“Forgiveness!”
On the Lighter side:
These are all apparently true statements made by important people...
"I’m not going to have some reporters pawing through our papers. We are the president." -Hillary Clinton commenting on the release of subpoenaed documents
"The president has kept all of the promises he intended to keep." -Clinton aide George Stephanopolous speaking on Larry King Live
"We are ready for an unforeseen event that may or may not occur." -Former U.S. Vice-President Dan Quayle
"It is wonderful to be here in the Great State of Chicago." -Former U.S. Vice-President Dan Quayle
"I was recently on a tour of Latin America, and the only regret I have was that I didn’t study Latin harder in school so I could converse with those people." -Former U.S. Vice-President Dan Quayle
"The loss of life will be irreplaceable." -Former U.S. Vice-President Dan Quayle on the San Francisco earthquake
"When I have been asked during these last weeks who caused the riots and the killing in L.A., my answer has been direct and simple: who is to blame for the riots? The rioters are to blame. Who is to blame for the killings? The killers are to blame."
-Former U.S. Vice-President Dan Quayle on the complex social issues behind the Los Angeles Riots
"Republicans understand the importance of bondage between a mother and child. -Former U.S. Vice-President Dan Quayle on Republican family values
"It isn’t pollution that’s harming the environment. It’s the impurities in our air and water that are doing it." -Former U.S. Vice-President Dan Quayle
"What a waste it is to lose one’s mind. Or not to have a mind is being very wasteful. How true that is." -Former U.S. Vice-President Dan Quayle at a fundraising event for the United Negro College Fund. He was attempting to quote the line ."A mind is a terrible thing to waste."
"I love California. I practically grew up in Phoenix." -Former U.S. Vice-President Dan Quayle
"When more and more people are thrown out of work, unemployment results." -Former U.S. President Calvin Coolidge
"I don’t feel we did wrong in taking this great country away from them. There were great numbers of people who needed new land, and the Indians were selfishly trying to keep it for themselves." -John Wayne
"Half this game is ninety percent mental." - Philadelphia Phillies manager Danny Ozark
"Things are more like they are now than they ever were before." -Former U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower
"A billion here, a billion there, sooner or later it adds up to real money." -Everett Dirksen
"A verbal contract isn’t worth the paper it’s written on." -Samuel Goldwyn
"The streets are safe in Philadelphia, it’s only the people that make them unsafe." -Former Philadelphia Mayor and Police Chief Frank Rizzo
"The internet is a great way to get on the net." -Republican presidential candidate Bob Dole
"The police are not here to create disorder, they’re here to preserve disorder." -Former Chicago mayor Daley during the infamous 1968 convention
"If you’ve seen one redwood tree, you’ve seen them all." -Forestry expert Ronald Reagan
"Traditionally, most of Australia’s imports come from overseas." -Former Australian cabinet minister Keppel Enderbery
"They’re multipurpose. Not only do they put the clips on, but they take them off." -Pratt & Whitney spokesperson explaining why the company charged the Air Force nearly $1000 for an ordinary pair of pliers.
"We’re going to turn this team around 360 degrees." -Jason Kidd, upon his drafting to the Dallas Mavericks
Truth is people make mistakes and say the wrong thing but they still need to be forgiven!
Poor Attendance
Preacher: "How come I never see you in church anymore, Morris?"
Morris: "There are too many hypocrites there, Reverend."
Preacher: "Don’t worry, Morris; there’s always room for one more."
Opening Question to the congregation:
"Can anyone here at New Life today tell me what you must do before you can obtain forgiveness from sin?"
Video Illustration: From Illustrate Volume 6 “Joleen-betrayed, trying to forgive” from Blue Fish TV
Thesis: Many look at the concept and action of forgiveness in light of the negative connotation of the term the “F word!” They avoid saying it and doing it and feel for some mysterious reason that they are exempt from doing what Jesus described as being essential to the Christian walk. We must choose to forgive if we ourselves want to be forgiven.
