After writing my article on The Power of Unforgiveness a friend pointed out that many pastors tell us to forgive, but don’t tell us how to forgive. I am not a pastor, but I decided to seek God and ask Him how to forgive, and the things He showed me has really made me look at forgiveness from a different perspective.
What then? Are we better than they? Not at all. For we have previously charged both Jews and Greeks that they are all under sin. As it is written: “There is none righteous, no, not one.” Romans 3:9-10
I may think that the other person does not deserve my forgiveness for the vile things they have done against me, but I also do not deserve forgiveness. I am a dirty rotten scoundrel saved by the grace of God. We have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. (See Romans 3:23). It is not that I deserve forgiveness or the other person who has wronged me deserves forgiveness, because neither of us do, but it is because of the scourging and the horrific killing of Jesus why we should forgive others. He was guiltless but took our place for our sins to be forgiven by the Father. The Father who gave up His great Treasure for us to have eternal life. Therefore, in order to forgive we need to take our eyes off ourselves and the other person who has hurt us and then look at the Father and the Son. They paid greatly so that we would be forgiven for the sins we have committed.
But he, being full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God, and said, “Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!” Then they cried out with a loud voice, stopped their ears, and ran at him with one accord; and they cast him out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul. And they stoned Stephen as he was calling on God and saying, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” Then he knelt down and cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not charge them with this sin.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep. Acts 7:55-60
Before Stephen was murdered, being filled with the Holy Spirit, he had his focus on the Father and the Son. Therefore, while been stoned to death, it came naturally for him to ask God to not take into account the wrongs of those stoning him when they were killing him. As Christians, we have no right to not forgive if we truly understand that Jesus was pierced for our offenses, and He was crushed for our wrongdoings. (See Isaiah 53:5). So, in order to forgive easily, we must have our eyes fixed on God the Father, and God the Son even before a wrong is done against us, while being filled and led by the Holy Spirit, who will empower us to do all the Father wants us to do.
When Jesus taught the disciples how to pray in Matthew 6, it was already established that we have forgiven those who sin against us. If we haven’t, then we really cannot ask the Father to forgive us. The truth is if we haven’t forgiven, then we have no right to go to the Father with any request because forgiveness is His command, not a suggestion. Therefore, if we do not forgive then we are sinning. I know it doesn’t sound fair after all the other person or persons have done against us. But we are not of this world and God’s perspective of fairness cannot be judged by the world’s idea of fairness and justice. We serve a different sort of King in a very distinct Kingdom that does not have the same principles as that of the world. In this Kingdom, I forgive because I know I have already been forgiven through the blood of Jesus on Calvary’s cross and on His way to it, and so because Jesus willing gave His life for me, I am now in right relationship with the Father. I also want to keep this right relationship by forgiving others as He has forgiven me, knowing that the cost we pay to forgive others is little compared to what Jesus paid so that we would be forgiven. The song Amazing Love by the Newsboys describes this well.
I'm forgiven because You were forsaken I'm accepted, You were condemned I'm alive and well, Your Spirit is within me Because You died and rose again
Amazing love, how can it be That You, my King, should die for me? Amazing love, I know it's true And it's my joy to honor You In all I do, to honor You
We can forgive because Jesus, our King, died a horrible death for us and before His final breath, He asked the Father to forgive all those who do not know what they do. Forgiveness was on His mind as He died for us. (See Luke 23:34). We honor Him and what He has done when we forgive others. And the way to forgive is simply to love. Love God more. If we love Him then we will obey His commandments, hence we will forgive. Not only will we forgive, but we will also ask God to forgive others even while they are hurting us because we have Him in focus, and He fills us with His Holy Spirit to do the seemingly impossible. If we are thinking of pleasing the Father’s heart instead of guarding ours then forgiveness comes easily because we are doing it because we are delighting in Him and loving Him, and in so doing we are loving others, even our enemies, as well.
“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may prove yourselves to be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. Matthew 5:43-45
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