Read: Ephesians 4:25-32
Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice. Ephesians 4:31 KJV
There are things that happen in life that can cause us much pain and anguish.
We try to put the hurt behind us, but the feelings of bitterness can still linger in our hearts.
It is common for any of us to carry a bitter reminder of our past hurts.
No matter how hard we try, the memories of what has happened still remain.
Those are the times when we have to remember the words that Jesus spoke.
He knows the pains we feel.
How we have problems with letting certain things go.
How they can cause us to do things that are unbecoming.
He is warning us that all lying and corrupt communications which stir up evil desires will only grieve the Spirit of God.
That corrupt passion of bitterness, wrath, and evil speaking grieve the Holy Spirit, which abide in us.
It is to “be put away from [us], with all malice” (Ephesians 4:31 KJV).
We are not to have the desire to harm anyone.
We should not have a feeling of pleasure at someone else’s misfortune.
We are to be kind to one another.
The more we do, we set forth the principle of love in our hearts.
It is the outward expression that shows humble and respectful behavior.
There is not one of us who has not caused the Father a great amount of pain with our sins.
The Scripture tells us that we must forgive others if we are to experience God’s forgiveness (Matthew 6:14-15 KJV).
We must forgive as He has forgiven us.
When we begin to have bitter feelings, talk to the Lord about them.
Asking Him for His forgiveness and His help to forgive others.
When we begin to pray and forgive others, our pains will be lifted.
None of us should want to do anything to cause the Blessed Spirit of God to withdraw His presence and gracious influences in our lives.
The seed of forgiveness has been planted.
But in order for it to flower, the weeds of bitterness must be done away with.
The more it grows the easier it becomes to look beyond the hurt.
Take the time to talk to the Lord about your feelings.
A WORD OF PRAYER
Savior, feelings of pain and anger make it hard for us to forgive. The thoughts of the circumstances continually come to mind. Those are times we have to remember what You have told us about forgiving one another. How we are to forgive just like You have forgiven us. Our blessings are greater when we obey and follow Your lead. We really do need Your mercy and grace to forgive despite the hurt we feel. Give us the strength we need to talk to You about them. To make the changes needed in our lives. To forgive and be forgiven. We know with You all things are possible. Thank You Lord. With You all things are possible.
In Jesus’ Name We Pray, Amen