Doctrine of Radical Amputation

It is shocking to some counselees that we don’t focus on the anger or the drunkenness specifically while counseling. It is not profitable to simply pull the bad fruit off the tree because soon new bad fruit will grow in its place. The consequences you are experiencing are the result of the problem, not the problem.

This is not to say that biblical counselors do not take serious presenting problems such as alcoholism, pornography and other life-dominating sins seriously. In some cases the doctrine of radical amputation must be applied immediately because the consequences of continuing in these habits of the heart can be devastating to the person and others. Jesus said:

If your right eye makes you stumble, tear it out and throw it from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. If your right hand makes you stumble, cut it off and throw it from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than for your whole body to go into hell. Matthew 5:29-30 (NASB)

This means that certain presenting problems must be dealt with radically. For example, for the alcoholic, it means a commitment to cease drinking and remove everything from his or her life that tempts them to drink. It can also mean a commitment to detoxification and the cleansing it provides. For the pornography user, it means safeguards and accountability for computer usage. It may mean driving a different way home from work lest one be tempted by the adult video stores on the former route.

Radical amputation means doing whatever it takes to stop the destructive behavior, realizing the fruit that was produced has come from the root system of the heart.

“The human heart is a factory of idols...Every one of us is, from his mother’s womb, expert in inventing idols.” John Calvin

We will find the problem where it really lay; in the roots– in our heart

What guides and motivates our heart is what will change our actions and the resulting fruit.

When our thoughts, beliefs, and desires are set on glorifying God, there will be appropriate actions and God-honoring consequences.

When our heart is set on pleasing “self,” our thoughts and actions are not naturally going to be like God’s. This presents a dilemma, because God commands us in the Bible to be holy.

But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God-who chose you to be his children-is holy. For he himself has said, “You must be holy because I am holy.” 1 Peter 1:15-16 (NLT)

Practicing holiness brings glory to God. Glorifying God should be the goal of our life. I am often asked by my counselees, “Why am I here?” The simple and straightforward answer to this question could change our life: We are here to glorify God.

Glorifying God happens when the focus of life changes from living for my pleasure and glory to living for His pleasure and glory. It demands that my heart change from a “me” centered focus to a God-centered focus.

Identifying Idolatry of the Heart

You shall have no other gods before me. Exodus 20:3

Dear children, keep yourselves from idols. 1 John 5:21

God considers worship of anything other than Himself idolatry! Look at the following verse:

When you follow the desires of your sinful nature (your heart), your lives will produce these evil results: sexual immorality, impure thoughts, eagerness for lustful pleasure, idolatry, participation in demonic activities, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, divisions, the feeling that everyone is wrong except those in your own little group. Galatians 5:19-20 (NLT, author’s emphasis)

Each of us struggles with the horrendous sin of idolatry on a daily basis. As Galatians 5 tells us, idolatry is a desire of our sinful nature. It is reflected in our choices, our words, our use of time, and how we spend our money. In our culture we tend to think of idolatry as an eastern religious system such as Buddhism or Hinduism, or as pagan worship of the trees and animals. But the truth is, idolatry is not only bowing down to statues, it is anything that means more to you than God does. It is manifested when getting what you want has becomes more important than what God desires for you. Simply put, anything that you are loving, desiring, or serving more than God is an idol of the heart.

We are constantly being tempted to sin in this manner. While many technological advances exist in the world, including new things to idolize and worship, Satan uses the same tricks and methods to bait the trap that he has employed since the Garden of Eden.

Our idolatry takes many forms. Some people idolize money and possessions.

People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction. 1 Timothy 6:9 (NIV)

Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions. Luke 12:15 (NIV)

Others idolize people such as celebrities, sports figures, and musicians. Look at the popularity of the program AMERICAN IDOL and the millions of people who watch each week and vote for their “idol.”

Criminal rap artists are held in high esteem by the younger generation; the actions of high-priced athletes (who once were lauded for their abilities on the playing field but now are notorious for their antics off the field) are being emulated by high school players.

I have known mothers who idolize their children by building a child-centered home. These children grow up believing they are the center of the world and expect others to cater to their every need and whim--to be idolized by someone else once mom and dad are gone.

The bottom line is simple—we were born to worship. We have been created to worship God, but our sinful lusts have driven us to worship and idolize the things of the world.

