SUN MAY 14 2023
DON’T HARBOUR RESENTMENT – Pastor Chris
Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice (Ephesians 4:31).
The Spirit says through Paul in 1 Corinthians 14:20, “In malice, be as children, but in understanding be men.” Children don’t keep malice. They don’t harbor resentment; they have a pure and innocent mind. That’s how God wants us to live.
The same admonition He gave in our theme verse is repeated in Colossians 3:8. It says, “But now ye also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth.” All these are listed together because they’re all related.
Resentment will prompt you to negative actions and filthy communication; therefore, eschew it. So many ventures today were started on the basis of resentment. Someone was angry about the way things were being done in a certain establishment and went on to start his own. Even some churches have been started that way too.
You can’t get God’s approval on a venture, enterprise or action that has anger, resentment and bitterness as its driving force.
The Lord Jesus alluded to this in Matthew 23:27-28 when He said, “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness. Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.”
Harbouring resentment, bitterness, anger, hatred, or jealousy eventually produces adverse effects in a person, because these negative forces lead people to unwholesome actions. Remember, we’re called to walk in love.
When you walk in love, you’re a master; you’re in dominion. The Bible says love isn’t self-seeking, touchy, fretful or resentful. It takes no account of the evil done to it, neither does it pay attention to a suffered wrong (1 Corinthians 13:5 AMPC).
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PRAYER / CONFESSION
I refuse to allow resentment, hatred, jealousy, envy, bitterness, anger, strife, spite, ill will or baseness of any kind to take root in me. My heart is full of God’s love, kindness and compassion; and I express these lavishly everywhere and to everyone to the delight of the Father. Amen.
FURTHER STUDY
Proverbs 14:30 NLT; 1 Corinthians 13:3 CEV; Hebrews 12:15; Ephesians 4:31 AMPC
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