Moving from Forgiveness to Reconciliation

Steve Cornell:

He said I am sorry, but it's at least the tenth time! I don't know what to do. I am told that it's my Christian duty to forgive, and the Lord knows I've tried. But each time I forgive him, he changes for a little while and then returns to the same behavior. I have a gut feeling I am handling things the wrong way. He never really changes, and I just get angrier. What should I do?

Sound familiar? I encounter people all the time who are trying to forgive someone who has repeatedly hurt them. They know it's their Christian duty to forgive, but they often feel they're either being deceived or taken advantage of. They also have a disturbing sense that they're enabling the selfish behavior of the very one they're trying to forgive.

Is this what forgiveness requires? Is it possible to forgive someone and to withhold reconciliation? We must learn the differences between forgiveness and reconciliation. Forgiveness is always required by God, but it does not always lead to reconciliation.

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