THE
ESSENCE OF FORGIVENESS
Memorise:
And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your
Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses. Mark 11:25
Read:
Mark 11:25-26, Bible in one year: 1st Kings 22, Luke 7:18-35
The enmity between God and man, created
by sin, can only be reversed through the forgiveness of God. Going by the
righteous requirement of God’s law, no man can pay the high price demanded by
God for the atonement of sins, but the divine mercy of God brought us
forgiveness through the Blood of Jesus Christ (Ephesians 1:7). Without the
power of forgiveness, there can be no atonement, no reconciliation and no
salvation.
Just as God has extended His
unconditional forgiveness to us, He expects us to extend the same to our
neighbours. This is an area where the people of God have problems. We like to
enjoy God’s benevolence, but we find it difficult to extend the same to others.
The gravity of this negative attitude is found in the parable of Jesus about
the unforgiving servant (Matthew 18:23-35). Although the king forgave this
servant a debt he could not afford to pay, when his fellow servant who also
owed him begged his to be patient with him, he refused. Rather, he cast this
fellow servant into prison. This attitude made the king so angry that he handed
him over to the tormentors and charged them to torment him until he was able to
pay his debt. Of course he would not be able to pay; so he was effectively
banished to a lifetime of torment. The key thing to note from this parable is
what Jesus said in Matthew 18:35:
“So
likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts
forgive not every one his brother their trespasses.”
The virtue of forgiveness proceeds from
the offended, and it is carried out by the offended also. There is nothing
anyone can do to convince the offended to forgive, if he or she does not look
beyond the offending party and choose to unconditionally forgive. There is
every reason to be vengeful when you are offended, but when you cast your mind
back to remember how you have been forgiven yourself; you will have no choice
as a child of God but to forgive. Those who easily forgive other who offend
them are likely to be favourites of God because they share the nature of God in
the area of forgiveness. Their prayers are also more likely to be speedily
answered than the prayers of those who are vengeful.
Action
Point
Look
out for those who have offended you, declare and demonstrate to them that you
have forgiven them.
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