Receiving Grace and ForgivingSample

Day 5 – Unforgiveness destroys

REFLECTIONS

Unforgiveness nibbles away at us and destroys us, it torments us which makes us hard and uncompromising

Read Matthew 18:23-35 and Hebrews 12:15 and take a moment to answer the following questions:

 ➤  In the passage in Matthew what are the two predictable consequences of refusing to forgive?

 ➤  In the verse in Hebrews, what mustn’t we keep inside of us? And why?

STUDY

The passage in Matthew 18 tells us about the two consequences of unforgiveness. First of all, there is the question of our earthly consequence in the here and now. When we don’t forgive, we choose – often without realising it – to lock ourselves in a prison and to stay linked to the person who has offended us. Unforgiveness gives us the illusion of doing bad to the other person when in reality we are primarily harming ourselves. The Epistle to the Hebrews talks about the root of bitterness. Bitterness produces anger, sadness, evil and all kinds of negative things. It is a root that, if we leave to grow, will over time take over and invade all areas of our life. Bitterness will produce hatred and will end up completely destroying us. The torments that it can provoke in someone’s life can even lead to physical sickness such as, for example circulation problems, paralysis, ulcers etc. In fact, our body isn’t designed for bitterness, it isn’t part of God’s design for us!

Unforgiveness also produces another consequence. This text reveals that the Father doesn’t forgive our current faults when we refuse to forgive. This means that unforgiveness has a consequence whereby we cannot experience God’s blessing and the heavens are closed to us. It is an obstacle to prayer (cf. 1 Peter 3:7) and it produces a torment in the person who doesn’t want to forgive (cf. Matthew 18:34). This person doesn’t live under grace but under personal revenge, which leads them to losing the blessing in which every disciple is meant to live. To minimise the solemn warning in Matthew 6:14-15 is to take the risk of living in the misery of unforgiveness and to be saved “through the fire” by leaving behind a trail of pain.

Evidently, we can understand the reasons which can drive a Christian to not want to forgive, but the reality is that nothing justifies us not doing it. Jesus Himself showed us the example when while He was on the cross He chose to forgive those who had crucified, battered and slandered Him (cf. Luke 23:34). A person who matures in unforgiveness is going to harden themselves against everyone, starting with themselves. They are going to find themselves trapped by their own justice and will want to judge everything themselves. This person will become embittered and bad, which will naturally lead them towards isolation, because nobody will want to spend time with them. Not forgiving, is to become critical of everyone in the world.

Never forget that God has forgiven us and He has shown us grace even when our lives were far from being agreeable in His eyes. We are called to see other people, particularly those who have offended us, through the cross and the power of the blood of Christ, not through our own judgment. To live in forgiveness we need to continually live in this dimension of God’s grace and love.

So, Hebrews 12:15 exhorts us to keep no trace of bitterness because it will grow and infect all areas of our life. The question of forgiveness is much more important, serious and crucial than we often think it is. It affects our health, our peace on Earth and our eternal destiny. Also, it directly affects our relationship with God and makes us religious people. Forgiveness is one of the most difficult things because our emotions are battling against this undeserved gift, but the benefit is so much more better.

So do not play with unforgiveness because we can hide things for a certain period of time, even trying to hide it within ourselves, but quickly we will be caught up by this unresolved past and our life will be destroyed far greater than we could ever think it could. I would like to invite you to spend time before God to seek out His presence and to ask the Holy Spirit to search your heart and to speak to you. If there is still something that you have not forgiven I invite you to do it without delay, so that you can rediscover the calmness of your heart as well as the joy of your intimacy with Him.

MY DECISION :

 ➤  What I have understood for my own personal life : 

 ➤  What I am deciding to do in my life based upon what I have just learnt :

 ➤  What you decide to do today will determine who and what you will be tomorrow !