Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is Freedom
23 Oct
Sometimes we think of forgiveness in only inter-relational terms, they hurt me, betrayed me, and not in the spiritual context of its importance. I believe that Jesus knew beforehand what He was going to face when He made the triumphal entry into Jerusalem. This is confirmed in the garden as He prays that this cup of affliction would pass from Him. I know He knew because the Scriptures prophecy of the Messiahs’ sufferings (Ps.22; Isa. 53). Jesus knew that He was going to be the very sacrifice that would ultimately pay the price for every offense of every sin that every person would ever commit through out all ages. By paying that price, Redemption, He knew that His Fathers righteous requirements would be met by His sacrifice and brings Gods’ forgiveness to all of mankind. Forgiveness is the open door that leads us down the path of salvation. There is a thing that can hinder us from receiving this free gift of grace provided to us by the forgiveness that Jesus won for us on the cross.
Jesus later tells a parable of the kingdom of heaven being like a king who wanted to settle his accounts with his servants. He had one servant who owed him 10,000 talents, (about $10 Million). When this servant came before the king he begged him to have patience on him and he would repay all that he owed. The king had compassion on this servant and forgave his entire debt. When the servant went out from the king, he found a man who owed him $20 and took him by the throat, demanding payment. The man begged this servant to have patience and he would repay the debt, but the servant wouldn’t forgive the debt and had him thrown in debtors’ prison until he paid the full amount. When the king who had forgiven this servant a $10 million debt heard about him throwing a man into jail over $20 and he had him arrested and thrown into prison until he paid his enormous debt back. After this parable Jesus says:
Here are some cross references Mt 18:35, Mr 11:25-26, Lu 6:37.
Forgiveness is the very thing that opens the door for us to receive the Grace of God. Jesus said that if we don’t forgive we will not be forgiven. How this works into the whole “once saved always saved” camp or the “you can loose you salvation” camp, I don’t know. But I am sure of one thing and if we get so focused on proving our points of view we might very well miss the most important points of Jesus’ views. Here He is telling us how important it is for us to forgive.
All I know is that I live everyday by going over the prayer “The Our Father”. By doing so I am confronted with “….Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who have trespassed against us…” I have learned an important lesson over the years and I want to tell you what I have learned. Ps 119:165 ¶ Great peace have they who love Your law; nothing shall offend them or make them stumble. The way I personally apply this verse in my life is when I get offended I ask God to forgive me for not loving His law or Word enough. By having to ask God to forgive me for being offended (Great peace have they who love Your law; nothing shall offend them) it centers my thoughts away from the person who offended me and back on my own need of forgiveness. Having the need of mercy on the forefront of my mind makes it much easier to have the ability to apply mercy. I have become so accustomed to living this way that I no longer allow myself the luxury of leaving an offense hang around me for very long. I mean when I get offended I immediately turn away and say I forgive them now, in Jesus name. I can’t tell you how freeing that is and besides it as so many other spiritual benefits that it is wonderful.
Try living that way and see how it works for you!
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