INCREASE OUR FAITH!
Have you ever had someone ask for forgiveness only to go back and do the same thing against you again? When a brother or sister in Christ sins against us multiple times in the same area and then comes to us in repentance, should we forgive them? Take a look at what Jesus said here:
Luke 17:1-5 Jesus said to his disciples: “Things that cause people to sin are bound to come, but woe to that person through whom they come. It would be better for him to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around his neck than for him to cause one of these little ones to sin. So watch yourselves. “If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him. If he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times comes back to you and says, ‘I repent,’ forgive him.” The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!”
When someone has sinned against you over and over and have repented over and over, sometimes we want to write them off and say, "You don't really mean business!" But writing off a struggling brother is the opposite of God and is one of the most treacherous and debilitating sins against that brother that can be waged! God says it would be better to be thrown into the sea with a big stone tied around your neck than to do such a thing! Difficult? Absolutely!
So how do we forgive in these situations? I believe the power to forgive is summed up very succinctly in this quote, “To be a Christian means to forgive the inexcusable because God has forgiven the inexcusable in you.” ― C.S. Lewis When the gravity of our sin against God is realized and the revelation of God’s forgiveness in our own lives is also realized, it will release the power to forgive those who have hurt us. With the powerful revelation of God’s forgiveness and the help of God, we can forgive! This can be a very difficult thing so this is why the disciples said, "increase our faith.” Would you pray to God today and ask him to reveal the gravity of your own sin and his consequent forgiveness? Would you open up your heart to a life-changing revelation? This is very critical for the body of Christ today! Today, as the disciples prayed, I am also praying along with you, “Lord...