FORGIVENESS

 

Marcella Ward   August 14, 2024

 

I John 1:9 “If we admit that we have sinned and confess our sins, He is faithful and just (true to His own nature and promises) and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

Psalm 103:12 “As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us.”

Ephesians 4:32 “And become useful and helpful and kind to one another, tenderhearted (compassionate, understanding, loving-hearted), forgiving one another (readily and freely), as God in Christ forgave you.”

Matthew 6:14-15 “For if you forgive people their trespasses (their reckless and willful sins, leaving them, letting them go, and giving up resentment), your heavenly Father will also forgive you.” But if you do not forgive others their trespasses (their reckless and willful sins, leaving them, letting them go, and giving up resentment), neither will your Father forgive you your trespasses.” 

 

We know that Jesus died on the cross to forgive us of our sins.  He died in our place.  He saved us from the jaws of death of eternal damnation.  Just as we accept God’s forgiveness, so we too must forgive others for their offenses against us. 

Forgiveness is so important that when the Apostles asked Jesus to show them how to pray, He prayed the “Our Father” which has “forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.”

How many of us have carried around unforgiveness for a certain person or persons?  You have heard the old adage that unforgiveness is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to get sick?  Actually it is the person who has an unforgiving heart that can become sick, this is based on fact.  Unforgiveness can actually block our prayers for healing and other prayers because we are not in harmony with God.  We need to be in harmony with God and His Word if we expect our prayers to be answered.  

There is no other way to say it, but Jesus Himself said that if we do not forgive, then God will not forgive us.  It is very simple.  If this seems harsh, God is a just God.  There is a story of an African pastor who died in a car accident and was taken to hell by an angel.  He saw many people suffering in hell.  He saw people who had been Christians but had unconfessed sin in their lives like a pastor that had secretly stolen money from the Church.  The angel told him that this is where he would be because he had not forgiven his wife before he died.  He was shocked because he told the angel that he was a pastor preaching the Gospel.  Miraculously, he was resurrected from the dead and now lives to tell the story of the reality of hell and the lot for those who will not forgive.

Forgiveness requires action.  Jesus died on the cross to forgive us of our sins.  We need to forgive others.  Sometimes we even need to forgive God because we may blame Him.  Sometimes the first step is just to say “I forgive…..” even if you don’t feel it.  Remember forgiveness is an action not a feeling.  Don’t be afraid to reach out in reconciliation to the person who has hurt you if it is possible.  If a hurt comes back to “haunt” you because it is hard to forget, just ask God to bless that person and give that person to God.  It may take a while to heal a wounded heart but God is in the business of healing wounded souls, so lean on Him, trust Him and with His strength and healing power, you will be able to move on and be the open vessel that God wants you to be so He can fill you with more of Himself so you can be a healing balm to someone who needs God’s touch.

 

Forgiveness requires action.  Jesus died on the cross to forgive us of our sins.  We need to forgive others.  Sometimes we even need to forgive God because we may blame Him.  Sometimes the first step is just to say “I forgive…..” even if you don’t feel it.  Remember forgiveness is an action not a feeling.  Don’t be afraid to reach out in reconciliation to the person who has hurt you if it is possible.  If a hurt comes back to “haunt” you because it is hard to forget, just ask God to bless that person and give that person to God.  It may take a while to heal a wounded heart but God is in the business of healing wounded souls, so lean on Him, trust Him and with His strength and healing power, you will be able to move on and be the open vessel that God wants you to be so He can fill you with more of Himself so you can be a healing balm to someone who needs God’s touch.

 

PRAYER 

Heavenly Father,

Whose forgiveness of me

Requires me to forgive others

Send Your Spirit

To change my heart

And heal any soul wounds

That I may be free to forgive

Even as You in Christ, forgave me

And so I forgive others who have hurt me

And I forgive myself

And I place any hurts and any unforgiveness

At the foot of the cross.  Amen

 

Marcella Ward   August 14, 2024   Author of "Stolen Identity: Plan of the Evil One

https://solaceinGodsworld.blogspot.com 

                                                            THE “UPSIDE DOWN” GOSPEL

 

 In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’  Acts 20:35 NIV

Science supports the benefits of giving.

