Month: March 2023

The word pardon has both a social and a legal use in our culture.  “Pardon me for the interruption” is an everyday social use that means excuse me.  The legal use of the word is not as common, but it is a powerful tool in our legal and justice system. 

In America, a pardon is an official act of the President.  Our current constitutional model of a pardon comes from our English heritage.  The power to pardon was modeled after English monarchs and given to presidents – not the judicial system.  Although the constitution does not describe a pardon, the legal system generally accepts that a president can give a pardon for any reason at any time in the legal process.  Thus, a pardon can be given before the conviction, while serving a sentence, or after completing the sentence.  Although a pardon releases one from future punishment, it does not clear the record.

A pardon does not address the issue of guilt or innocence.  A pardoned person may or may not be guilty of the accused crime.  The pardon only terminates the judgment.  Pardons are given for various reasons, but no explanation is required to issue the pardon.  A pardon may be merited or unmerited since guilt is irrelevant to a pardon.  There have been cases where a person refused a pardon in favor of a new trial to prove their innocence.

Forgiveness and pardon are often incorrectly used interchangeably.  Although the two terms have some commonalities, they are critically different.  A pardon is a legal construct, while forgiveness is a relational one.  In Scripture, God’s forgiveness is a significant thread that involves the removal of future punishment (a pardon), purging the record of our offense (sin), substituting Christ’s merit for our sin, and reconciliation with God. 

God, however, does not offer us a pardon but forgiveness.  At the final judgment, there will be neither a pardon nor forgiveness.  The Bible does not support the idea that, in the end, God will pardon everyone (universal salvation).  The book “Love Wins Out” promotes this erroneous idea as though one of God’s traits trumps all the others.  God is an integrated whole, not made up of parts, where all his attributes perfectly blend all the time.

Although God does not offer us a pardon, we have the power of the pardon in our relationship with others.  In Christ’s teaching on kingdom living, he said, “Do not judge, and you will not be judged; and do not condemn, and you will not be condemned; pardon, and you will be pardoned” (Luke 6:37, NASB, my emphasis). 

In this passage, the word pardon comes from the Greek word apoluo.  It is different from the Greek word aphiemi, which is most often translated as forgiveness in Scripture.  Pardon (apoluo) means to dismiss, set free, release, or send away.  In the story of Christ’s trial, Luke tells us that “Pilate, wanting to release [apoluo] Jesus, addressed them again” (Luke 23:20).  Pilate wanted to pardon Jesus and set him free without a judgment of his guilt or innocence.  But, caving into the people’s demands, Pilate pardoned Barabbas rather than Jesus.  Barabbas’s pardon released him from future punishment regardless of his guilt or innocence.

Kingdom living requires both forgiveness and pardons.  Forgiveness involves fractured relationships and requires both repentance and forgiveness for reconciliation.  Pardons, on the other hand, do not require forgiveness or reconciliation.  Instead, pardons only involve termination of judgment, punishment, and retribution.  

The Scripture has a lot to say about avoiding or letting go of bitterness, anger, and revenge.  One example is in the book of Romans. 

Never pay back evil for evil to anyone.  Respect what is right in the sight of all men.  If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men.  Never take your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, “VENGEANCE IS MINE, I WILL REPAY,” says the Lord (Romans 12:17-19).

In the Luke 6:37 passage, we are told not to be judgmental or condemning but rather pardon.  Rather than judging and passing a guilty sentence on others, we are to pardon or release them from our judgment and retribution.  Our condemning others usually shows up in anger, bitterness, and relational retribution.

Jesus gives us an alternative:  Let it go – pardon.  A pardon frees us from an internal emotional battle and allows us to respond in love.  A pardon is a way to express agape love.

Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous;

love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly;

it does not seek its own, is not provoked,

does not take into account a wrong suffered,

does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth;

bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things (1 Corinthians 13:4-7)

The phrase “does not take into account a wrong suffered” is to offer a pardon.  It means I will not put the person on trial (usually in our minds) to prove their guilt.  I don’t have to confront them and demand an apology.  I don’t need to bring it up and prove I am right.  Instead, I choose to release them from any form of my punishment or retribution.  Since I probably don’t have all the facts in the case, letting go of my sense of justice is probably the wiser course of action.  A pardon is an act of love that chooses to let it go. 

In 1974, President Ford pardoned the recently resigned President Nixon.  Nixon’s offenses were many and obvious.  Ford realized that a lengthy Nixon trial would further divide the country and distract it from the more pressing issues, the Viet Nam war being one of them.  For the country’s sake, President Ford made an unpopular decision to issue Nixon a pardon before he even went to trial. 

This story is a poignant example of the power of a pardon.  A pardon does not deny that there has been an offense, either real or perceived.  Instead, the power of the pardon allows us to let it go without a trial.  Guilt or innocence is irrelevant since we release the offender from our judgment and punishment.  When we learn to pardon others, we can get on with more important issues rather than be locked in a no-win battle of bitterness and retribution.  As disciples, we need to learn to pardon others quickly and frequently.

