October 7, 2021
The Importance of Forgiveness!
Learning how to forgive is most definitely easier said than done, especially if you feel like your unforgiveness towards another person is warranted. The thing that we fail to recognize is that forgiveness is more for you than anyone else. When you begin to harbor those feelings of unforgiveness they start to develop into other emotions like animosity, bitterness, hatred, anger, and eventually rage. By allowing yourself to have an unforgiving spirit you are leaving the doorway wide open for the enemy to come in and cause destruction in your life. He will take those unrelenting feelings and exacerbate them and before you know it the peace you once had will no longer exist. There is power in having the ability to be merciful towards those that have wronged you! The reward that you gain by having the burdens and the weight lifted off of you by you doing so is unmistakably worth it. It will not come naturally so it is something that you have to work at daily. The key thing that will get you on the right path is making an intentional effort to truly forgive and genuinely let go. Below I have listed some of the main reasons why having a forgiving heart is so significant!
1. It prevents unwanted emotions from having a stronghold on you: When we cling on to resentment it begins to fester in our spirit without us even being aware of it. Before you know it you find yourself showing characteristics of enmity, hostility, spitefulness, and even hatred. Things that didn’t bother you before have now become irritants and you begin to discern that the joy and peace that you once had is beginning to slowly fade away. Not only are you struggling throughout the day but now it’s almost impossible to get a good night sleep. Why though? The reason that you are delayed in every aspect of your life is because those negative emotions have now become strongholds that are creating chaos everywhere they possibly can. Trust and believe me when I tell you that holding on to unforgiveness is only going to harm you in the long run. It is not worth the pain, anguish, and most importantly, the separation that it causes from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!
The Lord takes forgiveness very seriously and in the Word of God it is clear on how He wants us to approach forgiveness. Ephesians 4:32 states, “And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.” Breaking down this verse we can see that God is expecting us to forgive one another just as He has forgiven us for every transgression that we have ever committed. In fact the Lord goes even further with the seriousness of how He feels about your inability to forgive in Matthew 6:15 “But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” In this line of Scripture we can undoubtedly see that our unwillingness to forgive will prevent us from being forgiven which is not a place that you ever want to be. Not only with that hinder the Holy Spirit from having free reign to work in your life but it will also invite the devil and his minions in giving them the right to cause unnecessary turmoil. It creates avoidable distance between you and the Lord. This disconnect is one of the ways that the enemy begins to slither his way into your life cultivating powerful bondages along the way. The price that you have to pay for not wanting to let go of the resentment is so much more that you could even imagine. Don’t let these unwanted feelings take root in your heart; it is vital that you forgive those that have offended you way before that can even begin to happen!
2. There is freedom in forgiveness: When you suppress emotions like unforgiveness they begin to marinate in your spirit. If you don’t let go of those feelings what will happen is they will just become more prominent interfering with your serenity at home, at work, and even at church. The inability to forgive someone that has done you wrong is not worth the long term affect that it will have on your overall wellbeing. Believe it or not welcoming those negative emotions can lead to physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual difficulties. There is so much freedom in forgiving someone that has offended or hurt you even if it doesn’t feel like it at the time. The Word of God states in Proverbs 17:9 “Love prospers when a fault is forgiven, but dwelling on it separates close friends.” This verse of Scripture goes into detail about the gratification that we receive if we can find it in our hearts to let go of grudges. Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom, 2 Corinthians 3:17. God is absolute love and that is how He wants us to approach others. Make it a point to eliminate all of the bitterness, anger, animosity, and resentment so that the Holy Spirit can fill those empty places!
The one thing that people don’t fully understand is that when you release adverse feelings towards others it helps you more than anyone else. The person that you are at odds with probably has no idea that you are angry with them to begin with. They’ve already moved on with their lives without a second thought of you or what they did to you.
Meanwhile:
· You are having trouble sleeping
· You’re walking around with built up hatred
· You have no peace
· You have no joy
· Your life is in disarray
· You’re finding it hard to connect with the Lord
The list goes on and on and it only gets worse and worse. The devil is a liar! Don’t give him a reason to wreak havoc in your life, learn to just let it go! It doesn’t mean that you are excusing what they did to you; it just means that you are rising above and not allowing it to have a stronghold in your life!
3. It is one of the number one doorways for the enemy to enter into your life: Whether you want to believe it or not, there is a real enemy out there wanting to steal, kill, and destroy you, John 10:10. What he does is look for open doorways in your life that will give him the legal right to create as much disorder as he can. One of the number one doors that he walks right through over and over again is the doorway of unforgiveness. We just cannot seem to forgive because the offense against us was so tremendous that we find it impossible to pardon. I know I’ve been there a time or two but I had to come to the realization of what it was costing me. Once the devil knows that you have allowed that negative emotion into your heart he will continue to intensify that feeling so it can turn into stronger undesirable sentiments. This is how the oppression begins to take its effect over you; if you give him an inch he will take the entire mile.
Understanding the devil’s strategies is one of the most important things that we as believers need to grasp and be educated about. People are destroyed due to the lack of knowledge, Hosea 4:6. There is a reason why this verse is extremely significant, the fact of the matter is just because you are not aware of the schemes of the enemy doesn’t make you immune to them! The more of the Truth that you have in your heart, which is the Word of God, the more freedom you have John 8:32. It is essential that we know who our adversary is and the tactics that he uses against us. One of the main ones that he favors continuously is our incapability to forgive. The Lord’s Word is evident in 2 Corinthians 2:10-11 when it states “Now whom you forgive anything, I also forgive. For if indeed I have forgiven anything, I have forgiven that one for your sakes in the presence of Christ, lest Satan should take advantage of us; for we are not ignorant of his devices.” In these verses we can be certain that our lack of unforgiveness is giving Satan a legal right to take advantage of us. The part that we often fail to acknowledge is that this is something that can easily be prevented. We cannot afford to give him any wiggle room when it comes to us living victorious lives as Believers in Christ. The Word of God gives you all of the necessary weaponry to combat every attack that the enemy tries to come at you with but if you are ignorant to how the devil operates than he will have the upper hand every single time. God has given us the authority to trample on the schemes of Satan and his minions, Luke 10:19. We have the final say!
For more tips on how to overcome unforgiveness, please check out my blog: How to Overcome Unforgiveness! https://positivityislove.com/how-to-overcome-unforgiveness/