IMITATION: THE HIGHEST FORM OF PRAISE

I have many comical memories of my grandmother sheepishly wandering around the house looking for something.

“What are you looking for grandma?” She was too good hearted to lie, which led ultimately to her confessing that she had lost her eyeglasses...once again.

Everyone would pitch in to help her look; it usually wasn’t too hard. Often, they were in plain sight--right under her nose--or-- one time "on" her nose as she actually wearing them while looking for them!

She always giggled when someone pointed them out to her, “I knew I’d find them right where I left them. I just couldn’t remember where that was.”

We excused this behavior saying that she had simply “overlooked” her spectacles.

Is that what comes to mind when you read Proverbs 19:11? “A man's wisdom gives him patience; it is to his glory to overlook an offense.”

Some of you may think that “overlooking” is practically the same as being blind; ignoring something, or carelessly failing to notice. Actually, overlooking is not a passive thing at all, it’s really quite the opposite. In fact, it is intentional and takes courage.

Biblically speaking, to “overlook” means to “forgive,” and when we do that, we are imitating God. We might change the old cliché, “Imitation is the highest form of flattery” to “Imitation is the highest form of praise/honor.”

When we overlook the wrongs of others, we are imitating God’s extraordinary forgiveness toward us: “The LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever; he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities.” (Psalm 103:8-10)
Since God does not deal harshly with us when we sin, we should be willing to treat others in a similar fashion.

Taken from The Peacemaker: A Biblical Guide to Resolving Personal Conflict by Ken Sande, Updated Edition (Grand Rapids, Baker Books, 2003) p. 82


Randy E. Williams