More on Forgiveness

I’d like to start by sharing from I John. Starting with I John 1:5 – 7 states: “This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have FELLOWSHIP with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin”……..He who says he is in the light, and hates his brother, is in darkness until now. He who loves his brother abides in the light, and there is no cause for stumbling in him. But he who hates his brother is in darkness and walks in darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.” (I John 1:9 – 11)

The reason that I share this scripture, is to point out how important it is to keep your heart pure from all bitterness, hatred and unforgiveness towards others. It is vital to our walk with God that we continue to walk in love towards everyone, even those that have not done well by us. Apparently, it’s possible to deceive ourselves in this area, because John points out that we cannot say that we have FELLOWSHIP with God and continue to walk in unforgiveness in our hearts. I can personally testify to this. I remember a time when a sister in the Lord had gotten very angry with me. I felt that she was being unreasonable and childish at the time. We had gone to a church picnic, and I tried to talk to her, and she ignored me. I was steamed! Ever had those interesting little conversations with yourself, about someone who had done you wrong? Oh, I did. I argued with her silently in my mind, reminding her that she had the mental maturity of a seventh grade girl, and we were not in junior high anymore, or hadn’t she noticed? On and on I went in my thoughts, justifying myself, congratulating myself on being so mature, and condemning her for being so childish. Then I made a conscious decision to end all communication with her. I didn’t need her friendship and would get along just fine without her. Who needed an immature friend like that anyway? Ignore ME, will you? I’ll ignore YOU even better than you ignored me! I’ll show her……and on and on it went. There was a slight problen. I tried to go downstairs and have a time of worship with the Lord, and He kept BOTHERING me with this scripture: “Leave your offering there before the alter and go;  first be reconciled to your brother (sister), then come and present your offering.” Matthew 5:24  Oh, I argued. Ever try to argue with God? He is so patient with us, but He ALWAYS wins. Always. I stated my case. “God, she was completely out of line! Her reaction was over the top. Oh, and did I mention how childish she acted at the picnic? I mean COME ON!” This is what God spoke to my heart: “I’m not nearly as interested in who’s right or wrong in this situation. I’m more concerned with the fact that ‘right or wrong’, your sister is hurting. You have the ability to heal that. I need you to humble yourself, go to her house, knock on the door, and when she opens it, tell her that you are sorry if any of your words or actions hurt her. Ask her to forgive you, and tell her that you love her.” I would love to say that my reaction to God’s instructions was to obey immediately, but I tried to argue just a bit more. After all, this was going to be a MAJOR blow to my pride! Asking for forgiveness is very humbling. It goes beyond “I’m sorry” to putting yourself at the mercy of someone who may or may not forgive you! So, I  had another question for God. “And what if she throws it in my face? What if she doesn’t want to ‘forgive’ me for whatever I’m supposed to have done wrong? What then?” God then gently reminded me that if I obeyed Him, I was giving her an opportunity to forgive and heal. If she refused, it was still my place to forgive her for not forgiving me, and to pray for her to be healed. Wow. He can be relentless with this ‘love’ things He’s got goin’ on! In other words, whether I got the happy ending I was hoping for, God was still commanding me to love her. This involved a lot of humbling of myself. I was also instructed that whether she EVER forgave me or not, I was to walk in kindness towards her, and to keep praying for her. Because, oh yeah. IT”S NOT ABOUT ME. I’m happy to say that in this case, I obeyed, she melted like butter in the hot sun, and our relationship was salvaged.

This most important part of this story is that we need to listen to the Holy Spirit and follow His instructions in all things. Just because God showed this to me, doesn’t mean that if your husband is beating and abusing you, and you have managed to escape that horrible situation, that you necessarily need to go over to his place and plead with him to forgive you. You might get another beating! LISTEN TO GOD in all things. What I can guarantee is that if you have hatred in your heart towards this man, and try to have fellowship with God, He will quickly expose that ugliness and lead you on the path of forgiveness. He will lead you to pray for the very person who has abused you. He will heal your heart in the process. This is a big bonus that a life of forgiveness gives you.  Remember at all times: “He who says he is in the light, and HATES his brother (or sister) is in darkness until now.” I John 1:9

Stay close to His heart. Love to all.    Denise Glenn   (How’d I do, Rich?)

Advertisement

5 Comments

Comments RSS TrackBack Identifier URI