Robert Downey Jr. and Mel Gibson: A Clip on Forgiveness

Hi all, I decided to take a small detour from the “salvation” series when I saw this clip below sent from a friend on Facebook.

About 3 years ago I wrote a post about Mel Gibson’s self destruct journey;  going from Hollywood ‘A’ lister to persona non grata and from Evangelical darling to being divorced by his long suffering wife in just a matter of a few short months.

I ended the post hoping Mel would find redemption, forgiveness, and quite frankly, to stop acting the fool and be a man again.

I don’t know what point in that journey Gibson is at now but he has a friend in Robert Downey Jr.  who interceded for him at an awards banquet this week.  Appealing to the audience with his own story of how Gibson had taught him faith and forgiveness, Downey nearly begged the Hollywood elite to offer Gibson that same charity.

When I saw the clip below I knew I needed to share it.

Our faith in Christ is a faith rooted in forgiveness… and then Jesus goes on to call us, “friend”. (John 15:15)

In addition to Robert Downey Jr., actress Jodie Foster has publicly stood by Gibson as a friend.  Both she and Downey had admitted disappointment in their friend’s actions but it never made him less their friend.  Love without conditions is the way Jesus taught us.

I’ve personally experienced people that have viewed me as “less” of a friend when either mine, or their, views changed on a subject. Then there are others I know would stand by me if I did dumber things than Mel Gibson.  Not endorsing the actions but never letting the actions or views be a decider of relationship.

You know, kinda like Jesus!

The intercession of Downey for his friend should inspire those of us who follow Christ to offer that same charity to those around us.