Daily Devotional
Love and Forgiveness Are Costly

June 6, 2023

Ponder This

True love is self-denying love. It doesn’t seek its own way. It doesn’t say, “Me first.” It doesn’t say, “I know my rights.” When you got saved, you lost all your rights. What right does a dead man have? You are crucified with Christ. You are not your own. You’re bought with a price. You belong to the Lord Jesus Christ. Your rights have now become His rights. He is the One who has commanded you to love. You can no longer seek your own. You must seek the glory of Jesus and the welfare of others if you are to truly love.

True love is also sacrificing love. There can be no forgiveness without somebody paying a price. If you owe me ten dollars and I forgive it, it costs me ten dollars to forgive it. So many of us are bookkeepers. We keep a record of the things people do against us. We need to learn to forget those things and bury those things in the grave of God’s forgetfulness. This requires that we pay the price. Take the hurt in. True love is sacrificial; it costs to forgive.

When we stop seeking our own way and start seeking to love and bless other people even when it is costly, things will change in our world.

• When have you seen someone seek the welfare of others even when it was costly to him or her?
• What is your natural reaction when someone wrongs you? What would it cost you to respond differently?

Practice This

Think about a recent situation that frustrated you. Consider ways you might serve the person who offended you; take action toward this.