WEEKLY MESSAGE

SUN, 21/04/24 - SAT, 27/04/24

ON THE MESSAGE THIS WEEK: FORGIVENESS OR BITTERNESS

KEY VERSE: “TURN ME AGAIN TO YOU AND RESTORE ME, FOR YOU ALONE ARE THE LORD MY GOD” (JEREMIAH 31:18)

When we have been hurt, our first instinct is to retaliate. We know it’s wrong because the Bible says we must forgive in order to be forgiven (see Mark 11:25). We also know that bitterness can hurt us physically and emotionally. But sometimes we can’t bring ourselves to forgive, so we keep wrestling with it in our mind. Stop and think what happens in a wrestling match. You focus on your opponent, clinging to them and trying to control them. Your aim is to put them on the mat and bring them into submission, and it requires all your energy. Plus, you risk getting hurt in the process.

The only real power you have over someone who hurts you is the power of forgiveness. So for your own sake, forgive them and move on! Even though you don’t feel like forgiving, pray, ‘Turn me again to You, and restore me; for You alone are the Lord my God.’ In other words, ‘Lord, make me willing to forgive.’ The old saying, ‘To err is human, to forgive is divine,’ is the truth.

Now, small offences can be forgiven quickly, but big ones require divine assistance. And you can have it: ‘God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him’ (see Philippians 2:13). Yes, you may want your offender to suffer, but when your greatest desire is to please the Lord, He will give you the grace to forgive. When you realise the blessings God has in store for you in the future, you will refuse to spend another moment stuck in the past.

The Bible says, ‘Then Peter came to Him and said, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times?” Jesus said to him...“up to seventy times seven”’ (see Matthew 18:21-22). Seventy times seven equals 490 times. And it’s your ‘brother’, someone you have to live or work with, whom you’re called to forgive. In essence Jesus was saying, ‘Forgive, and keep on forgiving if you want to have a relationship with this person.’ Let’s face it, we all make mistakes because we’re flawed in different ways. Perfection only exists in God. Recall Jesus’ words: ‘Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do’ (see Luke 23:34). Truer words have never been spoken, and very few concepts are more significant to remember in a relationship. While it’s perfectly normal to feel anger, and a natural human reaction to feel mistreated, there is a big difference between healthy anger and the corrosive emotion of bitterness. Bitterness is relational cancer. As Dr Maya Angelou said, ‘[Bitterness] feeds upon the host. It does nothing to the object of the displeasure.’ In this case, the ‘host’ is your relationship, and forgiveness is the medication and the cure.

Jesus said, ‘As you would that men should do to you, do also to them likewise’ (see Luke 6:31). Offering the degree of forgiveness you wish to receive ensures that your relationship stays healthy and free from the disease of bitterness. Is it sometimes hard to do? Yes, but if you pray, God will give you the grace to do it!

This week, ask God to help you get closer to Him and accomplish everything that He wills for you. Ask Him for a clearer head, a clearer mind, and the courage to do what He directs you to, in Jesus Name, Amen. Ask Him for grace to lead all the people within your care to Him (and to guide them for Him). Ask for the strength to forgive those who've hurt you you, courage to seek forgiveness from those you've hurt, and healing for everyone involved.

Have a blessed week in Jesus' Name, Amen.

_{(Article/ extract from ucb, word for today)}

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Did you know: There are almost 20 different passages in the Bible where it is mentioned that we are God's people.

Ref: Jeremiah 32:38 / Ezekiel 14:11 / Zechariah 8:8 / 2 Corinthians 6:16 / Hebrews 8:10 / Ezekiel 11:20 / Ezekiel 37:23 / Jeremiah 7:23 / Jeremiah 31:33 / Ezekiel 37:27 / Jeremiah 31:1 / Revelation 21:3 / Exodus 6:7 / Leviticus 26:12 / Jeremiah 11:4 / Jeremiah 30:22 / Ezekiel 36:28.