“For example, research by social psychologist Liz Dunn and her colleagues appearing in the journal Science shows that people's sense of happiness is greater when they spend relatively more on others than on themselves.

In one survey of over 600 U.S. citizens, Dunn and colleagues found that spending money on others predicted greater happiness whereas spending money on oneself did not, and this pattern was found across all income levels. In other words, even those with little money reported greater happiness when their proportion of spending on others, relative to the self, was greater.

In a more controlled experiment, Dunn and colleagues gave students at the University of British Columbia an envelope containing money and told them that they either (1) had to spend the money on themselves before 5 p.m. that day or (2) had to spend the money on someone else before 5 p.m. Those who gifted for others were happier than those who gifted for themselves.

In some cases, there were 5 dollars in the envelope and in other cases there were 20 dollars. The amount didn't matter — the results were the same. Spending on others made people happier than spending on themselves. Ironically, when asked to predict which outcome would make one happier (i.e., spending on oneself or spending on others), another group of students at the same university thought spending on themselves would make them happier than spending on others.”

(Giving Really Is Better than Receiving Does giving to others (compared to oneself) promote happiness? Posted December 25, 2010  Allen R. McConnell, Ph.D.)

But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.  Luke 6:27-28 NIV

Corrie ten Boom, author of The Hiding Place, writes about forgiving a guard at the concentration camp where her sister died.  The following is an excerpt:

“But since that time,” he went on, “I have become a Christian. I know that God has forgiven me for the cruel things I did there, but I would like to hear it from your lips as well. Fräulein”–again the hand came out–“will you forgive me?”

And I stood there–I whose sins had every day to be forgiven–and could not. Betsie had died in that place–could he erase her slow terrible death simply for the asking?

It could not have been many seconds that he stood there, hand held out, but to me it seemed hours as I wrestled with the most difficult thing I had ever had to do.

For I had to do it–I knew that. The message that God forgives has a prior condition: that we forgive those who have injured us. “If you do not forgive men their trespasses,” Jesus says, “neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses.”

I knew it not only as a commandment of God, but as a daily experience. Since the end of the war I had had a home in Holland for victims of Nazi brutality.

 Those who were able to forgive their former enemies were able also to return to the outside world and rebuild their lives, no matter what the physical scars. Those who nursed their bitterness remained invalids. It was as simple and as horrible as that.

And still I stood there with the coldness clutching my heart. But forgiveness is not an emotion–I knew that too. Forgiveness is an act of the will, and the will can function regardless of the temperature of the heart.

“Jesus, help me!” I prayed silently. “I can lift my hand. I can do that much. You supply the feeling.”

And so woodenly, mechanically, I thrust my hand into the one stretched out to me. And as I did, an incredible thing took place. The current started in my shoulder, raced down my arm, sprang into our joined hands. And then this healing warmth seemed to flood my whole being, bringing tears to my eyes.

“I forgive you, brother!” I cried. “With all my heart!” (Guideposts Classics: Corrie ten Boom on Forgiveness by Corrie ten Boom Posted in Positive Living)

“They say that unforgiveness is like taking poison and expecting the other person to die.  In fact, unforgiveness can actually make you ill. 

“Unforgiveness is classified in medical books as a disease. According to Dr. Steven Standiford, chief of surgery at the Cancer Treatment Centers of America, refusing to forgive makes people sick and keeps them that way.

With that in mind, forgiveness therapy is now being used to help treat diseases, such as cancer.

