A man named George Wilson killed a government employee in 1830 who was caught in the act of obstructing the mail. Since he was not a law enforcement officer and he killed a government employee, Wilson was tried and condemned to death by hanging. But the then president of the United States, Andrew Jackson granted him an executive pardon. George Wilson, however, refused to accept the pardon. The department of corrections did not know what to do. The case was taken to the Supreme Court where Chief Justice Marshall ruled that “a pardon is a slip of paper, the value of which is determined by the acceptance of the person to be pardoned. If it is refused, it is no pardon. George Wilson must be hanged.” And hanged he was. Even if we are opposed to the death penalty, we still cannot but agree with the principle that a pardon granted has to be accepted to become active. This is the point of the gospel. When God forgives us, we must accept God’s forgiveness. But then the gospel goes on to indicate that the way to receive God’s forgiveness is not just to say “Amen, so be it,” but to go out and live a life of forgiveness.