Are you beginning to see how perhaps some of the things we struggle with are from an idolatrous and self-centered heart?

Along the way of our life we came to believe that we needed certain things or people to “make us happy”: for some of us it is success or security, for others it is acceptance, and still for others it is being motivated by fear. It’s a type of fear of not succeeding or being accepted or secure.

These motivations spurred on by the desires of the heart have born exactly the kind of fruit you would expect– awful. If this were not so, people would not be seeking counseling!

The Importance of Roots and Fruits

The quality of the fruit of any tree depends on the root system of the tree. When the roots are growing in deep, rich soil full of nutrients, the tree will be strong and healthy. The fruit of that tree will be juicy, sweet, and resistant to bugs and parasites.

The tree rooted in poor quality soil will have little nutrition to carry up through the trunk to the branches and leaves. The tree will be weak and susceptible to disease.

The quality of its fruit will be poor. We could return year after year and pluck the poor fruit from the tree, but that would not change the health of the tree. The tree would remain sickly and vulnerable, bearing bad fruit. The only way to cause a tree to produce good fruit is to attend to the roots. To make application to our life, if we address only the visible problems or our bad feelings (fruit), we will soon return to these problems and feelings in a short time.

What we see as a problem (lying, stealing, anger, pornography) is not the real problem; it is a symptom of the real problem. There is a problem to deal with deeper down in our tree of life. That something has caused our fruit to be bad. We must address the root system because that is where the problem that we see truly begins. We need to deal with our anger, stealing, or depression by attacking the real causes (roots) in a biblical manner. We have to deal with the heart of our problem in order to overcome it. Note that the root system is equal to the heart. For example, if we have the fruit of depression, we have focused our heart on our wants, our perceived needs, our personal rights, our beliefs, and our desires. This results in a self-centered idolatrous heart, which is revealed by our thoughts, words, and actions.

The quality of the fruit of a tree is determined by its root system, and similarly, the condition of our heart will be visible by our words and deeds. If the roots of a tree are sunk in fertilized ground that is enriched and full of nutrients, the tree will be strong and its fruit will be good.

If the roots are sunk in bad soil and fertilized with poor quality additives or none at all, the roots will have little nutrition to carry up through the trunk to the branches and leaves. The tree will be weak and the quality of its fruit will be poor.

Let us use whatever issue(s) we identified in the question above as fruit. Going back to the reasons why fruit is either of good or bad quality, we must conclude that there is a problem to deal with deeper down in our tree of life. Something has caused our fruit to be bad.

We must return to the root system. In the case of humanity, we can say that the root system is equal to the heart.

What this means is if we have the fruit of anger, depression, anxiety, immorality, drug or alcohol abuse, lying, etc., it is because our roots are embedded in a heart that is not focused on glorifying God. Instead, it is focused on our wants, perceived needs, personal rights, beliefs, and desires. When our heart is not focused on Him but instead is focused on something else, God calls that idolatry.

Thoughts, Beliefs, Desires and the Heart

The passage from Romans 1:21-32 vividly reveals how our thoughts, beliefs, and desires can guide our actions. The sins listed in that passage are results of sinful thoughts, beliefs, and desires. Every action began as a thought; the thought was fueled by a desire or belief; the desire or belief originated in the heart.

Jesus took the opportunity to speak to the attitudes of the heart when He was questioned by the Pharisees and his disciples about pure foods and ceremonial hand washing.

He gave this wise reply:

Can’t you see that what you eat won’t defile you? Food doesn’t come in contact with your heart, but only passes through the stomach and then comes out again.” (By saying this, he showed that every kind of food is acceptable.) And then he added, “It is the thought-life that defiles you. For from within, out of a person’s heart, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, wickedness, deceit, eagerness for lustful pleasure, envy, slander, pride, and foolishness. All these vile things come from within; they are what defile you and make you unacceptable to God. Mark 7:18-23 (NLT)

The vile things that come out from us originated in the heart. Before engaging in sexual immorality, there was a desire for illicit pleasure. Before stealing something, there was a belief that we were entitled to what we wanted and a belief that we would not get caught. Before the adulterous affair, there was the desire to “be happy,” to have our needs met, to feel desired by our cohort. Before there was deceit, there was a fear of being caught or exposed. Before we gossiped, we believed we had a right to share that information with someone; we wanted someone else to know.

