When you face hurts, you can find real comfort and guidance in Scripture. God's word reminds us that He is our refuge and strength, especially when things get tough.
Facing hurts with humility and forgiveness can truly heal your wounds and restore relationships. Loving your neighbor is a fundamental command, and that includes loving your enemies and blessing those who persecute you. I know it's a challenge, but it's part of what God calls us to as His followers.
The Bible teaches us that offenses are just a part of life. But it also encourages us to handle them in a way that honors God and leads to reconciliation. In Matthew 18:21-22, Jesus gives us key instruction on forgiveness: "Then 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.’"
This passage tells me that Jesus wants us to have hearts that don't hold onto bitterness and resentment. He wants us to forgive others, just as our Heavenly Father has forgiven us.
Even Christ did not try to please himself. But as the Scriptures say, “The people who insulted you also insulted me.”
So if you are about to place your gift on the altar and remember that someone is angry with you,leave your gift there in front of the altar. Make peace with that person, then come back and offer your gift to God.
But I prayed, “Our God, these people hate us and have wished horrible things for us. Please answer our prayers and make their insults fall on them! Let them be the ones to be dragged away as prisoners of war.
Instead, be kind and merciful, and forgive others, just as God forgave you because of Christ.
Put up with each other, and forgive anyone who does you wrong, just as Christ has forgiven you.
just as Jacob's sons were coming in from work. When they learned that their sister had been raped, they became furiously angry, because nothing is more disgraceful than rape, and it must not be tolerated.
David asked some soldiers standing nearby, “What will a man get for killing this Philistine and stopping him from insulting our people? Who does that worthless Philistine think he is? He's making fun of the army of the living God!”
David heard that Nabal had died. “I praise the Lord!” David said. “He has judged Nabal guilty for insulting me. The Lord kept me from doing anything wrong, and he made sure that Nabal hurt only himself with his own evil.” Abigail was still at Carmel. So David sent messengers to ask her if she would marry him.
Even my bones are in pain, while all day long my enemies sneer and ask, “Where is your God?”
If one of my followers sins against you, go and point out what was wrong. But do it in private, just between the two of you. If that person listens, you have won back a follower.
Don't be hateful and insult people just because they are hateful and insult you. Instead, treat everyone with kindness. You are God's chosen ones, and he will bless you. The Scriptures say,
My love for your house burns in me like a fire, and when others insult you, they insulted me as well.
If you forgive others for the wrongs they do to you, your Father in heaven will forgive you.But if you don't forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins.
We must stop judging others. We must also make up our minds not to upset anyone's faith.
I am crushed by insults, and I feel sick. I had hoped for mercy and pity, but there was none.
So be careful what you do. Correct any followers of mine who sin, and forgive the ones who say they are sorry.The same will happen on the day when the Son of Man appears.At that time no one on a rooftop should go down into the house to get anything. No one in a field should go back to the house for anything.Remember what happened to Lot's wife. People who try to save their lives will lose them, and those who lose their lives will save them.On that night two people will be sleeping in the same bed, but only one will be taken. The other will be left.Two women will be together grinding wheat, but only one will be taken. The other will be left. Then Jesus' disciples spoke up, “But where will this happen, Lord?” Jesus said, “Where there is a corpse, there will always be vultures.”Even if one of them mistreats you seven times in one day and says, “I am sorry,” you should still forgive that person.
Each of those nations sneered at you, our Lord. Now let others sneer at them, seven times as much.
My dear friends, you should be quick to listen and slow to speak or to get angry.My friends, be glad, even if you have a lot of trouble.If you are angry, you cannot do any of the good things God wants done.
Don't condemn others, and God won't condemn you.Would you give your child a snake if the child asked for a fish?As bad as you are, you still know how to give good gifts to your children. But your heavenly Father is even more ready to give good things to people who ask.Treat others as you want them to treat you. This is what the Law and the Prophets are all about. Go in through the narrow gate. The gate to destruction is wide, and the road that leads there is easy to follow. A lot of people go through that gate.But the gate to life is very narrow. The road that leads there is so hard to follow that only a few people find it.Watch out for false prophets! They dress up like sheep, but inside they are wolves who have come to attack you.You can tell what they are by what they do. No one picks grapes or figs from thornbushes.A good tree produces good fruit, and a bad tree produces bad fruit.A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot produce good fruit.Every tree producing bad fruit will be chopped down and burned.God will be as hard on you as you are on others! He will treat you exactly as you treat them.
