April 7, 2024 Daily Dose of Discernment

“Peace be with you; as the Father has sent Me, I also send you.” (John 20:21)

The Hebrew word “Shalom” is more than just a greeting. In it is encapsulated all the good things that constitute eternal life, beginning with the remission of sins. That was the first thing Jesus spoke to His disciples after He resurrected. He could have guilt-tripped them for being cowards and deserters, but that’s not what the new creation that started on Easter is about. It’s about God reconciling the world to Himself in peace and not counting men’s sins against them.

That’s why the first order of the day was the indiscriminate pardon for sin. Jesus told the apostles that He was sending them as the Father sent Him. He was sent not to condemn but to save by pronouncing universal forgiveness. If we believe we are sent by the Lord, we are to also forgive the sins of any.