WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:04.200 Now that's page 823 in the Pew Bible, if you want to turn there with me. 00:00:06.860 --> 00:00:11.060 Luke chapter 17, verses 1 through 10. 00:00:21.600 --> 00:00:23.280 Let me read this passage for us. 00:00:25.280 --> 00:00:28.780 And he, that is Jesus, said to his disciples, 00:00:28.780 --> 00:00:35.859 Temptations to sin are sure to come, but woe to the one through whom they come. 00:00:37.460 --> 00:00:42.359 It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were cast into the sea 00:00:42.359 --> 00:00:45.760 than that he should cause one of these little ones to sin. 00:00:47.159 --> 00:00:48.600 Pay attention to yourselves. 00:00:49.540 --> 00:00:51.280 If your brother sins, rebuke him. 00:00:52.000 --> 00:00:53.920 And if he repents, forgive him. 00:00:53.920 --> 00:00:59.000 And if he sins against you seven times in the day and turns to you seven times saying, 00:00:59.200 --> 00:01:01.920 I repent, you must forgive him. 00:01:01.920 --> 00:01:06.900 The apostle said to the Lord, increase our faith. 00:01:08.060 --> 00:01:12.700 And the Lord said, if you had faith like a grain of mustard seed, 00:01:12.939 --> 00:01:17.980 you could say to this mulberry tree, be uprooted and planted in the sea and it would obey you. 00:01:19.640 --> 00:01:23.520 Will any one of you who has a servant plowing or keeping sheep say to him, 00:01:23.640 --> 00:01:27.060 when he has come in from the field, come at once and recline at table? 00:01:27.060 --> 00:01:33.519 Will he not rather say to him, prepare supper for me and dress properly and serve me while I eat and drink? 00:01:33.960 --> 00:01:35.820 And afterward, you will eat and drink. 00:01:36.980 --> 00:01:40.900 Does he thank the servant because he did what was commanded? 00:01:42.480 --> 00:01:47.320 So you also, when you have done all that you were commanded, say, 00:01:48.219 --> 00:01:49.420 we are unworthy servants. 00:01:50.120 --> 00:01:52.400 We have only done what was our duty. 00:01:53.520 --> 00:01:54.460 Let's pray together. 00:01:57.060 --> 00:02:02.120 Our Father, we ask that you would be present with us now as you've promised. 00:02:04.359 --> 00:02:08.920 That by your spirit, you would bring the reality of your son, our living Lord, 00:02:10.140 --> 00:02:11.599 here into our midst. 00:02:12.659 --> 00:02:18.099 God, and that you would speak to us in a lively and active and effective way through your word. 00:02:19.500 --> 00:02:23.000 Lord, help me as I expound this passage to do so faithfully. 00:02:23.000 --> 00:02:27.400 Lord Jesus, we want to hear your words, not the word of any person. 00:02:29.840 --> 00:02:38.500 Spirit, give us soft hearts and open ears and imaginations to know and to accept and to believe what it is you're telling us here. 00:02:39.300 --> 00:02:40.960 We ask all this in Christ's name, Father. 00:02:41.180 --> 00:02:41.439 Amen. 00:02:41.439 --> 00:02:49.780 Well, for the past few months, we've been walking through the central chapters of the Gospel of Luke, 00:02:50.139 --> 00:02:53.639 considering what it means to be a disciple, to be a follower of Jesus. 00:02:54.460 --> 00:03:01.939 And it's clear here in Luke and across the New Testament that the life of discipleship isn't something that we're meant to do alone. 00:03:02.819 --> 00:03:05.240 We're meant to do this life together. 00:03:05.240 --> 00:03:09.260 Believing is belonging, as the saying goes. 00:03:10.520 --> 00:03:13.939 But if you've been involved in Christian community for any length of time, 00:03:14.240 --> 00:03:17.820 you know that it is not a perfect place. 00:03:18.760 --> 00:03:20.000 We disappoint each other. 