Yesterday, we began a new series, Hostage. While God created us to live in freedom (Galatians 5:1), there are many things that seek to hold us captive. God desires for us to break free from these deadly things that hold us hostage and hinder us from living the life that God created us to enjoy.
Bitterness is one of them. Bitterness has a dangerous root that starts and grows within the soil of a wounded heart when hurt and offense haven’t been properly dealt with. It is a poisonous fruit that can destroy our relationships and our lives.
From my own experience, I know that when I’ve been hurt, there is that sense that something has been taken from me. Bitterness says, “You owe me!”
The only way bitterness can be killed in our hearts is by processing our hurt, releasing it and making a choice to forgive. Forgiveness says, “You don’t owe me anymore!”
We had hurt and offended God. We owed him a debt that we could never repay. On the cross, Jesus canceled our debt and said, “You don’t owe me anymore.” He now asks for us to forgive others as He forgave us.
Louis Smedes, in The Art of Forgiving, wrote, “When we forgive, we set a prisoner free and discover that the prisoner we set free is us.”
Holding on to our bitterness and anger doesn’t affect the person who hurt us, but it will hold us hostage and destroy our life. The shrapnel from our anger and bitterness will eventually seep out and wound those we love the most.
We find strength to forgive when we shift our focus from what others have done to us to what Christ has done for us.
Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. (Ephesians 4:31-32)
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