Forgiving Others



In our world where payback is the norm and almost demanded, we called to forgive others in Luke 17:1-4.

Luke 17: 1-4

1He said to His disciples, "It is inevitable that stumbling blocks come, but woe to him through whom they come!
2"It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea, than that he would cause one of these little ones to stumble.
3"Be on your guard! If your brother sins, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him.
4"And if he sins against you seven times a day, and returns to you seven times, saying, 'I repent,' forgive him."

I must admit, I do struggle with this on the road. Especially if a person is driving in the left lane slower than me and they aren’t moving to the right lane (which should have slower traffic). The word moron either is thought or said out loud. I do get over it in a few minutes, but that does get on my nerves.

There are benefits for forgiving others their debts against us. According to the current psychology, when we forgive others we have less health issues. When we forgive it releases something in our body that relieves tension. But it’s still hard to let it go when people do you wrong. I had an experience in 2002 that taught me a lot about forgiving others.

On Mother’s Day of 2002, my sister’s then husband of 12 years left her a voice message telling her that he is leaving her for another woman. That threw my sister for a loop. What followed were weeks of staying with her (either over night or until she went to bed). I was so bad at Joe (not his real name) that I wanted to hunt him down and beat the mess out of him. That’s when the Holy Spirit told me to chill out. It was revealed to me that it’s only by God’s grace that I wasn’t like Joe. It was God’s job to work in Joe and not me. After a while I have come to forgive Joe for what he did to my sister to the point of shaking his hand and wishing him the best the last time I saw him.

We have to remember that it’s only because of what Christ has done for us on the cross and that God has drawn us to Himself that we are new creatures. We grow in our walk with Him but it’s because of his grace we are forgiven. If it wasn’t for the regeneration of grace, we would be just like the people who need our forgiveness. And if the person who offends you is a believer, let God deal with them. There is a plan laid out for that in scripture. It’s up to you to forgive.