“Apology” by Bro Chang Jih Ren on 24th Nov 2019
Sometimes, apology doesn’t come easy even after we have offended someone. It is God’s will that we reconcile with one another. There are times that we even delay the reconciliation effort or process as much as possible. On the topic of Apology, the preacher, Bro Chang shared on the five languages of apology. They are;
- Expressing regret: “I am sorry”
- Accepting responsibility: “I was wrong”
- Restitution-amends: “What can I do to make it right?”
- Repentance: “I will try not to do it again”
- Requesting forgiveness: “Will you please forgive me?”
Without the prompting of the Holy Spirit, he pointed out that we don’t even know that we had hurt our love ones. He said, “If we do not know how to apologize, how can we reconcile with one another? Next, is how do we apologize to God? It is only when we turn around and do as what God wants us to do (Matthew 5:24), we have the courage to seek forgiveness from others whom we have wronged,” he believed. He explained that we can relate this when Jesus was hung on the cross. He noted the second convict nailed alongside Jesus on the cross, was humbled enough to recognize his own sin and by just saying, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your Kingdom (Luke 23:40-43). Besides that he noted that apology means the way to the cross. “So, the question we need to ask ourselves is, ‘Are we following Christ the way that Christ wants us to follow Him?,’ he claimed.
