28/06/2023
Matthew 6:14-15
"For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your Heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.
Jesus gives a startling warning about forgiveness. If we refuse to forgive others, God will also refuse to forgive us. Why? Because by not forgiving others, we deny our common ground as sinners in need of God's forgiveness and we break the family relationship God wants us to have with all people. Our Salvation from sin is not based on our forgiving others, but, we can't receive God's forgiveness until we realize what forgiveness really means (see Ephesians 4:32) we can easily ask God for forgiveness for ourselves, but then hang on to grudges toward others who are difficult to forgive. Whenever we ask God to forgive us for sin, we should first ask ourselves if we have forgiven the people who have wronged us. I'm not going to share the picture, (it is far too gruesome) but I had somebody beat me over the head with a steel bar a few years ago. You could not recognize my face for blood. I forgave him and shared scripture with him and shared the love of Jesus with him. He later died of a drug overdose. I'm so happy I did my part and forgave him and shared the love of Jesus with him. He could have killed me, but I forgave him. And I just hope and pray that before his final moment he accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as his savior.
