Living in the Blessing includes walking in forgiveness.
Living in the Blessing Lesson # 5 Walking in Forgiveness part 1
2 Peter 1:2 Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, 3 as His divine power has given to us all things that [pertain] to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, 4 by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption [that is] in the world through lust.
Union with Jesus Christ and divine influence is multiplied in the knowledge of God. Not the intellectual comprehension but the knowing of intimate fellowship with God in sweet relationship with Him. Through this sweet fellowship we have been given exceedingly great and precious promises; this divine relationship with Him brings you to participating in the abundant life He has provided
Ephesian 1:3 Blessed [be] the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly [places] in Christ, 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, 5 having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.
The Blessed Father has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in Christ Jesus; we have a heavenly sitting with Christ Jesus. Chosen, adopted, and accepted in the Beloved; this is the Father’s plan of reconciliation for us. The enemy of our soul would love to hinder you and I from fully participating living in the blessing. One of his greatest schemes is drawing us to walk apart from forgiveness.
Hebrews 6:17 Thus God, determining to show more abundantly to the heirs of promise the immutability of His counsel, confirmed [it] by an oath,
The counsel of God is immutable indeed; satan cannot curse what God has blessed. However, if the lies of the enemy keep your heart in a state of woundedness, he can prevent you from living in the blessing.
Mark 11:24 "Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive [them], and you will have [them]. 25 "And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may also forgive you your trespasses. 26 "But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses."
Leave your prayer closet if you have anything against another and forgive them. Jesus said it, forgiveness is imperative … neither will your Father… Do not cast this teaching to the swine; allow it to be applied to your heart.
John 20:21 So Jesus said to them again, "Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you." 22 And when He had said this, He breathed on [them], and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 "If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the [sins] of any, they are retained."
The power of forgiveness has been found after Jesus was raised from the grave. Jesus came with peace; peace to you! When Jesus said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit.” Right here was the transformation that could not be achieved without the work of the cross. For the first time the spirit to Spirit connection was made. Hence, the power they did not have moments before was now bestowed upon them. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sin of any they are retained by you. God is enamored with the believer walking in forgiveness because of the truths revealed here. If you retain the sin of another it will hinder you from living in the blessing. If you release the sin of any it will no longer hold any power over you.
Matthew 6:9 "In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. 10 Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as [it is] in heaven. 11 Give us this day our daily bread. 12 And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors. 13 And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen. 14 "For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 "But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
In teaching the disciples how to pray it was clear forgiveness is so important and cannot be skipped over.
Matthew 5:23 "Therefore if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, 24 "leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.
Your gift to God is not as important as you walking in forgiveness.
1 Timothy 2:5 For [there is] one God and one Mediator between God and men, [the] Man Christ Jesus, 6 who gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time, 7 for which I was appointed a preacher and an apostle--I am speaking the truth in Christ [and] not lying--a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth. 8 I desire therefore that the men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting;
Some false doctrines have given the power of forgiving sins to another besides Jesus Himself. That is not the power of forgiveness we have been given. It is, will we retain in our heart the offense or release the offense? The forgiveness of sin to the cleansing of the soul is exclusively found in Jesus. He is the one true Mediator between God and man; another mediator is not needed. He alone stands as our High Priest. Because He has forgiven us we can indeed lift up holy hands, without wrath and doubting.
Colossians 3:12 Therefore, as [the] elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; 13 bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also [must do]. 14 But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection.
As the elect of God we have the ability to forgive one another; we are called the beloved and we can put on tender mercies. The deposit that God put in us at salvation, brings the ability to walk in the bond of perfection of love. Because Jesus has forgiven us we can forgive.
Ephesians 4:31 Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice. 32 And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.
Unforgiveness make our heart not tender toward God. Unforgiveness is poison that lingers in our soul and affects the condition of our heart.
Genesis 27:34 When Esau heard the words of his father, he cried with an exceedingly great and bitter cry, and said to his father, "Bless me--me also, O my father!"
Esau walked in unforgiveness for many years and it lead to bitterness of spirit and tainted every relationship with everyone.
Hebrews 12:14 Pursue peace with all [people], and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord: 15 looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled; 16 lest there [be] any fornicator or profane person like Esau, who for one morsel of food sold his birthright. 17 For you know that afterward, when he wanted to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no place for repentance, though he sought it diligently with tears.
Circumstances beyond your control may be the source of the hurt, ill choices others made that landed you squarely in the mess, or like Esau family, members playing the favorite game. Bitterness of heart, no matter the source, can cause blindness of spirit. God may be doing great things for us but our vision is blurred by the bitterness and we cannot see it. Unforgiveness always leads to bitterness of soul and defiles all who are touched by it. The fall of Esau was unforgiveness that lead to bitterness of spirt. Not only did the birthright get forfeited but the blessing was lost and could not be restored.
More next week’s lesson Living in the Blessing walking in forgiveness part 2