Forgiveness

Forgiveness is such a simple term. Yet it is a word that runs deep with everything that we are as believers and as human beings in general. Forgiveness can be such a hard thing for some people to have to submit to. Forgiveness is a form of walking in love. God’s first and second command to us is to #LoveGod and #LovePeople. In 1 Cor 13:4-7, we see some of the actions and fruit that love carries with it. “Love holds no records of wrongs, love hopes for the best and trusts, love is not easily angered. Be honest with yourself right now, ask yourself are these core fruits of love evident in my life, is this how I am acting maybe towards my spouse, sibling, co-worker, or even someone you barely know? The bible gives us a pretty clear picture on how love acts and is supposed to act, and we need to make it our intention to let our hearts soak in what love really is and what God is really commanding us to do and how to live(in love). I see it that love and forgiveness walk hand in hand. They co-exist, forgiveness doesn’t happen unless you are yielding to some form of love and vice versa. When God calls us to love, that definitely is a call to not only walk in love, but walk in forgiveness. Forgiveness is not only when there is a clear cut moment when you know that you need to forgive someone for really screwing with your life. Forgiveness, I believe, is a lifestyle choice that we all really should choose to walk in. Forgiveness is the big things and the little things. Forgiveness is when someone cuts you in line, when someone lies to you, and so much more. Yes, definitely get the major forgiveness issues sorted out in your life. Holding onto grudges and baggage only hurts yourself, and that is real. If you have bitterness towards someone who has done you wrong and you are holding on to that, let it go. God commands us to, and honestly it will only set you free and ease the heavy burden you may have been carrying on your chest for years and years. Don’t only do it because you have to, do it because you want to make a life choice to live free and joyfully and in peace with others. Our call is to live in peace with others. God clearly, clearly speaks about forgiveness all over the bible. The whole message of Jesus Christ is forgiveness. We are nobody and sinners without Jesus forgiveness. So who are we to think that we are better than Jesus and we don’t have to forgive. This next set of verses I am about to share is a parable about forgiveness and it gives us a clear picture on why we should forgive.

Matthew 18:21-35 “²¹ Then Peter came to him and asked, “Lord, how often should I forgive someonewho sins against me? Seven times?” ²² “No, not seven times,” Jesus replied, “but seventy times seven! ²³ “Therefore, the Kingdom of Heaven can be compared to a king who decided to bring his accounts up to date with servants who had borrowed money from him. ²⁴ In the process, one of his debtors was brought in who owed him millions of dollars. ²⁵ He couldn’t pay, so his master ordered that he be sold—along with his wife, his children, and everything he owned—to pay the debt.²⁶ “But the man fell down before his master and begged him, ‘Please, be patient with me, and I will pay it all.’ ²⁷ Then his master was filled with pity for him, and he released him and forgave his debt.²⁸ “But when the man left the king, he went to a fellow servant who owed him a few thousand dollars. He grabbed him by the throat and demanded instant payment.²⁹ “His fellow servant fell down before him and begged for a little more time. ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it,’ he pleaded. ³⁰ But his creditor wouldn’t wait. He had the man arrested and put in prison until the debt could be paid in full.³¹ “When some of the other servants saw this, they were very upset. They went to the king and told him everything that had happened. ³² Then the king called in the man he had forgiven and said, ‘You evil servant! I forgave you that tremendous debt because you pleaded with me. ³³ Shouldn’t you have mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had mercy on you?’ ³⁴ Then the angry king sent the man to prison to be tortured until he had paid his entire debt.³⁵ “That’s what my heavenly Father will do to you if you refuse to forgive your brothers and sisters from your heart.”

    In this passage we are the forgiven servant. We owe God millions and millions of dollars worth of debt by the sin that we have committed, yet he forgave us. He is telling us, since he forgave us so much for everything we have ever done, than we are to be people of forgiveness as well to anyone who has ever sinned against us or wronged us in anyway. Instead of getting even, get into God’s plan for humanity and walk in forgiveness, walk in love.

Matthew 6:14-15

For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.  But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.

 

    This is a crazy tough love verse. We need to be real and honest with ourselves and learn to trust God’s way of doing things rather than thinking we know it all and holding onto the smallest bit of unforgiveness towards anybody who you believe has wronged you in anyway. Whether they apologized or not has nothing to do with it. Being a person who truly follows after Jesus has everything to do with it. Not only be the “bigger person”, but for the sake of true crazy passionate love that God is calling and commanding us to, forgive!, forgive!, forgive! I challenge you right now to look into your life, if right now there is a situation where you know that you need to show the love of God towards someone and forgive and really hold no record of wrongs, than take that leap and forgive the person in your heart and if you need to in person or on the phone, etc. Also if months or years have gone by in your life after someone has wronged you and you never forgave that person for doing you wrong, maybe you put it on the back burner and did your best to forget about it, but still the smallest piece of you is holding on to that bitterness and unforgiveness, I challenge you to be a real disciple of God’s word and forgive that person. I promise you that forgiving them is only going to give you the freedom that you need. Unforgiveness can lead to bitterness and bitterness can lead to hate, and that is something that you don’t want lingering around in your heart. That is something that will totally hinder your relationship with God. Even though it may be hard to do, ask God to help you with it and take that leap of faith. God is calling you to a daily life of forgiveness. Focus your intent on forgiveness in your life and let God soften your heart once again.