FORGIVENESS

 What is forgiveness? to answer this question we must go to the bible for the very act of forgiveness is a divine one, therfore, we sholud have our defintion from the word of God. Read with me Psalms 145:8-9, The LORD is gracious, and full of compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy. The LORD is good to all: and his tender mercies are over all his works. This is where we must start. The very one to whom all owns forgivenss is God. Why so? This is because God as our maker, deserves worship and adoration, indeed obedience. But we departed from him due to the freedom he also gvae us. see Isaiah 53:6-7, All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth. Here we see God’s action. First the sin and secondly the love of God and his remedy to rescue us. We as humans also do err aginst our neighbours and others, and to this the bible is also not silent. see the bible Matthew 6:12 And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And there is a tie to this injunction to forgive others; the measure we forgive those who offends us is commensurate to the measure God will forgive us too. Jesus took us back to what he said in verse 12, here see Matthew 6:14, For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: We as christian must learn like God to give a second chance to any one who has sinned against us see Jonah 3:1-2 ,And the word of the LORD came unto Jonah the second time, saying, Arise, go unto Nineveh, that great city, and preach unto it the preaching that I bid thee. This action of Jonah was after his first outright disobedience in Jonah 1:1-3, Now the word of the LORD came unto Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it; for their wickedness is come up before me. But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD, and went down to Joppa; and he found a ship going to Tarshish: so he paid the fare thereof, and went down into it, to go with them unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD. Let us make it a duty to forgive always as no one deserves forgiveness from the maker, but he forgives us all Jeremiah 50:20 In those days, and in that time, saith the LORD, the iniquity of Israel shall be sought for, and there shall be none; and the sins of Judah, and they shall not be found: for I will pardon them whom I reserve. Forgiveness not easy excerpt we rely on our maker who ask us to forgive. Matthew 19:26 But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.We need the power of the holyspirit to do all that God commands us. God never demands from us without his support to us if indeed, we are willing to do the right things. Steven was able to forgive those stoning himto death becaouse he had the support of the holy spirit see Acts 6:5, And the saying pleased the whole multitude: and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Ghost, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolas a proselyte of Antioch: steven was full of the holy ghost , an enabler given by God to all who want to do his will. That was what jesus was saying to his disciples in the above verse. Sadly enough there are many relative who do not see eye to eye today becaouse of inabilty of the offended one to let go but we also can see fillial forgivenss in the bible see Genesis 45:14-15, And he fell upon his brother Benjamin’s neck, and wept; and Benjamin wept upon his neck. Moreover he kissed all his brethren, and wept upon them: and after that his brethren talked with him. There are also those i the same church, but habors grudges against one another see 2 Corinthians 2:5-11 But if any have caused grief, he hath not grieved me, but in part: that I may not overcharge you all. Sufficient to such a man is this punishment, which was inflicted of many. So that contrariwise ye ought rather to forgive him, and comfort him, lest perhaps such a one should be swallowed up with overmuch sorrow. Wherefore I beseech you that ye would confirm your love toward him. For to this end also did I write, that I might know the proof of you, whether ye be obedient in all things. To whom ye forgive any thing, I forgive also: for if I forgave any thing, to whom I forgave it, for your sakes forgave I it in the person of Christ; Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices.

MARANATHA!