The Power of Forgiveness

The Power of Forgiveness:

Does your flesh seem to crawl when you come into contact with certain people? When you hear the sound of their voice, does every fiber of your being cringe? Does your chest tighten when you think of them? Very uncomfortable, right…? It’s also embarrassing as well, why would you let yourself go through this, not worth it at all.

Forgiveness is the act of compassionately releasing the desire to punish someone or yourself for an offense. It’s a state of grace, nothing you can force or pretend. There are no short cuts.

Most of us need time to work through pain and loss, I am not saying it’s a bad thing, we all handle situations differently, I just believe Forgiveness shouldn’t be postponed, it’s not something you have to think about for months, I believe postponement only robs you of your peace and happiness. Forgiveness will not make your anger dissolve but it will give  you freedom; it liberates you from negativity and lets you move forward.

Struggling to Forgive:

How do you forgive someone who was never supposed to hurt you in the first place? Why forgive them? What about all the damage to your relationship? The best answer is you MUST; forgiveness was extended to you. Jesus said in Matthew 6:14-15, "If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you. But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins." If you refuse to forgive, you operate in sin and in covenant with Satan.

You are battling with unforgiveness because you cannot see your own sin. Most people battle unforgiveness because they choose to see the spec in the eye of the person that hurt them ignoring the log in their own eye. Unforgiveness is a work of the flesh, and it will remain until you crucify it on the altar of forgiveness.

Forgiveness becomes a struggle when we seek to please our flesh. We struggle because the Holy Spirit demands that we be like Christ. God is as displeased with unforgiveness as he is with sexual sins, deception, lying, and envy. We must remember that any sin either of us could commit, Jesus paid for at Calvary. Who gave us the right to make our loved ones pay for sin when we did not?

People who have a hard time forgiving others, usually have a hard time forgiving themselves. There are three things that reveal the depth of our relationship with God: The way we love people, the way we accept people and the way we forgive people. When we refuse to forgive another person, we put that person, and ourselves, in bondage to our unforgiveness

Many people see forgiveness as something that weak people do. But forgiveness doesn’t make you weak, it actually makes you stronger! Anyone can hold a grudge, but it takes strong faith to forgive someone who has wronged you. Jesus definitely wasn’t weak and in his last dying moments, He forgave the criminals being crucified with Him on the cross, as well as those who were crucifying Him (Luke 23:32-43).

Our goal as Christ followers is ultimately to be like Christ. He forgave us of our sins even though we were undeserving of it, so if we are to be like Him, we are to forgive others too.

Lack of forgiveness blocks access to the kingdom and to miracle power:

Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you; leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift (Matthew 5:23-24).

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 (Matthew 6:14-15).

Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, "Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?" Jesus answered, "I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times. Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him. Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt" (Matthew 18:21-25).

And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins (Mark 11:25).

Forgive them to the point where you actually feel yourself cleansed of resentment and bitterness and are actually praying for them. If you do not, the lack of forgiveness will make it impossible for God to forgive you. Every miracle depends 100 percent on your relationship to God the Father. That relationship is built strictly on the strength of His forgiveness of your sin.

Martin Luther King once said, “Forgiveness is not an occasional act; it is a permanent attitude.” 

God instructs us to forgive others. He really does have our best interests when asking us to do things that are difficult. So if you are holding unforgiveness towards anybody, I encourage you to remind yourself of the benefits of letting that issue go and giving it up to God and ask Him for His help and strength to do so. It may be one of the hardest things you will do in your life, but it may also likely be one of the most rewarding!

Always remember, God loves that person that hurt you as much as He loves you. Forgiveness is more of a Christ-like act than even serving in the church or a ministry because it is how we, as Christians, represent Jesus to the world. Just remember, as a Christian, you are already forgiven by God, through the sacrifice of His Son. We can only learn the power of forgiveness by doing it. And no one can do it for us; Jesus forgives us so we must forgive others.