Scripture Text: Matthew 6:1-15
1“Be careful not to do your ‘acts of righteousness’ before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.
2“So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 3But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
5“And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 6But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. 7And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. 8Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
9“This, then, is how you should pray:
“‘Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
10 your kingdom come,
your will be done
on earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us today our daily bread.
12 Forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13 And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.’
14For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.
Introduction:
In our passage of Scripture Jesus is instructing his followers about what it means to be a fully devoted follower of His. He uses the current day religious leaders as an example of what not to be like. He paints a masterful portrait for the listeners of how not to act, how not to give, and how not to pray. But he does give specific instruction on how to act, how to give, and how to pray. He then gives them a more detailed explanation on how they should pray in their lives.
1. When you pray come to the Abba Father with reverence and respect.
2. Give Him praise for who He is and what He has done in your life.
3. Acknowledge that you are coming with His kingdom and his will in mind. In a sense you come not for selfish purposes but with His direction in mind.
4. Support God and acknowledge that you want Him to have his way on the earth as he does in heaven.
5. Pray for your daily needs to be met
6. Pray and ask for forgiveness for your sinful ways and pray for those who have hurt you and forgive them.
7. Pray that God would keep you from the ways of evil and help deliver you from its snare.
Then Jesus reiterates what he said a verse before so that people clearly understand that they must live and breathe a life filled with forgiveness. He even gives all of us listening today a warning if you cannot forgive the one that has offended you then God cannot forgive you of your sins. I want you to notice a very important lesson today. If you choose to not forgive someone in your life then Jesus says point blank “But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.”
He does not say you will still be forgiven –no-he says “Your Father “ABBA” will not forgive your sins! Jesus emphasized his point on the subject of forgiveness when he shared another story about a certain servant. Listen to what he says:
Scripture Text: Matthew 18:23-35:
23“Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. 24As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him. 25Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt.
26“The servant fell on his knees before him. ‘Be patient with me,’ he begged, ‘and I will pay back everything.’ 27The servant’s master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go.
28“But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii. He grabbed him and began to choke him. ‘Pay back what you owe me!’ he demanded.
29“His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.’
30“But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. 31When the other servants saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed and went and told their master everything that had happened.
32“Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. 33Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’ 34In anger his master turned him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed.
35“This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart.”
Both of these passages give us stern warnings about the importance of us choosing to forgive others who have wronged us. Here is God’s reality check to us today. If we choose to hold grudges and not forgive then we reap the consequence from God of not being forgiven for our offenses to God.
I. What does Jesus mean by the act of forgiveness?
a. It is really a heavenly attitude toward those who do not necessarily deserve it.
i. Matthew, in recording a section of the Lord’s Prayer, “Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors,” used the word ‘aphiemi’ for ‘forgive’. It means to “send away”. This is the same word used in Luke 4:39 when Jesus rebuked the fever in Peter’s mother-in-law. That is the kind of forgiveness Psalm 103:12 describes as God removing our transgressions “as far as the East is from the West.” (Nelson’s Book of Stories, Illustrations and Quotes)
Contributed to sermon central by: Herman Abrahams
ii. Showalter states, “I define forgiving as the elimination of all desire for revenge and personal ill will toward those who deeply wrong or betray us. This elimination usually brings an inner peace of heart and the freedom of not having our lives defined by the injuries we have suffered” (http://www.vsg.cape.com/~dougshow/webdoc3)
iii. Jesus demonstrated and spoke that this is a divine act of the Lord and of His followers.
1. John 3:16-21: 16“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. 19This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. 21But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God.”
b. It’s role modeled by Jesus himself as absolutely necessary
i. “Father forgive them for they know not what they do!”