As a man thinks in his heart, so is he. Proverbs 23:7 (NLT)

There is no doubt that our thoughts direct the course of our lives. We base our actions on what we are thinking at the moment and over longer periods of time.

Our thought life is a critical aspect to change in life because what we think or believe about various things will determine how we respond to them.

Our thoughts form our opinions, create our belief system, and fan the flame of our desires. What we think determines our emotional mood and causes us to have various feelings. Our thoughts precede our emotions; our emotions and desires are a result of our thought life.

For example, a person who struggles with anxiety may think open-ended thoughts that might begin with a phrase such as, “what if.” Most often the “what if” has some root in an aspect of reality. The person’s thoughts continue to run along the lines of creating scenarios that are imaginary or merely probable. These thoughts stimulate the body to produce adrenaline, and the person then experiences anxiety.

Just as Eve did in the Garden of Eden when she saw that the fruit was pleasing to the eye, we see something that piques interest in us; we begin the thought process of wondering what it would taste like, how it would feel, and what it would be like to have it. We experience sudden desire, and that desire smolders over time and grows stronger the more we think about the object we want to possess. We then act on our desires, or we set them aside permanently or temporarily.

We take in millions of bits of information and weigh it through the thought process and moral code we have adopted. We conclude that something is true or false, and it then becomes a part of our belief system. Our beliefs stay in place until new information comes along to challenge them.

You see, all of our actions begin as a thought, belief, or desire in our heart.

Before we can change what we habitually do, we must change how we habitually think. Our thoughts and beliefs make up how we “see” sin. If we believe a sin habit is biological or genetic, the most we can do is get long term therapy or take a pill to feel better. We “see” our behavior as not being our fault, and we believe that we are helpless before impulses, thoughts, and drives.

Mind renewal is the critical piece of lasting change

The apostle Paul penned these words:

Do not be conformed any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Romans 12:2 (NKJV)

Before we can change what we do, we have to come to believe or think differently, and that requires a renewing of the mind; in essence, a change of heart.

The Heart of Mankind

What is the “heart”? Definition: The heart is the biblical word used to describe the inner man. The heart is the immaterial (non-flesh) part of a person that includes our thoughts,
beliefs, desires, mind, feelings, intentions, and emotions. It is often referred to
as the control center of our being.

We are made of two parts. Material / Immaterial. What we think, believe, and desire in our immaterial part (mind, heart, soul, feelings), is what our material part (body) does. For example, when we think we are thirsty, we get up and get a drink. If we believe we are in danger, we run. If we desire an ice cream cone, we get one. We are used to our bodies automatically responding to these commands.

We also automatically respond to other kinds of thoughts and desires. When we become angry, we may curse or hit. When we desire escape from problems, we may drink or use drugs. When we want something and don’t have the money to purchase it, we may steal or put it on credit. When we are in trouble, we may fear exposure so we lie. These things may have become automatic for you too.

Through repetition, various actions become a habit or pattern. We refer to these habits as automatic behaviors. They become the default position we assume when angry, sad, upset, or lonely. The basis for these sinful patterns are found in the heart.

Usually, however, our sinful actions stem not from a failure to achieve but from an inner urge to fulfill our own desires. What this amounts to is that we have trained ourselves to respond in certain ways when confronted by a circumstance or situation.

For example, for years I bit my fingernails when I was nervous or upset. It was something I was not even aware I was doing much of the time. When I was fretting about something, my fingers went right to my mouth, and before I knew it, my fingers were bleeding. Many people have learned to comfort themselves with food when sad or upset. Some who struggle with pornography cite loneliness as their trigger for self-gratification as an automatic behavior.

When helping a person in the process of change, the most critical aspect of change is showing a person the importance the heart plays in life and in behavior. Careful use of the Scriptures will bring the convicting power of the Holy Spirit to bear in a person’s life.

As in water face reflects face, so a man’s heart reveals the man. Proverbs 27:19 (NKJV)

As water acts like a mirror and shows what we look like on the outside, the heart reflects and reveals what we are like on the inside.

