The freedom of forgiveness

There was a man, who I will call Jerry, that hadn’t talked to his sister for eight years. He said his sister lived closer to their mother in a State far away. Though Jerry was the executor of his mother’s estate, his sister started taking action with their mother’s things after she passed away. Jerry was angry at his sister for some of the decisions she made. He was still angry 8 years later even though he no longer remembered some of the details.

After Jerry was encouraged to write a letter to ask forgiveness for his anger, his sister called him and they reconciled their relationship. Jerry took a long trip to go see his sister and they had a wonderful time reminiscing and building back their relationship. Only three months later, Jerry’s sister let him know that she had terminal cancer and within a month she passed away. Jerry realized he had wasted 8 years of precious time with his sister because of his unforgiving spirit.

Maybe you have heard the phrase, “I will forgive but I won’t forget”. We say this because we can’t erase our memories of what someone did and we think we can only forgive so much. We then hold back forgiveness and there remains bitterness or anger in our heart. We don’t want to fully let the other person “off the hook”.

We think that if we don’t forgive, we can prevent any further hurt. Sometimes we try to get back at the person to make them feel what we are feeling. We think that it is up to us to make them “pay” for what they did. We think this is only just and right.

Unforgiveness, however, often binds us up and controls us. We replay our bitter thoughts over and over again in our minds. We become more anxious and angry and it spills out into other relationships.

God knows every detail about us. Ultimately, every sin is a sin against God. Yet, in the Bible, God says to his people, “I will remember your sins no more”. This is not Divine amnesia. God knows and remembers everything. But what it does mean is that he does not hold our sins against us. If anyone could hold our sins against us perfectly and justly, it is God.

But God sent his son, Jesus, to make it possible for us to stand before God forgiven. Jesus took the penalty of our sin upon himself when he died on the cross. By Jesus paying the great debt that we owe to God, we can have a right relationship with him. Jesus also makes it possible for us to forgive others. When we place our faith and trust in Jesus, we are forgiven and we are free to forgive others.

So let’s not waste time like Jerry in anger, bitterness, and unforgiveness. Let us receive forgiveness through faith in Jesus and then out of a grateful heart, let us forgive others quickly and watch what God will do.

“Let all bitterness, anger and wrath, shouting and slander be removed from you, along with all malice. And be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving one another, just as God also forgave you in Christ.” Ephesians 4:31-32

Pastor Mark Anderson

Pastor of Evangelism

& Outreach

Chisholm Baptist

Church