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Timbaland and the Key to Forgiveness

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Are you a Timbaland fan? Totally? Not so much? For those who have no idea what I'm talking about, Timbaland is not the country directly adjoining Timbuktu - rather he is Timothy Z. Mosley - a hugely popular rapper, songwriter, and record producer. If you are a fan, you're definitely not alone.

Timbaland (featuring OneRepublic) has a recent tune called Apologize - which has rocketed up the charts and racked up over 22 million plays on his myspace page. Evidently a ton of folks are relating to the themes of this song - which mainly revolve around the idea that at some point, it is too late to apologize and make things right again. I think that's the theme anyway - see if you agree:

I'd take another chance, take a fall
Take a shot for you
And I need you like a heart needs a beat
But it's nothin new - yeah yeah
I loved you with a fire red-
Now it's turning blue, and you say...
"Sorry" like the angel heaven let me think was you
But I'm afraid...

It's too late to apologize, it's too late
I said it's too late to apologize, it's too late

So what do you think? Is there a point where too much time has passed and too many disappointments have broken your heart for someone to expect forgiveness?

Well, in my personal opinion...no. I know there are people in the world whose 'apologies' are as cheap and meaningless as a first date at Del Taco. Don't get me wrong, I love Del Taco, but to take a first date there would be, well, cheap and meaningless. For these people, 'I'm sorry' really means - 'can I manipulate and abuse you again?' In these cases, forgive them for the past, but don't be a fool in the future.

Why? Because that's what Jesus taught. In fact, one of His followers named Peter sort of had the same idea as Timbaland when he asked Jesus this question:

"Lord, how often should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times?"

"No, not seven times," Jesus replied, "but seventy times seven" (Matthew 18:21-22)

It's anybody's guess as to what was going on in Peter's life when he asked Jesus this question. Maybe he had a fight with his wife. Maybe one of his kids was rebelling. Or maybe just someone cut him off in donkey traffic rush hour? Either way, Peter was probably hoping that at least after 7 times, he could get off the hook and write his own version of Apologize.

But Jesus gave him a very different answer than Peter expected.

"Not 7 times, Peter, but 490 times!"

In other words, there are no limits on forgiveness.

Again, why? Why *must* I forgive people? Simple, because God forgave you. That's what happened when you trusted Christ for salvation, right? So how is it that you refuse to forgive others when you expect God to forgive you?

That's exactly the point of the story Jesus told right after the whole '490' thing so he would clearly understand what Jesus meant:

Therefore, the Kingdom of Heaven can be compared to a king who decided to bring his accounts up to date with servants who had borrowed money from him. In the process, one of his debtors was brought in who owed him millions of dollars. He couldn't pay, so his master ordered that he be sold-along with his wife, his children, and everything he owned-to pay the debt.

"But the man fell down before his master and begged him, 'Please, be patient with me, and I will pay it all.' Then his master was filled with pity for him, and he released him and forgave his debt.

"But when the man left the king, he went to a fellow servant who owed him a few thousand dollars. He grabbed him by the throat and demanded instant payment.

"His fellow servant fell down before him and begged for a little more time. 'Be patient with me, and I will pay it,' he pleaded. But his creditor wouldn't wait. He had the man arrested and put in prison until the debt could be paid in full.

"When some of the other servants saw this, they were very upset. They went to the king and told him everything that had happened. Then the king called in the man he had forgiven and said, 'You evil servant! I forgave you that tremendous debt because you pleaded with me. Shouldn't you have mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had mercy on you?' Then the angry king sent the man to prison to be tortured until he had paid his entire debt.

"That's what my heavenly Father will do to you if you refuse to forgive your brothers and sisters from your heart." (Matthew 18:23-35)

Are you feeling like you're in an emotional prison lately? If so, it might be linked to the fact that you've entered into 'Timbaland', and you refuse to forgive someone who hurt you because it's 'too late.'

Good news...the key to the prison door that holds you captive is in the chambers of your heart. It's called forgiveness, all you need to do is take it out and set yourself free. If you are having a hard time taking it out, ask Jesus to help you. Ask Him to give you the strength, because believe me, He has more than enough to share with you.

And when you look at it that way, it's absolutely never too late!

Head: What you need to know about this truth

Christians do not have the freedom to withhold forgiveness. If we choose to not forgive, we lock ourselves into a prison of guilt and loneliness.

Heart: What you need to feel about this truth

When you truly let go of anger and bitterness towards someone, you are set free to live life the way God truly intends for you, and you'll find a peace that you never knew existed.

Hands: What you need to do about this truth

Write down the name or names of people who come to mind when you ask God to show you who you might not have forgiven. Read through each name and say out loud "I forgive you" - then tear up the paper and throw it away.