“So, go ahead, hold your grudge. Keep your bitterness. Continue stirring up strife. If you do, you will be in total rebellion against God and His Word and you’ll open yourself up to satan. You will become spiritually blind and hardened in heart. On the other hand, if you are spiritual—willingly obedient to God’s Word—then no matter how injured you are, you’ll show the peaceable wisdom of gentleness by forgiving.” —David Wilkerson
“It is nobler to forgive and let the offense pass. To let an injury rankle in your bosom and to meditate revenge is to keep old wounds open and to make new ones. Better forget and forgive.” —Charles Spurgeon
Listen to the podcast of this post by clicking on the player below, and you can also subscribe on Apple, Spotify, or Audible.
You probably know this already: Once you get boiling mad, it’s hard to see things objectively anymore. You get steamed up—ticked off!—and you are on a no-detours course to “make things right.”
You might say things like…
“They need to know what they did wrong!”
“He’s got this coming to him!”
“She needs to get a taste of her own medicine!”
The unspoken completion of all of those phrases is the dangerous part. What we’re really saying is, “He needs to know what he did wrong, and I’m just the one to tell him!” Or, “She needs to get a taste of her own medicine, and I’m just the one to dispense that prescription to her!”
It’s been said that action has killed its thousands; reaction its tens of thousands.
Did he hurt you? Yes!
Is he a jerk for doing so? Absolutely!
Should he get punished for it? Probably!
Are you the one to do it? No. No! NO!
He played the fool… Don’t sink to his level and play the fool yourself!
Wise King Solomon said:
Do not answer a fool according to his folly, or you will be like him yourself. (Proverbs 26:4)
A fool gives full vent to his anger, but a wise man keeps himself under control. (Proverbs 29:11)
So what can you do to the one who injured you?
The best thing you can do is to FORGIVE HIM!
That’s right: leave him in God’s hands. Let the All-Righteous Judge deal with him. Don’t stay wounded, because you are continuing to allow your injurer to keep you trapped, to keep you wounded. Leave him in God’s hands by taking your hands off of him!
Never pay back evil with more evil. Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honorable. Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone. Dear friends, never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. (Romans 12:17-19)
Don’t play the fool! Forgive him and let God take it from there.
If you want to check out the other messages in our series called Ticked Off!you may click here.
Craig T. Owens 