The POWER of Forgiveness

Hello, my name is John Humenik. Welcome to the channel. I'm so excited that you're here. I'm going to be covering the topic of unforgiveness and the power it has over you until you release it. If you know someone who's suffering through this, please share this video with them. It will bless them greatly. Let's hop right into it. The keystone scripture that I'm going to talk about today comes from Ephesians chapter 4, verses 31 to 32, and it talks about Getting rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior. Instead, be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another just as God through Christ has forgiven you. Now, on the surface, you might think, well, is this really a forgiveness set of verses? But it is because there are aspects of forgiveness that we don't realize that we carry. So let's reread this again and dive into it really well, because what he's talking about today is Paul's talking about getting rid of bitterness, getting rid of rage, anger, and harsh words and slander and all types of evil behavior. And then he talks about forgiveness. Now you have to understand is Paul is in jail when he writes this letter. It's approximately around 60 to 62 AD while he was in Rome. So think about it from his perspective. He's writing about leaving behind bitterness, malice, unkindness, and being loving and kind to one another, and he's in jail. Now, how is a person who's in jail going to be able to have the posture of a heart to be able to move forward in unforgiveness? And that was done through Jesus Christ. And what Jesus does is he teaches you through the scriptures that you can steward people on earth Forgiving them of the sins, the mistakes, and mishaps that they've done against you, because grace is sufficient enough. Forgiveness is the key to unlock the healing that's been hidden in your life. It releases your soul from the chains that you've unknowingly carried throughout life. Now, what we want to talk about here today is very important because this is a part of life that a lot of people Don't get is, is they want to harbor unforgiveness towards a single person or a group of people for numerous reasons. But the problem is, is what that does is allows them to live in your mind rent-free. You get to dwell on them, you get to think about them, you get to understand, oh wow, these things are dominating my thoughts. And all of a sudden, you can't live life the way God wants you to live. Jesus came to set you free. That's what he talks about. I came to give them life and life abundantly. He who knows the truth knows freedom because the truth sets you free. Whenever you are harboring any form of unforgiveness, no matter how great it is, you are allowing those people to live in your mind rent-free, taking away precious cycles of days and times away from the things God wants for you in your life. And it's really, Really crippling. And this is a key part because those who don't understand how forgiveness unlocks healing, you have to understand is, is this is both mental healing, emotional healing, physical healing. There's a lot of things there because God wants you to be free. That's who you are. So in order to surrender the thoughts of forgiveness, you have to understand that every single time that thought of that person, that situation, That trauma that comes back into your mind, you have an opportunity to re-forgive them until it's gone. This is part of the secret in order to being set free, because when you are caught in this cycle, whatever that person may have done— and I'm sure there are some people watching this video right now that have suffered through serious traumas. They've probably been through physical trauma. They've probably had all forms of sexual abuse. They've had All kinds of physical abuse, maybe mental abuse, verbal abuse. You know, I've been through this. I know you've been through this, at least in some form. And it's very, very hard to be able to, to say, you know what, I forgive that person. I allow that person to be yielded back up to Jesus Christ and pray for them because it's a difficult thing because a lot of people want justice for the pain that they've suffered. Even if it's not necessarily directed towards you, but you've received it in some form because of a mistake upstream of you or through maybe a government official or even a family member. And so it's so important that you surrender the thoughts of unforgiveness every single time to Jesus Christ. Don't forget the things you need to remember because God will bring back to the things that you have to remember so that you can let it go. And it's so important because it's key. And that number one step is to give it up now, to step into the better, to let the circumstances, no matter what had happened, to just let it pass, give it back up to God. Because the reality is, is when you forgive someone, you're not approving of what they did. In fact, you may not even have seen justice for what they did, but what you are doing is you're no longer holding yourself prisoner to the pain of the past. Because what happens is, is when you do that, that steals your peace. That's right. Your destiny is too big you to cling to the problem that occurred to you 5 weeks ago, 5 years ago, or even for some of you, maybe even 50 years ago. Don't let