That was the night that LeBron James and his Miami Heat teammates returned to Cleveland for the second time during the 2010-11 season. LeBron, who grew up 
in Akron and led the Cavs to much success during his first several seasons in the NBA, left Cleveland in the summer of 2010 and took his talents to South Beach. His first return to Cleveland was back in November and was much more hyped.
in Akron and led the Cavs to much success during his first several seasons in the NBA, left Cleveland in the summer of 2010 and took his talents to South Beach. His first return to Cleveland was back in November and was much more hyped. It was on national television and the fans of C-town got their chance to vocalize their feelings towards their former hero. To call it a hostile environment back in November would be a huge understatement. But to the chagrin of most everyone in Northeast Ohio (and many people across the country), LeBron and the Heat got the last laugh. The Cavs got down big and folded like a cheap tent.
So as I sat down to eat lunch on the 29th of March I started to think to myself. I wondered if the scene down at Quicken Loans arena would be any different. I wondered if any fans might just go overboard and try something crazy like attacking LeBron or throwing a hot dog at his head. The thought of hateful chants and derogatory signs entered my mind. And I'll admit it, being a Cleveland sports fan, a big part of me wanted it to happen. You see, guys like me who have spent their whole life in this city took his leaving for Miami as personal thing. Nine months after his departure I was still angry about the whole situation and I was sort of hoping those fans down at the Q would let him know about it.
At that very minute (probably because of the Holy Spirit), I felt compelled to do something my spiritual director had encouraged me to do... read the gospel reading for that day. I took out my Blackberry and pulled up the gospel reading from http://www.usccb.org/. Here is what I read:
Peter approached Jesus and asked him,“Lord, if my brother sins against me, how often must I forgive him? As many as seven times?” Jesus answered, “I say to you, not seven times but seventy-seven times. That is why the Kingdom of heaven may be likened to a king who decided to settle accounts with his servants. When he began the accounting, a debtor was brought before him who owed him a huge amount. Since he had no way of paying it back, his master ordered him to be sold, along with his wife, his children, and all his property, in payment of the debt. At that, the servant fell down, did him homage, and said, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back in full.’ Moved with compassion the master of that servant let him go and forgave him the loan. When that servant had left, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a much smaller amount. He seized him and started to choke him, demanding, ‘Pay back what you owe.’ Falling to his knees, his fellow servant begged him,‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.’ But he refused. Instead, he had him put in prison until he paid back the debt. Now when his fellow servants saw what had happened,they were deeply disturbed, and went to their master and reported the whole affair. His master summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you your entire debt because you begged me to. Should you not have had pity on your fellow servant, as I had pity on you?’ Then in anger his master handed him over to the torturers until he should pay back the whole debt. So will my heavenly Father do to you, unless each of you forgives your brother from your heart.” (Matthew 18: 21-35)
All of sudden I had one of those moments. A moment where you want to say, "yeah, but God..." I felt like there should be a loophole. Forgiveness is good and all but we shouldn't have to forgive LeBron! Right?
I reflected on the things I was thinking just a moment earlier and how far off I was from truly living the gospel. I didn't feel too great about myself and I didn't like thinking that I was called to forgive LeBron. The reality is though, that is what Christ called his followers to do.
We all have different "LeBrons" in our lives. Not all of them are over 6' 8" and make millions of dollars each year. They come in the form of family members, friends, neighbors, former boyfriend/girlfriend/spouse, co-workers. Sometimes we are still carrying hurt from a fallout from years ago with a particular person. Sometime we are just mad at a nameless jerk who cut you off on the highway. At the end of the day, it's a pretty similar formula: somebody does or says something that hurts and angers you and the lasting effect is discord.
That discord does not solve anything. Those negative thoughts won't remedy the situation. Jesus knew this and He knew those are things the devil will use to rip marriages, families, friendships, communities, and ultimately God's world apart. Jesus tells us we shouldn't be keeping score. We ought not limit our forgiveness. Christ knew the true way to resolve the brokenness is through forgiveness.
And being the Son of God, Jesus Christ was wise enough to continue to tells us another reason why we need to forgive. In the scripture passage above, Christ basically says the servant should be forgiving since he was forgiven. Therefore, we, as forgiven sinners, must be forgiving. God is not a god of second or third chances... in His mercy He is a God of infinite chances. He is always there with open arms for us to return to Him. His request to us: Pay it forward. We can't forgive God since He is a perfect and loving father. We need to be mindful that despite the countless times we fail Him, He forgives us and we need then show that love and mercy to those who have failed us.
Forgiving isn't easy, but like most things that can be challenging, it is so worth it.
The Cavs won that night. That felt great. So does letting go of grudges and hatred.
Questions for reflection:
1) Do you take God's forgiveness of your own sins for granted or are truly grateful for His mercy?
2) Why might we take Christ's instruction to forgive those who have hurt us and to love our enemies lightly?
3) Who do you need to forgive? Have you asked God to help you forgive that person?
