In Mathew 18:21-22: “Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?”. Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times”. If you do the math 70 x 7 = 490 times.  Jesus was essentially saying that we must forgive others as many times as we can.

Jesus not only preached forgiveness but also practiced it with his life. He sacrificed Himself on the cross so that our sins could be forgiven. When Jesus was suffering on the cross, He said “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” These words on the cross tell us everything we need to know about forgiving someone.

So what exactly does it mean to forgive someone? To be able to forgive someone, one of the following should have happened:

1 . Someone sinned against you or treated you unfairly.

2. You have feelings of resentment, hatred or vengeance towards a person for whatever reason.

If any of these apply to you then you have the power to forgive. So how do you forgive? Well, the Bible tells you exactly how to do it in Mark 11:25: “When you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you of your sins.”

How many times have we successfully forgiven someone without praying about it? The answer is never! To truly forgive someone, you have to take it to the Lord in prayer and let go of any feelings of resentment or hatred that you have against that person.

Matthew 6:15 says “But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.” Unforgiveness keeps us away from God’s blessings and his forgiveness in our own lives.

Letting go of resentment and hatred is hard to do. Forgiving someone who wronged you is even harder. However, if you choose to forgive, it is one of the most powerful things you can do in your life. So take that first step and ask God to give you the strength to forgive someone. There is power in forgiveness. It has the power to set you free and release God’s power in your life.