ARE YOU A "FRIEND OF THE WORLD" OR A "FRIEND OF GOD"?

The god of this world, Satan, wants to take as many souls as he can; to perish for eternity in hell with him.

He also wants to spite the creator, Yahweh. Certainly this enemy of men's souls delights all the more when the souls he wins are of professing Christians, who once had "escaped the pollutions of this world" by professing faith in Jesus Christ as their Savior.

"For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning." 2 Peter 2:20

In fact, regaining the souls of those previously who had come to the "knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ" gives the enemy extreme glee and  satisfaction.

Not only is he stealing these souls from God, but the devil also knows that  these who "have lost their salvation by getting tangled up and enslaved by sin again" will be worse off than before."

Therefore, those who once knew the glory of salvation but backslide into a sinful, unrepentant lifestyle; will actually reap worse punishment than if they had never known the Lord Jesus Christ. 

Scripture tells us that they would have been better off "to have had no knowledge of the way of righteousness":

"For it would have been better for them to have had no knowledge of the way of righteousness, than to go back again from the holy law which was given to them, after having knowledge of it." 2 Peter 2:21

The reason that the backslidden/ lukewarm Christians deserve and undergo worse punishment is because in that state, they are actually "trampling the Son of God under foot". 

They are treating the blood of the covenant "as an unholy thing." By doing so, they are insulting the "Spirit of grace" which is a grievous action which results in more severe eternal punishment:

How much more severely do you think a man deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God under foot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified him, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace?" Hebrews 10:29

In fact, the Savior despises this lukewarm state so much that He refers to it as a condition that apparently makes Him sickingly disgusted.  

He actually warns those who become lukewarm that He will "vomit them" out of His mouth:

"But because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold, not hot, I will begin to vomit thee out of my mouth" Revelation 3:16

Please note that the majority of warnings found in the New Testament are mainly to believers, not to unbelievers.

Unbelievers would not be reading and digesting God's Word to begin with so the warnings are issued to believers who are supposed to familiarize themselves with Scripture.

Perhaps the reason that many people become backslidden and lukewarm is because they are neglecting to read and study the Bible.

If only all professing Christians would revere His written Word and actually read it and take it to heart.

They would then be well aware of the horrifying consequences of falling back into a state of unrepentance and/or obsession with the things of this world.

"It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God." Hebrews 10:31

ha satan (satan) tries to tempt believers in the same way he attempted to tempt Yeshua: with the kingdoms of this world. 

The enemy tantalizes believers with earthly gain in order to woo their affection and devotion away from God. 

In doing so, the things of this world become idols to them, wherein they put their earthly lives above the Kingdom of God.

"...the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. “All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.” Matthew 4:8

God makes it beyond clear in His Ten Commandments that we are to put Him first and put nothing above Him.

Yaweh literally warns us that He is a "jealous God." As our creator, He deserves all the glory and all of our attention:

Exodus 20:3 “You shall have no other gods before me.   

^{Exodus 20:4} “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. ⁵ You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, ⁶ but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.

A good way to determine if we are giving God the priority He not only deserves, but also demands is by honestly evaluating our lives.

We need to evaluate and sincerely admit where most of our time, money, efforts, and thoughts are focused and that will prove to us which god we serve...the god of this world or the almighty living God, creator of Heaven and Earth.

In our modern day, high tech society there are so many mediums of entertainment by which satan can try to lure us away from serving God.

All of the laptops, IPODS, Iphones, Ipads, televsion, radios, video games and other such technological devices take up much of most people's time, money, efforts and thoughts.

Interestingly, several of these time consuming devices are titled with an "I" as in the Iphone, Ipad, etc.

It is almost as if this "I" denotes the self-centeredness that the electronic item promotes.

With the mass production of these many man made "idols", modern day mankind has literally made idols and are worshipping the works of our hands."

Isaiah 2:8 Their land is full of idols; the people worship things they have made with their own hands.

God warns us to worship only Him and we are to be consecrated to Him and set apart from this world.

