Below is an adaptation of a teaching entitled “Walking in Forgiveness” in the Reflecting God’s Love in Marriage: A Wife’s Call to Action Bible study. For the full teaching, scroll to the bottom of this post and watch the video.
“Forgiveness can be the hardest thing we ever do. Our forgiveness cost Jesus the cross. But forgiveness may become the most important thing we ever do to sustain or renew our marriage. Good marriages require good forgivers.”
Gary Inrig, Whole Marriages in a Broken World
Forgiveness is God’s story, and it’s our story. Clothed in forgiveness, we walk through God’s Word, the Bible.
We begin our walk through the Garden of Eden where Eve chose the fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil instead of the Tree of Life. That put us on a path out of the Garden of Eden and away from the Tree of Life.
Sins covered in animal skins, we walk with Israel through the thorns and brambles of a life distanced from God.
We plod the path with Israel and wonder at the withered fig tree and its fruitless spirit—a picture of Israel’s dead religion during the time of Jesus.
Walking to the Cross
Stepping into the Garden of Gethsemane, we see Jesus praying among the olive trees—praying so hard it looks like He’s sweating drops of blood.
We weep as we see our bloodied Jesus stumble on His way to Golgotha.
Pound, pound, pound. Nails pierce His hands and feet. Nailed to the tree. Blood staining the ground. Now hoisted high for all to see—the King of the Jews!
Was it with a thundering voice or a whisper? “Father, forgive them, they know not what they do.”
Hours go by.
Pitch-black darkness, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”
The Lamb of God who takes away our sins on the blood-stained tree. “It is finished!”
Sins paid for by God’s Son—past, present, and future. Forgiveness cost the Son of God His life.
They wrap His body in linen and lay Him in a rich man’s tomb. A stone is rolled over the opening. The tomb is sealed, and soldiers stand watch.
Walking With the Risen Lord
It’s the third day. Hopes dashed, we shadow the women as they gather the spices and slowly walk to the garden where His tomb is. “How will we roll the stone away?”
The stone is rolled away! The tomb is empty! “Why do you seek the living among the dead?” an angel asks.
Jesus is risen! Go tell the disciples.
Forgiveness of sins. Victory over death.
Walking with the risen Lord and hearing how He is going to work in us now that we’re forgiven.
And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.
Matthew 28:18-20
Walking with the Holy Spirit
Soon, the Holy Spirit came to dwell in all who believed and surrendered their lives to Jesus.
The church was born. The world was turned upside down. Walking in forgiveness and victory through Jesus.
There’s one more destination, the New Jerusalem. The path we’re walking to the Tree of Life. We’re not of this world. We’re pressing forward toward the joy that is set before us.
Walking with Muddy Feet
We’re walking through this world on our way to see Jesus face-to-face.
But like Jesus washed the disciples’ feet, Jesus needs to wash our feet. On our way, we stumble in the mud of sin, and we get dirty.
We’re married to men who also fall into the mud puddle of sin and get dirty. But praise the LORD! Jesus has made a way.
Let’s become women who forgive like Jesus. He freely forgives, and we are called to freely forgive.
How do we do that? Not on our own. Forgiving is hard, isn’t it?
Stepping into God’s Forgiveness
We can only forgive the hard things through Jesus. Only through complete surrender to Him.
A heavy burden is lifted from our shoulders as we step into the forgiveness of God.
True forgiveness frees both the offender and the offended.
Walking With Others
Four women bore 12 sons to Jacob. Joseph and Benjamin were the sons of Jacob’s favorite wife, Rachel. She died after she gave birth to Benjamin.
Jacob showed great favoritism to Joseph and later to Benjamin. The other sons were jealous.
Joseph had two dreams that he shared with his brothers. The brothers’ sheaves bowed down to Joseph’s sheaves in the first dream. And the stars, moon, and sun bowed down to Joseph in the second dream.
“Who does Joseph think he is? Our father gives him a coat of many colors, and he proudly wears it, swishing it in front of us whenever he can. Father, never gave us a coat like that!”
I think he probably shouldn’t have shared the dreams with them. TMI – too much information!
Walking Through the Valley Into Forgiveness
One day, Joseph’s brothers were tending the flocks, and his father sent him to find out how they were doing. His brothers saw him coming.
