All About GOD - Growing Relationships with Jesus and Others
THE FOUNDATION STONE OF FORGIVENESS
Forgiveness is defined as;
Forgiveness is, choosing to pardon, remit, or overlook the mistake, fault, offense, hurt or injury of the offender without demanding, a penalty, punishment or retribution.
It is giving up your right to take vengeance on someone else by refusing to love them.
Forgiveness is "never free," though it can and should be freely given to others.
When a person is forgiven, the one who extends the forgiveness chooses to accept the pain of the offense and foregoes the right of retribution or retaliation.
Mat 6:12 says "Forgive us the wrongs that we have done, as we forgive the wrongs others have done us.
Eph. 4:32 says and be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God in Christ also forgave you."
We need to be forgiven first from God and we have if we have been born again.
When we deal with forgiveness in our own lives;
1. We need to forgive ourselves, for a lot of us this is more difficult than anything else.
2. Forgive others is a miracle and is evidence of the Spirit in your life.
3. Forgive God, God doesn’t do wrong, but some times we misunderstand what he is doing and enter into unforgiveness.
Forgiveness is not avoidance
Forgiveness is not making light of something we find hurtful.
Forgiveness is not excusing
Forgiveness is not denying that the one who has caused the hurt is responsible for their actions.
Forgiveness may lead to reconciliation or it may not, but they are not the same"
Unforgiveness will hurt no one more than myself
Unforgiveness will often hurt others
Unforgiveness is readily exploited by the Evil One
One of Satan's strategies to hinder our personal growth and undermine the growth of God's kingdom is to encourage and exploit the lack of forgiveness among God's people
Forgiveness demonstrates Christ's presence
Jesus said that people would recognize us as his disciples by the way we love one another (John 13:35). One of the ways love is expressed is in forgiveness.
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Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Pastor Bob B on
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Jackie you said,
"As we pray for others, who have hurt us, that healing will come in our lives too."
I remember talking to a lady from church one time and even though she called herself a Christian she had a offence toward some one that she refused to forgive. I really believe that if we refuse or unable to forgive that is a evidence that we are not truly children of God.
Forgiveness is part of loving others and by not forgiving others we are in complete rebellion against the law of love. -
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Permalink Reply by Jacqueline Harris on
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I agree that it is vital to forgive, because when it talked,(in the Word of God) about the brother who was forgiven the debt he owed to a person, with whom he was in debt, he went to another person, who owed him money and threw him in jail, when he begged for mercy and patience. The original person( I think he was a king) was wroth with him and threw him in prison, until he paid all the debt. That is what God would do to us if we did not forgive the brother or sister, with all our heart. It can be tormenting not to forgive, and the tormentors(the enemy) can be given access if someone does not forgive. So I believe it is important. Vital, like breathing, as you said..
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DEALING WITH OFFENSES“
An offended brother is more [resistant]than a strong city, and disputes are like the locked gate of a castle tower.” ( Proverbs 18:19 GWT )
And herein do I exercise myself, to have always a conscience void to offense toward God, and toward men.” ( Acts 24:16 KJV )
“That ye may approve things that are excellent; that ye may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ.” ( Philippians 1:10 )
Then said he unto the disciples, It is impossible but that offenses will come: but woe unto him, through whom they come!” ( Luke 17:1 )
As we can see in these verses, we might as well brace up ourselves for offenses and learn how to deal with them, because they will come our way.
Definition of offense
Let me first define the word ‘offense’. In the Hebrew, it means; obstacle, enticement, stumbling block, etc. In the Greek, it also means,; a trap stick, a snare, a cause of displeasure or sin, or a occasion to fall.
It is a wounding of the feelings, annoyance or resentment caused by some ones actions or words.
Jesus Christ a rock of offense to many.
“He will be a sanctuary, but a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense to both the houses of Israel, as a trap and a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem. And many among them shall stumble; they shall fall and be broken, be snared and taken.” (Isa.8:14, 15).
Do you know how many are offended in Jesus today?
Many are disappointed in Him and a lot of things that seem inexplicable are blamed on Him. And we are not only talking about unbelievers, but sad to say, believers too!