However, satan has deluded many professing Christians to where their appearance and activities are no different than that of the world.

They watch the same movies, wear the same clothing, seek the same entertainment and desire the same pleasures as those of the world.

So very many have been deceived into constantly pursing the things and riches of the world to where they belong not to God, but to the ruler of this world, ha satan.

Many lukewarm Christians justify that they are not "sinning" if they are not drinking, doing drugs, immoral sex, theft etc.

They do not realize that to put the things of the world over God IS sin.

So, when they allow the pleasures and material items of the world to become their priority, they are actually living in unrepentant sin.

They have unknowingly slipped into entanglement by the corruptions of the world, which overcomes most, causing them to lose their salvation. 

The following verse is ample evidence how being "eager" for the idols of money/materialism can cause the loss of one's salvation:

1 Timothy 6:10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.

Satan successfully lures many into this "idol worship" through "the love of money" and through the desire of the many things it can buy.

If only professing Christians would look into God's Word, they would see how seriously dangerous is the ground they are treading on.

It is, in truth, leading to them being overcome by worldly desires which makes them "an enemy of God".

You adulterous people, don't you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God? Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God" James 4:4

In America and other western, prosperous countries, this ploy to steal men's souls is most effective.

These financially blessed countries offer a vast array of glitter,glitz and allure of worldly possessions and entertainment.

Satan has blinded the Modern Day Church to where they are under the impression that they are "good to go" and truly saved just because they walked an aisle, made a confession of faith and perhaps even attend Church regularly.

They are blind to the fact that if their main focus and desires are for the attractions of this world that they are NOT "good to go".
 

Quite to the converse, they will be left behind when the Bridegroom returns for His Bride who is supposed to be awaiting Him, untainted by the things of this world.

 James 1:27 Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.

In fact, we can see that the description that Yeshua gave of the lukewarm Church of Laodecia accurately depicts the condition of most of today's "church people".

"You say, 'I am rich. I have everything I want. I don't need a thing!' And you don't realize that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked." Revelation 3:17 

In the last days Church of Laodecia, physical wealth has become a set back and a detriment for many as it leads them into "ruin and destruction", compromising their salvation:

"People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction." 1 Timothy 6:9  

If only professing believers would believe the warnings that Jesus gave to us regarding earthly riches.

They would then heed the many warnings in Scripture of the pitfall of worldly gain, causing them to flee from the temptations of the world. 

"Then Jesus said to his disciples, “I tell you the truth, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”Matthew 19:23-24

The spiritual battle waging for men's souls is ongoing and the enemy is pulling out "all the stops" as he knows his time is short in these last days.

There are so many worldly things crying out for men's attention and affection.

There are multitudes who have been deluded into thinking they can have the "best of both worlds".

They think they can serve God while constantly in the pursuit of money and all the fun and property it can buy.

However, God made it clear that we cannot have divided allegiance. We have to choose either God or the things of the world because "no one can have two masters":

"No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money." Matthew 6:24

Sadly, we can see all around us the many who profess to belong to Christ, while all outward appearances prove that Mammon is their god. 

The allure of the world even causes many who claim to love the Lord to not want to even hear about the His soon return; because it will interfere with their earthly lives and future worldly goals. 

This "fatal attraction" that the devil has so cleverly dangled before mankind is accepted by so many that Yeshua warns us that only a FEW FIND THE ROAD THAT LEADS TO LIFE:

"But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and ONLY A FEW find it." Matthew 7:14

This grave warning is why we need to guard our hearts, setting ourselves apart , loving not the world or the things of it.

Scripture tells us regarding  those who are of the world  that :"the love of the Father is not in him". 

If the "love of the Father" is not in us, our destination will not be the glories of Heaven but instead, the terrors of hell for all eternity:

"Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him."

This is why in these final days,we need to hone in our focus on the Lord, confidently abiding in Him so we will not be ashamed before Him at His coming:

1 John 2:28 And now, little children, abide in Him; that, when He shall appear, we may have confidence, and not be ashamed before him at his coming.

