Slavery has been a keynote of our lives
since the beginning of time, or at least since after the time Adam and Eve
chose to disobey God. From that time
forward people have chosen to follow their own weak desires and offended
people.
Last week in “A Friendly Shade,” I wrote
about how we struggle with the slavery we create in our own lives through our
spending habits and how we allow ourselves to become slaves to the credit card
company.
This week as I sit under my “Friendly
Shade,” I thought back to a recent phone conversation of a woman going through
a divorce and how she was reacting to that period of hurt in her life. It brought to mind my own divorce and how
much it hurt. But, more than that, it
brought to mind how I dealt with forgiveness.
We are given the greatest example in life of
forgiveness when Jesus hung on the cross and said, “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.” That was true love! Jesus freed us that day, and I believe He
wants us to be free while we live here on earth. When we fail to forgive we are placing
ourselves into a state of slavery.
Resentment, bitterness, anger, and ill-health will build up inside of
us. We become sick inside. When we fail to forgive we injure
ourselves. Unforgiveness festers and it
changes us.
Unforgiveness has caused families to be
split, wars to develop, and tension to brew.
It burns like a fire, and it will destroy. The more we forgive, the more beautiful our
lives can become. When we choose to
forgive, we begin a healing process that releases us from our own
self-pity. We are freeing our minds by doing
good for ourselves. Healing takes place.
When we forgive we are no longer the victim. Booker T. Washington had it right when he
said, “You can’t hold a man down without
staying down with him.”
Forgiving is hard to do. It is not an easy road to travel, but it can
be done. It takes an attitude change! I read a quote somewhere that said, “Forgiving is not forgetting, it’s letting go
of the hurt.”
I believe that forgiveness is required in
life, not only to help us create a healthy life-style and keep us out of the bondage
of slavery, but we are required to do it if we want to be forgiven of our own failings
in life. We must forgive to be
forgiven.
“For if you
forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive
you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive
your sins. (Matthew 6:14-15)
“But I say unto you which hear, Love
your enemies, do good to them which hate
you. Bless them that curse you, and pray
for them which despitefully use you.
Luke 6:27-28
We are told to love our enemies,
and we will be rewarded. I believe a
part of that reward is the freedom that is created inside of us. When we let it go and forgive, we are removing hatred and replacing
it with love. We are rising above,
gaining a steady foothold in life, and finding wisdom, maturity, humility, and
courage.
“But love ye your enemies,
and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be
great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the
unthankful and to the evil.” Luke 6:35
“And be ye kind one to another,
tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath
forgiven you.” Ephesians 4:32
There is much to be said about being angry,
but when we let it simmer and fail to forgive we are robbing ourselves of peace
and rest. Do you think, that maybe, the scripture below also means do not let
the sun go down on your unforgiveness?
“Be ye angry, and sin not:
let not the sun go down upon your wrath:” Ephesians 4:26
There are many scriptures in the Bible
regarding forgiveness. The hurt and the
pain placed upon us may be so great that we wonder, “How can we find it in our
hearts to forgive?” We may ask, "If I forgive how will I obtain justice?" It is then that we
need to go humbly to God remembering that He is the only one who is to provide justice in His way and in His time. "Let Go and Let God!" We need to seek out all the scriptures we can find on forgiveness, pray
over them, and pray for the offender. We
can overcome and find the peace we seek!
We can remove the slavery of unforgiveness from our minds, attitudes, and
hearts. We will have our rewards without injury to any man!
“And
the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and
minds through Christ Jesus.” Philippians
4:7
“They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength.” Isaiah 40:31
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