Forgiveness: A Two Way Street

Forgiveness: A Two Way Street
by Pete Berardi

Forgiveness is a big part of life. People wrong us in many ways; big and small. It is not easy to forgive someone that has wronged us. After such an incident, human nature is to have feelings of revenge and hate. The Bible teaches that we should sow to our spiritual nature rather than our fleshly nature. Consider the verse

Romans 8:1 [There is] therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.

Being and becoming a Christian has a lot to do with forgiveness. As sinful people, we are unable to face God because we are unholy. It is only through his forgiveness of sin that we are able to be blameless and holy in his sight. Consider this verse

I John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

How does this make you feel? If you are a sinful person and you committed an awful sin against God, you need his forgiveness. You want his forgiveness so that you do not have to face everlasting punishment. You want to be forgiven. God has mercy on us and forgets all of our sin. When we are forgiven, a great burden has been lifted from our shoulders. We should remember this feeling then next time we are on the other side of the coin. Everyone has been wronged and everyone has been asked for forgiveness. The Bible states in

Mark 11:26 But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses.

When someone wants your forgiveness do not look at it as an opportunity to get back at that person for what they have done to you. It is easy to do. By not forgiving them, you cause them to feel pain. Instead we should have mercy on them. This is our opportunity to be obedient to God. By forgiving them, you not only obey God but are showing mercy on someone. Remember how you felt when you asked God for forgiveness? That is how they feel. Don’t they deserve it? God thinks that you do.