Matthew 6:14-15
“If you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly
Father will also forgive you; but, if you forgive not men their trespasses,
neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”
I have to admit that
whenever I see or hear the date December 7, I always instinctively say, “Pearl
Harbor Day”. In fact, that date is so etched in my memory that if my son had
been born one day earlier he might have been named Pearl instead of
Sam.
For those of you who are too young to remember the significance of
that date, it was the day the Japanese attacked our naval base at Pearl Harbor,
Hawaii without warning or a declaration of war. As President Roosevelt so
eloquently stated, “It was a day that will live in infamy”.
Actions like
the attack on Pearl Harbor are hard to forgive. Yet, if we are to follow the
scriptures we should do exactly that. I do not think that it means as a nation
we should do nothing, or let every enemy take advantage of our country and turn
the other cheek. The Bible is full of instances where the people of Israel
answered violence with corresponding violence. Interestingly, it appears that
although we may not have forgotten the attack on Pearl Harbor (people like me
who think of December 7), we certainly have forgiven the Japanese. After the
end of World War II, the United States provided assistance to our former enemy
to help them rebuild their country. Japan is now one of our closest allies.
Americans drive Hondas, Toyotas and Nissans without thinking twice. What U.S.
city wouldn’t be thrilled at the announcement of a new Toyota plant being
built? Had we not provided help to the Japanese, and had we treated them
poorly, our relationship could be much different.
I guess the lesson to
be learned here is that when we follow scriptures whether individually or as a
nation, things work out for the best.
Lee Oxley
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