You will keep your friends if you forgive them, but you will lose your friends if you keep talking about what they did wrong.
It is best not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything else that causes problems for other followers of the Lord.
The Lord said to the people of Israel: If a divorced woman marries, can her first husband ever marry her again? No, because this would pollute the land. But you have more gods than a prostitute has lovers. Why should I take you back?
Don't cause problems for Jews or Greeks or anyone else who belongs to God's church.
This king will do as he pleases. He will proudly claim to be greater than any god and will insult the only true God. Indeed, he will be successful until God is no longer angry with his people.
The Lord All-Powerful, the God of Israel, said: I've heard Moab and Ammon insult my people and threaten their nation.
The high priest then tore his robe and said, “This man claims to be God! We don't need any more witnesses! You have heard what he said.
Don't be jealous or proud, but be humble and consider others more important than yourselves.He almost died working for Christ, and he risked his own life to do for me what you could not.Care about them as much as you care about yourselves
Most important of all, you must sincerely love each other, because love wipes away many sins.
They answered, “We are not stoning you because of any good thing you did. We are stoning you because you did a terrible thing. You are just a man, and here you are claiming to be God!”
Peter came up to the Lord and asked, “How many times should I forgive someone who does something wrong to me? Is seven times enough?” Jesus answered: Not just 7 times, but 77 times!
Stop being bitter and angry and mad at others. Don't yell at one another or curse each other or ever be rude.
rude. Love isn't selfish or quick tempered. It doesn't keep a record of wrongs that others do.
God loves you and has chosen you as his own special people. So be gentle, kind, humble, meek, and patient.Put up with each other, and forgive anyone who does you wrong, just as Christ has forgiven you.
Stop being hateful! Quit trying to fool people, and start being sincere. Don't be jealous or say cruel things about others.
The start of an argument is like a water leak— so stop it before real trouble breaks out.
Treat others as you want them to treat you. This is what the Law and the Prophets are all about.
But if you keep attacking each other like wild animals, you had better watch out or you will destroy yourselves.
Let love be your guide. Christ loved us and offered his life for us as a sacrifice that pleases God.
Try to live at peace with everyone! Live a clean life. If you don't, you will never see the Lord.
Don't be hateful to people, just because they are hateful to you. Rather, be good to each other and to everyone else.
and God's servants must not be troublemakers. They must be kind to everyone, and they must be good teachers and very patient.
My dear friends, we must love each other. Love comes from God, and when we love each other, it shows we have been given new life. We are now God's children, and we know him.God is love, and anyone who doesn't love others has never known him.
If our faith is strong, we should be patient with the Lord's followers whose faith is weak. We should try to please them instead of ourselves.The Scriptures also say to the Gentiles, “Come and celebrate with God's people.” Again the Scriptures say, “Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles. All you nations, come and worship him.”Isaiah says, “Someone from David's family will come to power. He will rule the nations, and they will put their hope in him.”I pray that God, who gives hope, will bless you with complete happiness and peace because of your faith. And may the power of the Holy Spirit fill you with hope.My friends, I am sure that you are very good and that you have all the knowledge you need to teach each other.But I have spoken to you plainly and have tried to remind you of some things. God treated me with undeserved grace!He chose me to be a servant of Christ Jesus for the Gentiles and to do the work of a priest in the service of his good news. God did this so that the Holy Spirit could make the Gentiles into a holy offering, pleasing to him.Because of Christ Jesus, I can take pride in my service for God.In fact, all I will talk about is how Christ let me speak and work, so that the Gentiles would obey him.Indeed, I will tell how Christ worked miracles and wonders by the power of the Holy Spirit. I have preached the good news about him all the way from Jerusalem to Illyricum.We should think of their good and try to help them by doing what pleases them.
It's stupid to say bad things about your neighbors. If you are sensible, you will keep quiet.
