Losing The Battle To Win The War
Matthew 18:21 Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times? 22 Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven.
There are few human emotions as strong as revenge. There is something within us that feels so good when we are able to right the wrongs in our lives. To get back a people that have treated us wrong. To defeat the wicked and vindicate the oppressed. Revenge is a strong emotion. Revenge has driven mediocre men to do impressive things. Revenge has brought down empires. The Assyrian, the Greek, the Roman, the French empires all fell because of motivated aggressors motivated by revenge. The list of great men and kingdoms that have fallen because of its poison is endless.
Romans 12: 19 Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.
God says; “vengeance is my business!”, “You are my children and I’ll take care of this area so that you can keep your spirit right and stay saved”. The problem is our flesh gets way too much gratification from getting back at someone.
Romans 8:5 For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. 6 For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. 7 Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.
When we feed this old man, this carnal man, we separate ourselves from God. So, God takes this a step further. “Not only do I want you to allow me to do the vengeance part, But I want you also to forgive them.” Vengeance will destroy your soul and so will unforgiveness. In fact unforgiveness if let fester long enough will turn to bitterness. And bitterness is a very stubborn and tenacious evil.
The bible talks about the root of bitterness.
Hebrews 12: 15 Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled;
What is the root of bitterness? Unforgiveness. And when that root has taken hold of our souls, it is difficult to dislodge. What can we do to get rid of it? We must pray for those that offfend us!
Matthew 5: 44 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you.
Because forgiveness isn’t about them, it’s about us. God gives us this command for our benefit. So that we can get our hearts right. So that we can remain humble before God. So that we can prevent the roots of bitterness growing in our lives. It may not feel good to our flesh, but it is exactly what our spirit needs to grow beyond the immediate situation. That’s the secret, forgiveness is for us!
Just like unforgiveness is the root of bitterness. Forgiveness is the root of love. Sometimes we have to lose the battle to win the war.
DJM