00:03:20.620 --> 00:03:21.960 We frustrate each other. 00:03:22.620 --> 00:03:24.240 We even sin against each other. 00:03:26.000 --> 00:03:27.520 So what do we do with that? 00:03:27.520 --> 00:03:33.700 How do we deal with sin in the community of discipleship in the church? 00:03:36.180 --> 00:03:41.100 One of my New Year's resolutions this year was to get out and go hiking more often, 00:03:41.200 --> 00:03:42.640 to actually go outside. 00:03:44.820 --> 00:03:48.439 So rather than actually do that, I've just been reading a lot on the Internet. 00:03:49.120 --> 00:03:50.760 So I've been reading up on... 00:03:50.760 --> 00:03:51.740 No, I'm kidding. 00:03:51.800 --> 00:03:52.620 We got out a little bit. 00:03:52.620 --> 00:03:58.020 So I've been reading up on trails in Connecticut and gear and how-to articles and all this. 00:03:58.620 --> 00:04:04.680 And again and again, I've run across the advice to pack a day pack with things like a flashlight 00:04:04.680 --> 00:04:08.439 and a compass and a whistle and a multi-tool and a first date kit and matches. 00:04:09.259 --> 00:04:12.580 And at first you think, geez, I'm only going for a day hike. 00:04:12.920 --> 00:04:14.240 Do I really need all that? 00:04:16.060 --> 00:04:21.680 And yet, if you're not prepared, you can get into some serious trouble, can't you? 00:04:22.620 --> 00:04:25.000 The weather takes an unexpected turn. 00:04:25.879 --> 00:04:28.720 The trail isn't marked as clearly as it should be. 00:04:29.459 --> 00:04:30.899 You take a fall and get hurt. 00:04:32.340 --> 00:04:37.199 Bad things can and do happen, and it's best to be ready for it. 00:04:39.439 --> 00:04:41.740 Doing life together in the church is a bit like that. 00:04:42.500 --> 00:04:46.800 If we're not prepared for the bad stuff to happen, if we don't know how to respond, 00:04:47.519 --> 00:04:49.240 then we're going to be in trouble. 00:04:49.240 --> 00:04:54.699 We need to know how to deal with sin in the church. 00:04:56.879 --> 00:05:01.240 And that's exactly what Jesus is teaching us about here in Luke 17, 1 through 10. 00:05:01.920 --> 00:05:05.240 The audience in verse 1 is the disciples, his followers. 00:05:05.240 --> 00:05:10.220 And the topic, repeated again and again in the first four verses, is sin. 00:05:10.720 --> 00:05:12.579 Temptations to sin in verses 1 and 2. 00:05:13.340 --> 00:05:16.319 Interpersonal offenses, sins in verses 3 and 4. 00:05:16.980 --> 00:05:18.300 How do we handle that? 00:05:18.360 --> 00:05:19.300 How do we deal with it? 00:05:21.980 --> 00:05:25.259 And in short, Jesus here is teaching us three things. 00:05:25.259 --> 00:05:34.240 He's saying that we should expect it, and we should rebuke it, and lastly, we should forgive it. 00:05:35.560 --> 00:05:37.259 How do we handle sin in the church? 00:05:38.019 --> 00:05:39.319 This is Jesus' counsel. 00:05:39.500 --> 00:05:43.019 Expect it, rebuke it, and forgive it. 00:05:43.019 --> 00:05:47.439 So first, Jesus tells us to expect sin in the church. 00:05:47.539 --> 00:05:48.519 Look again at verse 1. 00:05:48.959 --> 00:05:52.240 He says, temptations to sin are sure to come. 00:05:53.139 --> 00:05:57.539 Literally, the verse says, it is impossible for temptations to sin not to come. 00:05:58.439 --> 00:05:59.879 That's pretty strong language. 00:06:01.639 --> 00:06:06.879 If you're looking at another version of Luke 17, or if you look down at the footnote of the ESV, 00:06:06.879 --> 00:06:11.659 you'll notice that the phrase temptations to sin is from the Greek word for stumbling block. 00:06:12.920 --> 00:06:18.319 In classical Greek, that word actually referred to the stick of a mousetrap that would trigger it. 00:06:19.439 --> 00:06:23.879 And then eventually, it sort of came to mean a snare, something that causes someone ruin, 00:06:24.459 --> 00:06:25.939 and hence, a stumbling block. 