Ephesians 4:31-32 (KJV)
31 Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice:
32 And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.
Bitterness and malice are offshoots of an unforgiving character. There’re brethren who say, “I will never forgive so and so for what he did to me”. Others merely add a twist to it and say, “I have forgiven him for what he did to me, but I don’t think I can ever forget it”. As a child of God, you should act like your heavenly Father, who never recalls offences. Malice and bitterness will take the shine out of your life. If you want the beauty of God to be seen in your life, then refuse to keep malice or be bitter.
I love the counsel given by the Spirit of God through the Apostle Paul in:
1 Corinthians 14:20
“Brethren, be not children in understanding: howbeit in malice be ye children, but in understanding be men”.
Babies don't know how to be bitter or keep malice. They’re too innocent for that; they don't have enough sense to regard or recognise any wrong done to them. That’s what the Spirit of God is telling you here; be as babies!
Don’t regard the wrong done to you by others, to the extent that you become bitter.
One of the most dangerous effects of harbouring bitterness or malice in your heart is that it short-circuits the power of God in your life, making you unable to function with the Spirit. This is what happened to the prophet Elisha in 2 Kings 3. When the King of Israel , Judah and Edom came to inquire of the Lord from him, he spoke out in anger to the King of Israel:
2 Kings 3:14
“…As the Lord of host liveth, before whom I stand, surely, were it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat, the King of Judah, I would not look toward thee, nor see thee”
Elisha was so angry and bitter against the King of Israel that he couldn't hear what the Spirit was saying. He then had to call for a minstrel (a musician) to play, so the anointing could come on him and he could receive from the Spirit (2 Kings 3:15).
Don’t open the door for satan to come into your life through anger, resentment, bitterness, jealousy, malice and apathy; put them away completely. If you’ve held anything against anyone, it’s time to sincerely forgive them and show them the love of the Father.
Further Reading
James 1:20
Colossians 3:8
Hebrews 12:14-15
Ephesians 4:26