No grudges allowed...

Thankfully, I have never been one to hold a grudge. It's not that I have never wanted to... my sinful flesh sometimes likes the idea of remaining bitter or even being vengeful when I have been hurt or betrayed. But thankfully God has made it impossible for me to stay mad at people for too long. In the moment, it seems annoying. I think "I want to be mad at you. You don't deserve my forgiveness." But for some reason, God has given me a heart that can't really hold a grudge, and it is a HUGE blessing, even when my sinful heart doesn't really appreciate it.

The Bible speaks boldy about grudges. They are not allowed in the Christian life. Colossians says the Christian life should look like this: "bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other, as the Lord has forgiven you, so you must also forgive." (3:13). It's not that we won't ever be hurt or wronged by a Christian brother or sister. We will be. The Bible is pretty clear that as we live in the flesh, we will be wounded by friends and family, even by people who love the Lord, but fall short at times.

What should be our response? To bear with each other's failings. To forgive. It seems like a difficult task, and it is, but it is also possible because of Christ. Jesus has forgiven our utter betrayal of him. He is perfect and loves us completely, yet we fail Him time and time again. But that cross of forgiveness is always there. Always prepared to bear our sins. So we too, with grateful hearts, should forgive those who sin against us.

There have been lots of Christian analogies about bitterness and unforgiveness. The first one that comes to mind is that bitterness is like a cancer of the soul. While this is not straight out of Scripture, the author of Hebrews does warn his readers to make sure "no root of bitterness springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled." (12:15). Clearly, there is something poisonous about bitterness, and unforgiveness can be harmful to the church. So obey God today... bear and forgive...because you have a Savior who has done the same thing for you at a far more drastic price.