A Test of Growth

“Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear. Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.” Ephesians 4:29-32

Corrie Ten Boom tells of a time she learned an important aspect of spiritual growth. It was 1947 and she had just finished speaking of God’s forgiveness to a group in a small German church. The audience was still haunted by memories of war. Yet the message they heard that day brought a sense of hope. They could forgive those who treated them so cruelly and go on with life.

As the service concluded, Corrie noticed a heavyset man coming toward her. Instantly, she remembered him. He had been a guard at the concentration camp where she had been imprisoned. “I know God has forgiven me for the things I did,” he said. “But I would like to hear it from your lips. Will you forgive me?”

“It was the most difficult thing I had ever had to do,” she writes. “I thrust my hand into the one stretched out to me. And as I did, an incredible thing took place. [A] healing warmth seemed to flood my whole being, bringing tears to my eyes. ‘I forgive you, brother!’”

One of the ways we measure spiritual growth is by the way we extend our arms of forgiveness to others. In doing so, remember that Jesus extended His arms completely for you at Calvary. Is there someone you need to forgive? Remember He has forgiven you and gave you the grace to forgive others.