HF151 - The Healing in Forgiveness
To: Hebraic-Foundations@yahoogroups.com
From: "Pastor Buddy Martin" <Bro.Buddy@ChristianChallenge.org>
Date: Tue Oct 18, 2005
Subject: Bible Study HF151 - The Healing in Forgiveness
Hebraics,
It happened 25+ years ago. I was ministering for a brother who had a storefront church. (Christian Challenge was quite young.) My series was on forgiveness. At the end of the series, I invited folks to stand as I led them in a prayer of forgiveness. I ask them to call out the name of the person they needed to forgive. As we began to pray, suddenly I heard the metal chairs scattering. I saw a lady was on the floor.
But she quickly jumped up and was beside herself with joy. She said that when she called out the name of the person she needed to forgive, it was like a tremendous load had lifted off her. The lifted load caused her to stumble backward.
This was only part of her joy. She had suffered with osteoarthritis for a number of years. All the pain was gone. Was she truly healed? I've seen this lady over the years and she holds fast to her testimony of healing.
Let's see if there is anything to this issue of forgiveness in how it can affect our lives in more ways than one.
This is Bible Study HF151 - The Healing in Forgiveness.
In my 40+ years of ministry I have seen a great many healings. Many of them came as a direct result of forgiveness. In all this I reached the conclusion that the single most important factor in a believer's life is to learn to make peace with the past.
Before I share a few Scriptures that apply to this issue, let me simply say upfront that I do not believe sickness or disease is necessarily the result of personal failure in someone's life, but it can be. We live in a disease driven world. Yet a truth remains. Some afflictions are personally induced. Some may even come from the Lord Himself.
Is there Biblical precedent for a person having a physical disorder as a result of harboring unforgiveness, resentments, bitterness or some form of ill will towards others. Yes, the Bible does teach that these things can be the root cause for certain physical ailments. In many cases our physical well-being does respond to our spiritual well-being. The Bible plainly teaches that our life originates in our heart. (We grow from the inside out.)
The sage said, "My son, give attention to my words; incline your heart to my sayings. Do not let them depart from your sight; keep them in the midst of your heart. For they are life to those who find them and health to all their body. Watch over your heart with all diligence, for from it flow the SPRINGS (outgoings) of life." (Pro4:20-23)
The Hebrew word for 'springs' is the word 'tosaah.' This is a geographical word. It speaks of a boundary or a source. Its reflective meaning addresses 'goings forth' or 'outgoings.' The point is that what we have in our hearts will determine the boundaries or the outgoing of our own life. Thus we give shape to our own life by what is in our own heart.
David draws attention to this with regard to the man who refuse to bless others, but only curses. Listen carefully:
"Because he did not remember to show lovingkindness, but persecuted the afflicted and needy man, and the despondent in heart, to put them to death. He also loved cursing, so it came to him; and he did not delight in blessing, so it was far from him. But he clothed himself with cursings as with his garment, and it entered into his body like water and like oil into his bones. It came to him as a garment which he covers himself..." (Psalm 109:16-19)
His cursings defiled his own body like the swelling of water and the pain in the joints. Water here probably reflects on the waters of bitterness a woman was made to drink to show whether she was guilty of adultery. If she was guilty the water caused a swelling in her stomach and her generative parts would be diseased. This is why it was called the water of bitterness. (Cf. Num5)
We don't have this law of the 'waters of bitterness' today, but we do have a warning about harboring bitterness in our lives. The New Testament addresses bitterness in the same category as immorality. Notice Hebrews 12:14-16;
"Pursue peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many be defiled; that no immoral or godless person like Esau, who sold his own birthright for a single meal."
It would be good to break this portion down. Pursuing peace addresses the peace of God's kingdom. We are to be makers of peace when it is in our power to do so. The statement about sanctification was address to the Jewish peoples who were wavering over their faith in Jesus. This sanctification is only given to true believers. It is the work of the cross and of the blood of Jesus.