"It's important to treat emotional wounds or disorders because they really can hinder someone's reactions to the treatments, even someone's willingness to pursue treatment," Standiford explained.  (The Deadly Consequences of Unforgiveness 06-22-2015 Lorie Johnson CBN)

For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, you your heavenly Father will also forgive you.  But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.  Matthew 6:14-15 NIV

Prayer for Rest for My Soul
Righteous Savior, I praise You for the peace You have provided me as I face the challenge of forgiving the wrong done to me. I marvel at Your goodness and take heart that You have overcome the world. I find rest for my soul in You, and ask that You forgive my transgressor, as I am in the process of forgiving him/her. Wash away his/her sins and comfort him/her in his/her sorrow. Thank You, Lord, for blessing this difficult task of forgiveness with a serenity that can only come from You. Amen.  (10 Powerful Prayers for the Forgiveness of Others  Apr 28, 2021 by Editor in Chief Connect Us)

The “upside down” Gospel is the antithesis of the world in which we live.  Be a light in a dark world.  Pray for your enemies.  Forgive those that have hurt you.  Give and you will receive.  I wonder if maybe this is the healing balm that we truly need during this time of chaos in the world as well as in our own lives.  

FORGIVENESS PART 2

FORGIVENESS PART 2

In the last teaching we talked about forgiveness and what it means to forgive.  In this next teaching we will focus on prayers that we can pray to heal us from any soul wounds because of hurt and unforgiveness in our lives.

Listen to this prayer by Father Emiliano Tardiff and let it soak into your spirit and be a healing balm.

PRAYER OF FORGIVENESS:

Father of goodness Father of love,

I bless You, I praise You, and I give You thanks because out of love you gave us Jesus.

Thank You Father because by the light of Your Spirit we understand that He is the Light, the Truth, and the Good Shepherd, Who has come that we might have life and have it abundantly.

Today, Father, I wish to present myself.

You know my name.

I present myself to You, Lord,

So that You might fix Your loving, fatherly eyes on me.

You know my heart and you know the wounds of the past.

You know all that I wished to do and all not done.

You also know what was done and what others have done to me that have wounded me.

You know my limitations, errors, and sin.

Today, Father, I ask that by the love that You have for Your Son, Jesus Christ, that You pour out Your Holy Spirit over me so that the warmth of Your healing love might penetrate into the most intimate corners of my heart.

You Who heal destroyed hearts and Who cure my wounds, heal me, Father.

Enter into my heart, Lord,

As You entered into that house where the disciples were full of fear.

You appeared in the midst of them and said:

“Peace be with you.”

Enter into my heart and give me Your peace.

Fill me with love.

We know that love casts out fear.

Go through my life and heal my heart.

I know, Lord, that You do it always if I ask,

And I am asking for it with Mary, our Mother, who was at the wedding in Cana when there was no wine and You responded to her request, changing the water into wine.

Change my heart and give me a generous heart, an affable heart, a kindly heart, give me a new heart.

Pour out, Lord, on me the fruits of Your presence.

Give me the fruits of Your Spirit which are love, peace, joy.

Pour out upon me the Spirit of the Beatitudes,

So that I might taste and search for God each day,

Living without psychological complexes of traumas, close to my spouse, my family, my brothers, my sisters.

I thank you, Father, for what You are doing today in my life.

I thank You with heartfelt thanks because You heal me, because You free me,

Because You break chains and give me freedom.

Thank You Lord, because I am a temple of Your Spirit and because that temple cannot be destroyed because it is the House of God.

I thank You Lord, for faith.

Thank You for the love that You have put into my heart.

How awesome You are Lord!

May You be blessed and praised Lord.

Let’s pray an individual prayer for healing any soul wounds from unforgiveness or any hurts that you may have experienced.  Repeat after me…

PRAYER 

Heavenly Father,

Whose forgiveness of me

Requires me to forgive others

Send Your Spirit

To change my heart

And heal any soul wounds

That I may be free to forgive

Even as You in Christ, forgave me

And so I forgive others who have hurt me

And I forgive myself

And I place any hurts and any unforgiveness

At the foot of the cross.  Amen

Forgiveness requires action.  Jesus died on the cross to forgive us of our sins.  We need to forgive others.  Sometimes we even need to forgive God because we may blame Him.  Sometimes the first step is just to say “I forgive…..” even if you don’t feel it.  Remember forgiveness is an action not a feeling.  Don’t be afraid to reach out in reconciliation to the person who has hurt you if it is possible.  If a hurt comes back to “haunt” you because it is hard to forget, just ask God to bless that person and give that person to God.  It may take a while to heal a wounded heart but God is in the business of healing wounded souls, so lean on Him, trust Him and with His strength and healing power, you will be able to move on and be the open vessel that God wants you to be so He can fill you with more of Himself so you can be a healing balm to someone who needs God’s touch.

