THE POWER OF FORGIVENESS Greg Laurie harvest.org 2 Samuel 9 The Bible teaches that we should forgive our enemies. Just as God lovingly and graciously extended His forgiveness to us, so should we extend it to others. Forgiving others is beneficial for both our physical health and our spiritual health; we disobey God’s commandment when we choose not to forgive. In 2 Samuel 9, we see David’s example of extending grace to Mephibosheth—a powerful, simple, sweet, and poignant story of forgiveness. PRACTICAL PRINCIPLES 1. Don’t let another person form your view of God. Find out for yourself who God is. Until Mephibosheth actually met David, his idea of the king was skewed. In the same way, a lot of people think that God is out to get them. 2. Forgive your enemies if they deserve it or not. David could have rightfully engaged in payback on the house of Saul, but he chose instead to forgive. Leave vengeance to the Lord and treat your enemies as friends. 3. Leave the past in the past. David was mistreated and misrepresented during his life, but he did not allow that to affect his actions. Remember that God can take what appears to be a bad thing and turn it into a good thing. RELEVANT REMINDERS • Just as David sought out Mephibosheth to extend grace, so God is still seeking out those who cannot help themselves. God offers us a invitation to fellowship with Him at the “King’s table.” • Mephibosheth had nothing to offer David. He deserved nothing from David, and he could repay nothing to David. That describes our state before God. APPLICABLE ACTIONS Grace is a demonstration of love that is undeserved, unearned, and un-repayable. Who can you extend grace to today? Is there someone you need to forgive?
Posted on: Mon, 24 Mar 2014 12:49:44 +0000
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