Forgiveness is not something that can be expressed verbally. It’s something you do from the bottom of your heart. Many individuals claim to forgive, but they never actually do. They have a buried resentment in their hearts. Consider what it would be like if God never genuinely forgave us. What would we be doing? We belong in hell.
25 Things the Bible say about forgiveness
The only reason we are capable of forgiving others is that God first forgave us.
Forgiveness is a gift from God, and when we forgive others, we are reflecting God and His love as it was poured out on the cross of Jesus Christ.
We forgive because of Jesus. We don’t want to keep grudges considering Jesus. He is deserving of everything. You were bought at an exorbitant price.
We are unable to forgive others because of our pride.
We mistake it for weakness when it is actually a strength. When both parties are usually feeling the same way, we don’t want to appear vulnerable by being the first to apologize. We must let go of our arrogance. Why do you want to keep it? I understand how difficult it is. Pride is something that we all desire to retain. We’d sooner call it quits on the relationship than let go of our pride. That is why it is necessary for us to bring it to the Lord. God, please help me get rid of my pride. God, please restore my broken heart. We must fix our eyes on His will. We come to Him for assistance in saying what has to be spoken.
1. Proverbs 29:23 “Pride brings a person low, but the lowly in spirit gain honor.”
2. Proverbs 11:2 “When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.”
3. Proverbs 16:18 “Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.”
No one can see the Lord unless they are filled with love. The removal of pride is accomplished via love. On the cross, love was poured out. Not only should we love the person, but we should also love the Lord. “I can’t bear this resentment any longer.” I can’t bear this grudge because God’s love is so enormous.” Also, when someone sins against us, it’s frequently one of our loved ones. Even if they have wronged us, we know that we still love them, though their actions have caused us pain.
4. 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 “Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.”
5. Colossians 3:13-14 “Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.”
6. 1 Peter 4:8 “Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.”
There is a quote that says, “forgive and forget.”
Although it sounds wonderful and is great advice, it is difficult to implement. We must pray that we forget these things, although they may resurface from time to time in the back of our thoughts. What we need to do is leave it out of our speech. That is to say, never bring the subject up. It’ll wreak havoc on your relationship even more.
Love does not bring the subject up again and again. Make no attempt to turn it into a joke, as some people do. Simply forget about it. Many individuals claim to forgive, but you can tell they haven’t since they take minor issues as major issues because they are clinging to the past. They are not enraged by the minor issue, but they are enraged by the past.
They may even bring up a long list of previous events. This is a pretty regular occurrence among married couples. Keep no record of wrongdoings, just as Jesus did. Jesus is aware of our previous actions. He is aware of our sins, yet when He died on the cross, He paid for them all.
He put our sins to the side and doesn’t bring them up anymore. It is a manifestation of our Savior and His immense love when we refuse to bring up an issue with others and sincerely forgive from our hearts.
7. Proverbs 17:9 “Whoever would foster love covers over an offense, but whoever repeats the matter separates close friends.”
8. Luke 23:34 “And Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” And they cast lots to divide his garments.”
9. Hebrews 8:12 “For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.”
10. Ephesians 1:7 “In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace.”
Make amends with your brother.
There have been instances when I was praying and all I could think about was how my relationship with someone was not working out.
You try to divert your attention away from it, but it continues to gnaw at you. All you have to do now is say, “OK God, I’ll go make peace.” That doesn’t imply we should hang out with those who constantly hurt us, but it does mean we should be at peace with everyone.
It’s possible that it’s not your fault in many cases. Perhaps someone was offended by a silly situation. Perhaps you were wronged by someone. That has occurred to me many times before. Despite the fact that I had been slandered, I was the one who sought reconciliation.
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I’ve heard people say things like “I don’t need him in my life,” but that was pride talking. That should not be our mindset. If possible we should be at peace with all.
11. Matthew 5:23-24 “Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift.”
12. Romans 12:16-18 “Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited. Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.”
Unforgiveness simply serves to harm you in the long run.
Grudges lead to bitterness and hatred. Don’t go out of your way to kill someone in your head. It’s something we’ve all done before. We’ve all had unholy thoughts about those who have wronged us or done something we didn’t approve of. Unforgiveness is harmful to one’s health.
When you take your gaze away from Christ, Satan begins to throw things into your mind. Satan wants you to ponder what you should have said or done during the confrontation. He wants you to consider the topic of violence. The first thing that comes to mind should not be to raise our middle fingers.
We should immediately seek the Lord’s assistance in overcoming these evil inclinations and focusing our thoughts on Him. We must sometimes cry out to Him since the situation is painful and these demonic forces are at work.
13. Romans 12:19-21 “Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord. On the contrary: “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”
14. Proverbs 16:32 “Whoever is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city.”
15. Ephesians 4:26-27 “In your anger do not sin”: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold.”
16. Proverbs 14:29 “He who is slow to anger has great understanding, But he who is quick-tempered exalts folly.”
Unforgiveness is a sign of hatred.
17. Leviticus 19:17-18 “You shall not hate your fellow countryman in your heart; you may surely reprove your neighbor, but shall not incur sin because of him. You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the sons of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself; I am the Lord.”
18. Proverbs 10:12 “Hatred stirs up conflict, but love covers over all wrongs.”
We must not abandon others.
We are not to give up on others, just as God does not give up on us. Some people are married to alcoholics, and the alcoholic spouse keeps asking for forgiveness, which I understand is difficult for the other spouse. We must, however, forgive once more.
19. Luke 17:3-4 “Be on your guard! If your brother sins, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. And if he sins against you seven times a day, and returns to you seven times, saying, I repent, forgive him.”
