Forgiveness

my dear brothers and sisters I thank my father in heaven that he's prolonged my life to be a part of these challenging times I thank you for the opportunity of service I have no desire but to do all that I can in furthering the work of the Lord in serving his faithful people and in living at peace with my neighbors I recently traveled around the world more than 25,000 miles visiting Alaska Russia Korea Taiwan Hong Kong India Kenya and Nigeria where in this last place we dedicated a new temple we then dedicated the Newport Beach California temple I've just been to some oil for another temple dedication another 10,000 miles I do not enjoy travel but it is my wish to get out among our people to extend appreciation and encouragement and to bear testimony of the divinity of the Lord's works I often think of a poem I read long ago it goes like this let me live in a house by the side of the road where the races of men go by men who are good and men who are bad as good and as bad as I I would not sit in this corner seat nor hurl the sin expand let me live in a house by the side of the road and be a friend to man that is the way I feel age does something to a man it seems to make him more aware of the need for kindness and goodness and forbearance he wishes and prays that men might live together in peace without war and contention argument and conflict he grows increasingly aware of the meaning of the great atonement of the Redeemer of the depth of his sacrifice and of gratitude to the Son of God who gave His life that we might live I wish today to speak of forgiveness I think it may be the greatest virtue on earth and certainly the most needed there is so much of meanness and abuse of intolerance and hatred there is so great a need for repentance and forgiveness it is the great principle emphasized in all of Scripture both ancient and modern in all of our sacred scripture there is no more beautiful story of forgiveness than that of the prodigal son found in the fifteenth chapter of everyone should read and ponder it occasionally I quote and when the prodigal had spent all there arose a mighty famine in that land and he began to be in want and he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country and he sent him into his fields to feed the swine and he would have fain filled his belly with the husks and the swine to eat and no man gave unto him and when he came to himself he said how many hired servants of my father's have bread enough and to spare and I perish with hunger I will arise and go to my father and will say unto Him father I've sinned against heaven and before thee and him no more worthy to be called thy son made me as one of I hired servants and he arose and came to his father but when he was yet a great way off his father saw him and had compassion and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him and the son said unto him father I've sinned against heaven and in thy sight and I'm no more worthy to be called thy son and the father caused that a great feasts should be held and when his other son complained he said to him it was meat that we should make merry and be glad for this thy brother was dead and is alive again and was lost and is found when there's been wrongdoing and then there's come repentance followed by forgiveness then literally the offender who has lost his fine and he who was dead is made alive how wonderful are the blessings of mercy and forgiveness the Marshall Plan following World War two with the gifts of millions of dollars helped put Europe on its feet in Japan after this same war I saw great steel mills the money for which I was told had come from America Japan's former enemy how much better this world is because of the forgiveness of a generous nation in behalf of its former enemies in the Sermon on the Mount the Lord taught he have heard that it hath been said an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth but I say unto you that she resist not evil but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek turn to him the other also and if any man will sue thee at the law and take away thy coat let him have thy cloak also and whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile go with him Twain give to him that asketh II and from him that would borrow thee turn now not away he have heard that it hath been said thou shalt love thy neighbour and hate thine enemy but I say unto you love your enemies bless them that curse you do good to them that hate you and pray for them which despitefully use you and persecute you those are very strong words do you really think you could follow that injunction that are the words of the Lord Himself and I think they apply to each of us the scribes and Pharisees brought before a G before Jesus a woman taken in adultery so that they might entrap him but Jesus stooped down and with his finger wrote on the ground as though he heard them not so when they continued asking him he lifted up himself and said unto them he that is without sin among you let him first cast a stone at her and again he stooped down and wrote on the ground and they which heard being convicted by their own conscience went out one by one beginning of the eldest even unto the last and Jesus was left alone and the woman standing in the midst when Jesus had lifted himself up and saw none that the woman he said unto her woman where are those accusers hath no man condemned thee she said no man Lord and Jesus said unto her neither do i condemn thee go and sin no more the Savior taught of leaving the ninety and nine to find the lost sheep that forgiveness and restitution might come Isiah V clared wash you make you clean put away the evil of your doings for before mine eyes cease to do evil learn to do well see judgment