1. Remember he said this hanging on the cross!
2. Luke 23:34-49: 34Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” And they divided up his clothes by casting lots. 35The people stood watching, and the rulers even sneered at him. They said, “He saved others; let him save himself if he is the Christ of God, the Chosen One.” 36The soldiers also came up and mocked him. They offered him wine vinegar 37and said, “If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself.” 38There was a written notice above him, which read: THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS. 39One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: “Aren’t you the Christ? Save yourself and us!” 40But the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God,” he said, “since you are under the same sentence? 41We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.” 42Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” 43Jesus answered him, “I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise.” 44It was now about the sixth hour, and darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour, 45for the sun stopped shining. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two. 46Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” When he had said this, he breathed his last. 47The centurion, seeing what had happened, praised God and said, “Surely this was a righteous man.” 48When all the people who had gathered to witness this sight saw what took place, they beat their breasts and went away. 49But all those who knew him, including the women who had followed him from Galilee, stood at a distance, watching these things.
3. Jesus knew the importance of forgiveness that it is mandated by the Father for the people of this world.
a. He knew as we should know that if we choose to not forgive then we choose to hate. Hatred is not allowed into the Kingdom of Heaven.
b. Galatians 5: 19-21: 19The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
c. The word is very clear that these acts of the sinful nature will exempt you from Heaven!
i. Notice they are all the opposite of forgiveness!
ii. The act of mercy, grace and pardon from God should compel us to forgive the offenses committed against us.
iii. It’s the idea of passing on the gift God has given to us.
c. It’s an action and a decision on our part to pardon a wrong that was committed to us.
i. Jesus chose to forgive even in the horror of the punishment of the cross.
1. They were still being cruel to Him but he chose to forgive in spite of their actions.
d. It is a process that starts with the decision to forgive even when it still hurts.
i. Jesus chose to forgive even when He was in excruciating pain.
ii. Many of us need to chose to forgive even while it still hurts because it will help the healing process to start.
iii. FORGIVING MY ENEMY : Ronald Reagan’s attitude after the 1982 attempt on his life made an impression on his daughter, Patti Davis:
“The following day my father said he knew his physical healing was directly dependent on his ability to forgive John Hinckley. By showing me that forgiveness is the key to everything, including physical health and healing, he gave me an example of Christ-like thinking.”
SOURCE: Leadership Magazine. Christianity Today, Inc. To Illustrate: Forgiveness: Angels Don’t Die, Leadership Spring 1997, pg. 70.Contributed by: Kenneth Squires
e. The act of forgiveness is not contingent on an apology from the offender.
i. Jesus chose to forgive even when there was no apology from the persecutors.
1. Showalter, “In our anger or pain, we may feel that we should withhold our forgiveness, until our injurer repents. But consider this question from another angle. Making our forgiveness dependent on another’s repentance is not very helpful. It sets us up to be a victim, not just once, but twice! By making our forgiveness so dependent, we hand considerable power over of our lives, to the one who injured us!”
ii. We need to make the commitment to forgive in spite of the lack of action on another’s part:
1. People are often unreasonable, illogical, and self-centered; forgive them anyway.
If you are kind, People may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives; Be kind anyway.
If you are successful, you will win some false friends and some true
enemies; Succeed anyway.
If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you;
Be honest and frank anyway.
What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight; Build anyway.
If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous;
Be happy anyway.
The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow;
Do good anyway.
Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough; Give the world the best you’ve got anyway.
You see, in the final analysis, it is between you and God;
It was never between you and them anyway.
This poem was written by Mother Teresa and is engraved on the wall of her home for children in Calcutta.
Contributed to sermon central by: Sermon Central PRO
f. Forgiveness is not an acknowledgement agreeing, condoning or excusing misbehavior.
i. Jesus did not make excuses for their behavior, nor condone it but He forgave their sin anyway.
ii. We need to understand that forgiveness is really about our attitude toward others in this world.
1. The Word of God tells us to love instead of hate – It tells us to forgive rather than to get even.
2. Romans 12: 17-20: 17Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. 18If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. 19Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord. 20On the contrary: “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.” 21Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
g. Forgiveness is not forgetting what happened but forgiving it and letting it go.
i. Jesus has never forgotten the cross but forgiveness is rooted in the pain and agony of the offense against Jesus.