The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks. Luke 6:45 (NIV)

But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man ‘unclean.’ For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander.
Matthew 15:18-19 (NIV)

Because heart change is centered on conviction by the Scriptures, we must look to God’s view of the heart found in Jeremiah 17:9:

The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it? Jeremiah 17:9 (NKJV)

The deceitful heart is bent on satisfying “me,” having my own way, living life for my pleasures, with “me” at the center of my universe. Because the heart has been referred to as the control center of our being, what we think, believe, and desire in our heart is what guides us and can determine our actions. We do not naturally think about our heart being wicked. Many times people are referred to as having a good heart or a big heart. It is possible we have never before heard someone say that our heart is deceitful and wicked and evil. If we are honest with ourselves, we may see that we have some of the sin habits found in Matthew 15:18-20a.

But the things that proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and those defile the man. For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, slanders. These are the things that defile the man... Matthew 15:18-20a, NASB

If we are honest with ourselves, we will begin to realize we tend to minimize our sinful heart attitudes; as we read Jesus’ words, we see our biggest problem lies within our own hearts.

Asking the Right Questions

If you are a person that other's gravitate toward for help and assistance in solving life's problems you already know that people come with a variety of problems. Contrary to popular thinking, the greatest need of a counselee is not always an answer to their problem! Rather, the greatest need is to learn to interprit their problems from a biblical perspective (1 Cor. 10:13). We all need consistant reminders that our problems are not unique, but common to man.

We need those reminders that God has His finger on the pulse of our everyday lives and nothing escapes His notice. He is intimately aware of our trials and our triumphs and He knows the end of every story. That alone is encouraging! When things seem hopeless to me and the problems appear to be greater than any possible solution I am very comforted by the truth that God is sovereign and in charge. God knows the way through our trials and aches and difficult circumstances.

Our problems multiply as we try to get around God's truth and God's way for dealing with our stuff and label our sin as something other than sin. We seek to legitimize it, put a decent face on it, and gain sympathy and understanding from others as a result of it.

To help others (or ourselves) we have to ask the right questions if we want to arrive at the right conclusions. A right question would be, "Is this some dysfunction or mental illness, or is it an outflow of some sin I am involved in?" Much of the stuff labeled with psychiatric terminology is the result of unrepentant sin in a person's life. Just for a few examples, let's look at the label "addictive personality disorder." The Bible would call it idolatry because one person is worshiping another or they are worshiping the created thing rather than the Creator. The person who is said to have "intermittant explosive disorder" is actually struggling with sinful anger! Having the biblical persepective on our problems is the best place to start.

Rather than thinking there is no hope in a given situation, we must reorient our thoughts Godward and ask questions like, "Where is God in my trial?" or "How does God see this situation or circumstance?"

So often we believe we need things or a particular person to make us happy or to fix our circumstances. We must begin to ask ourselves what our true need is as we walk through the valley of suffering. The only answer is that God is enough in every trial and every sorrow.

Lest you think that I speak glibly about this I want to assure you that I have endured severe trials of my own in which I had to practice what I preach! The most difficult part of this is to deny myself the immediate relief that comes with bowing before whatever worthless idol I set up to meet my felt needs. Like everyone else, I have succumbed to pragmatism from time to time. I have sought my own way trying quick fixes just be done with the problems because I believed I could not stand it any longer!

All that resulted from those attempts at circumventing the lessons in God's classroom was a return trip at a later date and time. God intends that we build character in these valleys, and that we experience growth in character and Christ-likeness as a result of the lessons learned. He also is imparting wisdom and discernment to us along the way.

This is the reason we have to begin with the right questions that are centered around God and His Word. To begin anywhere else will bring us to the wrong conclusions and lead us off-course.

Perfectionism and Pride

If you are a perfectionist, you already know that you hate being a "beginner" at anything. A new game or a new job or social situation is enough to send you over the edge. You fear the embarrassment of not performing perfectly or to your own standards. You fear having someone look over your shoulder in a training situation because they will see that you are not perfect and make mistakes. Even when you know that you don't know what you are doing, and by all rights shouldn't know what you are doing, you become angry at yourself for making errors. If someone should criticize you, you are devastated and beat yourself up inside (and sometimes outside) for not being perfect.

This is one tough way to live! I said yesterday that being perfect in life is not in the Bible. We are commanded to be holy, which implies perfection but we are not commanded to be perfect.

