated is not “doubt” – it is the very same word used by Jesus’ half-brother James when he wrote about righteous prayer accomplishing much if we are not “double minded.” Again the KJV translators mistranslated the word as “doubt.”
The temptation to acquiesce to certain religious traditions was powerful and powerfully resisted when I wrote this. For example, some people have extreme difficulty not using the traditional, more respectful term of “Father” when addressing “God.” Frankly, I was sorely tempted to pander to their perceived need – and avoid silly arguments based on tradition. The challenge is that in the original language Jesus was using a very intimate word that can only be appropriately and properly translated into English as “Papa, Dad, or Daddy,” or believe it or not, even “Mommy.” He was demonstrating that we have a unique, perfect, loving Parent Who is thoroughly approachable and to whom we can take every problem just as a trusting child does with his mom or dad. The more austere word “Father” defeats the very purpose of Jesus’ instructions. If we are going to begin to understand Jesus’ instructions to us, we must resist religious traditions perpetuated by archaic language and mistranslation.
What objective was Jesus setting before us in these instructions? The truth is a striking example of just how insidious a force that religious tradition and muddy translation have been to dim our ability to see what Jesus was telling us.
This passage, Mark 11:23 – 26, contains his instructions about how to acquire and use the same kind of faith with which Jesus had amazed his disciples through the use of this kind of faith. You have to go further back in Mark to see it. Jesus and his disciples were walking down the road from Bethany to Jerusalem. Jesus was hungry and saw a fig tree off in the distance. So he walked over to it only to find that it didn’t have any figs. Mark explains that the reason there weren’t any figs is that it wasn’t the season for figs! But Jesus, with no little irritation said, “Nobody is ever going to eat from you again!” His disciples heard him say this.
Has this tree been cursed?
They continued on toward Jerusalem – where Jesus drove the merchants and the moneychangers out of the temple. It was quite late when they headed back toward Bethany so they stopped for the night to sleep on the ground. In the morning they started walking again and as they passed the fig tree – now withered from the top down to the roots – and Peter, remembering, said to Him, “Wow! Look at the tree you cursed yesterday. It is completely dead!”
Now we’re back to the verse (22) just prior to the referenced text (Mark 11:23-26). In plain American English Jesus responded, “Yeah, I know. You could do the same thing. Get and use God-faith, the same kind of faith you saw me use.” Yes, I’ve resorted to paraphrase, necessary in my mind to shake us loose from some very ridiculous religious traditions that keep us from seeing what Jesus was actually saying.
Any reliable Greek New Testament renders Jesus’ statement as, “Have the faith OF God” or more literally, “God-faith.” Then he goes on to explain how to get this God-faith, by removing the obstacles to having it. By learning how to speak authoritatively – to the point of even killing “poor innocent” fig trees no less!
Now it may seem like I am getting way off the point of talking about “forgiveness” here, but I’m not. Many physicians and mental health practitioners say that at the root of many illnesses including mental illness is unforgiveness, i.e., unresolved anger and bitterness. I believe it is also the reason for the lack of the kind of faith Jesus is talking about here in the “church.” Jesus is clearly stating that we cannot get and use this kind of faith if we don’t send away and release our judgment and criticism of others, no matter what they’ve done. Please pay careful attention here; one of the causes for spiritual anemia and powerlessness in the “church” is judgment and criticism. Jesus is saying to send such thoughts and feelings away and to release people from our judgment – and he has provided us the instructions for HOW to do it!
The King James Version and almost all subsequent translations rendered the words in verse 22 as, “Have faith IN God.” There is considerable scholarly commentary available as to why the translators of the King James Version (KJV) may have deliberately mistranslated “faith OF God” or “God-faith” into the diluted, “Have faith IN God.” But the question that goes begging is why have subsequent translations continued the tradition, which dilutes the impact of the entire passage?
When I first stumbled onto this passage as written in the original language, I went to a friend of mine who was a leader in the Assemblies of God organization and, at the time, was known as an accomplished scholar of New Testament Greek. He told me I was making a mountain out of a molehill. I had to keep repeating the question as to whether I was correct before he finally admitted that I was indeed correct. He was also the one that pointed me to a commentary about this particular verse that indicated the translators were literally afraid to translate it correctly due to the legitimate fear that King James might give the order to cut off their heads!
The price of truth is losing your head.
We need to understand the “faith” that Jesus was urging us to acquire and use. We need to understand that NOT FOLLOWING HIS INSTRUCTIONS is the primary “mountain” or obstacle. We need to daily remove spiritual obstacles especially our negative emotions of anger and bitterness about being wronged and our thoughts of criticism and judgment of others. What are Jesus’ instructions, again? Cast them down violently into the sea! Not doing so is the prime obstacle or mountain standing in the way of acquiring this faith.
The destiny that Jesus proclaimed for each of us as believers is that we would be able to do everything he did while he walked on this planet as a man. We’ll never get to the point of doing what Jesus said we would do until we clearly see and remove the mountains of stuff in our way. “Unforgiveness” and stubborn adherence to religious tradition, that has nothing to do with what Jesus said is our destiny, are two of the primary obstacles.
One final thing that will help us to see the utter and complete scope of Dad’s release of us for all of our own transgressions is what Jesus said to Peter.
Peter asked Jesus, “When a brother has wronged me, how many times must I forgive him, seven?”
“No,” Jesus responded, “seventy times seven.” In the original language it is quite obvious that Jesus is saying to release a brother from our judgment not only 490 times (to be literal), but for the very same wrong committed over and over. If that is Jesus’ instruction to us, can we not see the infinite amount of times our Dad has already released us from his ultimate judgment? We are declared free! But only as we free our brothers and sisters from our own thoughts of judgment and criticism! I didn’t say that, Jesus said it! (Mark 11:26)
Once we go through this process it is a natural outgrowth to be grateful and the wonder of God’s perfect release splashes over us. Thank You, Dad, for showing us this amazing truth – that as we “forgive” (and forget) we walk in Your perfect “forgiveness.” Bless you and praise You Daddy/Mommy/SPIRIT for working things out so perfectly for us!
In Freedom,
Brad
This secret is too powerful to miss, listen to the podcast here: Podcast 13 June 23 2010 Seven Secrets Part 6