1. The cross is to be remembered but it’s sting was snuffed out and rejoicing replaced it.
ii. We can allow the process of inner healing to take the hurt away and the pain away and in turn bring glory to God for the result.
iii. Forgiveness is the ability to say I will not be offended instead I will forgive and be set free.
1. Bevere states, “If you are offended and in unforgiveness and refuse to repent of this sin, you have not come to the knowledge of the truth. You are deceived, and you confuse others with your hypocritical lifestyle. No matter what the revelation, your fruit tells a different story. You’ll become a spring spewing out bitter waters that will bring deception, not truth” (19, The Bait of Satan).
h. Many New Testament passages portray human forgiving as an unconditional act which is not dependent upon the injurer’s repentance. Some examples are:
i. Mark 11:25, “And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.”
1. Our condition of forgiveness is dependent on our ability to forgive others.
ii. 2 Corinthians 2:5-11, “5If anyone has caused grief, he has not so much grieved me as he has grieved all of you, to some extent—not to put it too severely. 6The punishment inflicted on him by the majority is sufficient for him. 7Now instead, you ought to forgive and comfort him, so that he will not be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow. 8I urge you, therefore, to reaffirm your love for him. 9The reason I wrote you was to see if you would stand the test and be obedient in everything. 10If you forgive anyone, I also forgive him. And what I have forgiven—if there was anything to forgive—I have forgiven in the sight of Christ for your sake, 11in order that Satan might not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes.”
1. Do you want to be outwitted by Satan?
2. Then chose not to forgive someone who has offended you!
iii. Colossians 3:13, 14, “Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. 14And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.”
1. E-mail from Sue: That all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in Me and I am in You. May they also be in Us so that the world may believe that You have sent Me. - John 17:21 What is the greatest power that allows the unsaved to make a decision for Jesus Christ? It isn’t prayer, though this is important. It isn’t good deeds, though deeds indicate a fruitful relationship with God. It isn’t good behavior, though Christ commands us to be obedient as sons. The greatest power God’s children have over darkness is unity. Jesus talked a great deal about His oneness with the Father and the importance of unity in the Body of Christ. It is the most difficult command Jesus gave to the Church, because it wars against the most evil aspect of our sin nature-independence.In the last days we are seeing God’s Spirit convict His children of the lack of unity among His Church. We are seeing God move between blacks and whites, ethnic groups, denominations, and parachurch groups. There is much work to be done. The walls of division and competition among His Body are a stench in God’s nostrils. He sees the competition and the pride of ownership and weeps for the lost who cannot come to Him because they cannot see Him in His Body. When His Body is one, the unbelieving see that Jesus was sent by God. It is like a supernatural key that unlocks Heaven for the heathen soul. The key is in the hand of Christ’s Church. When there is unity, there is power. Scripture tells us five will chase 100, but 100 will chase 10,000 (see Lev. 26:8). There is a dynamic multiplication factor in unity of numbers. We are a hundred times more effective when we are a unified group. Imagine what God could do with a unified Church.Jesus prayed that we all might be one, as the Father and He are one. He wanted the same love God has for Jesus to be in each of us. When this love is in us, we are drawn to each other with a common mission. The walls fall down. The independent spirit is broken. Competition is destroyed. Satan’s accusations are thwarted. Our love for each other is manifest to the world around us. Lost souls begin to seek this love that is so foreign to them. Have you contributed to an independent spirit within His Body? Are you seeking to break down walls of competition among Christians, churches, denominations, and ethnic groups? Until we walk in the spirit of unity, we will hinder those in whom God has reserved a place in Heaven. Pray for His Church to be unified.
iv. Luke 17:3, 4: “3So watch yourselves. “If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him. 4If he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times comes back to you and says, ‘I repent,’ forgive him.”
