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Hi everyone. Grace and peace to you all in Jesus' mighty name.

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Greetings from the beautiful Aber Falls here in North Wales.

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Welcome to another edition of 'Faith Is Natural' here on God's Heart TV.

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Today, I want to talk to you about something that has really eaten deep

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into the very fabric and fibre of our everyday relationships.

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I can liken it to a virus against which no one is completely immune.

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It is in fact one of the most effective tools of the devil

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and one of his most common traps.

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I am talking about offence. Yes, offence.

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No matter how complex or simple,

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the possibilities for offence are as endless as the list of relationships.

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In other words - in this world, it is impossible to avoid offence.

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It's not a question of who will offend you or when you will be offended

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or where that offence comes from.

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The question is - what is your response when offence comes?

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People of God, just ask yourself right now:

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Whenever you are offended, how do you respond?

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When someone hurts or wrongs you, how do you respond?

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Because often our response leaves us vulnerable to a root of resentment.

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That's dangerous.

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When resentment takes root in your heart,

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if care is not taken - it will lead you down, it will deceive you down

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the route of bitterness, envy, jealousy, malice, anger and strife.

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And that's dangerous. Resentment is dangerous for your spiritual life.

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The issue is not the gravity of that offence in the natural

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or your perception of your right to be offended.

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The issue is - harbouring offence is deadly.

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No matter what anyone has done to you or said to you, harbouring offence is deadly

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which is why we must guard our hearts.

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People of God, you must guard your heart.

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When we are offended, it's common to feel hurt and blame our offender.

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And because we feel our rights have been infringed,

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our hurt hearts can easily believe that it is our right to be offended.

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We therefore defend our anger and bitterness to justify our unwillingness to forgive.

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But if you look deeply,

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the basis of that claim is carnal, not spiritual.

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It's natural law, not spiritual law.

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As a Christian, this is our principle:

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Whether you are right or wrong,

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you have no right to hold offence.

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That's our standard; that's our principle.

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If you claim your right, you are already wrong.

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"But you don't know my case! You don't know the circumstances in my case!"

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Look, no matter the arguments you internalise to try and convince yourself

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of the legitimacy of your right in your case,

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that doesn't change God's standard.

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Resentment has no justification.

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Resentment has no justification. Full stop.

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You may be right in the eyes of man.

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You may even feel you are right in your own eyes

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but before God -

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the Owner of your destiny, the One who holds all hearts in His hands -

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you have no right to resentment.

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No ifs, no buts.

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As a Christian, you have no right to resentment. Full stop.

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Offence will come. Yes - it will come.

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But we must not feed on that offence in our hearts.

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We must not give room to that offence in our hearts.

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Look, being offended is normal.

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But harbouring offence is sinful.

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Harbouring offence grieves the Holy Spirit.

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It's a decision to place yourself above God,

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to regard your claim to resentment,

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your self-centered claim

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as a higher authority than God's Word.

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And if the devil deceives you into believing that it is your right to be offended,

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you use your own hands to tie the chains that bind you.

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And what makes it more dangerous is that you don't even realise that you are trapped.

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You can easily fall into this vicious cycle of

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self-centredness and self-imposed isolation.

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For that's the consequence of living with an offended heart.

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When you retain offence in your heart, then you filter everything through it.

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Even if you were to come and look at this beautiful waterfall today,

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you would look at it through the lens of offence.

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You talk through it, eat through it, laugh through it.

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You even pray through it,

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which is why many prayers today are against enemies instead of weaknesses.

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You sleep through it, which is the cause of many nightmares today.

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You relate to others through it,

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which is why today many of us read meaning

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into people's actions and inactions.

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Today, there are many imaginary wars that we fight in our minds

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over issues that don't even exist in reality.

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We misinterpret people's actions and misjudge people's motives

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through our narrow perceptions and misguided preconceptions.

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We easily rationalise our own actions while we judge and condemn others.

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We hold others to a standard that we ourselves cannot attain

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and unrealistic expectations lead to unhealthy relationships

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based on the flesh, not the Spirit.

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And such relationships are set up for disappointment before they even begin.

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And thus the cycle of life goes on and on -

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the cycle of hurt, the cycle of pain, the cycle of offence.

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People of God, this has to stop!

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We must return to the Cross - to the Cross of Christ!

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Remember Jesus' words on the Cross. He said, "Father, forgive them!"

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That's God's standard; that's our standard as Christians.

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"Father, forgive them!"

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This leaves no room for resentment.

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The Cross of Christ leaves no room for resentment.

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It gives no right to resentment.

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Because after all, all of us stand in helpless need of God's Divine forgiveness

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and as the Bible says in James 2:10-11 -

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only God can determine whether one sin is greater than another.

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As I bring this message to a close today,

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let me remind you of the parable of the unmerciful servant in Matthew 18.

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After this message, I want to encourage you to go and read that parable.

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And as you read, ask yourself -

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why would anyone withhold from someone else

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the very gift that God so freely gave to you?

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In our hearts, there is always a battle between the flesh and the spirit.

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But remember this - each time you harbour offence in your heart,

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you submit to the flesh.

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Remember the book of Romans 8:6-8.

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It says those who live in the realm of flesh cannot please God.

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So, resist the devil today by refusing resentment!

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Resist the devil today by refusing to be offended. How?

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When you see whatever is done to you as done to the Father.

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If they insult me, they insult the Father.

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If they maltreat me, they maltreat the Father.

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If they lie against me, they lie against the Father

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because I have no power of my own.

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I have no room for resentment in my heart

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because I know I have no right to resentment.

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In the words of Prophet TB Joshua:

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"There is nothing I cannot overlook for the sake of Jesus!"

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Proverbs 19:11

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Right now, people of God, let us pray together.

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Begin to release yourself

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by forgiving those who have wronged you in one form or another.

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By the authority in the name of Jesus Christ,

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be released from the grip of resentment right now!

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Be released from the hold of hurt right now!

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Be released!

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Be released, in the mighty name of Jesus Christ!

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I declare your emotion free from offence right now!

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Be free, in the mighty name of Jesus Christ!

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All chains of offence within your spirit - be loosed right now!

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All chains of bitterness within your spirit - be loosed right now!

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All chains of anger within your spirit - be loosed!

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In the mighty name of Jesus Christ!

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Whatever chain satan has used to connect himself to you -

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to your family, business, marriage, finances -

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I say, be broken right now!

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Be broken, in the mighty name of Jesus Christ!

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Amen!

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I can see those chains loosed right now!

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I can hear the chains falling in the name of Jesus Christ!

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Right now, begin to give thanks to God for your freedom,

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for when the Son of God sets you free, you are free indeed!

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Thank You, Jesus Christ.