The Word says to, “Do unto others as you would have them do to you.” Jesus not only said this but He also set the example that we should follow. In other words Jesus practiced what He preached.
The Bible also says this in Galatians 6:7, “Do not be deceived, God is not mocked, for whatever a man sows this he shall also reap.” Everything that we do will result in a blessing or regret. If you despise someone you will be despised. If you show love you will receive love. If you hold a grudge and refuse to forgive you will not be forgiven. If we refuse to forgive, the consequences will be a forfeiture of Heaven. This is very clear in the scriptures and we better take this very seriously.
Let me remind you of some of the people Jesus forgave when He walked the earth: the paralyzed man who was let down through the roof in Matthew 9:2-8, the woman caught in adultery in John 8:3–11, the woman who anointed His feet with oil in Luke 7:47–50, Peter for denying he knew Jesus in John 18:15–18, 25–27 and 21:15–19, the thief on the cross in Luke 23:39–43, and the people who crucified Him. He also forgives everyone who truly repents and turns from their wicked ways and asks Him to forgive them.
There is a parable or story in Matthew 18:21-35 that Jesus relates to the kingdom of heaven, “Then Peter came and said to Him, ‘Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up to seven times?’ Jesus said to him, ‘I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.’ For this reason the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his slaves. When he had begun to settle them, one who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him. But since he did not have the means to repay, his lord commanded him to be sold, along with his wife and children and all that he had, and repayment to be made. So the slave fell to the ground and prostrated himself before him, saying, ‘Have patience with me and I will repay you everything.’ And the lord of that slave felt compassion and released him and forgave him the debt. But that slave went out and found one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii; and he seized him and began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay back what you owe.’ So his fellow slave fell to the ground and began to plead with him, saying, ‘Have patience with me and I will repay you.’ But he was unwilling and went and threw him in prison until he should pay back what was owed. So when his fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were deeply grieved and came and reported to their lord all that had happened. Then summoning him, his lord said to him, ‘You wicked slave, I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. Should you not also have had mercy on your fellow slave, in the same way that I had mercy on you?’ And his lord, moved with anger, handed him over to the torturers until he should repay all that was owed him. My heavenly Father will also do the same to you, if each of you does not forgive his brother from your heart.”
There are many people that claim to be Christians that seem to have a real problem with this. They have been hurt and refuse to forgive, which is a sin and separates them from the Lord. They may go around like nothing is wrong but they are only kidding themselves. I know that you may have been hurt more than I can imagine and I know that some things are very hard to forgive but none of us, when we stand before the Lord someday, will have an excuse for holding a grudge and not forgiving whatever the trespass.
Let me say this, not all the things we hold un-forgiveness over are because of our pride, but many are for that reason and we have got to get rid of the pride in our lives, which is of the flesh. When we say to ourselves, “who does that person think he is talking to like that,” or, “I dare that person to talk that way to me,” or anything else along those lines then it is probably just pride. I am glad that the Lord didn’t respond to us out of pride or zap we would be gone. Pride is a horrible sin and many will be in Hell because of it. Pride is one of the seven sins that God hates and for good reason.
So if you are struggling with forgiving, make a choice to do the right thing and forgive from the heart. A good practice would be to tell the Lord that you choose to forgive and then ask the Lord to forgive the person also whether they ask you or not. Then ask the Lord to help you to love the person or persons that have hurt you. What may help is to think about the people you’ve hurt and have received forgiveness from.
Then don’t forget the one you hurt the most and that is the Lord. The Bible says, “Greater love has no man than he would lay down his life for a friend.” Jesus not only did that but He laid down His life for us and many, many others when we, and they, were His enemies, praise His holy name.
You have a choice, please make the right one, and if you would like me to pray for you please let me know. God bless you and have a great day!! PS: don’t forget to thank and praise the Lord.
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