It is the the habit of forgetting a sin committed by someone against you with or without their knowledge from the deepest of hearts and having no grudge for the sin which you have forgotten.
Why should i forgive?
As all know, to err is human. Every human being makes mistakes and sins against others but forgiving those sins is the toughest part. By forgiving a person, your quality of life increases and therefore you lead a good life with God and finally achieve the goal of Eternal Life. Jesus Christ forgave others' sins and he finally died as a sacrifice for the forgiveness of our own sins. So, forgiving is one of the main factors that should be followed for us and by us to attain eternal life.
How can forgiving increase my quality of life?
To forgive other person's sins against you, you must grow inside yourself some characteristics. First, you should be able to identify that the other person is committing a sin against you (with or without his knowledge is not a factor to forgive). For doing so, you should have a steady, calm mind and a good understanding of what is right and what is wrong. You should be stable in your mind to make such an identification. But identifying right and wrong is not so easy as said. It requires God's wisdom and support. If you achieve this first step itself, you come closer to God. Because making your mind to be calm, steady and stable through out a day is itself tough. On doing so, your thoughts will be clean and you will always think in the correct stable direction. Next step is still a harder one. It is the part of real Forgiveness. After you have identified that the other person has committed a sin against you, forgive him. I know that it is really tough. Because, our human mind, from our small age is practiced to retaliate for any actions other impose on us. It is been in our blood and mind for all these years. So, changing it is going to be a tough job. But, still remember, when Jesus Christ was tortured, he said, "Father, forgive them". So, forgive others sins. After you forgive them, when you see that person who committed sin against you, you should not remember what he did against you. You should not have the grudge against him instead love him.
So by forgiving others sins, you become calm, mature, steady and stable minded, get the wisdom of separating between good and bad and finally and the most important thing is you become close to God.
What are the benefits of forgiving and how does it get closer to eternal life?
As per the prayer Jesus Christ taught us which every Christian recites on an average of 3 times a day, "Father, forgive us our sins as we forgive sins by others against us". So, if you are stone hearted and if you refuse to forgive others, even your sins will not be forgiven.
The Bible also says that, "For the same way the measure you use, it will be measured to you". So, if you forgive 10 sins, you also get 10 of your sins forgiven.
So, by forgiving the sins of others, you get your own sins forgiven and so, you attain eternal life in the Kingdom of God. Lesser your sins, higher the chance for you to attain eternal life.
How many times should i forgive a person when he keeps on repeating the same sin?
Forgive them how many ever times he sins. God said to forgive a person not only seven times but also seventy seven times. So, forgive a person not only seven times but also any number of times as God forgives us even though we keep on doing the same sins.
To retaliate for the sins others have done to us is a character many of us possess but to forgive those sins and love that person and pray for them is something extraordinary and is the character of GOD and Jesus Christ did so in His life.
