Learn to Forgive Yourself

“Remember my affliction and my wandering,
the wormwood and bitterness.
Surely my soul remembers
and is bowed down within me.
This I recall to my mind,
therefore I have hope.
The Lord’s lovingkindnesses indeed never cease,
for His compassions never fail.
They are new every morning;
great is Your faithfulness.
‘The Lord is my portion,’ says my soul,
‘Therefore I have hope in Him.’
The Lord is good to those who wait for Him,
to the person who seeks Him.” Lamentations 3:19-25

How can we forgive ourselves? How can we stop the pain that comes from knowing we have injured others? Here is the key. We can forgive ourselves because Christ has forgiven us. If Jesus Christ, the most stringent Judge, has declared your sin forgiven through His death on the cross, how can you not forgive yourself?

If we believe He can forgive even the most nightmarish sins of another, why do we feel He cannot forgive us? One reason is a false sense of pride. Somehow we feel more spiritual if we continually berate ourselves. We feel badly if we can feel good. That sort of self-abasement was condemned by Paul. We can no more earn God’s forgiveness than we can earn our salvation. Both are a gift from God.

Another reason is an erroneous view of repentance. Repentance does mean saying we’re sorry, but its ultimate meaning lies in a change of behavior. Repentance doesn’t mean we grovel in self-pity, but deliberately trust God to transform our conduct through His Spirit.

Christ has forgiven you. He loves you as you are. Let Christ handle your past and revolutionize your today and tomorrow.

“Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” Romans 8:1