For Reflection

1.  What are other ways a pardon is different from forgiveness?

2.  Can you think of a time when you could have used the power of a pardon?

In 1943, American psychologist Abraham Maslow proposed “A Theory of Human Motivation,” which has dominated the field of psychology ever since.  Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is a theory of motivation in which five categories of human needs dictate an individual’s behavior.  Those needs include physical needs, safety, love and belonging, esteem, and self-actualization.  Maslow’s theory presents his hierarchy of needs in a pyramid shape, with basic needs at the bottom and more high-level, intangible needs at the top.

Maslow reasoned that once our basic needs were met, we could move on to the higher need of self-actualization.  At a layman’s level, self-actualization is a lot like being happy.  For most of us, pursuing happiness involves gaining power, prestige, and prosperity.  We reason that if we had those things in sufficient amounts, we would be happy, but in reality, they are elusive and temporary.

Our goals or pursuits affect how we deal with the world we live in and interpret the events we face daily.  Of particular concern are the obstacles and barriers threatening our life pursuits.  Most of these barriers are placed in our path by others.  Some are self-induced. 

Regardless of how the obstacles get there, we understand them to be enemies to be avoided or defeated–maybe just blown up.  Volumes have been written on turning life’s bumps into things we climb on.  Most heroes of history are women and men who have overcome the bumps in their lives to achieve their goals.  However, most of us want them removed as quickly as possible. 

As people of faith, we often think of Christ as an added resource when reaching our life pursuits.  We reason that the truth of Scripture and the power of the Holy Spirit give us a leg up in attaining our self-actualization.  Consequently, the Christian faith becomes an add-on to our default life pursuits, and God becomes the Cosmic Genie.  We now have the privilege (maybe right) to tap into our spiritual resources and use them to achieve our pursuits.

Our view of life obstacles is much the same as our secular neighbor, except we can use spiritual power to remove, overcome, or blow-up unwanted barriers.  When that fails, we conclude that God has let us down or we have failed our faith test.

The 24-week SEAL training, called BUD/S, illustrates the pursuit of self-actualization.  When a SEAL candidate volunteers to become a SEAL, he must exchange his old view of self-actualization (happiness and comfort) for another (to be an elite SEAL).   Without this exchange, the trainee will likely “ring the bell” or “tap out” of the process.  For the SEAL candidate, the goal initially is usually survival; make it through the 24 weeks, one meal at a time, without quitting or getting kicked out.  For the instructors, however, the hardship and pain have a purpose: to develop qualified SEALs.  It is often hard for the BUD/S trainee to appreciate what is happening in him due to what is happening to him. 

Twenty-four-week SEAL training is intense, but many people face similar or greater hardships for longer than six months.  Holding their breath until it’s over doesn’t work.  Even when we add God’s resources to the pursuit of our view of self-actualization, the barriers and hardships remain an inconvenience at best and an enemy at worst. 

When our first child, Bryan, was born “with severe complications,” my wife and I thought we could hold on until we could get some good news.  Eventually, we learned that there was no treatment, cure, or possibility of normalcy for Bryan and us; no more holding our breath.   Now what?

We discovered two crucial truths along our journey.  One was from 2 Corinthians 12:9, “My grace is sufficient for you, my power is perfected in weakness.”  We discovered we didn’t have to hold on because God’s grace was there to hold on to us.  We didn’t have to hold our breath; God’s strength would sustain us.  God’s grace was sufficient for the moment we were in: for today, not yesterday or tomorrow.  Living one day at a time, we experienced increasing shades of victory as his all-sufficient grace became a reality.

The second truth that altered our perspective was to look at our obstacles as God’s opportunity to achieve his purposes.  Instead of viewing our obstacles as something to get through, would we embrace them as God’s construction zone for our good and his glory?  Embracing God’s view of good is a big “ask” when we are in pain!

God’s promise in Romans 8:28 is that he can take any event along our pathway (including those caused by our foolishness) and use it for our good.  The word for good in this passage means profitable rather than comfortable.  But then notice the two conditions:  a relational commitment (love for God) and a directional commitment (living according to his purpose). 

With a new set of life pursuits (knowing, reflecting, and sharing Christ), obstacles take on a different meaning.  Instead of asking how quickly we can get through a particular difficulty, we ask how God wants to use it for our “good.”  Does he want us to discover some aspect of his nature that will bring him glory?  Does he want to transform our character to make us authentic image-bearers?  Or does he want us to be ambassadors who draw others to Christ?

“Don’t waste the pain” is a common slogan regarding life’s obstacles.  That doesn’t mean we intentionally induce pain as some monastic fathers did.  Instead, when pain does come, we can learn to welcome it as a friend rather than an enemy because of our changed life pursuits.  Now the old life goals are renewed:  power becomes service, prestige becomes influence, and prosperity becomes contribution.  I think this is at least part of what Jesus promised in Matthew 6:33, “Seek first the kingdom of God, and all these (prior pursuits) will be added to you (in a transformed way).”

For Reflection

1.  How have you seen God change your life pursuits? 

2.  Reflect on an unwanted barrier in your life journey that became a pathway for “good.”