Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies; Psalms 103:4
BIBLE READING IS EPHESIANS 4:31-32
31 Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice:
32 And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.
*MESSAGE:* According to Matthew 18:23-24 , an unforgiving believer is branded a wicked fellow. A believer who dumps the works of righteousness for the works of the flesh while still attempting to run the Christian race is also wicked. God forgave us so that we can forgive others.
He continues to forgive us whenever we are expecting that we inculcate a lifestyle of forgiveness. If you fail to forgive anyone who offends you, you have automatically negated God’s purpose for forgiving you.
God leads only by example and He expects you to follow His steps.One proof of being a child of God is your ability to forgive others no matter their offence.
If you struggle with forgiving your offenders, something is very wrong. It must mean that you haven’t given up your will and self to God. It means you are still being controlled by the flesh and not the Holy Spirit.
It means your foundation as a Christian is defective. Your readiness to forgive says much about you.
Moreover, the Bible says, forgive us our sins as we forgive those who offend us. This means that a wise man forgives easily knowing that he also will need forgiveness from God.
KEY POINT
Don’t wait till you feel like forgiving, or until the person deserves it. We don’t deserve God’s forgiveness, yet He forgives us over and over again.
ACTS 16:1-40, PSALMS 1:1-6, PSALMS 2:1-12, PSALMS 3:1-8
Forgiving someone is freeing yourself from pain.