Many of us think forgiveness is a simple thing. No it's not, and when we don't understand how forgiveness really works, we fail to forgive those who offend us. Thus, we should know what forgiveness really is.
What Is Forgiveness?
Forgiveness is the brave and courageous act of letting go of offences and relinquishing the right to exact revenge. While the first part can be easy for some, the second part is what's hard because here we ultimately let go off the wrong that was done against us completely.
If you've ever been hurt and offended by someone who did some injustice to you, you might have felt the urge to exact revenge even after you've forgiven. This nagging feeling of "getting even" usually makes our forgiveness null and void. Keep in mind that incomplete forgiveness is still unforgiveness.
Do you want to learn how to fully forgive? Let me share just one key to successfully forgive: Let God heal you.
Letting God Heal Us
God said in His Word that we should not desire revenge. Instead, we must leave room for divine retribution, because God will repay (see Romans 12:19-21).
This promise should help us heal and move on.
But the problem is that we don't obey this Scripture all the time.
You see, friends, while we could stop ourselves from physically taking revenge, we could still be murdering our offenders in our hearts and minds (1 John 3:15). We could be imagining their doom and praying for their demise – God promised to exact justice anyway, right?
Actually, that's wrong. If we say we've forgiven, there should be no trace of a desire for revenge anymore. It's not easy to get to this point, but we have to because forgiveness should be complete.
Think about it: If God kept a record of our wrongs from the time we were born, would we live? If He desired to exact vengeance on all of us sinners, we wouldn't stand a chance to live, not in this life nor in eternity. (see Psalm 130:3-4)
But instead of slamming His fist on the ground to punish us, He poured out His wrath on His one and only begotten Son Jesus Christ, who did not deserve it ever. Christ received the full wrath of God against our sins so that we could be forgiven. (see Romans 3:24-26; 1 John 2:2; Isaiah 53)
And once we are forgiven through Christ, God remembers our sins no more (see Hebrews 8:12; Isaiah 43:25). Whoa! Think about that!
Let God's Forgiveness Help You Forgive
Friend, you might have been hurt to catastrophic levels, but Christ was hurt far more than we will ever be. Yet in spite of that, He chose to love us and accept the punishment that we should be receiving. Let His grace and mercy enable you to truly forgive. (see Matthew 10:8)