The below video, "Lukewarm and Loving It" is a sermon by Francis Chan. 

It contains a bold, life-changing sermon and is a must watch for all of those who truly desire to be a "friend of God"!

 

 

SATAN'S VERY SUCCESSFUL LIE POINTS TO THE END OF THE AGE

In the study of Eschatology, also known as Bible prophecy, it is well accepted that the Rapture (the removal of those who truly belong to the Lord Jesus Christ prior to the calamities of the Tribulation period) is illustrated by the removal of Noah's family right before the Flood.

It is also typified by Lot's family being removed immediately prior to the fire and brimstone raining down, which decimated the wicked cities of Sodom and Gomorrah.

Both of these examples of the removal of the righteous prior to God's righteous wrath being unleashed, are pictures of the Rapture of the Bride of Christ.

Important to note is that in the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, as well as in the days of Noah, sexual perversion was rampant and the people were shameless and proud of their unnatural sexual exploits which God calls "detestable".

Leviticus 18:22 - "Do not lie with a man as one lies with a woman; that is detestable."

In fact, Jesus forewarned us that in the days before His return it will be as in the days of Noah:

“But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. “For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark"

According to Rabbi Aryeh Spero, the "Talmud's (early Jewish teaching)writings reveal that "before the Flood people started to write marriage contracts between men, in other words, homosexual 'marriage,'which is more than homosexual activity – it's giving an official state stamp of approval, a sanctification … of homosexual partnership." 

"In fact, he said, 'the writings indicated that it wasn't even so much the 'straw that broke the camel's back,' but that the sin in and of itself is so contrary to why God created the world, so contrary to the order of God's nature, that God said then and there 'I have to start all over … to annihilate the world and start from the beginning. …' "

"Even in ancient Greece they did not write marriage contracts between men. There was homosexuality, and it was wrong, but there was not an official 'blessed' policy. … Marriage is 'sanctification' (not simply a partnership)."

He said to confer the title of sanctification and holiness upon this behavior is 'probably one of the greatest sins of all that one does against God's plan for this world.' "

 How same-sex marriage points to end of the world http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=64769#ixzz1OWsZ9IEU

Therefore the "marrying and giving in marriage" "as in Noah's Day" that Jesus referred to as signaling the end of the age, appears to be manifesting itself.

We are now seeing an increased push for the acceptance of homosexual behavior in our modern day society.

This push to make what God calls an abomination seem normal has succeeded to the point where same sex marriage has now even been legalized in several states and countries.

In fact, as president of the United States, Barak Obama has recognized Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) pride month, annually since he took office:

"Obama Declares June Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Pride Month"

http://politics.blogs.foxnews.com/2011/05/31/obama-declares-june-lesbian-gay-bisexual-and-transgender-pride-month

It may sound curious as to why any human would declare PRIDE in the practicing of a deviation from normal; a deviation that actually caused the G-d of creation to send the Flood and to annihilate Sodom and Gomorrah to the point that the region is now the lowest place on Earth.

However, when we research, we find that PRIDE is the root of all sin and the express reason that Lucifer, Satan, was cast out of Heaven.

If Satan, the enemy of mankind, can delude people into actually being proud of sinful rebellion against God and His law; then he is more likely to successfully win their souls to spending eternity in hell with him, when he is cast into the lake of fire.

When there is pride in sin, then repentance is rare. The enemy is well aware of this. That is why he continues to delude and foster "pride" in this deviant, sinful behavior.

This age old plan by the enemy is fast gaining ground. The Federal Reserve Bank this past week was "proudly" displaying the rainbow flag beneath the American flag. 

  

"Federal Reserve bank flies the rainbow flag"

http://www.wnd.com/?pageId=306945

The rainbow is a symbol which has been adopted to represent homosexuality. After the flood of Noah, the rainbow was given by God as His promise to mankind to never again flood the earth.

