A forgiving heart is a heart that is always willing to forgive.
To be willing to forgive means you choose not to repay evil with evil, but welcome reconciliation. As Christians, we must always be willing and ready to forgive no matter the level of offence. The Lord Jesus is willing and ready to forgive anyone who comes to him in repentance (Luke 24.47). We must follow in his footstep.
To be willing to forgive does not mean to forgive. To be willing to forgive simply means the offended is not going to repay evil/wrong, and he is ready for reconciliation.
To forgive means to discharge the offender of the debt he owes, and to work to restore the broken relationship. As Christians, we must always forgive our transgressors when they repent (Luke 17.3-4). The Lord Jesus forgives all those who repent and, receives them back in his sheepfold. He does not remember their sins. We must follow in his footsteps. To forgive means to forget the wrong and restore the relationship.
If a person wrongs you, be willing to forgive. If he repents, you must forgive him. No relationship can survive without repentance and forgiveness. We will always hurt others. There must always be repentance and forgiveness. Relationships fail primarily because:
People do not communicate their hurt to others
People do not like being told of their wrongdoings
People are not willing to forgive
People do not forgive
People do not repent
If someone hurts you, go to him, and with a forgiving heart (not with a dominating, critical, accusing heart), tell him his wrong or rebuke him. The offender must be careful to listen to the offended and seek to make amends either by apologizing and/or by taking corrective actions. If the offender repents, the offender must forgive him and restore the relationship.
If the offender is unrepentant after you have told him of his wrong, his debt remains. You should continue to love him, but you must not remain close to him. If you are bound to offender for life e.g. marriage, you cannot divorce him, but you must be careful not to keep intimacy with a serpent or wolf. Serpent and wolves always bite. Keeping intimacy with an unrepentant person would mean:
1. Nurturing a monster. The offender will continue and grow in his evil works. Sooner, it will become more difficult to redeem him or the relationship.
2. Willfully giving yourself to torture. God wants us to be in good health both in body and soul. Abuse (Verbal, emotional, physical) and all wickedness and selfishness are deadly to the human soul.
God is willing and ready to forgive the whole world (he does not want to punish anyone), but he forgives and reconciles to himself only those who repent. We must imitate him.
Yes, you can. The repentant offender needs grace, unmerited favor, mercy. Show him unmerited favor and purposely set your heart on him/her again and gradually trust him as you see more changes in him. Love hopes for the best. Always remember that God did not only forgive your wrongs, but he also poured his love on you by receiving you back wholeheartedly. If you are unable to love like God, then you must pray earnestly for God to help you have a forgiving heart. When we forgive from the heart, painful memories lose power. We must pray till we are able to forgive the offender from the heart (not from the head).
If he apologizes, we must be quick to forgive (Mathew 18.21-35). Many are weak in character and do many wrong things. To love such people means to forgive them always as often as they apologize, while praying to God for them to have a change of character. However, we must be careful on the level of trust we put on them.
Forgiveness is love. Forgiveness is a kind of love that works primarily to build, strengthen and restore relationships. Parents, children, spouses, friends, brothers suffer from broken relationships. The world will be a better place to live in if everyone could forgive and repent.
Reconciliation is meant to bring the sinner to repentance and restore him to the path of righteousness. The person who repents is redeemed from the hands of sin and death. Always pray for the wicked that they would repent of their evil ways.
The Lord Jesus paid for the sin of the whole world. He is willing to forgive the whole mankind. He grants forgiveness only to those who repent of their sins. The sinner receives forgiveness only when he repents of his sins and turns back to God. Without repentance, a man cannot be reconciled to God even though God is willing and ready to forgive him in Christ Jesus.