Your Daily Devotional for September 18, 2007

 

September 18,  2007

 

 

A Bitter Spirit

by Dr. Paul Chappell

 

 

"Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you."

 

Ephesians 4:31-32

 

 

I once read the story of a seminary student in Chicago who faced a "forgiveness test." Although he preferred to work in some kind of ministry, the only job he could find was driving a bus on Chicago's south side. One day a gang of tough teens got on board and refused to pay the fare. After a few days of this, the seminarian spotted a policeman on the corner, stopped the bus, and reported them. The officer made them pay, but then he got off. When the bus rounded a corner, the gang robbed the seminarian and beat him severely.

 

He pressed charges and the gang was rounded up. They were found guilty. But as soon as the jail sentence was given, the young Christian saw their spiritual need and felt pity for them. So he asked the judge if he could serve their sentences for them. The gang members and the judge were dumbfounded. "It's because I forgive you," he explained. His request was denied, but he visited the young men in jail and led several of them to faith in Christ.

 

Many Christians struggle with bitterness and an unforgiving spirit. When we are hurt, our natural response is to become angry and hold on to that bitterness. Satan constantly uses past experiences to defeat God's people in the area of bitterness. Today we will see that when we have bitterness, we are hurting ourselves the most.

 

Bitterness is settled hostility that possesses the inner man. It is when we are hurt or wronged and we allow that feeling to remain in our hearts toward someone else. Bitterness leads to wrath, which grieves the Holy Spirit in the believer and robs us of our joy.

 

When we are bitter, our bitterness and anger often only affects us. The people we are angry with do not always know of our anger, and many times the only person we are hurting is ourselves. God desires that we would let go of those hurt feelings and let Him have control of the situation.

 

I was once walking down a sidewalk that was badly cracked from the roots of a nearby mulberry tree. While I was careful of my step, I noticed those passing by me who were not as careful. They would stumble or trip over these roots because they were not watching their step. Even so, if we are not careful to "watch our step" in life, we can be tripped by the roots of bitterness.

 

The devil would like us to be focused on other things and not see the roots of bitterness in our lives. Hebrews 12:15 says, "Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled." The writer of Hebrews warns that if we are not careful to examine our lives and see if there is any bitterness, those feelings will hinder us from being used by God.

 

Friend, while the world around us tells us to seek revenge and demand justice, God calls us to forgive and to let go of bitterness. We must not underestimate the power that anger and bitterness can have on our lives. It can take us away from God and out of His will.

 

Is there any bitterness in your life today? Is there someone in your life who, when you hear their name, thoughts of anger or hurt feelings come to mind? God desires that we would have hearts void of any ill feelings toward others. Spend time in prayer now and ask Christ to forgive you for those bitter feelings. Also, ask Him to help you forgive those who wronged you and help you avoid bitterness in your life today.

 

 

 

 

Daily Bible Reading

Proverbs 30-31 • 2 Corinthians 11:1-15

 

 

 

 

---

================================================
THIS IS AN AUTOMATED MESSAGE PLEASE DO NOT REPLY
================================================
Manage your online subscriptions at
http://www.dailyintheword.org/email/user-login.aspx

To Unsubscribe from this list please follow this link
http://www.dailyintheword.org/email/user-unsubscribe.aspx?s=4159&l=1