The Power of Truth and Forgiveness

Happy Monday to our CFC Family;

Recently I was at the clinic getting some blood work done. Because of the lineup, the lady at the desk mentioned that there was about an hour wait before I would be seen. Since this was my second attempt in three days to get in, I decided to sit down and make the most of it. With some time to kill, I decided to watch an interview on YouTube  with Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel.

He is a very passionate preacher with an incredible anointing, and someone I have listened to for years. Although his appearance as a Syriac Orthodox Christian may seem a little overbearing at first, this thought quickly fades once you experience how Bishop Emmanuel emulates the presence of Jesus like few pastors I have ever heard.

The interview focused on the attack against him that happened a couple years ago on April 15, 2024. On that eventful day,  Bishop Emmanuel was about to begin his sermon at his home church in Sydney, Australia when he was viciously attacked with a knife by a 16 year old Muslim boy. The brutality of the attack was shocking and by the way his body was injured, it was obvious that this attacker knew what he was doing!  

Before it was over, Bishop Emmanuel had suffered horrific injuries to his head, face, and eye, ultimately losing the sight in his right eye. Yet what touched me most was not simply the severity of his injuries, but the way he spoke about the young man who had tried to take his life.

He spoke with compassion and forgiveness, saying that if he had the chance to meet him, he would embrace him and tell him about the love of Christ.

Think about that. Someone had tried to take his life, yet he said that he forgave this young man and prayed that he would come to know the Lord Jesus Christ.

What a powerful modern day example of the Word becoming flesh. This was not simply someone speaking the words, “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” These words were actually being lived out by the very person who had been attacked and nearly killed. With stories like this, Matthew 5:44 suddenly becomes more than a Scripture verse. It becomes a lived reality.

Scripture is easy to read when we are not forced to face it in real life. But when someone has genuinely hurt us, we are suddenly forced to live out in our actions what we actually believe.

During the interview, Bishop Emmanuel quoted a saying attributed to Sir Winston Churchill: “The most dangerous thing in the world is the truth.”

And in reality, there really is no statement truer than this! After the attack, the footage was quickly shared across the internet, but there were efforts to suppress and remove the story because it was considered too offensive, despite the fact that X was known to allow other material that was far more graphic and offensive to remain on the platform. The matter eventually went to court, and the attempt to have the footage removed globally was unsuccessful.

What really was the issue was am attempt to suppress the truth. A Muslim teenager had attacked a Christian bishop inside a church while he was preaching the Gospel. That was an uncomfortable reality, but it was still the truth! It could not simply be ignored or erased because it did not fit the narrative that some wanted to present.

We see this all around us, especially in the media. Stories can be framed in certain ways, facts can be emphasized or overlooked, and uncomfortable truths can sometimes be pushed aside because they do not fit the narrative being presented.

But how many know that darkness is intimidated by truth because truth brings hidden things into the light.

Jesus said in John 3:20; “Everyone who does evil hates the light”

In  John 1:5 He says, “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”

As Christians, we need discernment. We should not blindly accept everything we hear, whether it comes from the media, social media, or even someone standing behind a pulpit. We are called to seek truth, test what we hear, and measure everything against the Word of God.

Jesus said John 14:6;  “I am the way and the truth and the life”

Truth is not simply an idea. Truth is a person, and that person is Jesus.  And that is why darkness will always oppose the light. When the truth of Christ is proclaimed, it exposes darkness, challenges deception, and calls people into the light.

As I was coming to the end of the video, suddenly I was jolted back to reality when the clinic worked called my name,  yet despite the disruption,  I found myself asking myself the important question. “Does my compassion extend to those who have hurt me?” They may not have physically stabbed me as they did Father Emmanuel, but perhaps they have stabbed me in the back with their words, their actions, or their betrayal.

Does the compassion of Christ within me reach even them?

Could I forgive someone who deeply wounded me? Could I pray for someone who opposed me? Could I genuinely desire that the person who hurt me would find Jesus?

Romans 12:21 says, “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”

Bishop Emmanuel's response reminded me that forgiveness does not mean pretending evil did not happen, and it definitely doesn’t mean that evil doesn’t need to be exposed and dealt with!  But it does mean refusing to allow the evil done to us to produce more evil within us!

We can stand for truth without becoming hateful. We can expose darkness without becoming consumed by it. We can seek justice without seeking revenge. And we can forgive while still recognizing the seriousness of what happened.  

The world understands revenge, but forgiveness is different. Forgiveness shines a light into darkness.

Perhaps that is why Jesus calls us to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us. When we respond to darkness with the character of Christ, we demonstrate a power that darkness cannot overcome.

The question is not simply whether we believe what Jesus taught. The question is whether we are willing to live it when it costs us dearly!

A Question for You:

If someone who had deeply wounded you stood before you today, would the love of Christ in you be strong enough to forgive them, pray for them, and genuinely desire that they find Jesus, or would the hurt still have too much power over your heart?

Have a great week and we’ll see you Sunday!

Pastor Dan