relieve the oppressed judge the fatherless plead for the widow come now and let us reason together saith the Lord though your sins scarlet they shall be as white as snow though they be red like crimson they shall be as wool the ground rate crowning love of the Savior was expressed when in his dying I didn't he cried out Father forgive them for they know not what they do in our day the Lord is said in revelation wherefore I say unto you that she ought to forgive one another for he that forgiveth not his brother his trespasses standeth become condemned before the Lord for there remaineth in him the greater sin I the Lord will forgive whom I will forgive but if you it is required to forgive all men the Lord has offered a marvelous promise said he he who has repetitively sins the same is forgiven and I the LORD remember them no more there are so many in our day who are unwilling to forgive and forget children cry and wives weep because fathers and husbands continue to bring up little shortcomings that are really of no importance and there also are many women who would make a mountain out of every little offending bold hill of words or deed a time back I clipped a column for the Deseret morning news written by Jay Evensen with his permission I quote from a part of it wrote he how would you feel toward a teenager who decided to toss a 20-pound frozen turkey from a speeding car headlong into the windshield of the car you were driving how would you feel after enduring six hours of surgery using metal plates another hardware to piece your face together and after learning you still face years of therapy before returning to normal and that you ought to feel lucky you didn't die or suffer permanent brain damage and how would you feel after learning that your assailant and his buddies had the turkey in the first place because they had stolen a credit card and gone on a selfish shopping spree just for kicks this is the kind of hideous crime that propels politicians to offices on promises of getting tough on crime it's the kind of thing that prompts legislators to climb all over each other it was struggled to be the first to introduce a bill but wooden ham would add enhanced penalties for the use of frozen fowl in the commission of a crime the New York Times quoted the district attorney is saying this is the sort of crime for which fixed picked victims feel no punishment is harsh enough death doesn't even satisfy them he said which is what makes what really happened so unusual the LA victim Victoria ravallo a 44 year old former manager of a collections agency was more interested in salvaging the life of her 19 year old assailant Ryan pushing and exacting any sort of revenge she pestered prosecutors for information about him his life how he was raised and so forth then she insisted on offering him a plea deal Cushing could served six months in the county jail and be on probation for five years if he pleaded guilty to second-degree assault had he been convicted of first-degree assault the charge most fitting for the crime he could have served 25 years in prison finally thrown back into society as a middle-aged man with no skills or prospects but this is only half the story the rest of it what happened today this all played out in court is the truth the truly remarkable part according to an account in the New York Post Cushing carefully in tentatively made his way to where ravallo sat in the courtroom and tearfully whispered an apology I'm so sorry for what I did to you ruolan stood and the victim and her assailant embraced weeping she stroked his head and patted his back as he solved and witnesses including a Times reporter heard her say it's okay I just want you to make your life the best it can be according to accounts hardened prosecutors and even reporters were choking back tears what a great story that is greater because it actually happened and that it happened in tough old New York who can feel anything but admiration for this woman who forgave the young man who might have taken her life I know this is a delicate and sensitive thing of which I'm speaking there are hardened criminals who may have to be locked up there are unspeakable crimes such as deliberate murder and rape that justify harsh penalties but there are some who could be saved from the long still defying years in prison because of an unfaithful foolish act somehow forgiveness with love and tolerance accomplishes miracles that can happen in no other way the grave atonement was the supreme act of forgiveness the magnitude of that atonement is beyond our ability to completely understand I know only that it happened and that it was for me and for you the suffering was so great the agony so intense that none of us can comprehend it when the Savior offered him self as a ransom for all the sins of mankind it is through him that we gain forgiveness it is through him that there comes the certain promise that all mankind will be granted the blessings of salvation with resurrection from the dead it is through him and his great overarching sacrifice that we are offered the opportunity through obedience of exaltation and eternal life may God help us to be a little kinder showing draya fourth greater forbearance to be more forgiving more willing to walk the Second Mile to reach down and lift up those who may have sinned but have brought forth the fruits of repentance to lay aside old grudges and nurture them no more for this I humbly pray in the sacred name of our Redeemer even the Lord Jesus Christ amen

Channel: General Conference

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Keywords: 1352712865001, General Conference, eng

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Length: 19min 13sec (1153 seconds)

Published: Thu Jan 15 2015