The greatest hindrance to the Christian life is a lack of willingness or desire to be a totally forgiving follower of Christ. Forgiveness is such a big deal to Jesus that He included the concept of forgiving in what we refer to as the Lord’s Prayer. In that, He guides you to be willing to pray that God would forgive you in the same manner that you are willing to forgive those who may offend you.
12 “And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.
14 For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:
15 But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” (Matthew 6)
It gets deeper, and closer to the heart of your problem. He also commanded you to “love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” I contend that you and I will never truly, with a pure heart, do either of these things until we have found a way to be forgiving of our enemies and persecutors. Moreover, beloved, often these enemies and persecutors have become those very near to you, even family.
Dear Believer, if you feel a weakness in your Christian walk, check your forgiveness dipstick. You may come up lacking. The good news is, the Holy Spirit always helps a heart that is willing to be free!
