The essence of forgiveness

RESUMEN: Christians sometimes struggle to listen to the inner voice that tells us to forgive, leading to bitterness, resentment, and even hatred. Forgiveness is key to Christianity, and we must remember how God forgave us in Christ in order to forgive others. Holding grudges and seeking revenge paralyzes us and makes us incompetent in the eyes of God. Forgiveness cleanses the heart and shows evidence of the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives. We must surrender to God and let go of bitterness to experience the joy of the Lord. Forgiveness is a sweet offering of love that honors us and God.

Christians, even the most mature, sometimes have a rare tendency not to know how to listen to the inner voice that tells us to forgive. Time and again we let the polluting drops of the world enter our hearts and we make of it a deposit of roots of bitterness, dissension, resentment and even hatred; elements totally dissociated from the heart of our Lord. And all because we don't know (or don't want to) forgive. As forgiveness requires the humiliation of the guilty, when it is our turn to humble ourselves, we lack the will to submit and thus put God in the background. And the heart, deceitful and sensitive, puts on the garment of pride and perches on the pedestal of an implacable judge and says: I do not forgive you! And the bitterness, insomnia, tachycardia, anxieties continue that, in addition, bring fears, complexes, abandonments, anger, desires for revenge and everything that kills the heart of the Christian and keeps us from experiencing a victorious life in Christ.

The apostle Paul wrote to the Ephesians: "... be kind and compassionate to one another, and forgive one another, just as God forgave you in Christ" (Eph. 4:32).

Here is the key to forgiveness. When you are aware that God forgave you and that for this you had to die on the cross of Calvary, then you will be willing to forgive any offense. If we do not forgive men their offenses, neither will our Father forgive ours. That is a basic biblical precept that God warns us about throughout the Scriptures. The doctrine of forgiveness is to Christianity what Christ is to the message of salvation. The message of forgiveness is an extraordinary life expectancy. Sadly, sometimes we hold grudges and even desire for revenge. This paralyzes us, disqualifies us, makes us incompetent and sinful in the eyes of God. Forgiveness cleanses the heart. When we forgive we feel relief, comfort, inner peace, and peace with God. When we persist in unforgiveness we show that there are areas in our Christian walk that have not been regenerated by the Spirit of God. Being able to forgive must be fundamental evidence of the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives. How could I not be able to forgive a brother, to erase the incident and the sin that originated the offense, if Christ did it for me once and for all? God does not like the praise that comes from a heart that has not been able to forgive, nor does the offering and even less the appearances of holiness and animosity that corrupts our being and separates us from Him.

Dear brothers and sisters, look around you and see how beautiful your day can be, your life with the Lord. Perhaps you remember someone you have not forgiven yet, an incident that still clings to your mind and heart and does not leave you room to feel the joy of the Lord. Surrender to your creator, your good shepherd. He did not weigh your sins on the scale, but died on a cross for them; it just erased them forever. How then can you still carry a heavy bundle of bitterness and bitter roots that interrupt your communion with Him? Search your heart, scrutinize it and shake off the junk that may still be lying around the corner of your passions. When you came to the feet of Christ, He gave you the spiritual ability to forgive men all the offenses and sins they have raised against you. Shape your own spiritual rainbow as a new symbol that reminds you at every moment that forgiveness is a very sweet offering of love that honors you, but above all, that honors God. God bless you!