Forgiveness is not something we do because it’s convenient or to make us feel good about it, or even because it’s the right thing to do. It is always the right thing to do, but more than that forgiveness is saving ourselves, saving our own soul. It’s not that God won’t forgive us anymore if we don’t forgive, but we forgive because when the day is done we want to be saved. We want joy in our soul, we want His peace, and we want His fellowship.
No one can have God without forgiveness. Let’s not fool ourselves into believing that we can hate someone and have God at the same time. It doesn’t matter how long we’ve been in church and what great things we’ve experienced in times past in the presence of God, or that we have even loved everybody at one time or another. Without forgiveness we can’t have God.
It doesn’t matter how many members one has in their church, or how many people have been baptized in their ministry, without forgiveness no one can have God.
It doesn’t matter if you’ve prophesied and have spoken in tongues or given interpretation, preached to hundreds or even thousands of people and brought healing and miracles in people’s lives, without forgiveness you can’t have God.
The Bible states,
“Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God and knoweth God. He that loveth not knoweth not God: for God is love.” {1 John 4:7-8}
The enemy of our soul who wants to destroy us, wants us to hate because hate is the worst of all sins. It can easily destroy us without him having to take a gun to our heads or have us drink poison to kill us. It is also the easiest thing to do the minute someone else offends us. As soon as someone insults us or says something demeaning or hateful to us our automatic impulse reaction is hate. “How dare they? I hate them. They will pay for this.” Before you know it we’re insulting them back. It’s so easy. We all fall for it.
Oh, sure, we know the whole mantra of, “Love your enemies. Do good to them that hate you. Pray for them that despitefully use you.” On and on and on… We have that all memorized to the nth degree we can recite it in our sleep. But that doesn’t change us does it? As soon as someone hurts us we automatically hurt them back. It’s so easy!
“But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” {Romans 5:8}
Isn’t that a beautiful verse? While we were still sinners or pathetically horrible people and wicked, God died for us – proving His love for us. He hung helplessly on the cross, was shamed and whipped, so that we can find forgiveness for our sins today and be called His sons and His daughters. How can that be possible? While we were still unlovable and miserable, God gave His life for us? Yes, indeed! It’s simply called, grace! That wonderful, amazing, grace!
Grace. Grace. Grace. This is what we want. This is what we need, grace! At this hour, at this age in time, in our generation today, we need that more than anything – grace!
See, that’s all we need for each other, grace. Grace is a precursor to love. When we can’t have love, let us have grace. When it doesn’t make sense to forgive a person let us have grace. When we’ve had enough of a person, God grant us more grace. Grace. That wonderful and beautiful word, grace. That’s what we are looking for. That’s what we are praying for. That’s what we need, grace.
In the Christian dictionary Grace means, “the free and unmerited favor of God,” or “the love and mercy given to us by God because God desires us to have it, not necessarily because of anything we have done to earn it.”
“If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen? And this commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also.” {1 John 4:21}
So forgiveness, let us have it, let us give it, let us not begrudge one another of this. Forgiveness is the only answer to all those sleepless nights, stress attacks, depression, late night binging, teeth grinding, on and on down the line of miserable days and nights we’ve been having. Don’t get me wrong, forgiveness is not an excuse for someone to keep abusing us. That’s not what I’m talking about. (If you’re in that kind of relationship ask the Lord to counsel you and show you what to do because He will show you. He does not want us in an abusive relationship where we are in fear for our wellbeing or are living in dread.) But forgiveness is not hating back, nor getting even or even holding a grudge. Forgiveness is walking away from someone who hurt you without hurting them back. Forgiveness is keeping joy in and love in your heart. It’s keeping God in. It’s hating sin and wickedness with a passion, but loving the transgressor and showing compassion for them anyway. We understand the sinner. We know where they’re coming from. We hope and pray that God will help them love too and forgive too. We know how it is like not to love. It is miserable. We don’t want that for ourselves nor for others. We give grace because we’ve been given grace, and because we know how good it feels to be loved.
Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. {Matthew 5:7}
But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. {1 John 1:7}
A Psalm of David.} LORD, who shall abide in thy tabernacle? who shall dwell in thy holy hill? He that walketh uprightly, and worketh righteousness, and speaketh the truth in his heart. He that backbiteth not with his tongue, nor doeth evil to his neighbour, nor taketh up a reproach against his neighbour. {Psalm 15:1-3}
Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. {1 Corinthians 13:4-7}
Prayer
Father in heaven, how can I ever thank You for Your love and Your grace for me? I am eternally indebted to You. I cannot thank You enough Jesus for giving me Your love and Your grace. Savior, I love You and appreciate You. Thank You with all of my heart for Your love for me.
Lord God, have mercy and have compassion upon me today because I need grace! Grace from You and grace for other people!
Please Lord Jesus give me more love and mercy and grace for other people. I live in perilous times today where the love of many have waxed cold and the love of one-self abounds. I want to love You and I want to obey You but it is not easy. Unless You help me and give me more of Your Holy Spirit and give me love for people I will not be able to do it. Please forgive me if I have hate in my heart today. Please Jesus replace it with love and forgiveness. Help me to love people, especially those that are difficult to love, Lord. I ask this in Your most wonderful and holy name, Jesus. I thank You Father God. Amen.
Image by chiến nguyễn bá from Pixabay
Rp8/2017
