Saying sorry

Here are some lyrics from an Elton John song: “It’s sad, so sad.  Why can’t we talk it over? Oh, it seems to me, that sorry seems to be the hardest word.” (Elton John, 1976)

Why is it so difficult to say sorry? If you have a look online, you’ll find a whole lot of reasons including: ‘that means you’re right and I’m wrong’, leading to ‘you win, I lose’ and possibly even ‘you’re strong, I’m weak’. All of these things come down to one word – pride.

How often have you heard an argument between relatives or friends and both parties are effectively saying, ‘I’m not the one who should apologise! I’ve done nothing wrong’? And sadly, if neither party will make the first move, that can be the end of a relationship or friendship.

From a bible point of view, God makes it clear that He hates pride and loves humility. “All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, ‘God opposes the proud, but shows favour to the humble.’” (1 Peter 5:5, NIV)

Why is this? God sent His son Jesus Christ into the world to teach love and forgiveness and those two attributes don’t sit very well alongside pride do they? Whether you’re religious or not, I think we can all agree that more love and forgiveness would make the world a better place.

But God didn’t only send Jesus into the world to teach love and forgiveness, there was another reason. “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16, NIV

Eternal life. There’s only one place in the whole world offering that – God’s word, the Bible.