One of Jesus’ most poignant instructions on forgiveness is when Peter asks Jesus how many times he should forgive. Peter is being generous with his suggestion of seven times. Traditional Rabbinic teaching required that an offended person only forgive an offender three times.

Jesus essentially said that no limits on forgiveness apply when we consider the depth and extent to which we have been forgiven by God. Each of us is like the first servant in Jesus’ parable whose debt before God is so large, and forgiven, that we have no grounds for withholding forgiveness from anyone.

Pastor Jentezen has mentioned severally, “Holding onto unforgiveness is like drinking poison.” You think unforgiveness punishes the person that hurt you, but in true humility we are called to forgive, for healing comes through words like Jesus spoke on the cross, ”Father forgive them they do not know what they do.” (Luke 23:34)

In this week’s movie ‘Warrior’, Tommy humbly forgave his father when his father cried out, “We are lost and will never get it back.” The enemy lies to us because the truth is, we are never too far gone for God’s love to heal. Just like Tommy, decide it’s time to fight for your relationships and in true humility forgive those who have offended and hurt you.

Dear Heavenly Father,

I make a fresh commitment to You to live in peace and harmony, not only with my brothers and sisters in the body of Christ, but also with my family, friends, neighbors and coworkers. I repent of holding on to bad feelings toward others. I ask for forgiveness and by faith I receive it, having assurance I am cleansed from all unrighteousness through Jesus Christ. I ask You to forgive and release all who have wronged and hurt me and to show mercy and loving kindness toward them. I forgive and release them, and from this moment on, I purpose to walk in love, to seek peace, to live in agreement, and to conduct myself toward others in a manner that is pleasing to You. In the Name of Jesus, I pray. Amen.

Pray today’s prayer again, filling in the names of those you need to forgive and mentioning the offense. Truly release them and release the offense to God, then pray for God to lead them to truly walk with Him. Pray over them each day. It may be hard at first, but as you continue, it really does become easier as your heart softens for them. Make it a habit to do this every time you feel you’ve been wronged.