Love Like You've Never Been Hurt.

“Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” Eph. 4:32.

In recent decades, psychologists have begun to study something the Bible has taught for centuries: the power of forgiveness. They’ve found that people who forgive deeply, especially those who forgive without being asked, experience lower levels of anxiety. They experience lower levels of depression, and even physical pain. But here’s the surprising part: Many of the people most capable of deep, repeated forgiveness have one thing in common. They believe they’ve been forgiven by God. You see, when someone knows that they’ve received undeserved mercy, they tend to extend it. It’s not that forgiveness becomes easy. But it is possible. One study showed that people who regularly practiced their faith and reflected on God’s grace were far more likely to forgive serious offenses — even when the offender wasn’t sorry. Why? Because they weren’t drawing forgiveness from their own strength. They were passing along what they had first received.

That’s exactly what Paul wrote in our text. We don’t forgive so we can be forgiven. We forgive because we have been forgiven. When we realize that God didn’t wait for us to be worthy, when we remember that Jesus forgave us from the cross before we ever asked, it changes how we see others. God’s love isn’t just something we receive, it’s something that rewires us from the inside out. And the world sees His love most clearly when we show it especially to those who don’t deserve it. We are commanded to extend unconditional grace, kindness, and forgiveness to difficult or hurtful people, mirroring the divine love shown to us. It is a sacrificial, proactive choice to see others as God does—wounded people in need of redemption, rather than simply enemies, requiring reliance on spiritual strength rather than human emotion. 

Remember that loving the seemingly “unlovables” is every believer’s calling, everyone has been "unlovable" or undeserving at some point, yet we all have received grace, which makes it possible to extend forgiveness, grace and love to others. Behind every "unlovable" person is often someone who is wounded, repeating negativity, or in need of love. Learn to forgive not for their sake, but for your own sake. To break the chains of bitterness and resentment and malice. This kind of love is not an emotional feeling, it is a commitment to a person's well-being, demonstrated through actions like kindness, prayer, and nonresistance to evil. Loving the unlovable does not mean allowing abuse; it can mean loving from a distance while still holding no ill will. Selah!

FURTHER READING:

“And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.” Matt. 11:25.

“If there be therefore any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any bowels and mercies.” Phil. 2:1.

DECLARATION: 

Dear Abba Father, I thank You for the gift of life and the privilege of salvation. Father, I come before You today thanking You for loving me unconditionally, even when I have been difficult to love. I confess that I struggle to extend this same love to those who have hurt, betrayed, or disappointed me. I ask for the grace to forgive others who hurt me, not because they deserve it, but because You have forgiven me. I ask for the strength to release all anger, resentment, and bitterness from my heart, as I know these emotions poison my own soul, grant me renewed zeal, grace and wisdom for this new week in the mighty name of Jesus, amen.

1 YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN:

1 Sam. 27:1-12.

1 Sam. 28:1-25.

1 Sam. 29:1-11.

QUOTE FOR THE DAY:

“Loving The Unlovable Does Not Mean Allowing Abuse; It Can Mean Loving From A Distance While Still Holding No Ill Will.”