^{Genesis 9:12} And God said: “This is the sign of the covenant which I make between Me and you, and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: ¹³ I set My rainbow in the cloud, and it shall be for the sign of the covenant between Me and the earth.

The fact that the rainbow has been chosen to represent the very purpose for which the earth had to be flooded to begin with, exposes Lucifer's hand. 

Satan, in his pride, always tries to mock God. The rainbow symbol is mocking the rainbow Covenant made by God to man after the Flood.

Interestingly the homosexual rainbow has six colors and the true rainbow, given by God, has seven. 

Notable is the fact that number six, as in the well known 666 of the antichrist, is associated with Satan and the number seven is God's number of completeness and perfection.

Even the very order of God's created nature proves that homosexuality is wrong. He made all living creature to procreate.


In fact, after the flood, God instructed Moses and his sons to "be fruitful and multiply":

Genesis 9:¹ Then God blessed Noah and his sons, saying to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the earth.

 

The mere fact that homosexuals cannot reproduce should evidence that this is abnormal and deviant behavior that should elicit shame and not pride. 

Since homosexuals cannot reproduce, they recruit. This is what is one of the driving forces of the "gay pride" movement. They try to force homosexuality as "normal" and into the limelight in order to recruit.

Satan hates humans because we are made in God's image. The more humans that deviate into homosexual behavior the less amount of humans there will be as homosexuals, whose behavior is contrary to what God intended for His creation, cannot reproduce.

Genesis 9:6 "...for in the image of God has God made mankind."

Homosexuality thus leads to less human beings and this is why Satan deludes people into thinking it is normal and something to be "proud" of, due to his hatred of mankind.

Also, to the devil's satisfaction, homosexuality means more human company for him in hell.

Those who practice this sin or any other unrepentant sinful lifestyle will descend into the pit and be in torment for eternity.

Satan is the Father of Lies and this is one of his favorites that he is trying to propagate. His ultimate goal is to make this sin accepted as "normal" so as to tempt more humans into practicing it.

Sadly, there are actually churches that call themselves "Christian" which promote homosexuality as both normal and acceptable.

The apostate leaders of these churches convey that since God is a God of  love, He loves homosexuals for who they are. God does love homosexuals, just as He loves all sinners.

However, in the same vein, He cannot condone and wink at their unrepentant sin just as He cannot with any type of sin that continues unabated.

These blasphemers fail to convey to their deluded church members the truth: that God is also a God of righteousness judgment, who cannot allow sin in His Holy presence.

Homosexuality is breaking God's law and thus is a sin. Those who practice it are therefore living a lifestyle of continuous sin.

Just like any other unrepentant sinners, if homosexuals die in their sin, they cannot be allowed into Heaven,into God's Holy presence.

Therefore, to the enemy of men's souls, his escalating the promotion of gay PRIDE equates to LESS humans born on earth and MORE humans being cast into hell!

1 Corinthians 6:9-10 - "Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God."

UNFORGIVENESS WILL SEND YOU TO HELL!!

Each and every person ever born onto this earth will also, one day, exit this earth.

Many Christians may be lulled into the false assurance that just because they have professed Jesus as Lord all their lives that they are Heaven-bound.

However, if they harbor unforgiveness or any form of resentment to any degree; they may be shocked and horrified when, that one day, they pass into eternity.
The Lord Jesus clarified many times that a state of unforgiveness will disallow us from entering Heaven. 


Unforgiveness may be thought to include the emotional states of "holding a grudge" or having a noted dislike for someone. It can also be extended to include negative feelings, irritation or anger towards another; these emotions are all displays of unforgiveness towards our "neighbor".

Scripture tells us that entrance to Heaven is barred when one has an unforgiving heart. It is a Kingdom principle and cannot be altered inasmuch as gravity on this planet cannot be altered.  

That is why Jesus warned us many times of the eternal consequences of unforgiveness. 

The Parable of the Unforgiving Servant in Matthew conveys our relationship with the Father and with others. Jesus paid our debt that He didn't owe and that we ourselves couldn't pay. 

