“Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you” (Ephesians 4:32).
Anyone in Heaven from Earth will know what it is like both to have been forgiven and to forgive.
“The one thing essential for us in order that we may receive and impart the forgiving love of God is to know and believe the love that He has to us. [Read] 1 John 4:16. Satan is working by every deception he can command, in order that we may not discern that love. He will lead us to think that our mistakes and transgressions have been so grievous that the Lord will not have respect unto our prayers and will not bless and save us. In ourselves we can see nothing but weakness, nothing to recommend us to God, and Satan tells us that it is of no use; we cannot remedy our defects of character. When we try to come to God, the enemy will whisper, It is of no use for you to pray; did not you do that evil thing? Have you not sinned against God and violated your own conscience? But we may tell the enemy that “the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin.” 1 John 1:7. When we feel that we have sinned and cannot pray, it is then the time to pray. Ashamed we may be and deeply humbled, but we must pray and believe. “This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.” 1 Timothy 1:15.” MB 115.1
“Those who themselves can hope for salvation only through the merits of Christ, who must seek forgiveness by virtue of His blood, are under the strongest obligation to exercise love, pity, and forgiveness toward their fellow sinners.” 5T 607.3
Dear Heavenly Father, Thank You for giving me repentance and forgiveness for my sins. Please bless me to let all bitterness, wrath, anger, loud grief, evil speaking, and malice go. And please bless me with a tender heart to love, pity, and forgive others. Please bless me to be a blessing today. In the precious name of Jesus, I pray. Amen.
Song: Wintley Phipps, “Forgiven” (Thank you, Wintley and Paula!)
NOTE: These devotionals began as daily texts to encourage my academy roommate and dear friend of nearly 50 years, until she suddenly passed a few weeks ago (Feb 2023). Now I continue to send them to her family in honor of their mom. First, I pray and look for a Bible verse or passage and find a suitable commentary (or vice versa) and add a prayer. Some days, only a Scripture and prayer are ordered. If you agree to receive them, then this way I not only honor God but the memory of a very dear friend whom I desperately miss. My personal prayer is that God will bless me to find ways to multiply this blessing: from only one or two people to an unnumbered multitude. So please feel free to forward to your loved ones or to anyone as God leads you. I’m calling them Barb’s Devotionals.