TRAMPLED UNDER FOOT

The saying:

Forgiveness... is like the fragrance a flower gives off...

when it has been trampled under foot.

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Isaiah 53:4-5

Surely He [Christ prophesied] took up our infirmities

and carried our sorrows,

yet we considered Him stricken by God,

smitten by Him, and afflicted.
But He was pierced for our transgressions,

He was crushed for our iniquities;

the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him,

and by His wounds we are healed.

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God's love for us transcended through the forgiveness of our sins - by way of - Jesus Christ and the blood that He shed on the cross on our behalf.

Even God had to forgive in order to make His love known to us.

Love goes hand-in-hand with forgiveness.

They cannot be separated.

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Numbers 14 (selected)

18 'The LORD is slow to anger, abounding in love and forgiving sin and rebellion. Yet He does not leave the guilty unpunished; He punishes the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation.' 19 In accordance with your great love, forgive the sin of these people, just as you have pardoned them from the time they left Egypt until now."

2 Corinthians 2 (selected)

Paul's Letter to the Corinthians [Paul's example to us]

4 For I wrote you out of great distress and anguish of heart and with many tears, not to grieve you but to let you know the depth of my love for you.
Forgiveness for the Sinner

5 If anyone has caused grief, he has not so much grieved me as he has grieved all of you, to some extent—not to put it too severely. 6 The punishment inflicted on him by the majority is sufficient for him. 7 Now instead, you ought to forgive and comfort him, so that he will not be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow. 8 I urge you, therefore, to reaffirm your love for him. 9 The reason I wrote you was to see if you would stand the test and be obedient in everything. 10 If you forgive anyone, I also forgive him. And what I have forgiven—if there was anything to forgive—I have forgiven in the sight of Christ for your sake,

Matthew 6: 14-15 [a stern warning]

For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.

Luke 7:47-48

Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven—for she loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little."
Then Jesus said to her, "Your sins are forgiven."

Sometimes there is but one person in our lives that we just can't seem to forgive. In our own efforts we have tried over and over, to no avail. Today - picture that person's face in your mind. Look up and see that person in mid-air. Now picture Christ Jesus in your mind. Then - hold His face in mid-air - OVER top of that person that you cannot seem to forgive. You will never look at them again without seeing Christ first. He loves them. You can love them through Him. Practice that exercise for as long as it takes until the forgiveness is complete. It shouldn't take long for you to forgive them - and to begin to walk in the newness and freedom that forgiveness brings. Do it - today!

Looking Upward and Choosing JOY [and forgiveness],

Stephanie

[Flying High with the Most High]