Characteristics of Love: Love Forgives
2 Corinthians 2:10-11 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.
2 Corinthians 2:10-11(GNS) When you forgive people for what they have done, I forgive them too. For when I forgive—if, indeed, I need to forgive anything—I do it in Christ’s presence because of you, in order to keep Satan from getting the upper hand over us; for we know what his plans are.
Introduction: Calvary greetings to all. You are welcome to another week of Speaking Scriptures as the Balm of Gilead brings healing into our lives by His words on this blog.
Psalms 107:20 (NLT) He spoke, and they were healed— snatched from the door of death.
🙏 God will speak to our lives for healing and deliverance from death in Jesus name.
📎 The 25th characteristic of God’s kind of Love this week is: Love forgives
🛑 Unforgiveness is one of the major weapons of Satan in getting upper hand over us as Christian soldiers in the battles of life.
2 Corinthians 2:10-11(GNS) When you forgive people for what they have done, I forgive them too. For when I forgive—if, indeed, I need to forgive anything—I do it in Christ’s presence because of you, in order to keep Satan from getting the upper hand over us; for we know what his plans are.
One major factor of divorce among Christian couples is Unforgiveness. Holding on to offences of yesteryear breed bitterness which results to irreconcilable differences that cause separation or living together like strangers.
❓How can two lovers before marriage become two haters after marriage?
❗Only marriages devoid of God’s kind of Love experience become haters after marriage.
🛑 The desires of the devil is to possess, sift or separate Christian couples because he knows unity among couples jeopardises his mission to steal, kill and destroy.
Luke 22:31(MSG) “Simon, stay on your toes. Satan has tried his best to separate all of you from me, like chaff from wheat.
🤔 One of the Scriptures that helps me to forgive is where the Master Himself said the Father will deliver whosoever refuses to forgive to Satan, the Tormentor.
Matthew 18:32-35 Then his lord, after that he had called him, said unto him, O thou wicked servant, I forgave thee all that debt, because thou desiredst me: Shouldest not thou also have had compassion on thy fellowservant, even as I had pity on thee? And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due unto him. So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses.
Looking critically without prejudice at the above illustration by Jesus Christ when He spoke on unforgiveness to His Disciples, we discover that:
1️⃣. Christians who refuse to forgive is wicked before God because of the redemptive works of Christ enjoyed by Christians.
2️⃣. No one can pay for his/her sins. Only by the Blood of Jesus Christ.
3️⃣. God gets angry with any Christian who refuses to forgive,
4️⃣. God allows Devil, the tormentor to take over the life of Christian who refuses to forgive.
5️⃣. The unforgiving Christian can only be freed from the tormentor if he/she can pay back the debt of sin which is impossible without the Blood of Jesus Christ.
🛑 One thing is certain, Christians who refuse to forgive will not also receive Forgiveness from God and no one is without sin.
Matthew 6:12,14-15 And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
When we celebrated our 31years wedding anniversary in 2022 on what’s happ status, someone greeted us by saying; “ekú àmúmóra, ekú ìfokànjì” meaning, it is years of Endurance and Forgiveness.
No marriage can survive without Endurance and Forgiveness because offences must surely come and either husband or wife can claim to be a saint in every disagreement. That is why the clause, “And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us” is included in the Lord’s Prayer.
God’s kind of Love forgives without dwelling on past offences. Unknowingly, dwelling on past offences have negative effects on the attitude, gestures and responses among couples, and this creates gaps between them.
If Christ is allowed in any marital relationship, forbearance and Forgiveness must be evident in such relationship.
Colossians 3:13 Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.
Colossians 3:13 (NLT) You must make allowance for each other’s faults and forgive the person who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others.
Making allowance for each other’s faults gives room for Forgiveness.
When Satan walks about, he takes advantage of destroying homes that do not forgive offences and devour such marriages.
1 Peter 5:8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:
1 Peter 5:8(MSG) Keep a cool head. Stay alert. The Devil is poised to pounce, and would like nothing better than to catch you napping.
❓What practical steps are we to take as we walk in love this week?
▶️ Whatever you haven’t forgiven in your mate, forgive it today. Let it go. Just as we ask Jesus to “forgive us our debts” each day, we must ask Him to help us “forgive our debtors” each day as well. Unforgiveness has been keeping you and your spouse in prison too long. Say from your heart, “I choose to forgive.”
✍ Finally brethren, the surest way to know the kind of Love we have towards our spouses is to be sure we forgive all offenses even in advance as we make allowances for faults.
Ephesians 4:32 And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.
✋ Maranatha