Because of this, the Father has forgiven us this unpayable, unsurmountable debt just as the "certain king" forgave the debt of the servant who owed much.

However, like the debtor to the king who was forgiven so much but in turn refused to forgive the servant who owed to him a much lesser debt, so are our actions when, as believers, we choose not to forgive.

Just as the king's response to the unforgiving servant was to then revoke the cancellation of the large debt that the servant had owed, so too will we be treated if we do not forgive our "brother from" our "heart".
 

Matthew 18 :21 Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, "Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?" ²²Jesus answered, "I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times."Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. ²⁴As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him. ²⁵Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt.

 ²⁶"The servant fell on his knees before him. 'Be patient with me,' he begged, 'and I will pay back everything.' ²⁷The servant's master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go.

 ²⁸"But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii. He grabbed him and began to choke him. 'Pay back what you owe me!' he demanded.

 ²⁹"His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, 'Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.'

 ³⁰"But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. ³¹When the other servants saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed and went and told their master everything that had happened.

 ³²"Then the master called the servant in. 'You wicked servant,' he said, 'I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. ³³Shouldn't you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?' ³⁴In anger his master turned him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed.

 ³⁵"This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart."

Preceding the above parable note that Peter had asked of Jesus: 

²¹.. "Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?" 

Jesus's response was that we are to forgive  "not seven times, but seventy-seven times." As such, even when we encounter a repeat offender we are to repeatedly forgive, with sincerity from our heart.

In the Lord's Prayer, when Jesus instructed us exactly how and what to pray, He reiterated how it imperative is for us to forgive:

^{Matthew 6:12} And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors. 

This model prayer given to us by our Lord and Savior charges us to examine and address the matter of forgiveness in our hearts on a daily basis.
 

No matter what the offense perpetrated against us whether real or imagined, purposeful or by accident, we are to not only offer but also display true heartfelt forgiveness.

Bearing feelings of unforgiveness never harms the source/perpetrator. It only harms the one harboring it. 

In fact, the object of the unforgiving attitude is usually virtually unaware and totally unaffected while the one holding the unforgiveness in their heart is both emotionally and spiritually miserable and in danger of the fires of hell.

To clarify, harboring unforgiveness only hurts humankind while on this planet by removing our peace and for many can actually cause an emotional "hell on earth" as well as the potential of actually literally sending one to hell after death.

Jesus made it very clear that our sins are not forgiven us if we do not forgive others. If our sins are not forgiven, we cannot enter into the presence of God as the holy and righteous God cannot tolerate sin in His presence.

^{Matthew 6: 14}For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. ¹⁵But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.

To reiterate, forgiving others is not optional for Christians. It is a Kingdom principle upon which the violation of negates salvation because if we do not forgive others, our sins are not forgiven us.

Especially in these end times, we all need to be mindful of our stance with our Creator, having true forgiveness as He forgave us and giving Him, the one who deserves all the honor, glory and praise, our uppermost priority!!

STEPPING INTO ETERNITY

Today, may we ALL be mindful of the fact that we are but spirits encased in fragile, earthly bodies of which we will ALL one day depart from, into eternity.

All that will matter at our spirits' departure from these "shells" is what we have said and done while residing in them. 

We will ALL one day stand before the Judgment seat of Christ to give account for ALL our actions done within the" tents" we now inhabit. 
Romans 14:9 ".For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ.^{] 11} For it is written:

 As I live, says the LORD,
  Every knee shall bow to Me,
  And every tongue shall confess to God.”<sup>[d]

12</sup> So then each of us shall give account of himself to God

When it is our appointed time to die, our spirits will rise out of the lifeless shells in which we now dwell. 

None of these earthly matters which seem so pressing or material items that seem so important will matter when we depart this earth-they will be never to be seen again. 


All that will matter when we step into eternity, is how we lived our lives as the inhabitants of our earthly bodies, during our brief sojourn.


Matthew 12:36 But I say to you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment.

ETERNITY IS COMING-ARE YOU READY??