it dim your light with unforgiveness, because what'll happen is, is it'll set a root in your heart and in your mind. And what'll happen is, is you will literally react and act differently in situations that God doesn't want you to. Let those people go. Don't let those people dwell in your thoughts, taking up precious time and space. You have to be intentional. Every single opportunity that you get to think about that situation is another opportunity you can forgive that person, forgive that situation, forgive that people group, and move on. And I know that can be really difficult for people in different stages of unforgiveness, especially if it's so raw and it's recently happened. But these are the things that God teaches you. Because he's calling you to a higher place. When you understand your identity in Christ, who Jesus sees you are, this is not who you are. This is not what he wants you to think about. This is not what he wants you to do. He doesn't want you reacting differently. I even think about it from the perspective of, imagine if this is someone like a neighbor that had— they did this to you. Are you still walking past their house? Are you driving around a different way? Don't look at the situation that you're in and say, wow, this sucks. But what you have What you have to do is you've got to intentionally release those emotions. Pray over your enemies. Pray over— even if it's your brothers and sisters in Christ, bless them. Because God knows and shows that the moment you do so, you are ascending in a spiritual level maturity that proves that you are taking the higher road. You are holy. You are righteous. That's who your identity is. That's how you move forward. And the reality is this, and hear me about this. Forgiveness is the gift you give yourself before anyone deserves it. It's so powerful. Forgiveness is the gift you give yourself before you give it to anyone else, because you are choosing to heal even if justice feels unfinished. Even if justice is unfinished, maybe they haven't been addressed, maybe their sin hasn't been punished. Maybe if it's so grievous that they're not in jail or that process hasn't been finished, the reality is, is you're choosing to move on and relinquish that hurt. Putting it on that sacrificial altar of Jesus Christ and allowing you to move on. Because the reality is, is when you forgive people, it doesn't diminish or change what they've done to you. But what it does, it allows you to reclaim your peace, activate that supernatural peace in your life, and allow you to move forward without the burdens that you're carrying. Now, if you're probably wondering, if you're wondering why are you not moving from faith to faith and glory to glory? Why are you not accelerating in the calling that God has on your life? This could be a core area in which it happens, because remember, it talks about this in scripture. It even talks about this in the Lord's Prayer. It talks about how forgiveness is a cornerstone to how Christians are supposed to walk out their lives. And the reality is, is that you don't even realize that you have chains on your wrists and on your ankles until grace lifts them off of you. Until the Holy Spirit says, hey, it's time to forgive this person. And it's the— and it's very hard, especially if that person is a spouse or a parent, someone that may have hurt you over and over again, maybe sometimes not even being aware of it. Because a lot of times people hurt you and they don't even know. Because what forgiveness truly does, it activates the blessings that need to be awakened in your life right now, and that they're just sitting dormant until that happens. And it's hard for you to receive Those blessings if you've got a heart that's continually hurt by something that's happened in the past, because you need to understand that when you do and walk in this life, that you're supposed to be up and forward thinking. It's always that. It's it's two directions. It's forward and up, and it's so important because you can't allow a piece of you to cling to the past. Much like Lot's wife when she turned around as Sodom and Gomorrah is getting destroyed, she. Yearned to be back in a town that's literally lit on fire. She would rather go back and enjoy the torment of the flames than the calling of the future. And you see that, and don't do that to yourself because you are called to be something greater. You are called to be set free, and these things bind you. And believe it or not, even the slightest bit of unforgiveness will hold you back from some of the things God wants in your life. Even if you've forgiven someone 7 times or 10 times or even 20 times, if it's not fully out of you and you're still lingering on it, you got to keep going into prayer and giving it back to God until it's completely released. Because the reality is, is point number 2 is you can turn those wounds, those very things that hurt you, into wellsprings of growth and of life. Because what happens is, is that it allows those moments to power you to go forward rather than look backward. There is no rearview mirror in the kingdom. And the thing about it is, is a lot of people don't understand is there's no rearview mirror for both good and bad in the kingdom of God. What you've done yesterday is in the past, and that's it, and it's complete. What