Introduction
“See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no “root of bitterness” springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled;” Hebrews 12:15
We have all tasted the bitter waters of life in some way. Violations, injustice, false accusations, abuse, and a myriad of other offenses wound us and produce pain in our lives. No one escapes betrayal.
Some respond to the betrayals of life by hiding their pain, pretending they are immune to it. They bury their pain deep down, not realizing that eventually, it will erupt out of them in a bitter, destructive, and defiling way. Others broadcast their betrayal; they talk about it to anyone who will listen. These are at high risk for bitterness because they are always thinking about and reliving their injury. A few will immediately respond in bitterness by seeking revenge, desiring to inflict as much pain as they have felt on their offender, and more if possible.
Bitterness is what happens when we remember the offenses against us but forget the gospel that is for us. We relive the hurts, we dwell on the events, we replay the offense(s). As believers in Jesus, God has given us a way to process our pain and anger without sinning. We have a heavenly hospital to which we can come, have our pain addressed, and receive healing. This place is the cross of Christ.
It is true. The place of Christ’s ultimate betrayal is where we find our complete healing. When we experience the pain of betrayal, we can find relief through the cross of Christ. We look to Jesus and His cross and see that God is a God of justice. He does not ignore sin. He crucified it. He sent His Son to endure the agony of affliction, the full weight of every sin and offense, so that not only would we be justified before Him but also that we would be assured of justice for ourselves. Jesus’ death pays not only for your sinful offenses but also for the offenses of others against you. He died on the cross and rose to bring healing, reconciliation, and restoration to our lives.
Illustration
As the Israelites traveled through the desert on their way to the Promised Land, they went through many barren places. At one point in their journey, after three days without finding any water, they came to an area with water only to discover that the water was bitter. “When they came to Marah, they could not drink its water because it was bitter” (Exodus 15:23).
By this time, the people were very thirsty and distressed, and when they found the bitter water, they reacted badly. They grumbled to Moses, who then cried out to the Lord for help. God answered with an unusual solution:
“Then Moses cried out to the Lord, and the Lord showed him a piece of wood. He threw it into the water, and the water became fit to drink” (Exodus 15:25).
Isn’t that a unique solution? Boiling and filtering the water sounds more logical than chucking a piece of wood into it, but God’s ways are not like ours. His peculiar solution was intentional and for our benefit.
Every story in the Bible, in some way, points forward to the main story of the Bible – that Jesus would suffer, die, and rise again to save His people from their sins, and to transform us into His image. We, humans, are in a desperate situation because of our sin, but God loved us, so He gave us Jesus who died on the cross, a piece of wood, to save us, rescue us, heal us and deliver us, and in this case, transform our bitterness into sweetness.
Just as God came to the aid of the Israelites, transforming their bitter water into sweet with a piece of wood, so God came to our rescue by sending His beloved Son to die on a piece of wood. But unlike the Israelites who experienced the transformation of bitter waters only once through the wood, Jesus’ cross would be the means of life transformation for people from every tribe and nation eternally. The cross is the Solution for the bitterness of your life. “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed” (1 Peter 2:24 ESV).
Application
Are you struggling with feelings of sorrow for a deep betrayal? Are you disillusioned or disheartened by the circumstances of life? Have you been maligned or mistreated and are now replaying the events and reliving the hurt? Come to the cross and behold your Lord, experiencing your betrayal, enduring the agony of defeat for you. He was hurt for you. Now see Him reaching out to you in eternal love, offering to make an exchange with you. Your sorrow, for His joy. The death of your dream, for the resurrection power of the living Christ.
Are you living in bitterness? Trapped by the pain of old and new offenses, and weary of the burden they are to you? Come to the cross of Christ and receive Jesus’ sacrificial love and healing into the bitter waters of your heart. Look to Jesus and see that He bore your sorrow and the offense against you on the cross. The debt has been paid.
You can release your offender, even if they are not sorry for what they have done or you think they don’t deserve forgiveness. The reason you can forgive your offender is that you aren’t extending forgiveness based on the worthiness of your offender, but based upon the worthiness of your Savior. (Ephesians 4:32) Forgive in the same way the Lord forgives you. You can choose not to remind yourself of those past sins and hurts. (Hebrews 8:12, 10:17) Further, justice has been served at the cross, or God will bring it at the proper time. (Romans 12:17-21) You can, like Jesus, entrust yourself to the One that judges justly (1 Peter 2:23) and experience the sweetness of freedom that flows from Christ’s death and resurrection.
Are you grumbling to God about the bitter waters of your life? Angry about your sin struggles, bitter that you didn’t get what you wanted or thought you needed? Come to the cross of Christ and receive God’s Solution. Jesus alone can satisfy your thirst. He alone can set you free from sin traps and the defiling bitterness that they bring. Look to Jesus and receive the peace that His wounds speak to you. You have not been denied what you need; you have been blessed beyond measure in Christ. He has clothed you in His robes of righteousness. Look today to the cross of wood on which Jesus died to experience the transformation of your bitter, sin bound heart into a sweet, Spirit-filled one that is overflowing with His love.
Question: How does remembering Christ’s death and resurrection on the cross transform your bitter thoughts into sweet ones?
Sophia writes, “Just like how the log of wood transformed the bitter water into sweet water, so did Jesus when he suffered on the cross after doing no wrong, for me. What an amazing picture of forgiveness is this, and how dare I withhold forgiveness from someone else after seeing this! Reminds me of the parable of the man who owed his master something, was forgiven, and then went and made someone who owed him pay him. How hypocritical of him! WE must not be like that, although I often am. Thank you, God, that because of your sacrifice, I can choose to not remember past sins against me and know that I can forgive based on YOUR forgiveness!!!“
Jen writes, “By remembering that the sin that caused my hurt from someone else has ALREADY been paid for just like my sins have been. I can offer forgiveness not based on their worthiness but on the “worthiness of My SAVIOR!”
Mike L. writes, “When I think about how others have hurt me, all I need to remember are the words of Jesus, when the Roman centurions were literally nailing Him to the cross;
Luke 23:33-34 The Passion Translation (TPT) 33 When they came to the place that is known as The Skull, the guards crucified Jesus, nailing him on the center cross between the two criminals. 34 While they were nailing Jesus to the cross, he prayed over and over, “Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they’re doing.”
The soldiers, after they crucified him, gambled over his clothing.
This is mind blowing and crushes any thoughts of bitterness, resentment, or anger on my part towards others, How could I ever hold onto any of these feelings after reading such forgiveness from Jesus towards the very ones that crucified Him, the ones He came to save!? If I would have been there I would have been partaking in the same things, yet Jesus out of His mind boggling love toward me, forgave me all my sins,(and there are many), what love, mercy and grace. I can’t hang on to bitterness in light of this, if I look at life through the eyes of Jesus it humbles me to the core, I mean how many people have I hurt, how many people have reason to be bitter toward me, my guess is many.
Lord Jesus thank you for your extravagant example of humility, love, grace and mercy toward me, may I always look to the cross when the sin of bitterness wells up in me. Blessed be Your Holy Name!“
Reprinted by permission from the Looking to Jesus study at www.settingcaptivesfree.com. SCF exists to help men and women find freedom in Christ through the gospel.