II Corinthians 2:10 “To whom ye forgive any thing, I forgive also: for if I forgave any thing, to whom I forgave it, for your sakes forgave I it in the person of Christ; 11 Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices.”
As the Lord is so very gracious and kind to “forgive” us, we ought to likewise “forgive” the repenting sinners around us (Ephesians 4:32), especially our Church Members. Failure to do so will allow “Satan” to “get an advantage of us”. Those with cold and hard hearts often refuse to “forgive” and will not accept repentance. Those who refuse to accept repentance and will not “forgive” are usually disposed to self-centered arrogance. Spiritual Birth does not remove all our carnal thoughts and motives, but it gives us Spiritual Strength to overcome them. When we coldly reject repentance and will not “forgive”, our archenemy (“Satan”) gleefully rushes in to use that hardheartedness to bring discontent and discouragement into the Church, robbing us of joy and peace. We “are not ignorant of” Satan’s “devices”; therefore, let us defeat him by striking back with “brotherly kindness” and “charity” (II Peter 1:7) and “Let brotherly love continue.” (Hebrews 13:1).