The Call To Forgive

Life in the Spirit is his way, if it is his way it should be our way, and he will give us the help we need.

3. Its a heart issue.

We talk a lot about the sins of the flesh and with those sins are the sins in our attitudes or feelings. We cant just deal with the immorality like adultery, lying, stealing, sins of this nature but we must also look at our attitudes and feelings because all sin has to do with the heart.

The heart of a man is where our passions and desires come from. So if the heart is wrong then we will have wrong desires and if we don’t fight those desires we will do the wrong thing.

The flesh or sinful nature must be dealt with day to day.

When we accept Christ we are born again, old things have passed away, behold all things are new. There is a new nature within us by the Holy Spirit. But we still have to deal with the flesh.

Gal 5:24

24 And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.

(KJV)

In Galatians Paul writes about the desires of the flesh, listing them and the describes the fruit of the Spirit.

In our text Paul writes about attitudes of the flesh.

Both are from the heart,

Matt 15:19

19 For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies:

(KJV)

4. What to do

Paul says what to do with these attitudes...

Eph 4:31-32

31 Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice:

32 And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.

(KJV)

(be put away) - to pick up and carry away, to make a clean sweep

Bitterness refers to a settled hostility that poisons the whole inner man. Somebody does something we do not like, so we harbor ill will against him. “Husbands, love your wives and be not bitter against them” (Col. 3:19). Bitterness leads to wrath, which is the explosion on the outside of the feelings on the inside. Wrath and anger often lead to brawling (clamor) or blasphemy (evil speaking).

Ephesians 4:31 PP4

[And clamour] Kraugee (grk 2906). Loud speaking, brawling, railing, boisterous talk, often the offspring of wrath; all of which are highly unbecoming the meek, loving, quiet, sedate mind of Christ and his followers.

[And evil speaking] Blaspheemia (grk 988). Blasphemy; that is, injurious speaking-- words which tend to hurt those of whom or against whom they are spoken.

(from Adam Clarke Commentary)

Ephesians 4:31 PP4

[malice] which is always looking out for opportunities to revenge itself by the

(from Adam Clarke Commentary)

Let these be carried away from you. They will grieve the Holy Spirit in your life and in the church.

5. How do we sweep them away?

In chapter 5 Paul sums it up...

Eph 5:1-2

1 Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children;

2 And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour.

(KJV)

That’s were its at, that’s how to heal the hurt, the anger, the bitterness, WALK IN LOVE!!!