JUNE 17

OUR PERSONAL PROMISES

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Psalm 103:12

“As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us.”

Micah 7:19

“He will again have compassion on us, and will subdue our iniquities. You will cast all our sins Into the depths of the sea.”

Matthew 6:15

“But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”

1 Peter 4:8

And above all things have fervent love for one another, for “love will cover a multitude of sins.”

Proverbs 10:12

“Hatred stirs up strife, But love covers all sins.”

John 8:36

“Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.”

John 20:21

“As My father Has sent me, even so I send you.” 

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We are reading a book by Corrie ten Boom, with daily recordings she made to broadcast over Trans World Radio.  Her Dutch family  sheltered Jews during the Nazi invasion of Holland.  As a result, she, her sister Betsy and their father were taken to concentration camps in Germany. The Lord did many miracles to allow both Corrie and Betsy to bring the Gospel to the other women in their camp.   Their father was murdered in an extermination camp and Betsy was sick, dying just two weeks before Corrie and the rest were freed.  After her freedom, Corrie traveled the world, telling everyone even in remote areas, about salvation through Christ, besides radio and writing many books.  This one is entitled, “Not I, but Christ.”

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HOW OFTEN MUST I FORGIVE?

“Seventy times seven” Jesus said in Matthew 18:22.

Come on, how can that be?  It will have to be —-  because you yourself have received forgiveness more than seventy times seven times from Him who warned us:
If you forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” (Matthew 6:15).

You have prayed: “Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.” (Matthew 6:12).  If you forgive, but do not forget, your heavenly Father will do the same with your sins.  It is wonderful that in His Word He uses expressions such as “As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us.” (Psalm 103:12).

(Again, this is assuming that you have accepted Jesus’ substitution for your sins, repented (changed direction) of your sins and believe that He rose from the dead.  If not, you are still carrying your own sins and will spend eternity in hell.)

He caused our sins to disappear like a cloud.   Isn’t that great?  God throws our sins into the depths of the sea.  I like to think that He puts a “No Fishing Allowed” sign there,  and this is necessary because the devil loves to fish up forgiven sins;  he accuses us day and night.

But how can we learn to forgive like this?  A good piece of advice I can give you is this:  Immediately forgive the person who says or does anything against you  then the devil has no chance of letting a shadow remain in your heart.

I believe that Romans 5:5 is the answer: 

“The love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit which is given to us.”  Divine love forgives in your heart and in my heart.  Be filled with the Spirit of God and this fruit of the Spirit – love – will be so much stronger than annoyance, indignation, or hatred, that these are changed into forgiving, forgetting, and loving.

I must confess that I thought it was sufficient to forgive.  Forgetting I did not take seriously.  I had kept letters which recorded nasty things people had done to me, though I had forgiven them long ago.  Someone reminded me of what the Lord did with my sins:  He forgave and did away with them.  Then I burned all those letters in which other people’s sins were written, black on white.  How happy I was!  I experienced that, if the Lord Jesus makes you free, you are free indeed.

In these days we are training for the kingdom of peace that will come on the earth.  The Bible is full of promises regarding the things that are going to happen when Jesus returns.  Then the wolf will lie with the lamb, swords will be changed into plowshares, nuclear energy will be used to build up, to heal, and no longer to destroy.

Perhaps you say:  “Yes, that will be wonderful and then it will be quite easy for me, but now, there is nothing but squabbling, criticism, irritation, especially among Christians.  And what morals, what beastliness!  Yes, the world lies in evil and the prince of this world is dirty and greedy.”

That is true.  Especially in this dark world, the Lord Jesus gave us the task of passing on His love.  He said, “You are the light of the world.” In Matthew 5:14, and “As My father Has sent me, even so I send you.”  In John 20:21.

Why did God send His Son Jesus?  “To seek and to save that which was lost.” (Luke 19:10). Why did Jesus send you and me?  To seek that which was lost, and this is possible because, as He said, “Peace I leave with you.”  (John 14:27) and “Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the world (Matthew 28:20).

Hand in hand with Jesus, we shall succeed.  His love and peace are unending, and however difficult things may be, “We are more than conquerors through Him that loved us.” (Romans 8:37).

Paul was on the front line.  You can read it in the Book of Acts and in his epistles.  How much adversity and hatred, how much betrayal and slander he had to suffer!  In Romans 8:35 he says, “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?  Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?”

He could also say, “For your sake we are killed all the day long: we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.” (Romans 8:36).

But then he exults:  “In all these things we are more than conquerors through Him that loved us.  For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:37-39).

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Lord, please teach me always to forgive everyone, whatever they may do to me and to burn all the sins of others that I have recorded in black and white.  Thank you that your peace in my heart is more than sufficient, yes, that it is overflowing.  Hallelujah!  Amen!

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