1. How often do we have to forgive – every time offense happens in our lives.
T.S. – Jesus demonstrated to us that forgiveness is mandatory if we ourselves desire to be the recipients of God’s forgiveness. He showed us how to forgive as he literally hung on the cross.
II. What the act of forgiveness does for us?
a. It is an act of Christian power which parallels what Jesus did for us through the power of the Holy Spirit.
i. The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong- Mahatma Gandhi
Contributed to sermon central by: Davon Huss
b. It battles against the sinful nature in us.
i. Forgiveness always pushes us toward the Fruit of Spirit and away from the acts of the sinful nature.
c. It releases the power of the other persons action over us.
i. Forgiveness helps us to become from the offensive act of the other.
d. It roots out bitterness in our hearts.
i. The famous English preacher Charles Spurgeon once said, "Forgive and forget. When you bury a mad dog, don’t leave his tail above the ground."
Contributed to sermon central by: Ray Navarro
ii. Bitterness is the mad dog that will ravage your life and your heart and disqualify you for Heaven.
iii. Hebrews 12:14, 15: 14Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord. 15See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many.
e. It brings an inner healing to our hearts.
f. It lets the spirit rule our hearts and minds and not the flesh.
g. It changes the behavior of the one who forgives.
h. It changes our behavior.
i. It starts the healing process of the hurt and the pain from the incident.
j. It helps us to move on in life.
k. It is healthy for us.
i. Forgive and forget. Easier said than done, right? Well, now studies are showing forgiveness is not only good theology, but good medicine as sell. According to the latest medical and psychological research, forgiving is good for our souls-and our bodies. People who forgive: benefit from better immune functioning and lower blood pressure have better mental health than people who do not forgive feel better physically; have lower amounts of anger and fewer symptoms of anxiety and depression maintain more satisfying and long-lasting relationships. "When we allow ourselves to feel like victims or sit around dreaming up how to retaliate against people who have hurt us, these thought patterns take a toll on our minds and bodies,’ says Michael McCullough, director of research for the National Institute for Healthcare Research and a co-author of To Forgive is Human: How to Put Your Past in the Past (IVP, 1997).
Inter Varsity Press, quoted in Lifeline, Summer, 1997
l. It guards our hearts
m. It decreases anger
i. A HEALTHY DOSE OF FORGIVENESS
A recent Reader’s Digest has an article entitled "How Letting Go of Grudges Can Improve Your Health." It states that forgiveness is indeed divine, but not necessarily easy. It’s also very beneficial to physical and mental health states the article. It quotes Frederic Luskin, Ph.D, author of Forgive for Good (HarperCollins, 2002) as saying "People who forgive show less depression, anger and stress and [show] more hopefulness."
Source: SermonCentral staff. Citation: Many, Christine. "How Letting Go of Grudges Can Improve Your Health." Reader’s Digest Association, 2002. http://www.rd.com/common/nav/index.jhtml?channelId=5&subChannelId=&articleId=9525135
n. It decreases depression.
o. It decreases anxiety.
p. It strengthens relationships.
q. It promotes peace.
i. Phan Thi Kim Phuc
(Illustration from Still More Hot Illustrations for Youth Talks” Wayne Rice. Printed by Youth Specialties)
On June 8, 1972, a nine-year-old Vietnamese girl, her clothes flaming from gasoline bombs, fled the American-led assault on her village of Trang Bang. With her eyes screwed shut and her mouth spread wide in a scream of pain, she was captured on film in America’s most remembered Vietnam wartime photo.
In Officer John Plummer’s nightmares, this picture flashed huge, in black and white, to a sound track of children screaming. His order had directed bombers to shower Kim Phuc’s village with the chemical explosives. For years, guilt over destroying and maiming the villagers haunted the officer. Women and alcohol were his escape of choice.
