Forgive as Christ FORGAVE

Forgive as Christ FORGAVE

     As Christians, we are clearly commanded by Christ to forgive (Matt. 6:14-15), but many times, those who claim to follow Christ hold on to grudges. We simply cannot do this. For one, we cannot follow Christ if we will not forgive. Jesus Christ died to forgive all OUR sins and EVERBODY ELSE’S too. He died for the murder just like He died for the prideful person. He died for the homosexual just as much as He died for the liar. If our hearts have truly been changed by Christ, why do we so often let them grow cold and calloused toward others? We need to forgive as Christ FORGAVE.

     For many of you, the Holy Spirit is convicting your heart right now. Take a moment and confess your sin to the Lord; ask others to forgive you that you need to; and ask the Lord to help you truly live a life keeping with repentance from this moment forward: a changed life with an attitude of forgiveness—working through feelings of anger, hatred, and unforgiveness so that you can pray for the blessing, salvation, and a personal relationship with the Lord for your offender.

Hosea 14

Hosea 14

 

14 O Israel, return to the Lord your God,
For you have stumbled because of your iniquity;
² Take words with you,
And return to the Lord.
Say to Him,
“Take away all iniquity;
Receive us graciously,
For we will offer the sacrifices^[a] of our lips.
³ Assyria shall not save us,
We will not ride on horses,
Nor will we say anymore to the work of our hands, ‘You are our gods.’
For in You the fatherless finds mercy.”

⁴ “I will heal their backsliding,
I will love them freely,
For My anger has turned away from him.
⁵ I will be like the dew to Israel;
He shall grow like the lily,
And lengthen his roots like Lebanon.
⁶ His branches shall spread;
His beauty shall be like an olive tree,
And his fragrance like Lebanon.
⁷ Those who dwell under his shadow shall return;
They shall be revived like grain,
And grow like a vine.
Their scent^[b] shall be like the wine of Lebanon.

⁸ “Ephraim shall say, ‘What have I to do anymore with idols?’
I have heard and observed him.
I am like a green cypress tree;
Your fruit is found in Me.”

⁹ Who is wise?
Let him understand these things.
Who is prudent?
Let him know them.
For the ways of the Lord are right;
The righteous walk in them,
But transgressors stumble in them. (NKJV)

Questions to Ask Yourself

1.     Are you trusting in an “Assyria” or “horses” instead of God? Get still and ask the Holy Spirit what areas you are not trusting in the Lord, but in other things.

2.     Contemplate verses 4-8…God will heal your backsliding; He will love you freely; He will be like the dew to you—reviving life; your fruit will be found in Him

3.     Take some time to be still and meditate on verse 9. What is the Lord saying to you?

If you have to say you're something, you're not

 “If you have to say you’re something, you’re not”

--One of my Pastors

Contemplate this quote.

God Does Chasten

“Hear ye, and give ear; be not proud: for the Lord hath spoken. Give glory to the Lord your God, before he cause darkness, and before your feet stumble upon the dark mountains, and, while ye look for light, he turn it into the shadow of death, and make it gross darkness. But if ye will not hear it, my soul shall weep in secret places for your pride; and mine eye shall weep sore, and run down with tears, because the Lord’s flock is carried away captive.”         

Jeremiah 13:15-17 KJV

 

    This verse depicts our salvation accurately, although this was not the original intent. As we refuse to seek the Lord and to listen to Him we invariably embrace ourselves, our pride. We must give glory to God or we will find darkness and we will stumble; yea, we may even fall. In this struggle, we may look frantically for the Lord’s light, but in correction, He only shows us the shadows of death. If you won’t listen to God, Believers will grieve for you. They grieve because they know that you have ceased listening to and pursuing and the Lord, you are in darkness and because of this have been taken captive either for a season, to learn and be disciplined; or for eternity. . . .

God is For Us!

“For behold, I am for you, and I will turn unto you, and ye shall be tilled and sown: and I will multiply men upon you, all the house of Israel, even all of it: and the cities shall be inhabited, and the wastes shall be builded.”

 Ezekiel 36:9-10 KJV

 

Contemplate this Verse