2017-03-17
Good Morning Dear Ones,
The Holy Spirit directs me to begin writing on forgiveness. COL 3: 13, “Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord has forgiven you.” There are many human foibles that have led to the breakdown of relationships, because our natures as humans are imperfect and flawed with often unwise choices. For example, one of the most common flaw in parenting is favoring one child over another, rather than doing as the Lord does and loving each child equally. Another is the holding of grudges fueled by going repeatedly over past disappointments. In this, the evil one has been allowed to lead. Lack of tact in communicating can lead to such sinfulness. There are many ways for relationships to be broken, or even destroyed.
Take another look at COL 1: 13-14; “For He [the Lord Jesus] rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the Kingdom of the Son He loves, in Whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” This is huge! We inherited sinfulness from Adam and Eve, and then we heaped additional sin on ourselves by our own past wrongful thoughts and behavior. And yet, our Lord accepted us, flawed as we are, just as we are. All that He required was genuine confession of sinfulness and proclamation of real faith in Him! He forgave believers, not just for one year, but for time and all eternity! He died on the cross, so that we could be saved [JN 3: 16]. Once this has been accomplished, the next step is living in Christ.
PS 66: 5 and 7, “You are good to us and forgiving, full of constant love for all who pray to You…I call to You in times of trouble, because You answer my prayers.” The nature of our relationship with God as believers in Christ is that we are in a precious covenant-- one in which God promises to protect, lead, and bless us, and we promise to obey and have reverence for Him. This kind of on-going sanctification happens as we mature in our faith toward that day when God will glorify us (take us back into His presence in heaven when He feels we are ready). Our God is a God of second chances, as long as we are genuinely contrite for our sins and have not committed the one unpardonable sin. The latter is blaspheming the Holy Spirit, or in other words, serially rejecting the Holy Spirit in unbelief [LK 12: 10].
Openness and honesty with our Lord is essential to maturing in the faith. And, the result of this kind of attitude and practice is inner peace. I see that as God’s signal that He is pleased. PS 32: 1, “Oh, what joy for those whose rebellion is forgiven, whose sin is put out of sight!” Confession which is genuinely meant may be painful at times, but it is a touchstone of growth in maturity. Part of our obedience to God is to go through the process of discovery of sins, even subtle ones, and confessing them in prayer to the Lord. Self-discovery can be a real test of one’s faith, but it is a necessary test. PS 86: 5, “You, Lord, are forgiving and good, abounding in love to all who call on You.” I find real comfort in that and hope you do too. Moreover, there is another key element to God’s forgiveness. It is willingness to forgive and forget. HE 8: 12, [the Lord speaking] “For I will forgive their wickedness and remember their sins no more.”
Yet one more element to the Lord’s forgiveness is mercy. IS 55: 6-7, “Seek the Lord while He may be found; call on Him while He is near. Let the wicked man forsake his way and the evil man his thoughts. Let him turn to the Lord, and He will have mercy on him and to our God for He will freely pardon.” It is always good for us to often examine ourselves for the state of our willingness to forgive and grant mercy to others. MT 5: 23-24, “Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift.”
PRAYER: O Lord, we come before You, as genuinely contrite sinners, to confess our weaknesses and ask for pardon for our wicked thoughts and behavior. We know You to be a loving God, One Who tests our faith with allowing challenging temptations in our lives. We hold grudges and run the risk of bitterness at times in our interpersonal relationships. We are jealous of favor shown to others around us and impatient for personal gain. We come to You in prayer to acknowledge Who You are, to approach You in awe of Your use of Your power for good. We pray PS 139: 23-24, “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”
We ask that You open our eyes to our own sinfulness, either individually or corporately, and give us the strength to be genuine in our confession. We acknowledge Your awesome goodness and forgiving heart, and we praise and thank You for not abandoning us. In the holy/mighty name of Jesus Christ, we pray. Amen.
NEXT WEEK: The Holy Spirit gave me more to say about forgiveness than I originally planned. As a counselor over the years, I’ve seen the breakdown of the family unit all too many times. The same is true for relationships that were once friendships. Over the last ten years, these sorrowful behaviors have translated themselves into real national divisions and the births of too many unwanted children in our society. Schools are adversely impacted, as are our institutions. My prayer is that some of these divisions may be healed by a return to faithful trust in the Lord Jesus and reliance on the power of prayer. PS 40: 1-3, “I waited patiently for the Lord; He turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; He set my feet on a Rock and gave me a firm place to stand. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear and put their trust in the Lord.”
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn
JS 24 15
© Lynn Johnson 2017. All Rights Reserved
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