“And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.“
— Ephesians 4:30-32 KJV
Reflection on Today's Verse
You know what strikes me most about this passage? That the Spirit can actually be grieved. Not irritated, not mildly disappointed—grieved. Like a friend who trusted you and then watched you walk straight into something you knew would hurt both of you. It’s not about God keeping a scorecard. It’s about a relationship, one so personal that your bitterness, your harsh words, your refusal to forgive—it lands on Him like a weight.
We treat bitterness like a quiet sin. Something we can keep in the corner, feed crumbs to, and control. But it grows fangs. It twists the way we see people. It poisons conversations before they even happen. And Paul doesn’t give us a polite suggestion here—he says get rid of it. All of it. The sharp edges, the whispered slander, the cold shoulders.
Instead? Be kind. Tenderhearted. Forgiving—just like God forgave you. And that’s where the knife cuts deepest. Because He forgave you when you weren’t even looking for it. He forgave knowing you’d mess up again. He forgave without keeping a receipt.
If we actually lived that—really lived it—how many of our “broken” relationships would start breathing again? How much lighter would our own hearts feel? Maybe the Spirit wouldn’t just stop grieving. Maybe He’d start singing.
Personal Prayer
Father, pull the bitterness out of me by the root. Don’t let it hide in the cracks of my heart. Remind me what it cost You to forgive me—so I can’t cheapen that gift by holding grudges.
Make my words soft without making them weak. Teach me to love in a way that doesn’t keep score. And if my heart resists, break it until it bleeds grace instead of pride. Amen.