1-People were also offended at the teachings of Jesus. (John.6:48-68).
2-People were offended at Jesus in His home town because they knew Him too well in the natural to accept his claim to divinity. (Matt.13:54-57).
3-The cross of Christ was also an offense to people. (Galatians 5:11).
4-Some folks also are offended when tribulation and persecution arise because of the Word. (Matthew13:21).
5-Jesus warned His disciples on the night of His arrest, that they would all be made to stumble because of Him. ( Matthew 26:31)
We are going to have to come to realize that just by being a follower of Jesus will cause others to become offended by us. This is so hard to deal with when it is your own family that is offended.
The opportunity for us of becoming offended
We are presented with many opportunities to get offended each and every day. We will need to keep short accounts with ourselves to make sure that we have not gotten offended . For me Communion is a great time to do an inventory of my own heart to make sure that I am free of any kind of offenses.
Prayer is an essential element to keep these offenses from rooting in our lives.
The Holy Spirit is a help in our lives and will show us if any offenses are taking up residence in us.
Know the Devil will present to us a variety of things to temp us down this path.
Some one disappoints us,
some one breaks a promise to us,
some one neglects to do something for us,
the list goes on and on.....
We will have to deal with this every day of our lives, and exercise of conscience to be void of offense by constantly being in prayer. Instead of becoming offended and getting ticked off, just begin to pray for the offender. I have found it very difficult to stay offended by some one I am praying for.
We were all an offense to God because of our sin condition before Jesus took our offenses and sin upon himself and the blood cleansed us from all unrighteousness.
Prayer
Father God help us to have hearts of forgiveness toward others,
that we will not hold offenses toward any one.
We need your grace and help to live lives void of offenses.
In Jesus name amen -
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We need to keep our consciences clear also, in case we have done the offending. If we have, we need to be humble and repent of our offense, which is not always an easy thing to do. And if someone is offended by something we have said or done, even if we didn't do it or say it to offend them, I believe it is best to still say that we are sorry. This can bring healing to any wounds that were afflicted and brings restitution. Prayer- Heavenly Father, please help us not to be an offense to anyone, and help us to have true humility and be willing to repent of anything that we have said or done that brought offense, or hurt someone else, even unintentionally. Please give us a humble heart and a willing spirit to do your will. In Jesus name. Amen.
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Permalink Reply by CESAR HUSMILLO on
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God bless you all for the encouraging words that touch my heart. They work as a steering wheel for my spiritual journey.
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Permalink Reply by Joviena "Pam" Reynaldo on
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Thank You God that you always forgive us in our sins and you send your son Jesus Christ to carry all our sins,sorry Jesus Christ for what I've done to you,give me a peace of mind to forgive others and will not to offense them...give you more strength this Pastor to continue give a good word from you annoyed him to lead us and share more words from you..in Jesus mighty name. Amen
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Most of us need to have a good reason to do something we do not want to do. We have a really good reason as Christians to walk in forgiveness. We have an eternity awaiting us and it is not worth it to hang on to un - forgiveness. We can tell what we value by how hard we try to hang on to something. Holding on to un - forgiveness for any reason will keep you from that what is of real value, forgiveness ourselves from God and freedom from the torment that clings to our soul like a leach. It is worth it to let it go and allow the blood of Jesus to cleanse and heal your broken heart.
