It would be easy for us who were raised in a loving home to love; we have no reason to hate others. On the contrary, it would be hard for us who were raised in a harsh environment to love; we have lots of reasons to hate others. Corrie ten Boom was supposed to grow bitter and hateful toward others because of her experience. She and family were arrested for harboring Jews in their home during World War II. But by the grace of God, that harsh environment in Ravensbruck’s prison camp did not taint her soul; she harbored love till the end. She even forgave the prison guard and the man who turned them in. It turns out it did not go as smoothly as I thought.

In her 70s something happened; some Christian friends who she dearly loved and trusted did something that hurt her deeply. To her surprise, forgiving them was harder than forgiving those who put her in prison. She finally managed to forgive them, so she thought. Until one day, in the middle of the night, she was awakened and the memory of what her friends did to her flooded her mind. The same thing happened again the following night. She knew, then, that she had not completely forgiven them. So, she prayed for forgiveness.

Not long after, a friend, who happened to know what had happened between Corrie and these other friends, visited her and asked about them who had taken advantage of her. “It’s all forgiven,” but they continued to deny what they had done, Corrie explained. To prove her right, Corrie went to her desk to pull out all their letters as proof of their wrongdoing. It was then that her friend showed Corrie that she had kept their sins “in black and white.” She had never got rid of them. That night she burned those “evidence” letters. She writes, “The forgiveness of Jesus not only takes away our sins; it makes them as if they had never been.” On the cross, God nailed our sins; in the tomb, God buried our sins; so, get out of the tomb; it’s Easter.

Pastor Paul