Hebrews 12:15 “See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no ‘root of bitterness’ springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled”
Have you ever spoken with someone who at one time attended a church, but then something happened, and that was the end of it? Believe me, I have. One person I’m thinking about didn’t receive the help they expected to receive from a pastor, and it angered them. They determined then and there that they would never again enter the doors of that church – nor any other church, for that matter. Another case: someone had said something in an adult Sunday School class which angered them. They viewed it as a personal attack, although they had completely misheard and misinterpreted what the other person had said. But it didn’t matter to them. They quit going to that church – and they took their entire family with them. As far as I know he never attended another church again. There are other examples I could mention, but you get the idea. It’s some incident, perhaps years ago, that caused a person to react with bitterness, a word the verse above calls a “root” that can spring up, cause trouble, and defile many.
Bitterness can be defined as “a condition of being angry, hurt, or resentful because of one’s bad experiences or a sense of unjust treatment.” It might start small, like the root of some toxic weed. Eventually, it can grow and grow until it causes great damage in a person’s life and others whom that person has influenced. In the verse above we are told of the possible eternal consequences that such an attitude can have. It can cause a person to, sadly, “fail to obtain the grace of God.”
Think of it – God’s grace. It’s the opposite of bitterness. It’s the unmerited favor that God has showered on those who are sinners, for it was “while we were yet sinners that Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). What a tragedy that someone’s belligerence and utter refusal to forgive a perceived or actual wrong against them can cause them to miss the life-giving forgiveness that God is offering them. And then to think that that same bitterness can defile others as they hear the “tragic” stories of this person’s past slights and develop their own unwarranted bitterness as a result.
So, what marks your life? As the old hymn so wonderfully says, is it the “marvelous grace of our loving Lord, grace that exceed our sin and our guilt”? Or is it bitterness for some past wrong that can make such grace ineffective in your life. Bitterness is such a poison. It’s such a destructive force in anyone’s life. Yet, there are people that cling to it and roll it over in their mouth as if it was one of the world’s choicest and sweetest foods. But, take heed, it most certainly isn’t. It’s a poison that can bring death in the end.
May God give us the wisdom to demonstrate a spirit of grace, for it is grace that is one of the marks of those who have truly believed.
To Encourage You 
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