Mercy and compassion personified Jesus and we are supposed to be striving to be more and more Christ-like every day. The world is unforgiving enough. The church needs to be filled with mercy and compassion. Merciful towards the unsaved and not judgmental. Compassionate toward the suffering and not indifferent. Can you imagine a world where the church truly behaved like we are charged with behaving? Instead, there is too much unforgiveness and bitterness within the church itself and far too much judgment pointed toward the world. How central is the concept of forgiveness to God?
This is my blood of the new covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. Matthew 26: 28
The blood Jesus shed on the cross was poured out for our forgiveness. How can we justify withholding forgiveness toward another? Our key verses end today with a reminder from God that forgiveness cannot just be words. We must forgive from our hearts. God understands hypocrisy and He does not like it. Too often we can "forgive but not forget." That is no forgiveness at all! Can you imagine if Christ would not forget your sins? But once again, the instructions from God are quite clear:
Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. Colossians 3: 13
Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you. Ephesians 4:32 (ESV)
Forgive as God forgave you. Forgiveness is always our
responsibility. Forgiveness is not about us but about God. Forgiveness is
always the answer. Mercy; not judgment. Compassion; not indifference. These are
the things that make up the Christian walk. The Apostle Paul clarifies the true
source of unforgiveness in his second letter to the Church at
If you forgive anyone, I also forgive him. And what I have forgiven--if there was anything to forgive--I have forgiven in the sight of Christ for your sake, in order that Satan might not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes. 2Corinthians 2: 10-11
We should never be unaware of the schemes of the enemy and unforgiveness is just one of the weapons he wields in our minds and hearts. We cannot allow him to outwit us. When we harbor resentment, unforgiveness, or bitterness in our hearts then we have allowed the devil a foothold in our lives. From there he can work pettiness, spite, malice, slander, or gossip through us. We can become an agent of destruction instead of edification. We can become a source of dissension among the brethren; one of the things God hates (Proverbs 6). All the while, you are drinking the poison waiting for the other person to die.
