Sermon Illustrations

NO REST FOR THE UNFORGIVING

Somewhere in the recesses of my memory is the recollection of a movie. It’s a Western; I know that much. I can’t remember the title of the movie, but I remember the story line.

The hero is a law man, and he is transporting a convicted murderer across the treacherous plains of the Old West to face trial for his crimes back East. The journey takes days, and the hero cannot afford to sleep, lest while he’s unconscious, the murderer may flee or do worse, perhaps even kill him. Of course, the bad guy reminds him of this with frequency, especially one night as they are camped out under some high rocks. As the sheriff fights off sleep, his prisoner taunts him, even threatens him. "Better not fall asleep there, Sheriff; no tellin’ what might happen." Just watching the scene, I could feel the frustration and fear of the hero. In some ways the prisoner was holding the law man hostage.

That’s what an unforgiving spirit does to us. It holds us prisoner. It fuses us with the person who has wronged us and gives us no rest.

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