00:06:26.120 --> 00:06:32.439 And here, Jesus means it spiritually, causing someone to stumble into sin. 00:06:32.439 --> 00:06:37.779 And what Jesus says here is that we should expect it. 00:06:38.740 --> 00:06:40.180 It's going to happen. 00:06:40.319 --> 00:06:44.879 It is impossible for stumbling blocks, for temptations to sin not to come. 00:06:45.439 --> 00:06:47.759 There's going to be sin in the community. 00:06:51.120 --> 00:06:56.860 I wonder how many of us have a very naive view of the church, of Christian community. 00:06:56.860 --> 00:07:02.420 We have a picture in our mind that everything is supposed to be hunky-dory. 00:07:02.580 --> 00:07:05.080 No problems, no offenses, no conflict. 00:07:07.160 --> 00:07:11.280 But Jesus wants to cure us of our naivete. 00:07:14.000 --> 00:07:18.639 You see, we can often be under the illusion that the true church is a perfect church. 00:07:18.639 --> 00:07:23.719 And when we don't find a perfect church, we jump from fellowship to fellowship, 00:07:24.120 --> 00:07:27.639 only to be increasingly disillusioned. 00:07:30.360 --> 00:07:37.060 How many have stopped attending church altogether because the church has always fallen short of unrealistic expectations? 00:07:39.979 --> 00:07:44.419 Jesus is telling us here that every Christian community will inevitably be a flawed community. 00:07:44.420 --> 00:07:48.879 But that doesn't necessarily make it a false community. 00:07:50.939 --> 00:07:52.480 What is the church after all? 00:07:53.819 --> 00:07:56.759 Not a collection of perfect people who have it all together, 00:07:56.879 --> 00:07:59.660 who just decide to spend an hour and a half together on Sunday mornings, 00:07:59.660 --> 00:08:01.720 so we can all parade how perfect we are. 00:08:04.700 --> 00:08:06.920 The church is a gathering of sinners, friends, 00:08:08.100 --> 00:08:11.080 justified only by the grace of God in Christ. 00:08:14.420 --> 00:08:18.540 We have to expect that there will be imperfection and sin and personal offense 00:08:18.540 --> 00:08:21.480 that regularly surfaces as we do life together. 00:08:23.780 --> 00:08:25.520 The question is, how do we deal with it? 00:08:28.180 --> 00:08:32.800 One thing is for sure, Jesus says we shouldn't just excuse it or think that it's no big deal. 00:08:33.279 --> 00:08:36.980 In verses 1 and 2 of our passage, Jesus is talking about causing other people to sin, to stumble. 00:08:37.460 --> 00:08:39.920 And these are warnings that are repeated again and again in the New Testament. 00:08:39.919 --> 00:08:45.019 In Acts chapter 20, Paul warns the Ephesian elders that wolves would come in among the flock of the church 00:08:45.019 --> 00:08:46.539 and draw people away from Christ. 00:08:46.659 --> 00:08:48.379 In the New Testament letters and the rest of the New Testament, 00:08:48.860 --> 00:08:53.360 false teachers are constantly warned against leading others astray in what they teach, 00:08:53.500 --> 00:08:54.979 but also in how they live. 00:08:55.079 --> 00:08:59.360 The sort of things that they imply are okay and permissible by their own example. 00:08:59.360 --> 00:09:10.399 And here in Luke 17, Jesus pronounces a devastating woe on those through whom such temptations to sin would come. 00:09:12.879 --> 00:09:17.480 This is probably one of the most graphic descriptions of punishment anywhere in the Gospels. 