And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. – Matthew 6:12
What is the hardest thing we have to do in life? It is no understatement that when you totally forgive someone it could be one of the hardest things you do in your christian life. Our Lord includes forgiveness in the Lord’s Prayer as its one of the struggles that we will all have to deal with in life. Forgiveness is not an option but it is essential in our lives as even our Lord says that God will forgive us in relation to how we forgive others. Unfaithfulness, abuse, hurt, slander, and hundreds of other ways one can offend and cause one to have unforgiveness against someone. Forgiveness is a deliberate choice consciously to release feelings of resentment, hurt and vengeance towards another, though they do not deserve it. Not forgiving someone in your life can even cause physical problems, mental problems and definitely spiritual problems. Releasing someone in forgiveness is not holding that sin or hurt against another. To forgive is to fully release someone and bless them though they should be punished, or you could exact vengeance. Only when we forgive we can bless someone and pray for them to help them. But you say, “how can I fully forgive someone? and even bless them, they deserve to be corrected for their behaviour.”
In famous chapter on love, we are told that “it keeps no record of wrongs” (1 Corinthians 13:5). God’s desire for us is to forgive as Christ forgave us, that means to not hold sins against others and to bless them as our Lord blesses us. Vengeance is the Lords, but we should never wish even those who have hurt us, to be punished by the Lord and even be sent to hell. Forgiveness gives us joy and peace. When we dwell on grudges against others our body is affected physically and we start to have all sorts of problems of health. Forgiveness restores relationships, marriages and situations in the body of Christ. When we totally forgive someone we do not need to speak about it to others. Most people do not realize the extent they have hurt someone and therefore do not even understand they need to seek forgiveness. Therefore seek to forgive people privately even just before the Lord, give the situation, person, sin to the grace of God and never mention it to the other. Such releasing of debts and feelings to the Lord will bring great growth in your relationship with the Lord and will help you keep protected from the attacks of the devil. C.S. Lewis says, “To be a Christian means to forgive the inexcusable, because God has forgiven the inexcusable in you.” Are you holding onto that terrible inexcusable thing, what hurt are you holding onto? Fully forgive, bless and you will find you will be walking in the footsteps of Jesus.