The Pastor’s Pen

Human hearts have an incredible ability to hold onto unforgiveness, perpetually keeping alive past hurts and offences. As Christians, we’re not exempt from this ugly reality, even though we possess the resources in Christ to overcome unforgiveness. Writing to the Ephesian Church, Paul provides understanding on the practical nature of forgiveness in Ephesians 4:29-32.

First, in verse 29, he gives tangible instruction. “Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.” Our speech should communicate grace for the purpose of blessing and strengthening others. If we must speak of a person who has hurt us, speak kindly, or at least neutral words, but without lying about them. Or, simply say nothing about them. If you speak of them, or to them, speak words that carry grace and NOT anger seeking personal justice.

Second, in verse 30, is the presence of the Holy Spirit. “And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.” We are to love the indwelling Holy Spirit and show our desire NOT to sadden Him or cause Him to feel wounded by our words or behaviour towards someone else.

Third, verse 31 instructs our hearts, feelings, emotions, and memories. “Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamour and slander be put away from you, along with all malice.” Here, believers are called to make seriously  difficult choices. We choose to tell ourselves that “bitterness,  wrath, anger, clamour and slander” have no place in our hearts. Therefore, we are to reject ownership of these dangerous and damaging outworking’s.

Paul speaks of clamour, which is an outburst of grief. Now, grief is OK, and speaking about grief is good and honouring to the Lord. But grief should not burst out in loud and angry words which seek to hurt others. Sometimes our hearts try to deceive us into thinking that uncontrollable outbursts are OK, but they’re NOT. Deceived hearts will even say that it’s OK to slander the forgiven person, but it is NOT OK. And remember, only Christ, the God man, was truly capable of righteous anger. Our anger sins. Therefore, “be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, ²⁷ and give no opportunity to the devil” (Ephesians 4:26-27).

Fourth, verse 32 shows us how to behave towards the forgiven person and the motive for such behaviour. “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.” Put simply, we are to forgive our offenders to the same extreme as God has forgiven us (Mat 18:21-22). We instruct ourselves to transfer the forgiveness we received from God onto the person who offends us. We then tell ourselves to be kind rather than angry. We exchange feelings of hard bitterness for tender-heartedness. When painful or harsh memories surface, we tell ourselves that Christ has forgiven us, and we have forgiven our offender. Unforgiveness should have NO place in our hearts.

Jesus said in Matthew 5:44, “love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” Whenever our hearts speak words of unforgiveness, we surrender that memory and emotion to the control of God the Holy Spirit and pray for God’s blessing on that forgiven person. We should also pray for the opportunity of reconciliation (1Co 4:13). May we commit to Christ having the victory of forgiveness in us, and to helping others experience the victory of Christ’s forgiveness also.

Few people, if any, have no prejudices at all in life. There will always be those issues that stir up the strongest emotions which we struggle to get past. Luke chapter 5 records one such instance. The Romans ruled first century Palestine, and the Jews carried a strong prejudice against Rome, understandably. They were enemies. So, for a Jewish person to support Rome, or to work with the Romans in any way was considered unforgivable.


Luke 5:27-32 records the short but revealing story of a man by the name of Levi whom Jesus engaged with. Jesus had just healed a bedridden paralytic man who was lowered down through the roof by friends, landing at Jesus feet. But this man walked out of that house on that day glorifying God.

As Jesus was walking away from that place He stepped into the life of a Jew by the name of Levi, who was a collector of taxes for Rome. Levi was sitting at the tax booth (Lk 5:27), minding his own profitable business of exploiting excessive taxes from his community on behalf of Rome. Levi was not looking for Jesus. In fact, there is nothing to suggest that Levi was interested in Jesus in the slightest. Uninvited, Jesus steps up to the tax booth. Without any recorded greeting or introduction, Jesus speaks His first two words to Levi. “Follow me” (Lk 5:27). That was it, end of conversation.

Obviously, Levi would have thought through and calculated his options. How would he respond to this stranger by the name of Jesus who abruptly stepped into his life and demands to be followed? Whatever was going through Levi’s thinking resulted with his leaving everything, he rose and followed Jesus (Lk 5:28). The Jewish Pharisees and scribes would have hated Levi as a traitor of his people for the profit of self and Rome. But now, they would hate Levi even more, as a man who had left everything to follow Jesus.