you're about to do and you're going forward is all about the newness and greatness of God, because that's the key. It's so important. And so when you take your wounds that you've held of unforgiveness and you turn them in forgiveness and you bless your enemies and you bless the people that have hurt you, even if they're not your enemies, what happens is, is that becomes a wellspring of peace, a wellspring of joy, a wellspring of love and of grace. Because the reality is No one deserves to have that much power over your future. Imagine if they're able to continue to dictate how you feel about them for the rest of their life. Imagine the pain of someone who may have physically hurt you, maybe verbally hurt you, maybe done something that just traumatized you for decades and decades. All of those situations that have occurred since then, you're reacting through that hurt. You're reacting through that pain. And no one, no one deserves to have that kind of power over you. They should not dictate how you feel. They should not dictate how you should act and the words that come out of your mouth. Because if you're operating through a hurt heart, everyone around you is experiencing that form of the pain, even if it's slight, even if you don't know it. That's the thing about unforgiveness. That's the negative power that it has over your life, because it can dictate your actions and your feelings and your emotions and even your thoughts, and even worse, your words as you go forward. Because if you're not blessing people, then you yourselves are not being a blessing to others. You are called to be blessed in order to bless others. That's a part of it. And so as you are sowing seeds into the ground, you are literally taking the moments— this is so important— The taking the moments that you're supposed to put seed in the ground and you're refusing to do it. So those future opportunities for harvest of love, peace, and joy, of kindness, patience, self-control, goodness, all the fruit of the Spirit— guess what happens? Those are now lost because you've decided not to sow them, even if it is a situation that may have been with someone who hurts you. So you've got to learn to let God be God. And go allow him to get things in order in your life so that you can rewrite your story as you move forward. Because the reality is, biblical forgiveness doesn't erase the memory of what happens, but what it does, it gives sanctification to you into the process and to them to move forward. And the reality is, is this might sound harsh, you've got to stop making them your god. Because that's what you're doing. The moment you continue to cling to unforgiveness, what you've done is you've put their situation that you've went through, their words, their actions, there may be their continuous actions, and you're putting them above God. You are literally allowing them to hold over you the things of the past, preventing you from moving forward. And that is totally not the place to be. And it can be A difficult thing to start, but we're gonna activate that ability for you to give forgiveness and allow you to walk out of unforgiveness with the rest of this video. So stick around for that because believers in Jesus Christ reflect grace and then receive freedom. This is so important. You've gotta be able to reflect the same grace that God gave you when he forgave you of your sins. This is the thing that a lot of people don't. Realize that the— and the point, if you're caught in unforgiveness, depending on the situation, is you believe that they don't deserve to be forgiven. And in some instances, that potentially could be true. But the reality is, is you deserve to not live with that level of unforgiveness in your life. And even if you believe that they're going to die in their sins and, and that they're an evil person and all those things happens, You need to reflect grace because at some point in time you were that person. You were that same person towards God. You were that same person who acted out of a spirit of hatred, out of a spirit of lust, out of a spirit of anger, out of a spirit of unforgiveness towards God. Idolatry. Think about it. God forgave you with the same level of grace he's asking you to forgive them. And we're all sinners needed of great grace. So live your life free. You truly deserve it. Because the reality is, is the enemy wants you to hold onto that trauma. He wants you to remain prisoner of that unforgiveness because what it does is it derails you from the plan that God has on your life. It prevents you from receiving all the things you need to be able to move forward. How do you receive love if you can't give it? If you are holding a loved one in your life, whether it's a spouse, a child, a parent hostage to unforgiveness, it's going to be so difficult to receive love from other people because the people that you're supposed to be loving and they're loving you are being caught in this cycle of unforgiveness. So the enemy wants you to stay right there. He wants you to remain in that place the rest of your life. Holding that person as a god before God, holding that trauma ever before you because he wants you to stay there. But God's got another plan. He has grace to those who don't deserve it, and that includes me and you. Even if they don't ask for it, even if they never even