This is Felicia Ferguson with Christian Mix 106, helping you build faith for the journey.
Is there any act you consider unforgivable? Maybe it’s your spouse’s cheating? Your child’s stealing from you? The physical assault you endured? An unlawful imprisonment? Being passed over or even fired from a job through no fault of your own?
As Christians, it is not up to us to decide what is unforgivable. Jesus teaches that the only unforgivable sin is blaspheming the Holy Spirit. An example of that was when the Pharisees claimed Jesus was casting out demons by the power of Satan.
So that means everything else, no matter how heinous, falls under the label of a forgivable sin.
That’s not fair you might say. You don’t know what that person did to me. You don’t know the damage or pain I endured because of that person’s actions. You don’t know how badly I was wronged or how horrible that person is.
You may be completely and utterly correct in your pain, your bitterness, your need to hold them accountable. But none of that means forgiveness can’t be given. By God and by you.
If the person confesses their sin and offers true and heartfelt repentance, God will forgive them.
But do you have to forgive?
No. Forgiveness is a choice. Just like holding onto a grudge, anger, hatred is a choice.
But if you don’t forgive the person from even the most heinous act, who does that unforgiveness ultimately impact? Does it change the life of the person who wounded, battered, or even destroyed you?
We would like it to. We would enjoy seeing our rage our hatred spontaneously combust them where they stand. But it doesn’t work that way.
All that grudge, anger, or hatred does is turn us into a bitter, spiteful mess.
Unforgiveness is the ultimate paralytic. It traps us. It binds us. It keeps us from moving forward in our lives. We are so tied to one moment or one person through it that we are stuck in that time when we were wronged. And you know what? It does absolutely nothing to the other person.
As much as you hate them or hate their offenses, do you hate yourself more? Because you are the only person unforgiveness impacts. I know hearing that truth may make you angry. It tears at your pain and your need for justice. But it is the truth.
So as difficult as forgiving what you deem unforgiveable is, it is something you must do—if you want to live completely free of what happened. And that’s what you really want, isn’t it? To move forward from the past and live an abundant life fully disconnected from that event or person?
Give yourself time. True and full forgiveness doesn’t always happen immediately after you’ve said the words. Sometimes it’s a conscious choice that you have to make daily until one day you blink and realize that you’ve actually forgiven the person. And then the sense of freedom will be almost overwhelming.
This is Felicia Ferguson. Thanks for listening to Christian Mix 106.
