A Cord of Three StrandsSample

Forgiveness

Today, we will get into one of the most important matters of a relationship. Jesus left us several examples and references of how we should forgive and be forgiven, how important it is to communicate based on truth and sincerity and how prayer has power and can reach where we often cannot be, but it arrives and frees, and heals, and transforms and gives meaning to life. I invite you to pay close attention to this devotional today. Perhaps it will be one of the most difficult, after all to forgive and pray, we cannot be alone in Body and Soul, we need the action of the Spirit in our lives. However, I pray and declare that after this reading, you and your spouse will be filled with the Holy Spirit and have achieved many blessings and deliveries through truth, forgiveness and prayer.

Forgiveness must be right at the center of our Christian life, talking about forgiveness is easy, practicing it is not, because we always want to have resentments, claiming that they are justified. We are quite quick to point out flaws, just as the Pharisees were.

Forgiveness means: granting the remission of any crime or debt and renouncing any claim. God always freely grants forgiveness, because Jesus paid a high price, so we cannot demand any payment to forgive someone.

Forgiving, therefore, is a commandment of God, disobeying it is a sin and distances us from Him, not to forgive is to reject the redemptive work of Christ, His blood, His salvation.

We forgive because we understand that we have been forgiven. Who does not forgive is because he has not yet accepted forgiveness in the sacrifice of Jesus.

Not forgiving keeps us captive, in slavery (Matthew 18:23-35): we want to be forgiven, but we keep the offenses of those who have offended us. If we do not forgive, we are delivered to the tormenting spirits and we can generate in us:

• Physical and mental illnesses;


• Oppression that imprison us;


• Difficulty praying and entering into communion with God;


• It prevents the promises of God for us;


• Prevent my prosperity as a servant of God;


• I make room for bitterness, which results from a long lack of forgiveness; pollutes / damages many around us, destroys us, gives birth to other sins; crushes and totally destroys love.

We must try to see ourselves and not the mistakes of our spouse, understanding that all judgment belongs to the Lord; God's eyes are attentive to how we will act before the challenge of forgiveness:

• When we forgive, we should not remember the sins of the past. Forgetting is not thinking about it; never again mention an offense that had already been forgiven;


• Like loving, forgiving is an act of will and not a feeling; make the decision to forgive and the feelings will follow;


• For God, there are no "big" or "small" sins; There is no way to justify our "little sin" in its own right, against the "great sin" of our spouse; because for God sin is sin;


• When we become judges of others, we can expect the same measure of judgment on us, whoever judges receives criticism from people who say: "he does the same or worse";


• Only the power of God destroys all the barriers that prevent forgiveness; when I say "I can't forgive" I mean "I don't want to forgive"; This attitude comes from my pride, disobedience and in-submissiveness.