There is nothing wrong with wanting to do a good job or with wanting to excel at something. It is even alright to want to do an excellent or superior job! However, constantly having to be the best is nothing more than pride. When being the best causes me to sin in my anger it is not a righteous goal any longer. When wanting to be better than others means I tear them down or step on them to get there, it is sinful.

To get a handle on this life-dominating sin you must be willing to be honest with yourself and to evaluate your actions and most of all evaluate your heart through the grid of the Holy Spirit and the Word of God.

You must ask yourself some tough questions to get to the heart of the matter!
Must you always look good to other people?
Are you judgmental toward people who do not live up to your standards?
Is it true that nothing is ever good enough for you? Is the glass always half empty?
Have you become a grumbler?
Are you ungrateful to God for all His blessings because they are not "perfect" in your judgment?

Answering questions like these is only the beginning of addressing this horrible issue. Once you understand that your perfectionism is truly a visible display of the pride in your heart you must take steps to overcome it by God's grace and power.

Romans 12:2 tells us to be transformed or changed completely (inside and out) by the renewing of our minds. Our minds are renewed through reading and meditation on the Bible. Your thoughts will be impacted by those precious words of God's as they weave their way into your heart. Your desires will change as your heart changes and what God wants for you becomes more important to you than being perfect is right now. Your actions will change as your desires change and your thoughts change.

This is not going to be an easy area to address in your life dear Reader. You most likely have years of ingrained habits that you will have to overcome and address one at a time. You may find discouragement right around the corner as you desire to change. Please let me encourage you by reminding you that Jesus Christ died for your sins, including pride and perfectionism. There is no sin that by His power and grace you cannot overcome.

Run to Him and you will find your victory there!

Pride and Perfectionism

What does it mean to be a perfectionist? The definition in a medical dictionary says a perfectionist is, "A person who pursues an impossibly high standard of performance and, in many cases, demands the same standards of others."

Many people who are actually perfectionists are considered to be very reliable and thorough, and great planners because they are meticulous and pay great attention to detail. Frequently people who are perfectionists are held up as role models for others.

There is nothing wrong with any of those things, we are always to strive to do our best. The problem comes when our perfectionistic goals become the god, and our striving to be perfect is for all the wrong reasons. When the goals are unrealistic and unattainable, the perfectionist comes apart because they do not know how to handle the "failure" of not being perfect.

Some perfectionists began this behavior pattern because of a misunderstanding of Matt. 5:48, "Be holy as I am holy." They began with a desire to please God, but somehow this desire has become law in their lives. They are frequently legalistic and absolute in their thinking. All or nothing thinking is common and there is truly a belief that they can never "please" God.

Perfectionists tend to view people as projects and their relationships are shallow and performance based. The people in the life of the perfectionist learn that as long as they perform to the standards that have been set for them things will be fine. However, the standards are on a sliding scale and it is rare to be able to meet the acceptable level of performance of the perfectionist. This is because they hold themselves to the same difficult level of performance. When they discover they cannot attain it either, then they tend to wallow in guilt and self-hatred. The desire to be perfect is so strong that they are constantly reviewing everything they say and do be sure it is the best it can be. When they realize they are fallible human beings they get very upset with themselves and are frequently unhappy people.

Perfectionists are work-a-holics. The idea of leisure is foreign to them because it is not productive and it produces guilt for whatever leisure time they take means lost opportunity for them to do something.

Some perfectionists are diagnosed with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and put on psychotropic medications. They will have angry outbursts because they fail at being perfect, they will face crushing depression because of their failures.

It is very important to understand that perfectionism is not in the Bible.

continued tomorrow...

How to Forgive

“Forgiveness is a lifting of the charge of guilt from another, a formal declaration of that fact and a promise (made and kept) never to remember the wrong against the person in the future.—Jay Adams, Theology of Christian Counseling.--

Forgiveness is not a feeling, forgiveness is an act of faith. It’s an act of the will that triumphs over the feeling to not be forgiving and the feeling to seek revenge or remain bitter.

