SWORD OF THE SPIRIT                                                                                               1111

“No Record”

Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, outcry and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and tenderhearted to one another, forgiving each other just as in Christ God forgave you – Ephesians 4:31-32

Forgive each other.….just as…..in Christ…..God forgave you.

God’s Word is clear. We are to get rid of all bitterness. We are to forgive others with the same love that our heavenly Father showed when He forgave us through Jesus.

For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that everyone who believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life – John 3:16

If we profess to be Christian, a born-again, Spirit Filled follower of Jesus Christ, saved by grace then the fruit of this profession is evident in the love we show – even for those who have done us wrong. By the grace and power of the abiding presence of Jesus in our hearts we are able to forgive and keep no record of being wronged.

Love … keeps no account of wrongs. – 1 Corinthians 13:5

How many of us religiously attend church services being careful not to sit next to ‘certain’ people for whom we harbor bitterness because of a hurt they have caused us in the past?

And when you stand to pray, if you hold anything against another, forgive it, so that your Father in heaven will forgive your trespasses as well. – Mark 11:25

How many of us are estranged from family and friends due to bitterness and unforgiveness? Oftentimes it has root in an act from the distant past that hurt us at the time but now in retrospect is really quite insignificant.

But like an invasive vine bitterness was allowed to take root and thrive to the point that the vine has become so thick and intertwined in our soul that it is seems impossible to extricate. Such bitterness and unforgiveness chokes the Life of Christ out of our soul. The fruit of the Spirit becomes less evident in our life and our testimony for Jesus is tarnished. The rivers of Living Water that should flow through us have slowed to a trickle if not completely dried up.

Are you unable to forgive someone? Are you held captive by the thick vine of bitterness that you have allowed to take root in your heart? Are you oppressed by the enemy of your soul because of your unforgiveness? Are you feeling distanced from your first love when you first came to receive forgiveness through Jesus?

Jesus began His ministry by quoting this passage from Isaiah:

“The Spirit of the Lord is on Me, because He has anointed Me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

Repent of your past unwillingness to forgive and forget. Allow Jesus to set you free from the bondage of bitterness and be reconciled to your family and friends by the power and presence of Jesus in your heart. Forgive as God has forgiven you in Christ and keep no record of wrong.

For I will forgive their iniquities and will remember their sins no more.” – Hebrews 8:12