Forgiveness

How important is forgiveness? What happens if we don't forgive others? Is there any sin which God can't forgive?

Scriptures for this week:

Matthew 18:21-22, "Then Peter came to him and asked, “Lord, how often should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times?”

22“No, not seven times,” Jesus replied, “but seventy times seven!" (NLT)

I don't believe Jesus is talking about a literal 490 times here. He was referring to as many times as your brother needs to be forgiven. I've heard people comment that maybe Jesus said that because the disciples couldn't do the math to figure out the literal number it equaled...

Matthew 18:23-35, "Therefore, the Kingdom of Heaven can be compared to a king who decided to bring his accounts up to date with servants who had borrowed money from him. 24In the process, one of his debtors was brought in who owed him millions of dollars. 25He couldn’t pay, so his master ordered that he be sold—along with his wife, his children, and everything he owned—to pay the debt.

26“But the man fell down before his master and begged him, ‘Please, be patient with me, and I will pay it all.’ 27Then his master was filled with pity for him, and he released him and forgave his debt.

28“But when the man left the king, he went to a fellow servant who owed him a few thousand dollars. He grabbed him by the throat and demanded instant payment.

29“His fellow servant fell down before him and begged for a little more time. ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it,’ he pleaded. 30But his creditor wouldn’t wait. He had the man arrested and put in prison until the debt could be paid in full.

31“When some of the other servants saw this, they were very upset. They went to the king and told him everything that had happened. 32Then the king called in the man he had forgiven and said, ‘You evil servant! I forgave you that tremendous debt because you pleaded with me. 33Shouldn’t you have mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had mercy on you?’ 34Then the angry king sent the man to prison to be tortured until he had paid his entire debt.

35“That’s what my heavenly Father will do to you if you refuse to forgive your brothers and sisters from your heart.” (NLT)

Okay, let's repeat something here... "That is what my heavenly Father will do to you if you refuse to forgive your brothers and sisters from you heart..." WOW! Pretty strong statement here... Don't you think?

Matthew 6:14-15, "For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins." (NIV)

Do you think you can go to heaven without forgiving someone? You decide...

Mark 11:25, "And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins."

We need to forgive others, bottom line. If you are finding it hard to forgive others, ask God to help you. "If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer." Matthew 21:22 (NIV)

Matthew 12:31-32, “So I tell you, every sin and blasphemy can be forgiven—except blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, which will never be forgiven. 32Anyone who speaks against the Son of Man can be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven, either in this world or in the world to come." (NLT)

Do you think there is an unforgivable sin? Let's repeat, "but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven,... ...or in the world to come." Does that mean you will go to hell if you blaspheme the Holy Spirit?

Mark 3:28-30, “'I tell you the truth, all sin and blasphemy can be forgiven, 29but anyone who blasphemes the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven. This is a sin with eternal consequences.'” 30He told them this because they were saying, “'He’s possessed by an evil spirit.'”

"Eternal consequences." Hmmm... If you read the verses before this in Mark chapter 3, you will see that they were accusing Jesus of casting out demons with Satan's power... What do you think about this? Would someone go to hell if they blasphemed the Holy Spirit?

So what is your viewpoint on forgiveness? Have you ever thought about it before? Do you have some unforgiveness that you still need to take care of? If so, I encourage you to do so. When we follow the Word of God, and do what He says it is amazing how our spirit can be renewed and lifted from its miserable state. Forgive, and do your best to forget about it. Don't hold a grudge. God will then forgive you, and permanently forget your sins!

Blessings!

~ S*

I'm Forgiven!!!!

Yes, you can tell I have been reading! I have finished book number two in the "Firstborn" series by Karen Kingsbury. As you can tell by the title a main subject of the book was forgiveness.

Have you ever had guilt about something, and you couldn't get past the thought of it until you apologized or made things right? I have had a few instances of this in my life. A couple times it was years afterward that I confessed my sin to someone and apologized. It can really be damaging to your quiet time with God if you have an unresolved issue in mind. The best idea is to face the issue, apologize if necessary, and come to peace with it. Believe me, it may be uncomfortable at the time, but it is WAY worth it in the end!

And if there happens to be something in your life where you can't physically go to someone and apologize, God has forgiven you. All He wants you to do is lay your sin at his feet, accept His forgiveness, and never look back. The amazing thing about God is that He truly forgives and FORGETS! Oh, how I wish I was able to forget certain things that have happened after I have forgiven the situation. The Bible says in Philippians 4:6-7 "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus." I don't know about you, but I want to prayerfully give my burdens (whether they are unforgiveness, lies, cheating, stealing, lustful thoughts, disobedience, etc...) completely to God. He sent His Son, Jesus, to die on the cross for our sins! His one and only Son! That is how much God loves us! Jesus's blood has wiped us clean! We don't have to live with our "dirty laundry" anymore. He has FORGIVEN us! And He has permanently forgotten it!

How AWESOME is that!?! Are there things in your life holding you back? Let God have them. '"Then neither do I condemn you," Jesus declared. "Go now and leave your life of sin."' (John 8:11 NIV)

~ S*