“Forgiveness is an act of the will, and the will can function regardless of the temperature of the heart.”--Corrie Ten Boom—

It’s remembering that we ourselves are sinners who get into the kingdom not on our merit but by our Savior’s merit. We make a choice to extend grace to others on the basis of the abundance of grace we ourselves received. We choose like Joseph, like Esau, like Paul, like Stephen, like Jesus to release the offender from the sense of debt we believe we are owed by someone who hurt us. It’s like saying, “offender, you do not owe me anything, nor will I personally punish you for what you did to me. I choose to forgive this debt just as I have been forgiven my enormous debts.”

Forgiveness is a promise to not dwell on the incident mentally. This is big. A person who can successfully resist the temptation to dwell on or cherish the hurt will forgive and eventually, begin to forget. But it’s making the choice to not dwell on the incident as often as it takes. It’s choosing to remember you’ve forgiven the incident.

Promising to not dwell on the incident is the put off. The put on is Phil 4:8:

Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things. Philippians 4:8 (NASB)

Forgiveness is a promise to not bring the offense up to the person (as a weapon). This is the oil that makes a marriage run smoothly BTW. If you’ve forgiven, then shut up about it. If you haven’t you’ll constantly be bringing it up to get your digs in. It means you are bitter.

There are times when it may be productive to have a conversation about something, but that is not the same as bringing it up to hurt. If you are still talking to others about how so and so hurt you, you haven’t forgiven. You are still trying to get your pound of flesh to make them pay.

And beware of the gossipy prayer request with your friends that goes something like this, “Oh Lord help me forgive so-and-so who hurt me and did this and that..” this is thinly disguised slander. Instead go to a friend, who is enough of a friend to remind you of truth…

Forgiveness leads to reconciliation. Ken Sande of Peacemaker’s Ministries adds a fourth promise and that is to not allow the incident to stand between you and the other person or hinder your personal relationship with them.—

Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, 19namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation. 2 Corinthians 5:18-19 (NASB)

This of course is not always possible as we sometimes have to forgive people long dead or otherwise removed from our lives. Nevertheless, forgiveness from the heart opens the door wide open to reconciliation and it works when both parties seek to honor God and follow Christ rather than their own feeling of the flesh.

Adapted from RGCM’s Track 5 training on Forgiveness lesson by Bruce Roeder.

How Much Must I Forgive?

Then Peter came and said to Him, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up to seven times?” Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven. Matthew 18:21-22 (NASB)

Before you can forgive biblically, you have to understand what that means, and how it operates. You must realize that you are completely undeserving of forgiveness. You did not earn your forgiveness; you could not earn your forgiveness. We were helpless to help ourselves, and we were helpless to cause ourselves to be forgiven. Jesus forgave us all our sin, nailed it to the cross, and canceled the debts we had. This was all done by the grace of God for us.

Colossians 2:13 says about us:

When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.

Since this grace was extended to us- to you (if you have been born again) what prevents you from forgiving? Do you think you have a good enough reason to hold onto bitterness and anger and hatred? Do you think you have a right to be angry and unforgiving? What right would that be exactly? Can you point to it in the Bible? Can you truly biblically justify not forgiving someone who has hurt you, betrayed you, abused you?

I assure you, whatever injustice you have suffered – however horrible it has been- you have no biblical right or reason to be unforgiving. If the Creator of the world, the Lord Jesus Christ, forgave you (even as horrible of a sinner as you are) you are to do the same to others and forgive them. I know this can be a hard truth to swallow…I have been there…and I have by God’s grace been able to forgive. Not because I am such a “great person” but because I understand what Christ has done for me! Because I understand that I didn’t deserve forgiveness or mercy or grace either and it was given to me in abundance! I was truly an enemy of God, working for the opposition in every way imaginable and yet while I was still a sinner Christ poured His forgiveness out on me, lavished me with His grace, and overwhelmed me with His mercy. How can I refuse to forgive a person knowing that the God of the universe forgave me? How can you refuse?

“A lifetime of shallow hard heartedness and unforgiveness reveals a life has never been truly born again by the Spirit of God. You may go to church every week and sing songs and do the things that Christians do, but if this message bounces off you like BB’s against a brick wall, then you need to ask yourself how your heart got so hard. Let Jesus break through into your life and bring forth an expression of love and humility toward those people who have injured you.” James MacDonald--

The point is we are to forgive on the basis of grace and if we refuse we really do not grasp just how unmerited our own salvation is.