The issue of forgiveness is all through the Bible.\u00a0 If you asked people, do you think it is right to forgive those who hurt you, I imagine that most everyone will say yes (some may say it grudgingly).\u00a0 Therefore, we know we should do it, but I believe that giving true forgiveness is one of the most difficult things for many of us to do.<\/p>\n
Before we get too far into this I believe we need to define what forgiveness is and what it isn’t.\u00a0 Forgiveness is not a process whereby we do some mental gymnastics and completely forget what someone has done to us.\u00a0 I have heard many people say “you need to forgive and forget.”\u00a0 It has been my experience in life that I as well as most people I know are more like elephants when it comes to being hurt.\u00a0 We have all grown-up hearing that elephants never forget, and I believe most humans don’t either.\u00a0 Forgiveness is not forgetfulness.\u00a0 Rather, to forgive someone is to do two things.\u00a0 First it is to release them from your debt.\u00a0 You are choosing to no longer hold them guilty of hurting you.\u00a0 Secondly, to forgive someone is to not hold their past of hurting you against them in the present or the future.\u00a0 Now onto the rest of the issue of forgiveness now that we have defined it.<\/p>\n
Ephesians 4:32 says, “And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.”\u00a0 Paul under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit has given us a command to forgive.\u00a0 Jesus in Matthew 7 also gave the command to forgive.\u00a0 In helping us learn to forgive I believe there are two principles we should remember.\u00a0 First, we need to forgive others because Christ has forgiven us.\u00a0 That is right there in Ephesians 4:32.\u00a0 The next time you or I have a hard time forgiving someone, we should remember all the things God has forgiven us for.\u00a0 A good exercise that will deal with your pride and stubbornness to forgive is to next time you are struggling to forgive someone, take out a piece of paper and write down all the things that God has forgiven you for.\u00a0 That should put things into perspective pretty quickly.\u00a0 So remember how much God has forgiven you for.\u00a0 Secondly, remember that you have most likely hurt others in the past as well.\u00a0 You or I being hurt does not make us unique as though we are the only ones in the world to have been hurt or wronged by someone.\u00a0 Remember growing up and hearing about the Golden Rule, “do unto others as you would have others do unto you?”\u00a0 If you want others to forgive you, then you need to forgive others who hurt you.\u00a0 At the end of the day, holding on to a grudge or not forgiving someone only hurts you.\u00a0 You are the one who can’t sleep, you are the one stressed out, not them.\u00a0\u00a0 Jesus said the two greatest commands were to love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind and to love others as yourself.\u00a0 Let’s be honest, we are a whole lot easier on ourselves than we are on others.\u00a0 For the sake of your relationship with God, your relationship with others, and your own personal well-being, let it go!<\/p>\n
By His grace and through His strength may we live for Him<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The issue of forgiveness is all through the Bible.\u00a0 If you asked people, do you think it is right to forgive those who hurt you, I imagine that most everyone will say yes (some may say it grudgingly).\u00a0 Therefore, we … Read More