As a follower of Christ, forgiveness is at the very foundation of my faith. Is the same true for you? Do we understand the full context of forgiveness and how it impacts our ability to have a relationship with Jesus Christ? How about the way forgiveness impacts our eternity? We have spent the last four weeks hearing from Pastor Charles about forgiveness and what the bible has to say regarding this topic. Were you impacted by this series? It has served as a great reminder to me, a reminder that I need to forgive. I need to forgive each and every day and sometimes I need to forgive every five minutes.
When I consider all I have done in my life that requires forgiveness I cannot imagine a life in eternity separated from Christ, the Forgiver! See, I have spent the last three weeks trying to change my perspective about the sin in my life and how it impacts me. I want to be more concerned about how my sin impacts Jesus! I want to understand that when I have sin in my life that others are affected and that is not a good thing. But more importantly, when I sin I break the very heart of God. I want to be able to experience that same brokenness. I do not want to throw around the word forgiveness like I throw around the word hello! Forgiveness always comes at a cost, and for those of us that know Jesus as our personal savior that cost was death! Death on a cross that was brutal and awful and painful and humiliating. And He did it because He loved you and me and because He wanted us to be together with Him forever and ever. We must understand the cost of forgiveness, and we must understand the importance of forgiveness. We must understand the freedom that comes from forgiveness. We must follow the example that was set for us by our savior. Be reminded of what we read in the book of Colossians in Chapter 3:13
“bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive” There is a Godly example of forgiveness that is not open to interpretation and alteration. Jesus forgives us and if He lives in us, we must overcome unforgiveness if we expect to experience all He has for us. Sometimes it is not easy to forgive, remember, it was not easy to hang on a cross. On a final note, please keep in mind, forgiveness is for the benefit and well being of the forgiver not the forgiven. You are not having any impact on those that hurt you by harboring unforgiveness. But, where do I start? On your knees! Ask the inventor of Forgiveness to help you get started. Maybe you need to forgive yourself before you can extend forgiveness to others. I would love to pray with you and for you.
“bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive” There is a Godly example of forgiveness that is not open to interpretation and alteration. Jesus forgives us and if He lives in us, we must overcome unforgiveness if we expect to experience all He has for us. Sometimes it is not easy to forgive, remember, it was not easy to hang on a cross. On a final note, please keep in mind, forgiveness is for the benefit and well being of the forgiver not the forgiven. You are not having any impact on those that hurt you by harboring unforgiveness. But, where do I start? On your knees! Ask the inventor of Forgiveness to help you get started. Maybe you need to forgive yourself before you can extend forgiveness to others. I would love to pray with you and for you.
Waiting on Him,
ML