But then we have the 'root of bitterness'. Here a connection is made with the sin of Esau. Esau held a grudge against Isaac. It began to consume his thinking. He was a bitter man and his bitterness likely affected his whole household. That is the way bitterness works. It defiles those around us.
There is no reason to pursue the Esau situation. Lets simply look at how this may apply to a believer today. I did not read the earlier statement about how bitterness can create an excessive burden in a believer's life, and how that this area concerning bitterness can call from the discipline of the Lord.
Now the afore Scriptures:
"All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful .... Therefore, strengthen the hands that are weak and the knees that are feeble, and make straight paths for your feet, so that the limb which is lame may not be put out of joint, but rather be healed." (vv12,13)
I realize this is metaphoric language, yet it does call attention to some of the burdens than can weigh a believer down as a result of unforgiveness and resentments. It also reflects on the physical side of our life. Is it not possible that some of our physical ailments are a result of the bitterness we carry. Cannot our hands become weak and our knees become feeble? Can bitterness of soul and spirit work its way into our joints? Just something to think about.
Both Paul and Peter speak to this. Let's tie some Scriptures together:
[Paul] "For this reason many among you are weak and sick, and a number sleep. But if we judged ourselves rightly, we would not be judged." --- The background for this is the Lord's table, but its directive is to those who were resentful of others --- 1Co11:22-34.
[Peter] "Therefore, putting aside all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander, like newborn babies, long for the pure milk of the word, so that by it you may grow in respect to salvation." (1Pe2:1,2)
We don't always catch what Peter is saying. Where Peter speaks of the 'pure milk' of the word, he is speaking of milk that is unadulterated, that is, the pureness of God's Word that is without mixture with the things that need to be put aside; malice, deceit, etc.
As a country boy I can give an example of what pure milk is not. In the south we have what is called bitter weeds. A cow will sometimes make these weeds part of her diet. If you drink milk from a cow of this sort, believe me, you will spew the milk out of your mouth as quick as it entered. The milk is filled with bitterness. Yet the milk itself looks perfectly good.
There is where bitterness can become a defiling thing in our life. Most bitterness is a result of not having forgiven someone. We carry the unforgiveness in our heart. It is not a matter of whether the person deserves forgiveness, or even if they have asked for forgiveness. It is a matter of keepings one's own spiritual life pure.
We have a perfect example of this on the cross. Jesus said, "Father, forgive them. For they don't know what they are doing." We also hear this with the first Christian martyr. Stephen said, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them!" In neither case were the peoples asking for forgiveness.
When Jesus said, "Father, forgive them," was this not the message of the cross? Are we not forgiven on the basis of a life exchange with Jesus? Jesus gave His life up for us. Are we not to learn to live in this flow of forgiveness? Are we not to forgive?
What many don't realize is that unforgiveness is a sin. Why so? It is a sin because we are under commandment to forgive. We are also under commanded to walk in love the way Jesus walked. The Lord pointed out that a powerful faith walk revolves around forgiveness. He said, "Whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father who is in heaven will also forgive you your transgressions." (Mark 11:25)
Back to the scattered chairs and the lady who was healed of osteoarthritis. Who did she need to forgive? She shared with me that it was her husband. He had continually mistreated her over the years of their marriage. When she took it upon herself to forgive him, then came her healing and deliverance.
There is much more to be said both from the Bible and hopefully by additional discussion on forgiveness. Let me simply reemphasize something I said at the front of the study; "I reached the conclusion that the single most important factor in a believer's life is to learn to make peace with the past."
Unless we learn to make peace with the past, we will indeed suffer in the now. Are you free from the past? Is there something you need to let go? Feel free to make observations or ask questions.
Blessings,
Buddy
Lawrence E. (Buddy) Martin, HF Host
email: Bro.Buddy@ChristianChallenge.org
Web:
http://www.christianchallenge.org/
"See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many be defiled." (Heb12:15)