Forgiven

I have heard it said so many times “God has forgiven us, now, we just have to learn to forgive ourselves”, why? When did we begin to believe that there would be greater peace in our lives if we could just learn to forgive ourselves. Why should we forgive ourselves, does this have some impact on our eternity? Isn't God's forgiveness of our sins is the only forgiveness that matters in eternity? Hasn't Christ has paid the ultimate price for that forgiveness (Acts 4:25 He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification.), and, by not “forgiving” ourselves aren't we truly just not taking the Lord at His Word, aren't we just doubting His complete and perfect forgiveness? The Lord has called us to forgive others just as God also forgave them (Matthew 6:12 Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors), but if we don't, does that give us some power over them, to damn them to hell? We are not God! So where does this guilt, this shame, this feeling of unforgiveness come from? What better way than to trick us into believing that we are still in the bondage of sin than by riddling us with guilt and shame over our past (Acts 26:18 to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.'). We continually let our past sins follow us, all in this dream of one day we will be able to forgive ourselves, when we have already been forgiven and we are now allowing the enemy to convince us that we are like God, choosing who lives and dies and at what cost. My brothers and sisters in Christ, we are forgiven, we must claim our forgiveness, and when we are plagued by shame, we must proclaim it to the the enemy and cast those thoughts away from us in the name of Jesus Christ's blood! For years I had been “working through” this ever-present pain of the past, but the Lord has told us we are set free in Christ Jesus, are you truly free, or do you allow the pain of sin and shame to keep you bound by Satan. You have been given the power through the Holy Spirit in you ( Acts 2:38 "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.) to cast out Satan, do you believe that? Have you used it? It took less than one week to show Satan that Jesus is truly the Lord of my life. A memory of a past sin would creep into my mind out of nowhere and my response was the same, saying out loud, “I am forgiven by the blood of Jesus, Satan you have no place here!”
"The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." John 10:10