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honestly when i listen to this sing i want to cry.....coz it's fitted to the situation of my sister now and i tell them that i pray and hope that it will WORTH IT...thank you God to be a part of this site coz I know and You know how i need You through this visual....May your blessing upon us..God bless to all
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Permalink Reply by Brenda Miller on
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Thank you for this, Pastor Bob. Forgiveness is not a natural response, but Jesus gives us grace to overcome our emotions of anger and bitterness, so that His love rises up to win out in our hearts. I have found that when forgiveness has been a struggle in my life, I have to go to the Lord and ask Him to show me what is wounded within me, and submit that wound to Him for healing. I need to surrender my hurt, my pride, my anger, my bitterness, and all negative emotions into His hands, and I have to confess that I am holding onto this wound like a trophy. Instead, I want to hold onto the victory that Jesus can and will give me over my hurt if I will but submit to His way, which is always the best way, the way of perfect Love. For perfect Love casts out all fear, and the greatest reason I hang onto hurt instead of forgiving is that I somehow think that the memory - and the anger that memory instills within me - will prevent me from being hurt again. However, that is a lie from the enemy designed to make me think I have control over the actions of others. All that holding onto past hurts does is harden my heart against God and against others, and it prevents me from loving and being loved. And that is never a winning choice for me or for anyone. God puts before us the choice of life and death in Deuteronomy 30:
"15 'Look at what I've done for you today: I've placed in front of you
Life and Good
Death and Evil.16 And I command you today: Love God, your God. Walk in his ways. Keep his commandments, regulations, and rules so that you will live, really live, live exuberantly, blessed by God, your God, in the land you are about to enter and possess' [vv.15-16, The Message]."
He wants us to choose life, and one way to do this is to choose forgiveness. That is why Jesus is such an example to us of forgiveness, reflecting perfectly the Father's heart for us. Our amazement to be forgiven our sins ~ past, present, and future ~ is the beginning in our hearts of what the Lord desires us to give to others: the amazing Grace that He desires to pour out upon us every day of our lives beginning here on earth and continuing on into eternity. John Waller expresses this beautifully in his song, He Still Calls Me Son:
May we continue to be amazed by His grace, and may we amaze others as we touch them with His love through our forgiveness! Amen!
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Thank you for this, Pastor Bob. Forgiveness is not a natural response, but Jesus gives us grace to overcome our emotions of anger and bitterness, so that His love rises up to win out in our hearts. I have found that when forgiveness has been a struggle in my life, I have to go to the Lord and ask Him to show me what is wounded within me, and submit that wound to Him for healing. I need to surrender my hurt, my pride, my anger, my bitterness, and all negative emotions into His hands, and I have to confess that I am holding onto this wound like a trophy. Instead, I want to hold onto the victory that Jesus can and will give me over my hurt if I will but submit to His way, which is always the best way, the way of perfect Love. For perfect Love casts out all fear, and the greatest reason I hang onto hurt instead of forgiving is that I somehow think that the memory - and the anger that memory instills within me - will prevent me from being hurt again. However, that is a lie from the enemy designed to make me think I have control over the actions of others. All that holding onto past hurts does is harden my heart against God and against others, and it prevents me from loving and being loved. And that is never a winning choice for me or for anyone. God puts before us the choice of life and death in Deuteronomy 30:
"15 'Look at what I've done for you today: I've placed in front of you
Life and Good
Death and Evil.16 And I command you today: Love God, your God. Walk in his ways. Keep his commandments, regulations, and rules so that you will live, really live, live exuberantly, blessed by God, your God, in the land you are about to enter and possess' [vv.15-16, The Message]."
He wants us to choose life, and one way to do this is to choose forgiveness. That is why Jesus is such an example to us of forgiveness, reflecting perfectly the Father's heart for us. Our amazement to be forgiven our sins ~ past, present, and future ~ is the beginning in our hearts of what the Lord desires us to give to others: the amazing Grace that He desires to pour out upon us every day of our lives beginning here on earth and continuing on into eternity. John Waller expresses this beautifully in his song, He Still Calls Me Son:
May we continue to be amazed by His grace, and may we amaze others as we touch them with His love through our forgiveness! Amen!
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thank you Pastor that you share this article i am so bless coz i need this to share to my sister now,i thank God coz He so good,He do the way to encouraged me towards to my sisters bout what happen to them....God bless and im so blessed when i read an article like this.
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Permalink Reply by Lina on
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It is healthy to forgive because the unforgiver suffers so much pain that can have damaging effect. I carried this heavy burden about for a long time until the day I made the effort to let go. It wasn't until I had asked the Lord to help me that I was able to let go. Forgiveness is not easy but it is possible by the Lord's help. As christians, we should be known by our act of forgiveness. Thank you Pastor for this discussion. Many christians battle each day with this issue of forgiveness and I now understand that love form the basis of forgiveness. Let us love one another.
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