Practical Steps to Forgiveness

When someone hurts us or the ones we love, our natural instinct is to seek revenge. Hurt leads to anger. Pride begins giving us instructions on how to get back at the person who wronged us. In such a bleak scenario, how is it possible for a person to forgive?

Forgiveness does not come naturally to the human heart. It is a divine response to a deeply human wound. The journey toward forgiveness begins not with our strength, but with God’s grace.

The Foundation of Forgiveness

“And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.” (Ephesians 4:32)

The act of forgiveness is firmly rooted in the Christian faith, where Christ’s sacrifice serves as the ultimate model. By dying on the cross, Christ paid a debt we could never repay ourselves, offering forgiveness freely to all.

This fundamental truth reminds us that every act of forgiveness we extend is simply a reflection of the forgiveness we have already received from God. We forgive not because the other person deserves it, but because we ourselves have been forgiven.

Forgiveness flows vertically from God to us, and horizontally from us to others.

1. Forgiveness Through the Power of the Holy Spirit

True forgiveness is anchored in the divine and surpasses human capacity. Left to ourselves, we cling to resentment. But the Holy Spirit within us empowers and guides us to forgive, even when it seems impossible.

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.” (Galatians 5:22–23)

Forgiveness is not merely a decision of the mind; it is fruit produced by the Spirit. As we yield to Him, bitterness begins to lose its grip, and grace starts to grow in its place.

2. Forgiveness Through Prayer

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbour and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you.” (Matthew 5:43–45)

Prayer is a powerful tool in the process of forgiveness. Jesus did not merely suggest loving enemies He commanded it. And He gave us a practical pathway: pray for them.

When we pray for those who hurt us, something shifts within us. Prayer aligns our hearts with God’s heart. It softens the hardened edges of resentment. It enables us to see people not only through the lens of our pain, but through the lens of grace.

Often, the person who changes most during prayer is not the offender it is us.

3. Forgiveness Through Faith

“For we walk by faith, not by sight.” (2 Corinthians 5:7)

Walking by faith means trusting God’s larger plan, even when it contradicts our emotions. Forgiveness through faith involves surrendering our hurt, our desire for revenge, and our sense of justice into God’s hands.

Faith declares: God sees. God knows. God will judge rightly.

Instead of taking matters into our own hands, we trust the righteous Judge. Faith releases the burden of vengeance and replaces it with confidence in God’s perfect justice.

4. Forgiveness Through Humility

“Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; bearing with one another, and forgiving one another… even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do.” (Colossians 3:12–13)

Humility is the soil in which forgiveness thrives. When we recognize how much we ourselves have been forgiven, pride loses its voice.

Humility reminds us that we stand daily in need of grace. The more aware we are of God’s mercy toward us, the more willing we become to extend mercy to others.

Forgiveness is often the fruit of remembering who we were before Christ and who we are because of Him.

Forgiveness: A Continuous Journey

Forgiveness is not a one-time act but a continual posture of the heart. It does not condone the wrong or erase the pain. Rather, it frees us from the prison of bitterness and the exhausting cycle of anger.

It is possible to forgive while still acknowledging the wound. It is possible to forgive while still healing. Forgiveness does not deny justice it entrusts justice to God.

As we embrace these biblical principles through the Holy Spirit, prayer, faith, and humility we begin to walk a path toward healing and peace.

May we always remember the depth of forgiveness we have received in Christ. And may we reflect that same grace to others, becoming living testimonies of God’s transforming love in a wounded world.

Bible Reading: Number 26-28

Practical Steps to Forgiveness

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