Many who follow pastors because of the feel-good, false prosperity Gospel may find themselves one day free-falling into the pits of hell because they only professed Christ because of the earthly gain they had been promised by the blasphemers they followed. 

Others who talk the talk but do not walk the walk and give earthly cares priority over God and are therefore, lukewarm need to reflect on their priorities lest they also join the free-fall. 

Revelation 3:16
So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth

On the other hand, many may serve the Lord all their lives but if they harbor unforgiveness to any degree they may be shocked and horrified when one day they pass into eternity. 

The Lord Jesus clarified that a state of unforgiveness will disallow us from entering Heaven.

Therefore, entrance to Heaven is barred when one has an unforgiving heart. It is a Kingdom principle and cannot be altered just as gravity on this planet cannot be altered.  

That is why Jesus warned us many times of the eternal consequences of unforgiveness. 

The Parable of the Unforgiving Servant in Matthew conveys our relationship with the Father and with others. Jesus paid our debt that He didn't owe and that we ourselves couldn't pay. 

Because of this, the Father has forgiven us this unpayable, unsurmountable debt just as the "certain king" forgave the debt of the servant who owed much.

However, like the debtor to the king who was forgiven so much but in turn refused to forgive the servant who owed to him a much lesser debt, so are our actions when, as believers, we choose not to forgive.

Just as the king's response to the unforgiving servant was to then revoke the cancellation of the large debt that the servant had owed, so too will we be treated if we do not forgive our "brother from" our "heart".
 

Matthew 18 :21 Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, "Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?" ²²Jesus answered, "I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times."Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. ²⁴As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand talents^[g] was brought to him. ²⁵Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt.

 ²⁶"The servant fell on his knees before him. 'Be patient with me,' he begged, 'and I will pay back everything.' ²⁷The servant's master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go.

 ²⁸"But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii.^[h] He grabbed him and began to choke him. 'Pay back what you owe me!' he demanded.

 ²⁹"His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, 'Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.'

 ³⁰"But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. ³¹When the other servants saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed and went and told their master everything that had happened.

 ³²"Then the master called the servant in. 'You wicked servant,' he said, 'I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. ³³Shouldn't you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?' ³⁴In anger his master turned him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed.

 ³⁵"This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart."

Preceding the above parable note that Peter had asked of Jesus: 

²¹.. "Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?" 

Jesus's response was that we are to forgive  "not seven times, but seventy-seven times." As such, even when we encounter a repeat offender we are to repeatedly forgive, with sincerity from our heart.

In the Lord's Prayer, when Jesus instructed us exactly how and what to pray, He reiterated how it imperative is for us to forgive:

^{Matthew 6:12} And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors. 

This model prayer given to us by our Lord and Savior charges us to examine and address the matter of forgiveness in our hearts on a daily basis.
 

No matter what the offense perpetrated against us whether real or imagined, purposeful or by accident, we are to not only offer but also display true heartfelt forgiveness.

Bearing feelings of unforgiveness never harms the source/perpetrator. It only harms the one harboring it. 

In fact, the object of the unforgiving attitude is usually virtually unaware and totally unaffected while the one holding the unforgiveness in their heart is both emotionally and spiritually miserable and in danger of the fires of hell.

To clarify, harboring unforgiveness only hurts humankind while on this planet by removing our peace and for many can actually cause an emotional "hell on earth" as well as the potential of actually literally sending one to hell after death.

Jesus made it very clear that our sins are not forgiven us if we do not forgive others. If our sins are not forgiven, we cannot enter into the presence of God as the holy and righteous God cannot tolerate sin in His presence.

^{Matthew 6: 14}For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. ¹⁵But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.

To reiterate, forgiving others is not optional for Christians. It is a Kingdom principle upon which the violation of negates salvation because if we do not forgive others, our sins are not forgiven us.

Especially in these end times, we all need to be mindful of our stance with our Creator, having true forgiveness as He forgave us and giving Him, the one who deserves all the honor, glory and praise, our uppermost priority!!