by Joanne Lowe
“And one of the malefactors which were hanged
railed on him, saying, If thou be Christ, save thyself and us. But
the other answering rebuked him, saying, Dost not thou fear God,
seeing thou art in the same condemnation?
And we indeed justly; for we receive the due
reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss. And he
said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.
And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou
be with me in paradise.”
Luke 23: 39-43
King James Version
Last year, someone hurt me very much by her words and actions. For
months, I would not speak to her. I was very angry with her. The
Bible says that if we don’t forgive others, God won’t
forgive us so I forgave her. However, I still held on to the hurt
and resentment in my heart. I had forgiven her because I knew I
should, however, I did not forgive her in my heart.
When the man hanging on the other side of Jesus asked Him to remember
him, Jesus said, “To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.”
Jesus did not hold a grudge and harbor unforgiveness and resentment
in His Heart like I did. Before you start judging me, I suggest
you search your own heart. Are you holding on to bitterness, resentment,
unforgiveness, and hurt in your heart?
When Jesus forgives us, He never holds it against us again or brings
it up to us. How many times do we forgive people, but still bring
the past up to them if they do something to hurt us again? We need
to ask Jesus to help us operate in His Forgiveness, not in our forgiveness.
May God forgive us for not being all that He asks us to be!
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