00:09:18.700 --> 00:09:23.759 A millstone in the ancient world would be shaped around a central hole that would sort of spin it. 00:09:23.759 --> 00:09:33.340 And Jesus is saying it's better to have that giant rock as a collar dragging you down to the bottom of the ocean to drown 00:09:33.340 --> 00:09:40.200 than to suffer the punishment that's in store for those who would cause one of these little ones to sin. 00:09:44.039 --> 00:09:49.379 Notice Jesus refers to the church with the loving and tender expression, little ones. 00:09:49.379 --> 00:09:54.100 He's not just referring to children here, he's talking about all believers. 00:09:55.899 --> 00:10:01.860 God cares for the church with all the ferocious love of a mother bear protecting her cubs. 00:10:03.980 --> 00:10:06.120 Sin is not something to take lightly. 00:10:09.659 --> 00:10:13.720 Now verses 1 and 2 are particularly relevant for leaders and teachers in the church. 00:10:13.720 --> 00:10:19.340 Do the things that you teach, does the example that you set, 00:10:20.139 --> 00:10:26.519 in any way put a stumbling block in the way of one of God's beloved little ones in the church? 00:10:29.600 --> 00:10:34.600 I think this applies to any of us who are in a position of spiritual influence. 00:10:34.860 --> 00:10:40.220 Whether it's an elder or a deacon, whether it's a small group leader, a youth or children's ministry volunteer, 00:10:40.220 --> 00:10:44.200 if you're a parent, even if you're just an older Christian friend, 00:10:44.279 --> 00:10:48.519 in all of these ways and more we're in positions of spiritual influence in other people's lives. 00:10:48.639 --> 00:10:52.120 Are you, as Jesus says in verse 3, paying attention to yourself? 00:10:54.820 --> 00:10:58.040 Are you watching your life and your doctrine closely? 00:10:58.580 --> 00:11:01.200 As Paul will later say to Timothy. 00:11:04.899 --> 00:11:06.420 So how do we handle sin in the church? 00:11:06.419 --> 00:11:08.339 Jesus says, don't be naive. 00:11:09.459 --> 00:11:10.259 Expect it. 00:11:11.079 --> 00:11:12.379 But don't excuse it. 00:11:15.539 --> 00:11:18.459 So if we're not meant to just excuse it, how then should we respond? 00:11:18.539 --> 00:11:19.639 That brings us to verse 3. 00:11:21.240 --> 00:11:24.379 Jesus tells us not just to expect sin, but second, to rebuke it. 00:11:25.240 --> 00:11:26.839 Pay attention to yourselves, Jesus says. 00:11:26.899 --> 00:11:29.139 If your brother sins, rebuke him. 00:11:29.139 --> 00:11:34.639 The word rebuke means to speak seriously to someone. 00:11:35.080 --> 00:11:38.419 To confront and to correct them clearly and directly. 00:11:40.600 --> 00:11:43.000 Of course, there are all sorts of reasons why we don't do this, right? 00:11:44.759 --> 00:11:49.059 On the one hand, we often function with this strange idea that being a Christian means constantly 00:11:49.059 --> 00:11:51.519 and incessantly being nice all the time. 00:11:51.519 --> 00:11:58.199 As if niceness were the tenth fruit of the Spirit, right? 00:12:01.939 --> 00:12:05.639 But if we pause and reflect, underneath our incessant niceness 00:12:05.639 --> 00:12:09.439 is often just a desire to want to be liked, isn't it? 00:12:10.899 --> 00:12:15.399 If I actually correct someone, I risk them not liking me. 00:12:15.399 --> 00:12:21.480 Or underneath the niceness is a desire to just want to stay comfortable. 00:12:21.659 --> 00:12:24.879 If I actually step out and rebuke someone, it's going to get messy 00:12:24.879 --> 00:12:29.039 and that's going to be inconvenient and I don't want to get mixed up in that. 00:12:32.319 --> 00:12:35.159 Or underneath the niceness might be the false humility of thinking, 00:12:35.299 --> 00:12:37.379 who am I to point out someone else's fault? 00:12:37.459 --> 00:12:39.139 I've got so many of my own. 00:12:39.139 --> 00:12:46.519 But what Jesus is commanding us to do here is love each other enough 00:12:46.519 --> 00:12:48.639 to do something uncomfortable. 