The Heart of the Father

 

Who among us has never betrayed one of our friends? Who has never been betrayed by a friend? We’ve all been through this. We’ve all had squabbles with our friends. Our friends spoke badly of us, we also spoke badly of them. Does this kind of behaviour reflect the Father’s heart? Not at all. On the contrary, it saddens his heart. We are his sons and daughters and the Father’s heart is saddened when he sees his children squabbling.

In the last few weeks, we have talked a lot about the importance of forgiveness: to forgive and asking forgiveness. When we choose not to forgive, it is like a disease that grows in us that we do not see, and when we see it appear the disease has become serious. The lack of forgiveness gradually makes your heart sick. It infects your heart, your behavior changes, your mood changes, your joy disappears and peace and joy are no longer part of your life. It is not the Father’s desire that you live like this.

Jesus had done nothing to deserve Judas’ betrayal and his betrayal led Jesus to death. But the death of Jesus did not have the upper hand over Jesus: the Father raised him from the dead, hallelujah!

When you are betrayed by someone, especially if they are close to you, sometimes death sets in your heart, but the good news is that Jesus has conquered death and you can also overcome death and defeat the enemy’s plan.

In Luke 23 .34, Jesus is on the cross and just before he dies, he said to his Father: “Father forgive them because they don’t know what they’re doing.” Quite an example! Jesus was betrayed by his friend, which led him to be beaten to death and to be nailed to a cross, and there he asks his Father to forgive them! What a great example for us!

You too are able to forgive those who have hurt you and those who have spoken ill of you. And if it is you who has done wrong, who has hurt people by your bad behavior, who has betrayed people, who has spoken ill of others, the Father invites you to ask forgiveness and to reconcile with them. It is not easy to do, but it is essential to have peace and joy in your heart. The enemy’s plan is to bring death into your life, but God’s plan is to bring life. What do you choose this morning, death or life?

 

Prayer

“Father, I need your help this morning to forgive. I want to ask forgiveness for the harm I have done to others and I choose to forgive those who have harmed me. You see the pain in my heart in relation to the betrayal I experienced. Come heal my heart and give me your peace and fill my heart with your love. Amen.”