Forgiveness

MY HOME

A house of prayer

FORGIVENESS

~first things first ~

A stipulation accompanies the Lord's Prayer that most people miss, but the enemy doesn't. he's highly effective in using it to disable us on the battlefield of prayer... (I never capitalize “satan” or his pronoun references, even when beginning a sentence. he’s a lower case, improper creature.)

Jesus taught us to pray:

"Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name.

Your kingdom come. Your will be done

On earth as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread.

And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.

And do not lead us into temptation,

But deliver us from the evil one.

For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.

Amen."

But Jesus didn't stop there ~

"For if you forgive men their trespasses,

your heavenly Father will also forgive you.

But if you do not forgive men their trespasses,

neither will your Father forgive your trespasses."

Matthew 6:9-15 NKJV

In a letter to Timothy, Paul stated that unforgiveness would characterize the rebellious in the last days. What a tragedy that it characterizes a very large segment of the American church. But for a Christian, it's clearly not an option.

Lord and Savior,

please grant me the passion of Your Love for those who hurt me. May I be willing to embrace The Cross for my blessing, their benefit, and Your glory. The forgiveness I extend to others I offer as a demonstration of love and appreciation for all that You’ve given and forgiven me.

Lord,

please empower me with a willing choice to love my enemies. Keep me persistent in kind intercessions on their behalf. In pleading for their transformation, I myself am changed.

Lord,
help me demonstrate my love for You

by faithfully forgiving and tenderly loving

the cruelest of my enemies.

Place Your blanket of love within my hands

that I might cover them and extinguish the fires

of anger and bitterness,

and that they might feel the warmth of Your holy Love.

Loving Father,

so often forgiveness costs me nothing more than selfish pride or fear of being hurt again. But it cost You Everything Precious and Wonderful. Give me a heart that freely forgives that I may be forgiven.

(Inspired by Matthew 6:14-15)

Forgiving Savior,

whenever tempted to cling to anger and unforgiveness, even for righteous causes, please remind me of the sin and shame You bore for me and of the Tears You weep for Your sheep who are bound in darkness. Move on my heart so that I do not become arrogant and defensive. You have never sinned, yet are always The Victim of our transgressions as we grieve You through the personal physical or emotional injury of those You designed and desire for Your glory and fellowship.

I understand that unforgiveness can never be justified before You. I do not want anger to control me or to grieve You. Help me, Lord Jesus. I truly need You to help me.

Father,

when stirred to anger, please remove any desire to avenge. Plant soft words deep within my heart that these might turn away wrath. May my actions be gentle, healing all festering wounds. Flood my heart with Light, dispelling all darkness. May my eyes be tender with peace and love. In every conflict, may You be glorified.

Father,

I desperately need Your help with this – to love my enemies and to do good to those who hate me. Press me to bless those who curse me and to pray for those who spitefully use me. When struck on the cheek, may I not resist offering the other. And when my heart is broken, I offer it to You for healing. When someone takes something important to me, quicken me to not withhold anything else they desire. Move me to give to all who ask, not expecting anything to be returned. I seek no reward but only to honor You by lavishing love upon everyone who enters my life, regardless of how they treat me, showing great love and mercy to others, just as You have demonstrated great love and mercy to me.

(Inspired by Luke 6:27-36)

This is so very serious…

Then Peter came to him and asked, “Lord, how often should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times?”

“No, not seven times,” Jesus replied, “but seventy times seven! "Therefore, the Kingdom of Heaven can be compared to a king who decided to bring his accounts up to date with servants who had borrowed money from him. In the process, one of his debtors was brought in who owed him millions of dollars. He couldn’t pay, so his master ordered that he be sold— along with his wife, his children, and everything he owned— to pay the debt.

“But the man fell down before his master and begged him, ‘Please, be patient with me, and I will pay it all.’ Then his master was filled with pity for him, and he released him and forgave his debt. “But when the man left the king, he went to a fellow servant who owed him a few thousand dollars. He grabbed him by the throat and demanded instant payment. “His fellow servant fell down before him and begged for a little more time. ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it,’ he pleaded. But his creditor wouldn’t wait. He had the man arrested and put in prison until the debt could be paid in full. “When some of the other servants saw this, they were very upset. They went to the king and told him everything that had happened. Then the king called in the man he had forgiven and said, ‘You evil servant! I forgave you that tremendous debt because you pleaded with me. Shouldn’t you have mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had mercy on you?’ Then the angry king sent the man to prison to be tortured until he had paid his entire debt.

“That’s what my heavenly Father will do to you if

you refuse to forgive your brothers and sisters

from your heart.”

Matthew 18:21-35 NLT