3/3/21

"And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.
But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses." (Mark 11:25-26)
English poet, Alexander Pope, said in a poem, "To err is human, to forgive, divine."
Amen, to that! We have all made mistakes. (Our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, is the only one that is perfect.)
But everyone else is flawed, and in error. We all have that in common.
So, that means we have all offended others, or have caused them some injury. And, of course, we have been injured by others, as well. What does the Bible say we that should do? Forgive!
Forgiveness is an important doctrine in the Bible. If God was not willing to forgive, we would be in big trouble! We would be poorer because of it. But God's riches in grace and mercy abound toward us. We have benefitted more than we could possibly know, from the forgiveness that God has offered unto us in His Son, Jesus Christ.
God expects us to be like Him, and to forgive those who have trespassed against us. He is adamant about this, and is not flexible about it at all.
Jesus says, "...when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any:..." It takes a special kind of person to forgive. It takes a person with a heart like Jesus!
When we have been wounded by others, the natural instinct is to retaliate. And we want to harbor a grudge against that individual.
The un-natural thing is to forgive them. That is the Godly reaction to offenses.
Jesus went on to say, that if we do not forgive others, then God would not forgive us! "But if ye do not forgive neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses." (v. 26)
If we want to receive forgiveness from God for our offenses, we must be willing to forgive others.
I don't know about you, but I want God to forgive me of what I have done to offend Him! Yessir! We all need God's forgiveness!
So, let it go, and forgive. You will experience a weight being lifted from your soul. Forgiveness is a liberating thing.
And most importantly, you exhibit a heart like that of God. And you will make God smile.
From my heart to your heart.