INTRODUCTION The act of forgiveness is an act of divine love. God forgave us through His everlasting, divine love and it is through this same divine love that He has put in us, that we can forgive others. “…the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.” Romans 5:5. “But the fruit of the (Holy) Spirit (the work which His presence within accomplishes) is love…” Galatians 5:2(Amp). When we believe that God so loved us that He sent Jesus to save us, redeem us and forgive us from our sins through the shedding of His precious blood, then we begin to realize the great importance of forgiveness. Because of the great price that was paid by Jesus for our forgiveness, and because of this great love of the Father for all mankind, I believe that it would be impossible for us to live in union with Christ while being hypocrites by refusing to forgive others. Therefore, Jesus said: “For if you forgive men for their transgressions, your Heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions.” Matthew 6:14-15. We will clearly see as we seek God together that for God’s forgiveness of us to be unconditional and beneficial, our forgiveness of others has to be unconditional. We will also see that forgiveness of others is not optional but it is a commandment from the Lord Jesus Christ to all. He wants us to give forgiveness and receive forgiveness so that we may be free to live and to move and to have our being in Him. See Acts 17:2. Again, let me emphasize, that forgiveness is a supernatural, divine act and can only be accomplished through His grace, love, and power. Many people who have freely and gladly received this supernatural love of God, the Father, through Jesus Christ, the Son, are attempting to forgive others through their natural strength. We can quickly become frustrated and discouraged when we are making efforts on our own to forgive someone. Therefore, in these instances when we are not depending on God’s virtue of love and faith, we are not able to forgive. The same principle applies when we ask others to forgive us and do not feel that they have done so. Remember, we live by faith not by our feelings and emotions, so forgiveness has to be given and received by faith. I know, even in the case of believers who confess their sins to the Lord, that if there is no faith in the Lord’s desire and will to forgive them, then it is impossible for them to receive the benefits of His forgiveness. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” I John 1:9. And He wants us to be faithful in forgiving others. Unforgiveness towards others is a sin! If we are harboring or retaining unforgiveness for anyone then we are living in sin! We must repent from this sin and confess it so that we can receive our forgiveness from Jesus! He is faithful to forgive us! Amen! Let’s realize that we must forgive others, and begin to do so in the Name of Jesus! “And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.” Colossians 3:17. We need to say to others who need our forgiveness: “I forgive you, in the Name of Jesus!” When we ask others for forgiveness, we need to say: “Forgive me, in the Name of Jesus!” When others say to us, “I forgive you”, we need to say, “I receive your forgiveness in the Name of Jesus!’ Thank you, Father!
Posted on: Thu, 25 Jul 2013 09:44:56 +0000