Now was their chance. They considered killing him, but Reuben talked them into throwing him into a pit.
Rueben planned to rescue Joseph later. But the brothers sold Joseph to Ishmaelites on their way to Egypt.
The brothers killed an animal and spread blood on his treasured cloak of many colors and showed it to Jacob. They told him that wild beasts killed Joseph.
Dead to Jacob and his brothers, Joseph is now a slave. He endures one hardship after another.
In Egypt, he’s sold to Potiphar, the captain of the guard. Joseph served Potiphar well. God blessed Potiphar’s household, and Potiphar made Joseph the overseer of his house.
No complaining about his brothers. No complaining about becoming a slave, just serving.
Now, Potiphar’s wife pestered Joseph every day to lie with her. One day, she grabbed his cloak, “lie with me!” Joseph ran out of the house—without his cloak. She snatched it from him.
She yelled to the servants, and they came running. “Look! This Hebrew slave tried to rape me. Here’s his cloak!”
Waiting At the Crossroads Of Forgiveness
Joseph ended up in prison. In prison, he served the prisoners well, and he was put in charge of all the prisoners. No complaining, just serving.
After a while, Pharoah got mad at his butler and baker and put them in prison. They had dreams, and Joseph interpreted them correctly, saying that the butler would be restored to his former position, but the baker would be beheaded. The dreams came true.
“Remember me, asked Joseph.” But the butler forgot about Joseph for two years. . No complaining. God’s timing is perfect. Waiting on God and serving.
Walking Upwards Towards Forgiveness
When Pharoah had two dreams that no one could interpret, the butler finally remembered Joseph and told Pharoah.
They cleaned up Joseph, made him look like an Egyptian, and took him to Pharoah. After Pharoah told Joseph his dreams, Joseph told him that Egypt would enjoy seven years of plenty and seven years of famine. He told Pharoah that Egypt needed to store up one-fifth of the produce of the land during the seven years of plenty and then distribute it during the seven years of famine.
Pharoah put him in charge and gave him a wife.
He stored up so much grain that he stopped counting it. The Bible describes the harvest as abundant as the grains of sand of the sea.
The famine brought Joseph’s brothers to Egypt to buy grain. At first, he did not reveal who he was. After all, he looked like an Egyptian. He observed them and tested them.
You will want to read the account in Genesis 42-45. Through all the testing, Joseph saw to it that his brothers were taken care of.
No holding a grudge. God was working. Joseph’s brothers remembered how they had treated him. The guilt had not left them.
After Joseph tested them several times to observe their character, he revealed himself to his brothers.
Joseph’s family moved to Goshen. But Joseph’s brothers still felt guilty. When Jacob, their father died, Joseph’s brothers were afraid that he would take revenge on them.
Walking in Forgiveness
“Joseph said to them, ‘Do not be afraid, for am I in the place of God? ‘But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive. Now therefore, do not be afraid; I will provide for you and your little ones.’ And he comforted them and spoke kindly to them.”
Genesis 50:19-21
God uses our challenges and sufferings to prepare us for the good works He has called us to do.
Joseph knew that God was faithful to equip him for saving the lives of many. We also know that God prepared good works for us to do and is preparing us to accomplish them.
Ephesians 2:10 tells us, “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”
Walking in Forgiveness in Marriage
Can you see God’s work in your marriage?
Have you found that the challenges you have gone through in your marriage have prepared you for work that you and your husband have accomplished?
God is faithful to forgive, and through Him, we can be faithful to forgive by keeping our eyes on Him and watching His plans for us unfold.
Forgiveness erases the bondage of slavery to sin and guilt. Forgiveness replaces it with freedom in the Lord.
Joseph was focused on God and His work. Not on his brothers’ sins against him.
The Father’s cleansing power and righteousness empowers us to forgive others. Let’s focus on God.
Jesus says in John 8:36, “Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.”
Forgiveness chooses to free.
When we forgive, we let go of the pain and experience freedom and peace. Forgiving another person also frees the one who has sinned, requiring nothing in return.
Jesus calls us to love God with all our being and to love one another as we love ourselves. Let’s live a life steeped in love, walking in forgiveness.
Please Share Your Ideas