Forgiveness

Morning.

Welcome to Legacy of Freedom.

I'm your host, Eric McBride.

Glad that you're here today.

I want to talk to you for a few moments about forgiveness.

That's a subject a lot of us have difficulty with.

We've been wounded, hurt, let down, oppressed.

So many different things come, but I'm here today to tell you that Holy Spirit will help you to forgive.

God is so faithful and He wants you to be free of every entanglement of unforgiveness or bitterness.

I had something on my heart want to talk about today, dealing with unforgiveness.

You know, there are times that you go through certain things in life and you don't really realize that there's an offense.

There's things that they're kind of hidden below the surface until you are talking to someone or that person or something about the person comes up.

Jesus says, out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks.

So there are times when we really don't know what's there until we begin to talk.

Words come out, and there is a root that produces every fruit.

And Holy Spirit will put his finger on it.

And so often it's a root of unforgiveness that causes bitterness, that causes bad fruit.

And you've got to be free of that.

You've got to be free of that because it is a root that is affecting your life, is affecting what God wants to do in you.

And the enemy wants to nurture that.

He wants you to nurture it so it will be fruitful.

Jesus, in this discourse, he says Peter came to him and said to him, Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him?

Till seven times?

It's the big question.

How many times do I need to forgive?

How often should I forgive my brother?

How often should I forgive?

Surely seven times is enough.

And Jesus says, Peter, not seven times, but seventy times seven.

God goes the furthest with us.

He is long suffering.

He's kind.

And you say, Well, how can I be long suffering?

With the help of the Holy Spirit.

So how how do you deal with the roots?

When you see things come up, I think we just need to be honest and say, God, you know it's there.

God, forgive me for responding that way.

Forgive me for being critical.

Forgive me for being dishonoring.

God, you call us to live a life of honor, a life of Christlieness.

When someone slaps us on our cheek, you said, offer the other cheek.

If someone compels you to walk a mile, walk with them two miles.

Go the extra mile.

Go the extra distance.

You're an overcomer.

So if you've dealt with unforgiveness, if you've dealt with being hurt, then simply go to God with that.

Give it to Jesus.

Peter tells us to cast all our cares on him.

Casting all your cares upon him, for he careth for you.

God knows you're dealing with it.

Confess your faults one to another that you may be healed.

I didn't realize it, but I was offended.

I was harboring unforgiveness and I've repented for that.

And so I just want to make that right.

I want to make that clear.

Is it comfortable to do that?

Not always, but it's necessary.

We can't live a life of unforgiveness and expect no bad fruit.

It is time to put the axe to the root.

It is time to get unforgiveness out of your life.

If not now, when?

And if you do it today, choose to forgive.

If you choose to honor God, then you will find freedom begin to flow again in areas that it has been dry and barren.

Jesus speaking, he says, and when you stand praying, forgive.

If you have aught against any, that your Father also, which is in heaven, may forgive you your trespasses.

But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father, which is in heaven, forgive your trespasses.

This is a weighty matter.

I mean it is serious.

It makes all the difference.

May today be a day you choose to forgive, and may today be the day where freedom flows in the deepest places of your heart.

Let's pray together.

Father, we just come to you humbly and we thank you, God, that you're faithful, that you're gracious and long suffering, willing to forgive.

But Father, where we hold unforgiveness towards others, Lord, we shut off the supply of grace that would flow and forgive us.

So God, today, we repent of harboring unforgiveness, resentment, offense.

Today, Lord, we choose to forgive.

Today I choose to forgive.

I choose to release those who have wounded me, who've harmed me, who have broken me.

I choose to forgive them.

I release them into your care.

I pray for them that their hearts will be touched by your love, and that Father, today you would restore the joy of my salvation.

Thank you for this.

Thank you for setting us free.

For us in the name of your Son Jesus, we pray.

Amen.

Well, don't forget, God's grace is deep.

You can't measure it.

It flows freely into the heart of those who seek Him.

So I want to encourage you, run after God.

And as you run after God, you will leave a legacy of freedom for others to follow to Jesus.

May your family be blessed, may your neighborhood be blessed because you have chosen to follow Jesus.

Until we meet again, may God's blessings be upon your life.