Forgive

And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: 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. – Mark 11.25-26

Forgiveness is one of the great blessings of being a child of God. In His grace He forgave all of my sins. Every single sin offended God. My very sin nature offended Him. He is of purer eyes than to behold evil and yet He still forgave me of my sins. Every lie, every evil thought, every physical sin, everything was wiped out in His forgiveness. When He forgave your sins and mine He cast those sins as far away as the east is from the west. He buried them in the depths of the deepest sea.

And yet, what happens when someone offends us? What happens when someone hurts us or treats us poorly? How quickly are we, which have been forgiven so much, to forgive others? How long we hold on to offences and even plan a means for revenge? Are we ever able to let go of the hurt and choose to forgive?

If we cannot forgive others we need to ask ourselves if we are truly forgiven. How can we refuse based on what has happened. It is the ultimate of pride and arrogance and self-centredness to not be willing to forgive another even ‘seventy times seven’ times if necessary.

Those who have been forgiven the most should be the greatest forgivers.