00:12:51.000 --> 00:12:53.480 To actually engage in what one writer called 00:12:53.480 --> 00:12:56.899 the awkwardness of redemptive correction. 00:12:58.100 --> 00:12:59.399 I love that phrase. 00:13:00.199 --> 00:13:02.039 It's from a book by Scott Sauls. 00:13:02.240 --> 00:13:05.100 The awkwardness of redemptive correction. 00:13:05.100 --> 00:13:09.620 And he goes on to say that, you know, if we saw sin 00:13:09.620 --> 00:13:14.560 for what it really is, this cancerous lump in the human soul 00:13:14.560 --> 00:13:18.659 holding us back from our real purpose and joy 00:13:18.659 --> 00:13:20.320 that we're meant to have in Christ, 00:13:21.360 --> 00:13:24.240 would we be so willing to just look the other way and stay silent? 00:13:26.120 --> 00:13:28.740 You know, if a doctor found a lump in the armpit of one of her patients 00:13:28.740 --> 00:13:29.800 and she said nothing, 00:13:31.120 --> 00:13:33.120 she'd be sued for malpractice. 00:13:35.100 --> 00:13:39.279 But how guilty, church, are we at times of spiritual malpractice 00:13:39.279 --> 00:13:43.700 by not speaking up when we see the destructive cancer of sin 00:13:43.700 --> 00:13:44.740 in a brother or sister? 00:13:46.920 --> 00:13:49.540 Like when we hear a fellow Christian engaging in gossip. 00:13:51.100 --> 00:13:54.659 Or when we witness a fellow Christian speaking harshly to his children. 00:13:55.879 --> 00:13:59.100 Or when we notice a fellow Christian deliberately bending the truth 00:13:59.100 --> 00:14:01.259 to make themselves look just a little better. 00:14:01.259 --> 00:14:10.740 But you know, often a loving rebuke isn't just hard because we want to be nice. 00:14:10.819 --> 00:14:13.019 It's often hard because the offense is personal. 00:14:14.539 --> 00:14:16.720 When someone sins against us personally, 00:14:16.899 --> 00:14:18.399 it's hard to correct them. 00:14:19.159 --> 00:14:19.779 Isn't it? 00:14:22.100 --> 00:14:24.179 But what exactly are the alternatives here? 00:14:24.179 --> 00:14:27.739 You see, friends, Jesus knows our hearts. 00:14:29.099 --> 00:14:31.819 When someone actually wrongs you, 00:14:32.739 --> 00:14:35.199 it's impossible to do nothing. 00:14:37.419 --> 00:14:41.179 Jesus knows that we'll either harbor a grudge against that person 00:14:41.179 --> 00:14:44.279 or we'll criticize them behind our backs. 00:14:44.279 --> 00:14:50.379 How much better to just follow the way of Jesus here, 00:14:50.459 --> 00:14:54.399 to lovingly rebuke and seek the restoration of the relationship 00:14:54.399 --> 00:14:58.500 rather than just ignore it and grow bitter against them. 00:15:02.779 --> 00:15:07.259 I wonder, is there someone here in your church family that you need to talk to? 00:15:07.259 --> 00:15:11.679 Have you observed a clear area of sin in their life? 00:15:13.059 --> 00:15:15.460 Have they perhaps wronged you personally? 00:15:17.399 --> 00:15:20.240 Jesus says, if your brother or sister sins, rebuke them. 00:15:22.840 --> 00:15:24.539 If you're unsure how to go about that, 00:15:24.639 --> 00:15:25.679 come talk to one of the elders. 00:15:25.939 --> 00:15:28.399 Let us help coach you in how you can best go about this 00:15:28.399 --> 00:15:32.279 awkward work of corrective redemption. 00:15:32.279 --> 00:15:36.879 The Bible points us to a number of helpful practices 00:15:36.879 --> 00:15:37.819 as we go about this work. 00:15:37.879 --> 00:15:40.759 Let me just briefly mention some of the main things to keep in mind 00:15:40.759 --> 00:15:42.120 before we move on to the next point. 