And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.
•“To err is man…”
•Forgiveness means to pardon, to wave punishment for offence (Matt 18:25-27)
•It is the letting go of negative feelings and attitude towards the offender
•It constitutes the foundation of Christianity
•There are no numerical limits
3. Memory Verse
Ephesians 4:32: And be ye kind one
to another, tenderhearted, forgiving
one another, even as God for
Christ's sake hath forgiven you.
4. Colossians 3:12-15
12 Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of
mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering;
13 Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man
have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do
ye.
14 And above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of
perfectness.
15 And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye
are called in one body; and be ye thankful.
5. Introduction
• “To err is man…”
• Forgiveness means to pardon, to wave punishment for offence
(Matt 18:25-27)
• It is the letting go of negative feelings and attitude towards the
offender
• It constitutes the foundation of Christianity
• There is no numerical limits
6. (1)Why should we forgive one another?
• It is an instruction from the Lord (Luke 17:3-4, Col. 3:13)
• It is a condition for answered prayers (Matt. 5:23-25, Jas. 5:13)
• Vengeance is of the Lord (Rom. 12:19)
• It helps to gain our brethren (Matt. 18:15)
• Unforgiveness bitterness ill health (Prov. 17:22)
• Unforgiveness opens the door to demonic attack (1Sam. 18:8-11)
• Forgiving one another is a condition for making heaven
(Heb. 12:14)
7. (2) Evidences of forgiveness
• Clear conscience, no hard feelings
• No intention to revenge or retaliate (Gen. 45:4-5, Rom. 12:19)
• Willingness to make peace (Rom.12:18)
• Show of love and prayer for the offender (Matt. 5:44, Rom.12:20,
Acts 7:59-60)
• No record of wrongdoing (Rom. 8:12, Jer. 31:34)
8. Conclusion
• Forgiveness healing of wounded heart
• Forgiveness can make the world a better place
• Forgiveness is directly linked to our progress (Mk 11:25-26NIV,
Matt 6:15)
• We should show good examples to others (1Tim 4:12)
9. Unforgiveness is like
drinking a cup of
poison & hoping it
hurts the other person
Forgiveness
is unlocking
the door to
set someone
free; that
person is you