{"id":1340,"date":"2013-10-18T07:50:51","date_gmt":"2013-10-18T13:50:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/?p=1340"},"modified":"2013-10-18T07:50:51","modified_gmt":"2013-10-18T13:50:51","slug":"forgiveness-whats-the-big-deal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/forgiveness-whats-the-big-deal\/","title":{"rendered":"Forgiveness: What’s the BIG DEAL?"},"content":{"rendered":"

I want to share with you some things God has been teaching me about forgiveness. This is such a powerful truth that if you can grab hold of it, and learn to forgive those who have hurt you (and that might include\u00a0you<\/em>), I believe that you will begin to find real freedom in areas of your life that you have tried, and tried to be free in. It is my prayer that this truth will help you find that freedom!<\/span><\/p>\n

Let’s begin with The Lord’s Prayer<\/em>.\u00a0This is the the pattern Jesus gives us for how to pray in Matthew 6:<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

9\u00a0<\/sup>Pray like this:\u00a0Our Father in heaven,\u00a0may your name be kept holy.\u00a01<\/sup>0\u00a0<\/sup>May your Kingdom come soon.\u00a0May your will be done on earth,\u00a0as it is in heaven.\u00a011\u00a0<\/sup>Give us today the food we need,\u00a012\u00a0<\/sup>and forgive us our sins,\u00a0as we have forgiven those who sin against us.\u00a013\u00a0<\/sup>And don\u2019t let us yield to temptation,\u00a0but rescue us from the evil one.\u00a0Matthew 6:9-13 NLT<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

The Lord’s Prayer<\/em> is a pattern for how we are to pray every day. The foundation of our prayer, the ‘main thing’ is beautifully exalting God, declaring his holiness and praying for his will to be done in and through us on this earth. This should take up the majority of our prayers!<\/span><\/p>\n

Next we simply ask that our needs for this day be met. \u00a0After having spent the first part of your prayer exalting God, telling him how good and wonderful he is, it should be pretty easy to say, “Thanks for providing all that I need for this day!”<\/span><\/p>\n

Then comes this little bit about forgiveness: daily asking forgiveness of\u00a0our<\/em> sins against God, as well as the\u00a0forgiveness of the sins others committed against us<\/em>.<\/span><\/p>\n

The pattern Jesus gives us closes with our asking God to help us not yield to temptation\u00a0<\/em>and protect us from the schemes of the evil one.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Jesus makes a strong statement about forgiveness in the next two verses:<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

14\u00a0<\/sup>\u201cIf you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you.\u00a015\u00a0<\/sup>But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins. Matthew 6:14-15 NLT<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

It is worth paying attention to why forgiveness is brought up in this way. Does walking in forgiveness…\u00a0<\/span><\/h4>\n
    \n
  • affect our mandate, and ability to worship God?<\/span><\/li>\n
  • empower us to bring his kingdom to earth?<\/span><\/li>\n
  • have a role to play in our ability to receive from God all that we need for life and godliness?<\/span><\/li>\n
  • keep us free from the temptations to be prideful, greedy, lustful, envious, and bitter?<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    I believe the answer is absolutely yes.<\/span><\/h4>\n

    Jesus took upon himself the punishment for every sin that you and I have, and will commit. This means that every offense that you or I have committed, and every hurt, betrayal, and abuse that someone has done to you, was actually an offense against Jesus.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

    What is sin? Sin is the violation of something\u2019s purpose. When we sin, we are violating the way God intended life, and people, to live and function. Sin hurts people, and cuts them off from the life and relationship found in God.\u00a0<\/span>This broken relationship was such a problem for God, that Jesus came, paid the price in his own body, and set us free from the power of sin and death.<\/span><\/p>\n

    \"ChooseWhen someone hurts you, in any possible way, it is an offense against Jesus<\/em>. Jesus already took that sin, paid for it, and it is his alone to judge. When we do not forgive others, we take on the responsibility of judge for that person’s actions. This office of judge is not ours to hold! When we try to stand in this position through unforgiveness, we cannot be forgiven, because we are declaring that we have the right and authority to judge, and condemn this person for their sin. We must then also judge and condemn, or pay for, our own offenses against others, and God.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

    That sin against you is forgiven by Jesus. It was ultimately done to him, in his body, on that cross. And he forgave. We forgive in faith, letting go of the responsibility to judge that person, or their actions. We entrust them to God, who not only forgave, but enables people to live transformed lives.<\/span><\/p>\n