Some people are unaware of the consequences of carrying a grudge.
“But you just don’t know what he did,” some people claim. Allow me to share some information with you. You have no idea what you’ve done! You’ve transgressed against a holy God! You only do one thing: sin. Even your greatest works are filthy rags, and they are never totally dedicated to God’s glory.
Even a decent judge can’t pardon a criminal like you, as the legal system demonstrates. God stepped in and took your place. On the cross, God suffered for you. God walked in your shoes and lived the life you couldn’t. Some individuals cursed Jesus in the past, but now they trust Him as their Lord and Savior.
Jesus should not have forgiven them, any more than He should have forgiven a worthless man like myself. You have no right to say that. How come you can’t forgive for that minor scenario if God can forgive murderers, blasphemers, and idolaters?
If God consigned us all to Hell, He would be just and kind. When criminals receive what they deserve in movies, we applaud. You have no right to say that. God will not show mercy to you if you can’t show mercy to others.
Unforgiveness is a sign of a skeptic. Repent. Forgive your parents, forgive that old friend, forgive your spouse, forgive your children, and forgive that church member. Don’t keep it a secret any longer. Repent.
20. Matthew 6:14-15 “For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.”
21. Matthew 5:7 “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.”
22. Ephesians 4:32 “Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.”
23. Matthew 18:24-35 “When he began to settle accounts, one who owed 10,000 talents was brought before him. Since he had no way to pay it back, his master commanded that he, his wife, his children, and everything he had be sold to pay the debt. “At this, the slave fell facedown before him and said, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you everything!’ Then the master of that slave had compassion, released him, and forgave him the loan. “But that slave went out and found one of his fellow slaves who owed him 100 denarii. He grabbed him, started choking him, and said, ‘Pay what you owe!’ “At this, his fellow slave fell down and began begging him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back. But he wasn’t willing. On the contrary, he went and threw him into prison until he could pay what was owed. When the other slaves saw what had taken place, they were deeply distressed and went and reported to their master everything that had happened. “Then, after he had summoned him, his master said to him, ‘You wicked slave! I forgave you all that debt because you begged me. Shouldn’t you also have had mercy on your fellow slave, as I had mercy on you? And his master got angry and handed him over to the jailers to be tortured until he could pay everything that was owed. So My heavenly Father will also do to you if each of you does not forgive his brother from his heart.”
Examples of forgiveness in the Bible
Saul was trying to kill David. David had the opportunity to kill Saul, but he forgave him and let the Lord handle the situation. If David can do it in his extreme situation we have no excuse.
24. 1 Samuel 24:10-12 “Behold, this day your eyes have seen that the Lord had given you today into my hand in the cave, and some said to kill you, but my eye had pity on you; and I said, ‘I will not stretch out my hand against my lord, for he is the Lord’s anointed. Now, my father, see! Indeed, see the edge of your robe in my hand! For in that I cut off the edge of your robe and did not kill you, know and perceive that there is no evil or rebellion in my hands, and I have not sinned against you, though you are lying in wait for my life to take it. May the Lord judge between you and me, and may the Lord avenge me on you; but my hand shall not be against you.”
God can fix any relationship.
Allow God to work in both you and the other party to transform a damaged situation into something beautiful. Go to Him and ask Him to move His hands in your life. God is dependable in his actions.
25. Jeremiah 32:27 “I am the LORD, the God of all mankind. Is anything too hard for me?”
Christian quotes about forgiveness
“Forgiveness is the final form of love.”
“Holding a grudge doesn’t make you strong, it makes you bitter, forgiving doesn’t make you weak, it sets you free.”
“Life becomes easier when you learn to accept an apology you never got.”
“Forgiveness does not change the past, but it does enlarge the future.”
“Forgive others as quickly as you expect God to forgive you.”
“To be a Christian means to forgive the inexcusable because God has forgiven the inexcusable in you.” C. S. Lewis
“And you know, when you’ve experienced grace and you feel like you’ve been forgiven, you’re a lot more forgiving of other people. You’re a lot more gracious to others.”
“Jesus says that those who live by God’s forgiveness must imitate it. A person whose only hope is that God will not hold his faults against him forfeits his right to hold others’ faults against them.” David Jeremiah
“Forgiveness is an act of the will, and the will can function regardless of the temperature of the heart.” Corrie Ten Boom
“Forgiveness is not a feeling; it is a commitment. It is a choice to show mercy, not to hold the offense up against the offender. Forgiveness is an expression of love.” Gary Chapman
“The grace of forgiveness, because God Himself has paid the price, is a Christian distinctive and stands splendidly against our hate-filled, unforgiving world. God’s forgiveness gives us a fresh start.” — Ravi Zacharias
“Forgiveness is the fragrance the violet sheds on the heel that has crushed it.”
“We win by tenderness. We conquer by forgiveness.” Frederick W. Robertson
“To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover that the prisoner was you.” Lewis B. Smedes
“It is just as necessary to forgive ourselves as it is to forgive others, and the principal reason why forgiveness seemed so difficult is that we have neglected to forgive ourselves.” Christian D. Larson
I’d want to add that we occasionally sin against others and are embarrassed by our deeds. We may apologize to the offended party, yet the guilt remains. Many people believe that you must forgive yourself, but this is not something that the Bible teaches.
We can either believe Satan’s falsehoods or rely upon God’s mercy and forgiveness through Christ. Accept responsibility for your mistakes, let go, and move on. Trust in the Lord and seek His assistance in dealing with this predicament as well as comprehending His grace.
