Friday, September 26, 2025

New Testament Reading Plan: 2 Corinthians 4

Colossians 3:13 
Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. 

For Jesus followers, forgiveness is a powerful testimony to the work of God in our lives. Because God has given us forgiveness through the death of Jesus, it is only natural that those who follow Jesus live out God’s forgiveness in how they forgive others. 

Yes, forgiveness doesn’t always feel natural. Honestly, it’s not supposed to. It goes against our human nature, which seeks revenge on instinct. Without the transformative work of God in our lives, we’d be forever captive to the cycle of payback and vengeance. Praise God that he gives us freedom from that cycle and empowers us to forgive! 

But have you ever considered how your forgiveness might transform others?  

When I was in middle school, I heard a sermon on forgiveness that I’ll never forget. I was sitting with my parents on Sunday morning (my sister and I were the only kids our age in our very small church, so no youth service!), and I was a bit sleepy listening to the pastor teach. But then he said, “Forgiveness is the best witness for Jesus you could ever make.” 

It hit me like a bolt of lightning. Wait a second, I wondered. I thought being a witness for Jesus was about the words I say. How is forgiveness better than that? 

The pastor went on to explain that, when someone who doesn’t know Jesus receives forgiveness from a Christian, it’s so counter-cultural that it often catches them off guard. That person can’t help but ask, “After what I did to you ... why didn’t you seek revenge? Why would you forgive me?” And that opens an opportunity for Jesus followers to explain what it is that makes them different: knowing Jesus. 

That message first taught me what we’ve learned together this week: forgiveness is powerful evidence that we live in God’s Kingdom. When we forgive others, it introduces them to Jesus unlike anything else we could do. 

Questions: 
Who in your life could you introduce to Jesus through the power of forgiveness? What would it take to do so? 

Next Steps: 
Write down the name of the person (or people) you thought of from the question above and the things you felt led to do. Pray and ask God for an opportunity to point the individual(s) to Jesus through your forgiveness this week. Without sharing details, ask someone you trust to hold you accountable to taking those steps.

Prayer:
God, I thank you that the power of forgiveness starts with how you’ve forgiven me. Remind me of the freedom I have in your forgiveness, and help me to live it out by forgiving others. Please teach me how to forgive in a way that introduces people to Jesus. I ask that my forgiveness would impact those in my life who don’t know you yet, that it would make them curious about you, and that it would facilitate a conversation about you. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Series Theme Verse: Romans 12:17-18
Never pay back evil with more evil. Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honorable. Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone.

This post was written by Ashley Allen, a Content Development intern at CedarCreek and Findlay attendee.