Twenty years after the destruction of the village, Officer Plummer asked Christ to take control of his life, unleashing God’s ultimate power to end guilt. Although free from guilt, he carried inside himself scars somehow linked to the thick, white scars on the neck, arm, and back of the now-grown Vietnamese girl. Six years later, Plummer knew he needed to find her. In an effort to meet her face to face, he tracked her down while she was visiting America.
Unlike the June 1972 event, no photographer captured the moment when Plummer explained to Kim Phuc who he was. But in the middle of a busy sidewalk, the soldier, now 49 years old, and the child, now 33 years old, embraced. “She just opened her arms to me.” Plummer later said, “I fell into her arms sobbing. All I could say is, ‘I’m so sorry, I’m just so sorry.’”
“It’s all right,” she replied as she patted Plummer’s back. “I forgive. I forgive.”
Kim went on to survive although it took 14 months of painful rehabilitation to treat the third degree burns that was over more than half of her body.
Kim is now a Canadian citizen and shares her thoughts on survival and inspiration. She has traveled all over the world, meeting and talking with people about peace. She is now a Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
She has forgiven, but has not forgotten, and in a commemorative ceremony to the Vietnam War she publicly pardoned the person who had launched the napalm bombing on her village in Vietnam. Ever since, she has dedicated her life to promoting peace, and to this end she founded the “Kim Phuc Phan Thi Foundation” (kimfoundmullC@aprint.ca). This foundation helps children who are victims of war everywhere by providing medical and psychological help to surmount their traumatic experiences.
Contributed to sermon central by: John Harvey
r. It increases your self-esteem.
s. It increases your self-control.
t. It creates emotional stability.
i. We will find that sometimes that there are people who have not been healed because they have not forgiven someone. A person who has not forgiven another could wind up being physically sick or sick in spirit and attitude or even both. There is the story of a young lady who had anaemia and the doctor who was working with her had tried to treat the illness for months without any success. Referrals were made to other doctors. Again, a blood sample was taken only this time, the results were different. The blood count had changed. Records were kept of every visit and every blood sample. Second guessing himself without finding an explanation to what was going on, he was puzzled that now the results of the latest blood sample were different. Procedure had been followed to the letter. The doctor was still trying to figure out if an error had been made somewhere. "He returned to the patient and asked her, "Has anything out of the ordinary happened in your life since your last visit?" "Yes, something happened," she replied. " I have suddenly been able to forgive someone against whom I bore a nasty grudge; and all at once I felt I could at last say, yes, to life!" "Her mental attitude was changed, and the very state of her blood was changed along with it. Her mind was cured and her body was well on the way to being cured". (William Barclay. The Daily Study Bible Series: The Gospel Of Matthew. Volume 1. Revised Edition. Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1975, pp. 327-328, paraphrased and quoted). This story proves how sometimes we cannot be healed because of our lack of being able to forgive another as God has forgiven us.
Contributed by: John Williams III
u. It makes God smile!
v. It allows God to forgive us!
T.S. – All of these benefits are a result of choosing to forgive but there are also detrimental things that can happen to us if we choose not to forgive.
III. What the act of un-forgiveness does to us?
a. Unforgiveness allows the flesh to take control of our hearts and minds.
i. Lewis B. Smedes writes in his book: Forgive & Forget: Healing the Hurts We Don’t Deserve:
"If we say that monsters [people who do terrible evil] are beyond forgiving, we give them a power they should never have...they are given the power to keep their evil alive in the hearts of those who suffered most. We give them power to condemn their victims to live forever with the hurting memory of their painful pasts. We give the monsters the last word."
Contributed by: Jeeva Sam
b. It allows bitterness to take root in our lives.
c. It steals our joy in life.
d. It will never heal the relationship.
1. The truth is it will negatively impact our other relationships.
2. Un-forgiveness will not only impact the one relationship it will impact all of our relationships
e. It takes peace away from us.
i. When you do not have peace then you have a life filled with the spoils and heartache of war.
f. It ends our journey home toward Heaven.
i. The man who refuses to forgive destroys the bridge over which he himself must cross.
