Sermon recap: Biblical forgiveness is assertive. It initiates the process of reconciliation even before someone asks for forgiveness. Such assertiveness comes from a heart that is "forgiveness-ready" as opposed to being "clobber-ready." Biblical forgiveness is sacrificial. It absorbs debt rather than seeking repayment. God gave up his right to revenge by absorbing our debt in Jesus Christ, rather than requiring us to repay the debt through our moral efforts. Biblical forgiveness is empowered. It's not a decision that comes out of our own virtue. Like the prodigal son, it's not until our ship begins to sink that we point it home. In other words, it's when we come to a point where it pains us more not to forgive than to forgive that we set our hearts to do the Father's will. It kills us, but it kills us more not to do so. And the moment you repent, you see the Father desperately running like a mad man towards you with love in his eyes as if we chose to do the right thing when in fact we haven't. That's when it dawns upon you what real forgiveness is. That's when you truly grasp what love is. Because God sees us for who we are in Jesus and not who we are as sinners. And that empowers us to to love ourselves and others in a transformative way. We become a community that doesn't bear grudges, belittle those who have hurt us, or force people to carry the sins of their past with them forever.