"Then Peter came to Him and said, 'Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times?' Jesus said to him, 'I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.'"
~Matthew 18:21-22
Some versions of the Bible translate the number of times as 77, but I like this version of 70 times 7, which comes to 490 times per day! In other words, no matter how many times someone does something to hurt us, we are to forgive them. Even though forgiveness can be difficult, it is possible to forgive even the most horrendous acts against us. Especially when we keep in mind all of the things Christ forgave us for.
When we fail to forgive, we continue to carry the pain of the offense wherever we go. It colors everything we do, and often destroys new relationships before they even get started. Unforgiveness makes us bitter, resentful, and angry. And it keeps us focused on the past. You cannot move forward in Christ if your focus is behind you.
"Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me His own. Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus (Philippians 3:12-14)."
We must forget what lies behind us in order to reach the goal before us. No one wins a race by watching those who are behind. A race is won by concentrating on the finish line ahead. We will not attain our prize in this life, but we won't reach it at all if we hold on to the things that hurt us. Continuing to allow our past, and the people who betrayed us, to remain in our heads and hearts allows defeat. It makes us race in vain (Philippians 2:16). Forgiving those who have wronged us is not saying what they did was okay, instead, forgiveness releases the offenses to God and allows healing.
"For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses (Matthew 6:14-15)."
Read 2 Kings 6-10
©2018 Marie McGaha
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