Frankie V: why did you write this book?
\n<\/strong><\/p>\nBrant H: Whenever I talked about this subject on the air, nobody believed me. They were convinced \u201crighteous anger\u201d is a thing, and it\u2019s a thing they should have.<\/p>\n
Frankie V: share some of the experiences that shaped the book.
\n<\/strong><\/p>\nBrant H: In my time in \u201cChristian media\u201d, I\u2019ve seen one book, or one trend, or one emphasis after another, calling us to live more \u201cradical\u201d or \u201cextreme\u201d lives for God.<\/p>\n
They\u2019ve all been, in my view, anyway, pretty much the same thing: Calling us to the same stuff, but just more of it. Give more, be more, do this, do that, be a better churchgoer or whatever.<\/p>\n
But we\u2019re called to be a new kind of human. We\u2019re called to do the whole thing differently. Living in forgiveness, and forfeiting our right to anger, would make us shockingly different, indeed. And it would make us more humble, more joyful, more peaceful, and more fun to be around, I\u2019m guessing.<\/p>\n
Frankie V: what are some of the ingredients for becoming unoffendable?<\/strong><\/p>\nBrant H: First, give up the idea that there is an anger that is supposed to be harbored and nursed, and it\u2019s righteous to do so. Give up the idea, too, that even if there were such a thing as \u201crighteous\u201d anger for humans, you\u2019d be the best judge of your own anger.<\/p>\n
The Bible is consistent on this. We get angry, yes, but we\u2019re to get rid of it. God can be trusted with it; we can\u2019t. He\u2019s sinless, we\u2019re not. James writes, point-blank, in Chapter 1 that \u201cthere\u2019s nothing about human anger that produces the righteousness of God,\u201d and yet we persist in thinking otherwise.<\/p>\n
Second, put yourself squarely in the role of the unmerciful servant in Jesus\u2019 brilliant story. We\u2019re the ones who have been forgiven much, and we think we\u2019re entitled to anger against another sinner? Really?<\/p>\n
Third, maybe we should pray, \u201cFather, forgive them, for they don\u2019t know what they\u2019re doing.\u201d People do horrible things. Evil things. But this prayer allows us to separate the lie from the person. We struggle not against flesh and blood, but against spiritual powers.<\/p>\n
Last, just deciding to be \u201cunoffendable\u201d on a daily basis is largely do-able. Just take on that mindset, and most of the petty things are pretty easily looked past. Don\u2019t continue to be shocked \u2013 shocked! \u2013 that people cut you off in traffic, as they have for the last 40 years. The world is fallen, folks. Got it. We know.<\/p>\n
Frankie V: in your opinion, what should a believer do when they begin to take offense with someone or they \u201cfeel\u201d offended?<\/strong><\/p>\nBrant H: I have to remind myself of my own sinfulness, and God\u2019s willingness to forgive me.<\/p>\n
Jesus levels the moral playing field. No one is morally superior to anyone else. Scandalous? Yes, it is. But as a sinner, I happily take it.<\/p>\n
Realize that extending forgiveness to someone isn\u2019t based on whether the other person \u201cdeserves it\u201d or not. It\u2019s because God deserves it. He demands it, too.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s good, when someone does something wrong to you, to think, \u201cJesus says for me to forgive. So here\u2019s my chance, to forgive as I\u2019ve been forgiven.\u201d This is why I call traffic, for example, \u201cforgiveness practice.\u201d<\/p>\n
Frankie V: what is the one big thing you want people to \u201ctake away\u201d after they read your book?<\/strong><\/p>\nBrant H: God is amazingly good to us. He\u2019s offering joyful rest. Let\u2019s take Him up on it.<\/p>\n
Frankie V: what else would you like readers to know about the book?<\/strong><\/p>\nBrant H: I think people will suspect this book is a simple self-help book. I try to write about the topic with a light touch. But I think what we\u2019re actually doing here is at the very heart of discipleship.<\/p>\n
We should teach people this stuff. Is it hard? Excruciating. Like dying to ourselves, even. Like picking up our own cross, and bearing the sin of others, in order to cover it.<\/p>\n
Someone just tweeted to me that, \u201cWe don\u2019t HAVE to forgive. We can stay angry. There are other ways of dealing with things besides forgiving,\u201d and you know what? They\u2019re right. There are other ways. Many.<\/p>\n
This way is a very particular way. A narrow one.<\/p>\n
Few will take it.<\/p>\n
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