I’m reading Tim Keller’s excellent Forgive: Why should I and how can I?

Early in the book after reflecting on the Servant with the debt who forgiveness his debt but then is unwilling to forgive the debt of another (Matthew 18), Keller writes

To forgive, then, is first to name the trespass truthfully as wrong and punishable, rather than merely excusing it.

Second, it is to identify with the perpetrator as a fellow sinner rather than thinking how different from you he or she is. It is to will their good.

Third, it is to release the wrongdoer from liability by absorbing the debt oneself rather than seeking revenge and paying them back.

Finally, it is to aim for reconciliation rather than breaking off the relationship forever.

If you omit any one of these four actions, you are not engaging in real forgiveness."

"Forgive: Why should I and how can I?" by Timothy Keller

All this flows from knowing the forgiveness found in Jesus - vertical forgiveness - and a recognition of the reality of this forgiveness in our hearts - internal forgiveness. Knowing and experiencing this forgiveness ought to lead to the forgiveness of others, as above.

Have you found forgiveness in God? Is this a reality you’ve applied to your heart? And, how are you going with your forgiveness of others? I have some heart work to do.