Forgive Even If You Never Forget

 December 8, 2024

Sunday

Matthew 6:14–15 (NASB 2020) ¹⁴ “For if you forgive other people for their offenses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. ¹⁵ But if you do not forgive other people, then your Father will not forgive your offenses.

You forgive but you can't forget. Some think that forgetting is the true test of forgiveness but it isn't. Forgetting a wrong is dementia not forgiveness. Forgiveness would mean very little if it was merely forgetting. The wrong that was committed against you has left a deep wound. The wound must heal. It will never heal without forgiveness. Healing is more than forgetting the pain. It is knowing that the pain was caused and never bringing it up again. That is much more than a human can do by himself.

Every human being was created in the image of God. That image has been indelibly imprinted on us with the characteristics of God. However, each and every one of those characteristics were corrupted when we sinned. Yes, all have that sin nature passed down to them from Adam. We have made justice into revenge. Revenge is never satisfied. Revenge does more than remembers. It consciously brings up the hurts and rehearses them to make them worse than they originally were. Those who hold onto revenge have corrupted the image of God who forgives so severely that they cannot come into His presence. They reject the forgiveness of God because that will require that they forgive.

Do Christians have trouble forgiving? Absolutely, but they will be chased by their unforgiveness if they truly belong to the Lord. He will continue to remind them. He will continue to convict them. They will be tortured by their unforgiveness. 

When the moment comes that they forgive, they will still remember. They will also remember that they have forgiven that hurt against them. They will accept the characteristic and strength of God to forgive. It will be a testimony of God working inside of them. They will know His presence and His strength will flow through them. They will be released from their torment. They will still remember what was done if they are asked about it. They just won't force themselves to bring it up. They won't rehearse the pain. They won't continue to fall into the pit of revenge.

Don't expect to forget what happened to you. Your ability to forgive yet remember will be the true strength of God's forgiveness in you. When you know how He forgave what was done to you, you will know what His forgiveness is like when He forgave you.