Forgiveness is meant for both people, but mainly for the person that is hurting. By holding a grudge through habitual anger we only poison ourselves. This will eventually lead us down a road filled with hatred and not love and peace.
The biggest blessing we can give someone is forgiveness (Psalms 31:1,2). Verse two here is really important. Let us now look at Mark 11:26 for a clear teaching by Jesus. How can we expect a loving, merciful God to accept us into the Kingdom of Heaven if we can’t follow His example and forgive others?
Forgiveness allows healing to take place between the two individuals involved in the discord. You want others to call you a Christian, then start to forgive others no matter what they do to you.
Look at all of the pain and anger in the world. This is because of the lack of forgiveness in peoples’ hearts. We need to start a Revolt against the ways of mankind. Only by God’s love can we forgive. To walk according to His statutes requires a forgiving people to arise from the ashes.
These ashes are the pain we feel when we get hurt. Don’t allow these ashes to turn toxic inside of you resembling volcanic ash. It’s so easy not to forgive others. Again we only poison ourselves by doing that.
How can we praise God for Jesus’ perfect love through death and resurrection that provides us forgiveness when we don’t forgive? Our prayers enter us into His presence. Didn’t God tell us through the Word made flesh not to go to the alter with an unforgiving heart?
What good is it when we tell others we believe in God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit while we refuse to forgive? How then can we bring Him the glory and honor He deserves?
When we forgive someone it allows us to let go and allow a spiritual balm to start to heal us from the wounds inflicted. People are broken, but that doesn’t mean we add to the pain and that broken nature.
Luke 17:3,4 is a teaching by Jesus that addresses that very issue.
When Jesus was up on that cross every disease, curse, and sin was placed on Him. This includes the disease of unforgiving. We have a resurrected King that loves us so much that His perfect love couldn’t be defeated.
Now the gates of Hell can’t prevail. God Himself has torn the veil. Now we know that His love will never fail. What good is believing this if we don’t forgive others?
Jesus waged a war on every aspect of our fallen broken nature, but we have to take action. The first action must be forgiveness.
It’s easy to allow Christian music to become our anthems while faith turns into just words we say. We need to be more than this, but we need Jesus’ help. Jesus is the only way we overcome the nature of our fallen hate filled state.
It’s time we put hatred to death. Everything that rises against us has already been defeated, so why continue to refuse to forgive others? Jesus Christ didn’t die for us so we can believe in Him and then turn around and keep ourselves held captive by not wanting to forgive.
My past is filled with hatred before I came to God, so don’t think this is impossible to you to do. Nothing is impossible for those who believe, trust, and obey God. We need to start to teach forgiveness to mankind’s fallen being.
The revolution of forgiveness needs to come now. The days are numbered until Jesus comes back, and we are almost out of time before that happens. The Lamb has overcome so we wouldn’t die in anger and hatred. These are the two main sins that lead to violence.
It is time to take back the world through forgiveness.
People live in doubt and fear lead desperation. It’s time we take the forgiveness of Christ to them and allow the same forgiveness to pour out of us, and allow love to invade through us His body the Church.
Matthew Puccio #667-706
L.e.C.I. P.O. Box 56
Lebanon, OH 45036
“These ashes are the pain we feel when we get hurt. ” Thank you for this wise post. The world could benefit from people with humble hearts willing to forgive. There is beauty only He can create from the ashes. We don’t deny the hurt exists, we just let God make something beautiful from it, because He is the God Who is able.