To Forgive

Tuesday's Devotion (1-3-06)

"Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also [do] ye." Colossians 3:13 (KJV)

I want to point something out here about this scripture. This scripture tells us to forgive anyone as Christ forgave us. It isn't by any means giving you an option, and it isn't saying, "Forgive if they ask for forgiveness." No, it just tells us to forgive... plain and simple! Just like any other commandment from God, it doesn't say, "Do this if you feel like it, or if you want to." If you don't forgive others, then you can't be forgiven by God. I got that directly from the Bible, and it makes perfect sense too. Think about it... If you hold a grudge against someone, then you hold sin that you haven't repented of inside of yourself. A grudge is a sin, and if you hold onto this grudge... Then it's like taking sin inside your hand and gripping it tightly. When you hold a grudge, you hold your own condemnation in the palm of your hand. You have to forgive people and let go of the past. I struggle with it, I won't tell you any different. It's hard to just forgive. That's why we have to ask God for the strength to do it. We can't do it on our own. One of the fears that Satan uses against me is that when it's too late, I'll find that I never truly forgave people. But hey, God isn't going to let that happen. He knows I'm weak, and He knows that I'm asking for his help to forgive. He is the expert on forgiveness, not me.

To forgive is to let go. To forgive is to let live. To forgive is to live yourself. If you still dwell on something that happened in the past, then you haven't truly forgiven someone. Even if that someone is yourself. If you still act cruel to someone who has wronged you, then you haven't truly forgiven. If you can't live life to the fullest because you're still mad about the past, then you haven't truly forgiven. I had a lot of grudges in my life. Now, I just kind of reflect back on those people and think, "It's over, I feel sorry for them." It's over, I'm not going to hold it against them. If they walked up to me today, I'd be nice to them... If they were still the same person, then I would smile and walk away. Forgiving someone doesn't mean you have to play stupid. If they stress you out, then it's best not to associate with them.

Prayer: Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for this message, and for all things. Please forgive us of all our sins, and we forgive all those who've wronged us. Please help us to forgive, and not to hold any grudges. Draw us closer to you, and may we always realize that nobody is perfect, except you. In Jesus name. A-men!

God bless!

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