GRACE

                                                                                    GRACE

There is a story that is told about a train drawbridge operator whose job was to raise and lower a bridge.  The bridge would normally remain up due to heavy traffic on the seaway.  On this particular day the drawbridge operator’s son came to work with him.  The father warned the son to stay close and not go near the tracks and the bridge.  When it came time for the drawbridge to be lowered, because there was a train coming, the father looked around for the son and could not find him.  He saw his son stuck in the mud on the train track.  He knew that if he left the room to help his son, it would cost the lives of all the people coming on the train.  He also knew that if he lowered the bridge, his son would be killed.  As the train approached, he lowered the bridge turning his head away as the bridge was lowered.  The passengers got off the train and crossed safely not knowing that the drawbridge operator’s son’s life was just given for theirs. 

This is a very sad story but it represents an act of grace.  “For it is by free grace (God’s unmerited favor) that you are saved (delivered from judgment and made partakers of Christ’s salvation) through (your) faith.  And this (salvation) is not of yourselves (of your own doing, it came not through your own striving), but it is the gift of God.  Not because of works (not the fulfillment of the Law’s demands).  Lest any man should boast.”  Ephesians 2:9-10 (Amp.Bible)

There is another story about the Russian Czar Alexander, who used to love to disguise himself among his people to find out what they had to say.  One day while visiting an army camp, he saw a young soldier sitting at a table with his head on his arm and sound asleep.  Curious about the paper next to the soldier, he tiptoed to the back of the chair looking over the soldier’s debts.  At the end of the list were the words, “who can pay so much?”  It appeared that the young soldier had gambled away all of his money and was going to take his own life for fear on not being able to meet his debts.   Alexander, the Czar, picked up a pen and below the young soldier’s question wrote, “I, Alexander, Czar of Russia.”  The next morning when the soldier woke up he immediately took hold of the revolver when suddenly he saw writing on his letter that he had not written.  At that very moment a messenger came to his tent with a bag of money from the Czar.  His debt had been paid in full and his life had been spared.  (Sermon by Mark Sparks)

Jesus Christ is the personification of grace.  He willingly gave His life as a ransom for us by dying on a cross even while we were still sinners.  He became a sin offering to cleanse us from our sins.  He Who had no sin, became sin so that we, who are sinful, can be made into the righteousness of God in Christ.

A.W. Tozar said, “Grace is the good pleasure of God that inclines Him to bestow benefits on the undeserving.” Grace is unmerited.  It is undeserving.  Why would God send His only Son to die for us?  He sent His Son because He loves us.  “For God so greatly loved and dearly prized the world that He (even)  gave up His only begotten (unique) Son, so that whoever believes in (trusts in, clings to, relies on) Him shall not perish (come to destruction, be lost) but have eternal (everlasting) life.  John 3:16 (Amp.Bible)

Essentially, we don’t have to do anything to merit grace.  It is given freely.  A.T. Pierson, who is a well-known preacher, said, “However poor a preacher, I can preach the gospel better than Gabriel can, because Gabriel cannot say what I can say, “I am a sinner saved by grace.”  Yes, even angels cannot say that they have been saved by grace, only we can!

Do you believe that you are a sinner saved by grace?  Have you given your life to God and asked for forgiveness?  Are you willing to surrender your life to God?  If you are willing, repeat this prayer after me:

Salvation Prayer:

Dear God, I come to you in the Name of Jesus.

I believe that You raised Jesus from the dead.

I am a sinner and I ask You to forgive me.

I also forgive others who have hurt me.

I ask You Jesus to come into my heart.

I surrender my life to You.

I thank you for Your grace.

I will serve you all the days of my life.

Amen