    If you cannot forgive another who has hurt you, God cannot forgive you, because in Christ all sin was paid for, and all sin was forgiven. When you hold onto unforgiveness, you are saying that the price paid was not enough for this<\/i> offense, for this<\/i> sin against you. If that is the case, then it is not enough, either, for your<\/i> offenses against God the Father.<\/span><\/p>\n

    Ask God to show you the people that you need to forgive. Let them go, entrust them to God. Trust God with your heart<\/em>, and your life<\/em>. He can make such beauty grow from the ashes! Don’t miss that opportunity!\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

    I will write more on this next week! Love,\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

    \"signature<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    I want to share with you some things God has been teaching me about forgiveness. This is such a powerful truth that if you can grab hold of it, and learn to forgive those who have hurt you (and that might include\u00a0you), I believe that you will begin to find real freedom in areas of<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1346,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[49,76,32,55,88,51,59],"yoast_head":"\nForgiveness: What's the BIG DEAL? Annie Callahan<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/forgiveness-whats-the-big-deal\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Forgiveness: What's the BIG DEAL? Annie Callahan\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"I want to share with you some things God has been teaching me about forgiveness. This is such a powerful truth that if you can grab hold of it, and learn to forgive those who have hurt you (and that might include\u00a0you), I believe that you will begin to find real freedom in areas of\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/forgiveness-whats-the-big-deal\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Annie Callahan\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2013-10-18T13:50:51+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/10\/forgiveness.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1600\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"616\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Annie Callahan\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Annie Callahan\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/forgiveness-whats-the-big-deal\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/forgiveness-whats-the-big-deal\/\",\"name\":\"Forgiveness: What's the BIG DEAL? Annie Callahan\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2013-10-18T13:50:51+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2013-10-18T13:50:51+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/#\/schema\/person\/6b6a35fac43c51315d8e4d35ad50f6a7\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/forgiveness-whats-the-big-deal\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/forgiveness-whats-the-big-deal\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/forgiveness-whats-the-big-deal\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Forgiveness: What’s the BIG DEAL?\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/\",\"name\":\"Annie Callahan\",\"description\":\"study, write, teach the Word of God\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/#\/schema\/person\/6b6a35fac43c51315d8e4d35ad50f6a7\",\"name\":\"Annie Callahan\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/cropped-annie-callahan-96x96.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/cropped-annie-callahan-96x96.jpg\",\"caption\":\"Annie Callahan\"},\"description\":\"I love reading, studying, teaching and preaching the Word of God! My hearts desire is to see people set free, equipped for their calling, and strengthened through the transforming power of God\u2019s Word.\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\"]}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Forgiveness: What's the BIG DEAL? Annie Callahan","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/forgiveness-whats-the-big-deal\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Forgiveness: What's the BIG DEAL? Annie Callahan","og_description":"I want to share with you some things God has been teaching me about forgiveness. This is such a powerful truth that if you can grab hold of it, and learn to forgive those who have hurt you (and that might include\u00a0you), I believe that you will begin to find real freedom in areas of","og_url":"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/forgiveness-whats-the-big-deal\/","og_site_name":"Annie Callahan","article_published_time":"2013-10-18T13:50:51+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1600,"height":616,"url":"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/10\/forgiveness.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Annie Callahan","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Annie Callahan","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/forgiveness-whats-the-big-deal\/","url":"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/forgiveness-whats-the-big-deal\/","name":"Forgiveness: What's the BIG DEAL? Annie Callahan","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/#website"},"datePublished":"2013-10-18T13:50:51+00:00","dateModified":"2013-10-18T13:50:51+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/#\/schema\/person\/6b6a35fac43c51315d8e4d35ad50f6a7"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/forgiveness-whats-the-big-deal\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/forgiveness-whats-the-big-deal\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/forgiveness-whats-the-big-deal\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Forgiveness: What’s the BIG DEAL?"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/","name":"Annie Callahan","description":"study, write, teach the Word of God","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/#\/schema\/person\/6b6a35fac43c51315d8e4d35ad50f6a7","name":"Annie Callahan","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/cropped-annie-callahan-96x96.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/cropped-annie-callahan-96x96.jpg","caption":"Annie Callahan"},"description":"I love reading, studying, teaching and preaching the Word of God! My hearts desire is to see people set free, equipped for their calling, and strengthened through the transforming power of God\u2019s Word.","sameAs":["https:\/\/anniecallahan.com"]}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1340"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1340"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1340\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1346"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1340"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1340"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/anniecallahan.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1340"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}