— John Iverson Contributed by: SermonCentral PRO
g. It throws love out of our hearts.
h. It causes us emotional instability.
i. It creates depression.
j. It increases our stress level.
k. It creates hearts filled with anger.
l. It causes division in relationships.
m. It causes dissension in our lives.
n. It creates a spirit of disunity in our lives.
o. It will decrease our self-esteem.
p. It will cause God to frown.
q. It will cause God not to forgive us of our sins.
i. There is no slightest suggestion that we are offered forgiveness on any other terms. It is made perfectly clear that if we do not forgive, we shall not be forgiven. There are no two ways about it.
C.S. Lewis (Mere Christianity p104-105)
Contributed by: David DeWitt
T.S. – We need to make sure that we forgive so that we do not reap the destruction of unforgiveness in our lives. So you might be thinking what act can I do to forgive?
IV. Specific ways to forgive?
a. Actually talk the issue out with the other person.
i. Corrie Ten Boom and her family secretly housed Jews in their home during WW II. Their "illegal" activity was discovered, and Corrie and her sister Bessie were sent to the German death camp, Ravensbruck. There Corrie would watch many, including her sister, die. After the war she returned to Germany to declare the grace of Christ. It was 1947, and I’d come from Holland to defeated Germany with the message that God forgives. It was the truth that they needed most to hear in that bitter, bombed-out land, and I gave them my favorite mental picture. Maybe because the sea is never far from a Hollander’s mind, I liked to think that that’s where forgiven sins were thrown. "When we confess our sins," I said, "God casts them into the deepest ocean, gone forever. And even though I cannot find a Scripture for it, I believe God then places a sign out there that says, ’NO FISHING ALLOWED.’"
The solemn faces stared back at me, not quite daring to believe. And that’s when I saw him, working his way forward against the others. One moment I saw the overcoat and the brown hat; the next, a blue uniform and a cap with skull and crossbones. It came back with a rush—the huge room with its harsh overhead lights, the pathetic pile of dresses and shoes in the center of the floor, the shame of walking naked past this man. I could see my sister’s frail form ahead of me, ribs sharp beneath the parchment skin. Betsie, how thin you were! That place was Ravensbruck, and the man who was making his way forward had been a guard—one of the most cruel guards. Now he was in front of me, hand thrust out: "A fine message, Fraulein! How good it is to know that, as you say, all our sins are at the bottom of the sea!" And I, who had spoken so glibly of forgiveness, fumbled in my pocketbook rather than take that hand. He would not remember me, of course—how could he remember one prisoner among those thousands of women? But I remembered him. I was face-to-face with one of my captors and my blood seemed to freeze. "You mentioned Ravensbruck in your talk," he was saying. "I was a guard there." No, he did not remember me. "But since that time," he went on, "I have become a Christian. I know that God has forgiven me for the cruel things I did there, but I would like to hear it from your lips as well. Fraulein,"—again the hand came out—"will you forgive me?"
And I stood there—I whose sins had again and again to be forgiven—and could not forgive. Betsie had died in that place. Could he erase her slow terrible death simply for the asking? It could have been many seconds that he stood there—hand held out—but to me it seemed hours as I wrestled with the most difficult thing I had ever had to do. For I had to do it—I knew that. The message that God forgives has a prior condition: that we forgive those who have injured us. "If you do not forgive men their trespasses," Jesus says, "neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses." And still I stood there with the coldness clutching my heart. But forgiveness is not an emotion—I knew that too. Forgiveness is an act of the will, and the will can function regardless of the temperature of the heart. "Jesus, help me!" I prayed silently. "I can lift my hand. I can do that much. You supply the feeling." And so woodenly, mechanically, I thrust out my hand into the one stretched out to me. And as I did, an incredible thing took place. The current started in my shoulder, raced down my arm, sprang into our joined hands. And then this healing warmth seemed to flood my whole being, bringing tears to my eyes. "I forgive you, brother!" I cried. "With all my heart!" For a long moment we grasped each other’s hands, the former guard and the former prisoner. I had never known God’s love so intensely, as I did then. But even then, I realized it was not my love. I had tried, and did not have the power. It was the power of the Holy Spirit.
