Welcome! 8-25-21
This is the fourth blog in the 4 part series titled, How we give our enemy (satan) legal access into our lives. I know there are more ways, but these 4 are the ones placed on my heart to write about.
Part 1 was, the (negative) words that we speak.
Part 2 was, fear. Fear is a force it will draw what you are fear to you.
Part 3 was our thoughts. As man thinks in his heart so is he. Proverbs 23:7
And part 4, Un-forgiveness.
Matthew 18:32-34. 32 Then the king called in the man he had forgiven and said, ' You evil servant! I forgave you that tremendous debt because you pleaded with me. 33 Shouldn't you have mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had mercy on you?' 34 Then the angry king sent the man to prison to be tortured until he paid his entire debt. 34 That's what my Heavenly Father will do to you if you refuse to forgive your brothers and sisters from your heart.
Mark 11:25 But when you stand praying, first forgive anyone you are holding a grudge against, so that your Father in heaven will forgive your sins too." NLT
Mark 11:26 But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses.
Forgiveness is SO important! We don' t forgive for the other person(s), but for ourselves! If we don't, we are held in bondage, and turned over to our enemy, the torturer, satan.
Jesus forgave us for every sin (anything we would ever do wrong) and paid our debt for the sins we committed in hell. He freed us from the curse (sickness, diseases, sadness, depression, addiction, lack of any kind, anger, unworthiness, etc.) He became sin, abolishing it on the cross with His blood, and freeing us from the curse.
Therefore, if we don't forgive, what Jesus did for us on the cross doesn't count and we open the door for satan to have free reign in our lives. Sounds bad, right!? But look what He did for us, when He did nothing wrong, living a sinless life, yet He took our punishment, paying our debt!
When I first read this story of the servant in the Bible my thought was, how mean! Being turned over to be tortured! But when I started thinking about what Jesus did for me, freely forgiving me when I ask, no matter what I had done! Who am I not to forgive someone else? When I forgive, and I have forgiven some really big things, I feel free! like a load has been lifted off of me. I have peace and joy! That's because by forgiving it closes the door to satan. He no longer has legal access to steal kill and destroy my life, which means he can't torture me.
By forgiving we open the door to receive what Jesus did for us! Paying for our debt in His Blood! He Paid The Price! He Paid The Ransomed to Bring Us Back to The Father! I know I am repeating myself but sometimes saying things in a different way helps bring the subject matter to light.
2 Corinthians 5:21 For He made Christ who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ. NLT
I encourage you to forgive, shutting the door to the torturer and opening the door to the saving power of Jesus Christ!