The Concept of Forgiveness in Christianity

Speaker 1 0:00

One of the cornerstones of Christian faith is that Christ died for our sins past , present and future , for those that believe on him . So one of the keys to Christ's purpose was forgiveness , and when we talk about Christ as the Lamb of God , essentially Christ is sacrificed to cover all of these sins that we ourselves can't get rid of , can't charge off or blame on somebody else or pay off . If you believe in sin , if you believe that there are evil things that people do , whether it's by their own agency , whether they can even control it , which I'm not sure they can that's another whole video . But the idea is that we need forgiveness and thankfully we don't have to rely on other people for forgiveness . If our eternal fate rested on whether someone else would forgive us , wow , we really have a problem there , because oftentimes we're not forgiven or it's not done fully , or we're on the other side of the equation . Are there people you've not forgiven ? Put it in the comments . Who haven't you forgiven ? Why haven't you forgiven them ?

Speaker 1 1:30

I want to welcome you to Guilt-Free Faith . My name is Jimmy James Johnson . Guilt does not live here . You're at the wrong place .

Speaker 1 1:40

Most of us would agree that shoplifting isn't as bad as murder . Right , a parking violation isn't as bad as an armed robbery . We have some kind of basic social contract and understanding that some things are just more harmful than others . So we want to deter them , we want to punish more severely for them . And the problem with that , as a Christian , is that all sins are—this is what the Bible says , this is not what Jimmy's saying—all sins are equal in the eyes of the Lord . That's a real mind-blower . How could that even be ? How could God look upon something as minor as littering or loitering and compare that to essay or some type of vicious attack or indeed a horrible white-collar crime , which those are often given a pass , which is why we're talking about it ? So as Christians , we're faced with this thing of looking at okay , here's this healthcare insurance company CEO . If he is in fact , this is just all alleged . Okay , I don't know . I haven't seen the records , I've not deposed this guy , I haven't followed his career . I have no idea . I'm just going by what's alleged his career . I have no idea . I'm just going by what's alleged and what I've personally seen and experienced .

Speaker 1 3:21

Now in the world's eyes , one of the surprising things about this is the quote victim of this case . The victim isn't really garnering a lot of support or sympathy . Ever since this happened , there's been an outcry amongst virtually everybody . I know certainly all the social media forums , many YouTube videos , even mainstream news outlets have been reporting like wow , there's really a groundswell of tolerance , understanding , compassion for the so-called offender or shooter in this case . I saw something on the news the other day talking about where this Luigi gentleman is imprisoned and even the prisoners are supporting him . Even the prisoners are like hey , free Luigi , it's not right that he's in here . So even those people in the most marginalized edges of society are coming to the aid , in a sense , of the rights and the circumstances around how this gentleman is being charged . And , as I recall , he is being charged now with first-degree murder in addition to other charges . So that's as serious as you can get .

Speaker 1 4:59

Now , again , as a normal everyday person who has been screwed over by insurance companies , is it really a surprise ? Tremendously saddened by the passing of this guy who ostensibly is chief of another one of these organizations that apparently , or allegedly , is responsible for a lot of denials of care , up to one in three , to put that in perspective , just think all these people that are going to the doctor . The doctor is recommending care , they're prescribing something , and the insurance company it's not like . They're occasionally like , oh no , that's experimental . Occasionally like , oh no , that's experimental , that's kind of off the books , that's pseudoscience . No , these are treatments and prescriptions prescribed by their own colleagues in the American Medical Association . Here are the doctors . They're part of the healthcare system and certainly there are plenty of physicians that consult for the insurance companies .

Speaker 1 6:23

Despite this linkage between medical doctors and the health insurance that's supposed to pay for them and the treatments they prescribe . We even have a lot of doctors saying , man , yeah , I can't always give my patients what they need . Yeah , I am not able to put the prescriptions in the hands of people that need it . I'm the one that's trained to practice medicine . I'm the one that decides what the proper treatment is . As long as the patient agrees with that , that person should be able to go and avail themselves of that treatment and their health insurance should cover whatever portion that is . Maybe there's also a co-pay , maybe there's . That's one of the problems . Right , there's a million loopholes and scenarios and it's nuts , right , which is what many people feel , including myself , like part of the plan . Right , you can't navigate it . Right , it's like you need a whole nother degree just to try to call all these people , sort through all these things , fax them , email them , all that stuff .

Speaker 1 7:37

For me , the only reason why I'm alive and I've gotten the treatment that I've received is not because I have a wonderful insurance company , it's not because I'm sitting at the top of the socioeconomic heap , no , it's not that . It's because I had loved ones , particularly my mom . Mom love you Particularly , mom mom , mom , mom , mom , love you , love you . Okay , my mom has spent countless hours and I'm not exaggerating Over the course of my lifetime . She's easily spent a thousand hours or more . That's probably even conservative .

Speaker 1 8:34

There's been times in my life where taking care of me in terms of being my advocate and representing me vis-a-vis these insurance companies that I'm paying to protect me and provide for me , without her advocacy , like I would just be a goner . See , like I would just be a goner . She's the one that really took the time to fight these fights and she's the one who has filled me in along the way on a lot of the details . And let me tell you , it is shady , it's slimy , it's shit Any adjective that you want to attach to the types of hoops , the types of underhanded garbage that my mom and I have run into trying to get the right medical care . It's just astonishing . Only if you've been through it would you fully appreciate how severe the situation is .

Speaker 1 9:38

Living by the world's rules , a lot of people feel like , hey , live by the sword , die by the sword . Right , you're an executive . You're making decisions that impact people's lives . You're causing suffering , perhaps even death . You're profiting from this . You're making millions and millions and millions . You're getting millions in bonuses . Right , you're literally being paid to kill people . That's how a lot of people look at this .

Christian Perspective on Health Insurance Issues

Speaker 1 10:07

I personally find it hard to disagree with that . Maybe I'm a little emotional . Maybe I'm traumatized from my past experiences . Maybe I'm a little emotional . Maybe I'm traumatized from my past experiences . All of that , I'm sure , is true . But just looking at it factually and reading about it , learning about other people's cases , talking to other advocates like my mom , I don't know what else to call this type of flagrant disregard for human life . I don't know what else to call it , and I have at least a decent vocabulary , but that's what it is . That's horrible . As somebody that's had health issues pretty much since when I was a kid , that's had health issues pretty much since when I was a kid . Okay , so I've been in this system . I know more about it than I would like to . Can you relate to me anyone ? All right , tell me in the comments , so I feel like I'm not alone .

Speaker 1 11:06

So this guy he's mad , ostensibly because of insurance mistreatment , takes matters into his own hands and offs this executive . So , as a Christian , what's our reaction to the offing of this UnitedHealthcare CEO ? We know how we may feel about it . We know what the facts may show about this person's tenure and their behavior . We know about their bank account . How are we supposed to feel about what's been done to them ? Okay , and then also , how are we supposed to feel about the person that is accused of doing it ?

Speaker 1 11:51

As a Christian , we're supposed to forgive everybody . Hey , have you been in a situation with a health insurance company that was so damaging , that was so emotional , that was so tragic , that you're having a hell of a time forgiving this guy for being part of that system ? Are you pissed off ? Are you in pain ? Are you missing out on care you need ? Hey , let people know in the comments , because not everybody knows If you've been blessed and you've been healthy and you haven't been put through the health insurance ringer , you may not know how serious of a problem this is . You may not realize that this is not exaggerated . It's not about trying to curb medical fraud . That , yeah , we deny all these people because they're trying to scam us . No , no , no .