The certainty and joy of Levi’s decision to follow Jesus was quickly seen when Levi made him (Jesus) a great feast in his house, and there was a large company of tax collectors and others reclining at table with them (Lk 5:29). Having abandoned his old life of tax collecting, Levi celebrated his new life as a follower of Jesus with his old-life friends. Levi was now actively introducing Jesus to all of his old-life friends, who were a large company of tax collectors and others (Lk 5:29). Levi had no shame of being seen with Jesus. Levi also had no shame of announcing publicly that he had left the tax collecting life. Levi had even invited Jesus’ other disciples to join the celebration with his old-life friends. I’m sure that many of Levi’s old tax collecting comrades thought he was crazy, and no doubt many would have happily picked up Levi’s clientele.

Meanwhile, the news has reached the Pharisees and scribes who raced across town and grumbled at Jesus’ disciples, saying, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?” (Lk 5:30). Levi would now be considered a traitor of Rome, a traitor of Israel, and a traitor of Jewish religion. The nation’s prejudices where fully stacked against Levi, but Levi celebrated with Jesus!

Much to everyone’s surprize I’m sure, Jesus steps up to these self-righteous Pharisees and scribes, and proclaims the liberating repentance of Levi which was at the very heart of Jesus’ earthly ministry. “I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance” (Lk 5:32). Repentance of sin with its lifestyle choices has always been at the heart of Jesus’ gospel, and nothing has changed. May we also rejoice with repentant sinners, calling them to leave everything of their old sinful lives and follow Jesus.

In Psalm 5:1-3 King David gives us a brief look into his thought life of anxiety and prayer.
¹ Listen to my words, LORD, consider my lament.
² Hear my cry for help, my King and my God, for to you I pray.
³ In the morning, LORD, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly.
David needed to know he had God’s attention, particularly as he was sharing his laments (passionate grief). David began each day with prayer, it was the uploading of his deepest thoughts and concerns. He knew that it’s OK to mourn before God, and it was therapeutic to hear himself unloading his inner most thoughts, feelings, pains, disappointments, regrets, doubts, questions, and desires onto the Lord. Prayer allows repeated exposure of our most private thoughts to the Almighty. In prayer you have access to God, and He is listening, He is taking note with the intention of acting upon your prayers. While David was a man of many faults and issues, yet, in his heart of hearts, David was attached to the Lord and did not hesitate to call out for help.

David’s greatest prayer asset was his humility when he called God “my King and my God.” King David understood the distinction between God and himself. God is the ultimate KING of kings who is the GOD of all gods. While King David was a man of earthly authority, yet, before God Almighty, he was vulnerable, inadequate, and fearful. Through prayer, he reached out to God knowing that His Lord listens and provides. Using New Testament language the apostle Paul explains, “my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:19). When we pray, nothing is left to chance, even the lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the Lord (Proverbs 16:33). David understood this.

You see, faith enables thoughts to increasingly become focused on who God IS. Awareness of God’s nature increases stability in our thoughts of Him. Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, O LORD, and you are exalted as head above all (1 Chronicles 29:11). God is NOT challenged by world events or political leaders. He oversees all natural events. He controls plagues, and He is unthreatened my human opinions or conspiracies. God never trembles at the squeaky voices of our belligerent world. Therefore, God is our confidence, He is dependably Sovereign in all scenarios!

Even when we make bad choices, prayer gives us access to God’s gracious resources. In these times, David’s words of Psalm 23:4 help, even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. The question is, do we truly believe this? Or do we permit worldly voices of error and small god thinking to dominate our thoughts?

>When we pray according to God’s Word and God’s will, we are injecting truth into the flow of our thoughts, and we are speaking biblical absolutes into our souls. Prayer draws from faith, and simultaneously instructs the heart with truth. Prayer is surrendered, open hearted, and vulnerable worship loaded with frailty and imperfection. May we rise above our manmade insecurities, and say with David, that we lay my requests before you and wait expectantly.

Pain can be a powerful motivator feeding into our thoughts. As with many aspects of life, pain is diverse in nature and caused by a host of possible sources. Unfortunately, pain of any kind is memorable. In our humanity, it is not uncommon for our whole being: physically, emotionally, and spiritually, to hold onto pain and resists letting go. While we are blessed to live in a time where many aids exist to assist us with pain relief, there is no magic pill that fixes all. I suggest that pains of the heart are not only the worst, but they can be the most difficult to deal with.

Secret pain, self-condemnation, loss of dignity, guilt, repeated memory replay, unforgiveness, anger, abuse,  and harmful desires, can all become the inner pains which scar the heart. Left unattended these can dominate our thoughts with devastating consequences. While Christians are not exempt from the pains of life, they do have God’s resources at their disposal to manage and even conquer such pains.

