As a human, I see people for who they are through my eyes and my life experiences. I tend to treat people well regardless of how they treat me, and this is the standard that Jesus set for us; to “love your neighbor as yourself”. (Mark 12:31).
But what does that mean, really? To me, if I love myself, it means that if I make a mistake, I repent and ask God for forgiveness, forgive myself, and move on with my life. It doesn’t mean that I give up on me, and want nothing to do with myself. It also means that I don’t treat my neighbor that way.
If my neighbor were to make a mistake and sin against me in any way, I realize that that sin is against God first, and my neighbor will have to make it right with God before dealing with me. If I am a true friend, I will make an effort to reconcile with them (regardless of the severity of the sin against me).
Recently, I’ve had an experience with someone I thought was a friend, and who is a Christian, that was anything but loving. I readily admit that I made a mistake and sinned against them; and I asked God for forgiveness, and apologized to the person. They have forgiven me, allegedly, but they want nothing to do with me now, and won’t even talk to me.
How would you, as a Christian, deal with this situation?