Words of Forgiveness

Mark 11:25 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.

 

Luke 17:3 - 4 Take heed to yourselves: If thy brother trespass against thee, rebuke him; and if he repent, forgive him. 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.

 

And after Jesus Christ spoke these words, the disciples said "Lord, increase our faith!" Let's face it, forgiving isn't easy! And, it's easy to see from these two Scriptures, that forgiveness is a requirement set by the Messiah for His children. I believe the wording "thou shalt" to be fairly important words to listen to when Christ is speaking to us. I believe that Christ requires two types of forgiveness. I call them heart forgiveness and verbal forgiveness. 

Heart Forgiveness must be given unconditionally, while verbal forgiveness is often conditional.  
Heart forgiveness is a battle, verbal forgiveness is a response.  
Heart Forgiveness is a battle in your spirit to subdue the reaction of your flesh to the injury.

Greg Wright says the following, "Verbal Forgiveness is the response of the forgiving heart to the repentence of the offender. Generally, Christians who only recognize one kind of forgiveness--verbal forgiveness--still would agree that bitterness must be overcome in the heart, but they would not refer to this heart-work as forgiveness. However, I maintain that not only is this heart-work appropriately called forgiveness, but this is the kind of forgiveness that is always demanded by Christ. Even when offenders do not repent, Christians are still required by the Bible to forgive personal offenses from the heart. 

These two methods of forgiveness differ from each other in many ways. 
They differ in direction:

• Heart Forgiveness is godward and vertical. With the help of God the victim seeks to set aside bitterness, hatred, and revenge.
• Verbal Forgiveness is manward and horizontal. The victim responds to the repentance of the offender by telling him that he is forgiven.

They differ in what is accomplished:

• Heart Forgiveness restores the victim. It removes the evil thoughts that undermine communion and fellowship with God.
• Verbal Forgiveness restores the offender. It renews fellowship and makes full reconciliation possible.

They differ in what is required:

• Heart forgiveness is the required response to all personal offenses.
• Verbal forgiveness is required only when the offender repents.

They differ in location:

• Heart forgiveness can be done alone before God in prayer.
• Verbal forgiveness must be communicated to the offender.

They differ in possibility:

• Heart forgiveness is the response of the offended party, so it is always doable. The victim does not need the cooperation of the offender.
• Verbal forgiveness requires the repentance of the offender, so it is not always doable.

They differ in finality:

• Heart forgiveness must be done continually. Man might sooner tame the wind than still the recurring bad memories that ignite bitterness. Yet as often as he remembers he must forgive.
• Verbal forgiveness is required only once. Yet the victim may need to reassure the offender of forgiveness, just as Joseph had to reassure his brothers after Jacob died.

They differ in dependency:

• Heart forgiveness may be done without verbal forgiveness.
• Verbal forgiveness means nothing without heart forgiveness. The man who verbally forgives yet nurses a grudge has not truly forgiven