(Ephesians 4:32) “And be kind to one another, compassionate, forgiving one another just as God has forgiven you in the Messiah.”
(Mark 11:25-26) “Whenever you stand up to pray, forgive whatever you have against anyone, so that your Father in heaven will forgive your sins. But if you do not forgive, your Father in heaven will not forgive your sins.”
(Luke 23:34) “Jesus kept saying, ‘Father, forgive them, because they don’t know what they’re doing.’ Then they divided his clothes among them by throwing dice.”
Have you ever been backstabbed? Have the same people you sacrificed so much for turned around and ignored you in your time of need? Have your own rejected you leaving you unable to open up to anyone again? If you have experienced any of this, then you need God’s healing touch.
We need to understand that forgiveness is not based on our feelings, but it is a commandment from our Lord as conditional to receive forgiveness from Him. It’s a serious matter, as forgiveness from God is what makes us candidates for salvation. If others don’t forgive you, this will be counted against them, not you.
The danger of not being able to forgive is that it will stop you from loving others, serving others, having compassion, or even caring due to the fear of being backstabbed or rejected again. It will even stop you from sharing your needs or asking for help due to the fear of rejection or mockery. Eventually, we will base every relationship on our past negative experiences leaving no fighting chance to our future spouse, pastor, boss, disciple, or even Christian brothers.
We need to ask God to give us the heart of forgiveness Jesus had as He hung on the cross. He has suffered physically and emotionally more than you can ever imagine. Even while His own mocked Him, He still asked God to have mercy on them. When He rose from the dead, He did not condemn those that abandoned Him and ran. He conquered them with unconditional love.
Even if you are disappointed with what others have done to you in the past, the next time you ask someone “how are you doing?” stay back and take the time to really listen and be there for them. God gives you daily a second chance, give the same opportunity to others.
You have been loved by Christ by Him taking your sins upon Himself. All God requires now is for you to ask for forgiveness. This is true love.
Prayers
• Heavenly Father, Your rod and Your staff they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over.
• Father, we stand before You today humbled by the sacrifice of Jesus on the Cross.
• We thank You for forgiving us all of our sins and loving us unconditionally.
• We submit our past to You that might cause us pain, insecurity, or resentment.
• We need Your healing touch on our emotions and memories.
• Let not what man has done against us, stop us from growing in Your love. We release right now anything we hold in our hearts against anyone.
• Teach us how to be kind to one another, tenderhearted, and forgiving.
• Let us be aware when we are hurting someone so we can be sensitive to their needs.
• Thank You that today we have a new beginning with you.
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• We ask these things in Jesus’ Mighty name. Amen