The Culture of Hope Founded on Faith
Forgiven, Therefore Forgive
“Father, forgive them for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34).
In the middle of the excruciating pain of crucifixion, Jesus proclaimed forgiveness for his tormentors. But it was not the first time He had talked about forgiveness. He had spoken numerous times about forgiveness during His ministry on earth.
In demonstration of His power and authority to forgive sins, He spoke in terms of forgiveness of sins when He healed the paralytic in Capernaum: “that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins…” (story found in Matt. 9:1-8, Mark 2:1-12, and Luke 5:17-26). The discussion about forgiveness resulting in the parable of the debtors (Matt. 18:1-35, Mark 9:33-50, and Luke 9:46-62) was based on the idea of passing the blessing on. We are forgiven, therefore it is our responsibility to forgive those who wrong us.
In the so-called “Lord’s Prayer” found in Matthew 6:9-15 Jesus not only included the request for forgiveness as part of the sample prayer, but He also exhorted His disciples about the importance of forgiveness in their relationship to God:
“After this manner therefore pray ye: ‘Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.’ For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”
In Mark 11:22-26, He took it a step further when He tied forgiveness to faith, implying that if we hold onto grudges and do not forgive, our faith is compromised, we hinder God’s work in our own lives, and our very salvation comes into question:
“Have faith in God. For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass, he shall have whatsoever he saith. Therefore I say unto you, What things ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them. And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have anything against anyone that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses. But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses.”
Romans 8:1-2 says, “There is therefore now no condemnation to them who are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.” Having been forgiven by God because of the death burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ, we are no longer bound to the unforgiving spirit that surrounds us. Even in the most trying and difficult moments of our lives, we are called by God to forgive.
Forgiveness is basically a decision to release bitterness, anger, and the desire to retaliate. As a result of forgiveness, the offense will always be a part of your life, but it will not control you. Any control the offender or the situation might have over your life is taken away when you make that intentional and daily choice to forgive.
Forgiveness is not necessarily going to make the offender feel better. But it does place us, as Christians, right back in the center of peace and in a right relationship with God. Forgiveness is the acceptance of the consequences of another’s actions and the rejection of the power of the actions of the offender to negatively affect us any longer.
Humanly speaking, besides being sin for the believer, lack of forgiveness creates an environment in which depression and anxiety flourish. Bitterness envelops every relationship until forgiveness is chosen. One’s life, health, and well-being are negatively affected to the point of anti-social behavior.
On the side of the forgiver, there is the element of redemption, a return of focus to God instead of bitterness toward the offender. While the consequences of the offense to oneself are not necessarily mitigated, the act of forgiveness halts continuing injury from that event. The forgiver experiences closure. The forgiven can choose to rest assured that their action no longer causes new and repeated injury to the forgiver.