understand that they hurt you. Think about this. There are people in your life that never ask for forgiveness. They didn't even know they've hurt you. And so don't remain a hostage in a cell you've built for yourself, because that's what unforgiveness is. You're literally creating a cell, stepping into it, locking the door, and throwing away the key. That's exactly what you're doing. Don't do that. That is a place of bondage that you don't want to be in because you stay trapped there. For the rest of your life until you choose to just walk through the door. Because the reality is, is door's not locked, even though you thought you locked it. It's not. All you have to do is walk right out. And so it's so important to receive this because when you reflect grace to others, you can receive freedom from the pain. You can reflect grace. Think about this. You're reflecting God's grace, and then in turn, God receives freedom. You receive freedom from God. And so point number 3 is all about walking out this beautiful life. It's about understanding every single moment that something is brought back to your attention. Maybe it is the Holy Spirit saying, here's another chance to extend grace to another person. That person may need your blessings, they may need your prayers. And so you need to be able to stand in the place of an intercessor between them and potential condemnation, potential sin, potential problems, because God's calling you. And who better than to pray for the person that hurts you than yourself? Who better to pray for breakthrough because you were the one that received breakthrough by— through the process of giving them grace and forgiving them? Who better throughout this entire process than for you to stand up for the very person that hurts you and allow them to go free. Remember, this is Paul writing in Ephesians, the very person who hunted Jesus's followers down in Jerusalem, in Israel, and outside of the country. He even went to Damascus hunting Jews down to kill them, to cast his lot against them, to basically say to put them in prison and keep them there. Yet Jesus had the grace to forgive the greatest of all sinners, as Paul says in the Bible, I'm the greatest of all sinners. So if Jesus has the ability to pass through unforgiveness and give Paul forgiveness, look what happened after that. Here is a gentleman that ended up being released, his name changed from Saul to Paul. He anchored a huge portion of the New Testament writings. He anchored the entire, almost the entire Gentile church that we then thrive in today. All because Jesus would not harbor unforgiveness towards one person. That's the power of what you're about to do. When you walk through life, you are literally setting yourself free and you're setting them free for the opportunity for them to become something greater in Christ Jesus. And there is no better person to do that than you. That's the power of what God is showing. You have the capability to allow someone to move forward in their life without them even knowing about it. Because you've set them free in your own. That's the power of forgiveness in your life. That's the power it gives you. It gives you the ability to receive freedom by reflecting grace. And it's so powerful and it's so great. And so I want to encourage you today to think about the people that have hurt you. We're going to go ahead and pray for them, and we're going to go ahead and take a step forward. We're going to bless them. And I know this is going to be difficult for some people, especially those who've really suffered. It's especially if you've suffered physically or mentally, because there are some situations that potentially you may feel like that is unforgivable, especially if there was some really serious ramifications in your life, especially if the people that hurt you are either no longer alive, which again, you've got to definitely let those people go, or have caused hurt that's potentially a permanent hurt in your life, especially if you've lost someone through that process. So I know this is a difficult thing for some people, And reality is, is this is a process that you need to go through. And it, again, it isn't going to be a one-and-done thing. For some of you, it will be a process that allows you to receive healing through the forgiveness. And so let's go ahead and pray. So think about the people that have hurt you, okay? And what we want— what I want you to do is I want you— and you could say this silently and you could say it publicly, it doesn't really matter— 'Cause God knows both. What I want you to do is say, Heavenly Father, I forgive, and now say their names, for the pain that they've caused me. I'm no longer wanting to be burdened by the chains that I have put on myself of unforgiveness. Amen. Of regret, of an unwillingness to let them go and truly give them back to you. Father, forgive them for the mistakes they've made against me. Forgive me for holding a grudge and holding unforgiveness against them. Now, Father, bless them. Give them grace as you gave me grace, so that they too can receive freedom and come back to a place of repentance, restoration, and prevalent grace. I pray this video blesses you. Again, if you know someone that would love to see a video like this, please share it. 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