"FORGIVENESS IS THE KEY TO GODLINESS" 1ST LESSON: ST LUKE 17:4
"And if he trespass against thee seven times in a day, and seven times in a day turn again to thee, saying, I repent; thou shalt forgive him."If anyone offends you and asks for forgiveness, you must forgive him. If one offends you seven times a day and asks for forgiveness seven times a day, you are duty-bound to forgive and forget. The Key to This Kingdom of God is in the word, FORGIVENESS. This was in the last of the teaching our Lord Jesus Christ imparted to His Disciples. He also practiced this teaching. As the Last Food He had with the disciples is called the Last Supper, so is this Gospel called the Last Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.
FORBEARANCE
Any time you are sick or exposed to any afflictions that tends to take your life, the first thing to do is to forgive all those who offended you and everything will be well. If you have someone in your mind that you have not forgiven, you have caused death to yourself. Though you have practiced all the other gospels and you fail to practice this one, salvation will surely elude you.
FORGIVENESS IS THE SHORT CUT TO THIS KINGDOM
It is neither long nor wide. Pass through this door and you will surely inherit this Kingdom. This Gospel is short but tedious. Since you were bent, all the offences that have been committed against you must now be forgiven and forgotten. If someone has waylaid you, or destroyed and assassinated your character, forgive him NOW. This Gospel is founded on Truth. It is salvation to those who believe and practice it, but damnation for those who ignore it. The route to Heaven is open to the entire world if they forgive one another. THE PROVISO: Our Lord Jesus Christ gave this injunction to humanity:
"So likewise: shall my heavenly Father do unto you if ye from your hearts forgive not everyone his brother their trespasses"
Brethren: you can now see why our Lord Jesus Christ said that those who initiated His crucifixion should be forgiven by His Father- God, because they never knew what they had done. If our Lord Jesus Christ had not uttered this statement, He would have perished. There would have been no way our Lord Jesus Christ would have been forgiven. What sin is greater than that committed against our Lord Jesus Christ? Yet He asked the Father to forgive His accusers and enemies, because they did not know what they were doing. Note that the people who crucified our Lord Jesus Christ did not come forward to beg for forgiveness before He said those words. Whoever you are; whatever position you have in this life or before God; if you fail to forgive your enemies, you have failed woefully! Romans 12: 19 says, "Dearly beloved avenges not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath, for it is written, Vengeance is Mine: I will repay, says 'The Lord'. It is the duty of God to avenge even for the smallest rat, goat, trees, birds and the whole humanity, if they adhere to His injunctions. Whatever you do to someone else, God will do the same in the exact measure to you. Those who have ears let them hear. May God bless His Holy Words. Amen