Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do.
Forgiveness is a command for those who claim to follow Christ. How can I say that I love, trust, and obey the One who forgave all my wicked sins and not be willing to do the same?
Is forgiveness easy? No. Do you think it was easy for Jesus?
Jesus was fully man when He was hanging on that cross, beaten, bruised, and tortured by the very men who stood around waiting for Him to bleed out. He forgave them, and He forgave me. Why? What did Jesus say about us while He was taking His last breaths on the Cross?
“Father forgive them for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34)
I believe Jesus said what He said because it’s true – after all, He is the Truth. So, if we really and fully understood the spiritual and eternal impact of our sinful actions, would we still do them? But our pride has us blinded.
O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? (Romans 7:24)
We are given a promise that if we take the unnatural step of forgiveness through our faith in Jesus, we can be free! Paul also writes this in Romans 8:1-2:
There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.
Forgiveness is one of the main stops on our way to freedom and eternity.
#LoveMatters