But the wisdom that comes from above leads us to be pure, friendly, gentle, sensible, kind, helpful, genuine, and sincere.When peacemakers plant seeds of peace, they will harvest justice.
Don't mistreat someone who has mistreated you. But try to earn the respect of others,and do your best to live at peace with everyone.Dear friends, don't try to get even. Let God take revenge. In the Scriptures the Lord says, “I am the one to take revenge and pay them back.”
Making up with a friend you have offended is harder than breaking through a city wall.
You know you have been taught, “An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.”But I tell you not to try to get even with a person who has done something to you. When someone slaps your right cheek, turn and let that person slap your other cheek.
Stop all your dirty talk. Say the right thing at the right time and help others by what you say.
Honor Christ and let him be the Lord of your life. Always be ready to give an answer when someone asks you about your hope.Give a kind and respectful answer and keep your conscience clear. This way you will make people ashamed for saying bad things about your good conduct as a follower of Christ.
Be pleasant and hold their interest when you speak the message. Choose your words carefully and be ready to give answers to anyone who asks questions.
My friends, you are spiritual. So if someone is trapped in sin, you should gently lead that person back to the right path. But watch out, and don't be tempted yourself.
I will forgive anyone you forgive. Yes, for your sake and with Christ as my witness, I have forgiven whatever needed to be forgiven.I have done this to keep Satan from getting the better of us. We all know what goes on in his mind.
If you think you are being religious, but can't control your tongue, you are fooling yourself, and your religion is useless.
“Do you really love life? Do you want to be happy? Then stop saying cruel things and quit telling lies.Give up your evil ways and do right, as you find and follow the road to peace.
The world is in for trouble because of the way it causes people to sin. There will always be something to cause people to sin, but anyone who does this will be in for trouble.
Welcome all the Lord's followers, even those whose faith is weak. Don't criticize them for having beliefs that are different from yours.
Don't cause problems for someone with a weak conscience, just because you have the right to eat anything.
Jesus said to his disciples: There will always be something that causes people to sin. But anyone who causes them to sin is in for trouble. A person who causes even one of my little followers to sin
So if I hurt one of the Lord's followers by what I eat, I will never eat meat as long as I live.
It will be terrible for people who cause even one of my little followers to sin. Those people would be better off thrown into the deepest part of the ocean with a heavy stone tied around their necks!
People with bad tempers are always in trouble, and they need help over and over again.
I promise you on the day of judgment, everyone will have to account for every careless word they have spoken.On that day they will be told they are either innocent or guilty because of the things they have said.
When one of you takes another to court, all of you lose. It would be better to let yourselves be cheated and robbed.But instead, you cheat and rob other followers.
Parents, don't be hard on your children. Raise them properly. Teach them and instruct them about the Lord.
God will bless you when people insult you, mistreat you, and tell all kinds of evil lies about you because of me.
Don't grumble about each other or you will be judged, and the judge is right outside the door.
But each of you had better tremble and turn from your sins. Silently search your heart as you lie in bed.
Always be humble and gentle. Patiently put up with each other and love each other.But this isn't what you were taught about Jesus Christ. He is the truth, and you heard about him and learned about him.You were told that your foolish desires will destroy you and that you must give up your old way of life with all its bad habits.Let the Spirit change your way of thinkingand make you into a new person. You were created to be like God, and so you must please him and be truly holy. We are part of the same body. Stop lying and start telling each other the truth.Don't get so angry that you sin. Don't go to bed angryand don't give the devil a chance.If you are a thief, quit stealing. Be honest and work hard, so you will have something to give to people in need.Stop all your dirty talk. Say the right thing at the right time and help others by what you say.Try your best to let God's Spirit keep your hearts united. Do this by living at peace.
You will say the wrong thing if you talk too much— so be sensible and watch what you say.
Some of you say, “We can do whatever we want to!” But I tell you not everything may be good or helpful.We should think about others and not about ourselves.
Why do you criticize other followers of the Lord? Why do you look down on them? The day is coming when God will judge all of us.
Although he was abused, he never tried to get even. And when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he had faith in God, who judges fairly.
But I am giving you a new command. You must love each other, just as I have loved you.If you love each other, everyone will know that you are my disciples.