Solomon acknowledges that the heart knows its own bitterness, and no stranger shares its joy (Proverbs 14:10). There can be a world of activity happening within our hearts, and no-one else may know of it. The reality for most of us, is that even in laughter the heart may ache, and the end of joy may be grief (Proverbs 14:13). The heart is complex, it’s secretive, and its relationship with our thoughts carry self-appointed authority which often oversteps healthy boundaries. Consequently, emotional scars can form lasting disfigurement of the heart if unresolved conflict is permitted.

Realise that Jesus Christ wants to step into this messy thing called the heart. He comes with understanding and the capacity to bring healing, restoration, and hope. The starting point of all Christian inner restoration is the Cross of Jesus Christ. Realise that when you come to Jesus Christ with a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, …God …will not despise or reject you (Psalm 51:17). Jesus invites us in Matthew 11:29, take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

Christ enables us to forgive each other; as the Lord has forgiven you (Colossians 3:13). Forgiveness is powerful to heal inner scars, and we govern the implementation of forgiveness with our thoughts. Having received forgiveness, we pass that same forgiveness onto others in Jesus’ name. When memories of past hurts resurface, we surrender them to forgiveness, entrusting others into God’s care and His judgement.

With our thoughts, we choose to forgive and walk in love which restores worship and dignity. The love of God re-energises our weakness, it re-prioritises our heart, and seeks to communicate in recognisable ways. Love is remarkably therapeutic for everyone, but it takes thought to put it into action. So, we choose to love one another… to outdo one another in showing honour, …to rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer… and to contribute to the needs of the saints. Being forgiven and loved ourselves, we bless those who persecute… we rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep, and we endeavour to live in harmony with one another (Romans 12:10-16).

Informing thoughts to comply to a more Christlike pattern also enables us to seek assistance from others. Be it medical, counselling, friendship, or guidance, but help is often needed and always involves others. This is because we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another (Romans 12:5). Jesus Christ heals painful hearts and corrects painful thoughts when we invite Him to transform and renew our minds (Rom 12:2).

Feeding thoughts with healthy fuel requires identifying the things which poison our thoughts. A poison of thoughts can be anything that resists holiness, values sin, and decreases your closeness with the Lord. Poisons reduce faith, weaken relationships, lessens your desire to serve, and promote self-first.
Just as there are many sources of good thought food, so there are many sources of thought poison. The worst of these, which is the most difficult to deal with, are poisons of the heart. Weather you intentionally allowed these poisons in, or they were inflicted upon you, makes little difference, they need resolving by Christ to bring their destructive work to an end.

Working against us is the fact that the heart instinctively protects pride, anger, unforgiveness, offences, resentment, impatience, and envy, which all exacerbate our heart problems. Sooner or later however, the heart cannot help but expose its treasures. Jesus explained this in Luke 6:45, the good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks. Sinful treasures can lay dormant in the heart for a long time waiting for the opportunity to awaken and speak into our thoughts, our actions, and our reactions. But rest assured, treasures of the heart will always show themselves, whether good or bad.

Just as good diet is essential for good health, so good heart food is essential for good thoughts. If you feed your heart with discontentment, unmet expectations, gossip, slander, conspiracy, unfaithfulness, lies, pornography, crude humour, violence, abusiveness, or worldly thinking of God, all these will poison your heart. As the heart is the inner reservoir supplying your mind with food, it is critical to fill the heart with clean and healthy supplies.

We naturally find this level of heart evaluation distasteful. Becoming aware of poisons within calls for serious humility. When David called his son Solomon to build a temple for the Lord in 1 Chronicles 22:19, he instructed him to set your mind and heart to seek the LORD your God. This instruction called Solomon to filter what he permitted to enter himself. It also required Solomon to wilfully determine the activities of his mind and heart. And finally, it directed Solomon to speak God oriented instructions to himself, ordering that inner activities of all kinds were to seek the LORD your God.

Instinctively, without the Lordship of Christ, mankind’s heart increasingly becomes as in the days of Noah, where God observed every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually (Genesis 6:5). If we neglect this important area of practical faith, our natural impulses will gravitate towards pre-salvation desires. Unfortunately, poisons of the heart come naturally and easily, often existing as the oldest residents of our hearts. They are often well disguised, buried within personality, protected by many layers of self-preservation, and masters of deceit. When they speak into our thoughts, they speak with loud familiarity and authority, plus they are always self-vindicating and destructive to both ourselves and others.

Biblical attention given to our hearts and thoughts can spare us great pain while promoting Christlikeness. Solomon instructs us to make our ear attentive to wisdom and inclining your heart to understanding (Proverbs 2:2). Our inner selves require spiritual maintenance, but not by this world’s standards. Backslidden David new this well when he asked the Lord to create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me (Psalm 51:10).

To be continued…