Power to Forgive

This Sunday sermon at Ellerslie, Eric talked about Forgiveness. Unforgiveness is one of the #1 things that lets the enemy have access to us, and hinders us from receiving the fullness of the life Christ died to give us. Unforgiveness gives in to bitterness and resentment. It hinders our walk with Christ, our relationships with others, and we cannot freely walk with the power and victory found in Christ.

This is a touchy topic for many people who have been hurt deeply. How can someone who has suffered the worst forms of abuse come to real forgiveness? Many people can also tend to hold a grudge toward God for what happened to them. But He is a God of goodness and life; nothing evil comes from Him because He works all things together for our good.

If anyone has seen the power of forgiveness, I certainly have. I’ve heard stories in the last couple years of how sex trafficked victims, filled with the Spirit of God, have come to the cross and given their burdens to Jesus, and are set free from unforgiveness. Girls whose dignity was robbed, who were beaten and raped, chose to forgive their perpetrators. They even pray for the ones who abused them because they know the severity of the coming judgment Jesus will be bringing to those who are not born again. These girls are an example for me to walk in. If they, the ones who have had the worse forms of injustice done to them, can forgive, then I should be able to forgive freely. And then I think of the cross, and the injustice that was done to Jesus in His innocence. He suffered and died a spotless sacrifice, and prayed for those who were killing him. He loved us when we still hated Him. He set the example for us to walk in.

There are 2 types of forgiveness. There is a version born from the spirit of man, where you choose to let go and forget about something, but it’s in the strength of yourself. Sure, it can be helpful, but it doesn’t truly deal with the roots and you do not have the power and victory to truly be set free and have a heart of love for the offender. The other way is born of the Spirit - it is through the power of Jesus Christ, dwelling in you. It is allowing him to forgive in and through you. The power to forgive is in Christ. We need to be forgivers who do it from a divine nature. He has the power to help us overcome, have victory, and gives us a love for others that we could never muster up in our own strength. He fills us with His heart, His love for people, which leads us to our knees praying blessings over that person who hurt us, praying that they many to be led to the Father and faith in the one who died to give life.