[Holocaust Victim Forgives Captor, Citation: Corrie Ten Boom, Tramp for the Lord (Berkley, 1978), pp. 53-55]
Contributed to Sermon Central by: A. Todd Coget
b. Leave the door open for a one on one conversation which leads to forgiveness.
i. Never close the door of your heart!
ii. Never allow un-forgiveness to close you heart.
c. Write a letter to the person if a face to face meeting is impossible.
i. Maybe the person has died write them a letter and then burn it.
ii. Write them a letter if they are far away or if you can not face them.
d. Pray and ask the Lord to help you to forgive.
i. We all at times need the help of the Holy Spirit to forgive.
e. Understand that forgiveness sometimes takes time and struggle.
i. I MUST FORGIVE:
Sister Helen Prejean, in her book Dead Man Walking, tells the story of Lloyd LeBlanc, a Roman Catholic layman, whose son was murdered. When he arrived in the field with the sheriff’s deputies to identify his son, LeBlanc immediately knelt by his boy’s body and prayed the Lord’s Prayer. When he came to the words: "Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us," he realized the depth of the commitment he was making. "Whoever did this, I must forgive them," he later told Prejean. Though it has been difficult not to be overcome by bitterness and feelings of revenge that well up from time to time, LeBlanc said that each day, for the rest of his life, forgiveness must be prayed for and struggled for and won.
Contributed to Sermon Central by: Christian Cheong
f. Let go of the situation and drive it out of your heart and mind.
i. Refuse to entertain the thoughts of the offense.
ii. Refuse to dwell on it.
iii. Release it and become free!
Conclusion:
Forgiveness -- just do it! If you do it you become the winner and not the loser!
The Worldwide Forgiveness Alliance states, “That practicing forgiveness contributes to: better health, stronger, more lasting and more loving relationships, greater abundance, prosperity and financial resourcefulness, a more real and lasting sense of self worth and purpose, a deeper sense of connection and security in the world, a more heightened feeling of freedom, joy and laughter on a daily basis.”
What Forgiveness Can Do For You
When you and I truly and honestly forgive others for their wrongs toward us, we are set free in our own minds, souls, and spirits by our creator in heaven. You are really freeing yourself from the negative and unproductive feelings that hold you back from the blessings in store for you! The moment that one sincerely and freely forgives another, something wonderful and good happens to both the forgiver and the forgiven. The capacity for both to love one another is increased and strengthened. New horizons for greater, more treasured and enriched relationships are resurrected and made alive by the divine spirit of love.
Can you imagine how many marriages and strained family relationships would be healed and restored with love and genuine respect if individuals would truly forgive each other? Take a chance, make the first step if you have to. You will be rewarded. Even if the person that you are forgiving does not respond, you will feel better when you release any negative feelings you have.
God freely forgives us of our trespasses and we have no more important responsibility than to extend to others the forgiveness, which we can expect, from him. If we refuse to forgive others, what right do we have to expect kindness and forgiveness to be extended to us?
Unleash the power of forgiveness today!
Rev. Arly Pryor
San Jose, CA
Forgiveness
To forgive
Is not to forget.
To forgive
Is really to remember
That nobody is perfect
That each of us stumbles
When we want so much to stay upright
That each of us says things
We wish we had never said
That we can all forget that love
Is more important than being right.
To forgive is really to remember
That we are so much more
Than our mistakes
That we are often more kind and caring
That accepting another’s flaws
Can help us accept our own.
To forgive is to remember
That the odds are pretty good that
We might soon need to be forgiven ourselves.
That life sometimes gives us more
Than we can handle gracefully.
To forgive is to remember
That we have room in our hearts to
Begin again
And again,
And again. And again.
Author Unknown
