Have you ever broken a relationship you were in?

Sin. It does horrible things to us. It’s because of sin that we have sickness, hardship, and death. Sin has subjected creation to decay and destruction. Sin has caused wars, starvation, and unspeakable atrocities.

Sin also destroys relationships.

There are a lot of things that go into a good, healthy relationship. It needs love, respect, selflessness, kindness, empathy, humility, and more. Sin stops those things. Sin leads to selfishness, pride, disdain, hurt, humiliation, and coldness. It can quickly end a relationship between people.

It also ended our relationship with God.

Without Christ, we are alienated from God, even enemies because of our sinful behavior. We are selfish, rebellious, immoral people who try to put ourselves in the position of God.

When this happens between people, the result is usually a break of some kind. It may take the form of a divorce, estrangement, abandonment, or even violence. We don’t like being hurt or mistreated so we end the relationship and move on.

God wasn’t satisfied to end the relationship.

There is a scene in a show I used to watch that floored me the first time I saw it. This husband and wife had been growing apart and arguing. Then, in one episode the wife confronts her husband. She lays out how he has been mistreating her. He knows it and responds, “I told you last night you are better off without me.” This is Hollywood, so I expect the next thing out of her mouth to be, “I’m leaving,” but it wasn’t. Instead, she said,

“Don’t! Don’t quit on us!”

I was shocked. She started telling him how they were going to fight for their family and fight for their marriage. She had been wronged and, yet, she was fighting for their marriage.

We wronged God. We rebelled over and over. Yet, He wouldn’t give up on us. He fought for us and continues to fight for us. He fought for you to the point of death.

Where sin separates us from God, the cross of Christ bridges the great divide.

It brings us back together with God and restores our relationship.

When we extend that forgiveness towards each other, the forgiveness we, ourselves, have received, it can restore our relationships as well. Jesus’ love and power allow us to fight for marriages, parent/child relationships, and friendships even when we were the ones wronged.

Heavenly Father,

I was running from You and You could have let me go, but You didn’t. While I was still a sinner, Christ died for me. He forgave my sin and restored our relationship. Thank You. Help me to treat others as You have treated me.

Amen.