00:15:42.319 --> 00:15:44.339 And these are from David Mathis' book, 00:15:44.459 --> 00:15:45.819 The Habits of Grace, 00:15:45.980 --> 00:15:47.019 in a chapter entitled, 00:15:47.559 --> 00:15:49.759 Embrace the Blessing of Rebuke. 00:15:51.259 --> 00:15:51.980 First, he says, 00:15:52.120 --> 00:15:53.459 check your own heart. 00:15:54.959 --> 00:15:56.480 Jesus tells us in the Sermon on the Mount 00:15:56.480 --> 00:15:57.939 to take the log out of our own eye 00:15:57.939 --> 00:15:59.759 and then we'll see clearly to take the speck 00:15:59.759 --> 00:16:01.419 out of our brother or sister's eye. 00:16:02.279 --> 00:16:03.279 And when we do this, 00:16:03.339 --> 00:16:04.620 we'll approach the other person 00:16:04.620 --> 00:16:07.579 as a fellow combatant of sin 00:16:07.579 --> 00:16:08.699 and we won't approach them 00:16:08.699 --> 00:16:10.519 from a place of just judgmental pride. 00:16:14.059 --> 00:16:17.720 Second, seek to sympathize with the person. 00:16:18.879 --> 00:16:20.000 Remember Jesus is teaching, 00:16:20.120 --> 00:16:21.620 whatever you wish others would do to you, 00:16:21.720 --> 00:16:22.699 do also to them. 00:16:22.699 --> 00:16:24.500 Put yourself in the other person's shoes. 00:16:26.039 --> 00:16:28.919 Consider the manner in which you would want to be approached 00:16:28.919 --> 00:16:31.179 about the remaining sin in your life. 00:16:32.279 --> 00:16:35.000 And that will help you go about correction 00:16:35.000 --> 00:16:36.079 with loving humility 00:16:36.079 --> 00:16:38.039 and not a spirit of condemnation. 00:16:40.740 --> 00:16:44.000 Third, pray for restoration. 00:16:45.299 --> 00:16:47.299 The goal of a godly rebuke 00:16:47.299 --> 00:16:49.019 is to restore the other person. 00:16:49.939 --> 00:16:51.100 So pray for that end. 00:16:51.279 --> 00:16:52.139 Pray for courage. 00:16:52.279 --> 00:16:53.299 Pray for the right words. 00:16:53.959 --> 00:16:56.000 Pray for a receptive spirit in the other person. 00:16:56.179 --> 00:16:57.659 And even if they resist in the moment, 00:16:57.779 --> 00:16:59.000 pray that God would soften their heart 00:16:59.000 --> 00:17:01.860 to receive whatever in your observation is true, 00:17:01.899 --> 00:17:04.059 even if you get some of it wrong. 00:17:06.559 --> 00:17:08.680 Fourth, be quick. 00:17:10.339 --> 00:17:11.440 The book of Hebrews says, 00:17:11.599 --> 00:17:13.000 exhort one another every day 00:17:13.000 --> 00:17:14.140 as long as it is called today 00:17:14.140 --> 00:17:15.440 that none of you may be hardened 00:17:15.440 --> 00:17:16.759 by the deceitfulness of sin. 00:17:16.799 --> 00:17:18.759 The idea is don't wait forever 00:17:18.759 --> 00:17:20.519 to address the issue with the other person. 00:17:20.599 --> 00:17:21.119 Be timely. 00:17:21.119 --> 00:17:26.059 Don't let that tiny bud of sin 00:17:26.059 --> 00:17:27.659 grow into a full-fledged weed. 00:17:30.299 --> 00:17:31.379 Fifth, be kind. 00:17:32.619 --> 00:17:33.759 Paul says in Galatians 6, 00:17:33.839 --> 00:17:33.979 brothers, 00:17:34.099 --> 00:17:35.779 if anyone is caught in any transgression, 00:17:36.459 --> 00:17:37.359 you who are spiritual 00:17:37.359 --> 00:17:38.239 should restore him 00:17:38.239 --> 00:17:39.859 in a spirit of gentleness. 00:17:42.179 --> 00:17:43.479 In 2 Timothy, Paul will say, 00:17:43.559 --> 00:17:45.359 the Lord's servant must not be quarrelsome, 00:17:45.419 --> 00:17:46.500 but kind to everyone, 00:17:47.099 --> 00:17:47.939 able to teach, 00:17:48.099 --> 00:17:49.119 patiently enduring evil, 00:17:49.119 --> 00:17:50.279 while correcting his opponents 00:17:50.279 --> 00:17:51.979 again with gentleness. 00:17:54.599 --> 00:17:56.000 Remember that you're approaching 00:17:56.000 --> 00:17:57.319 a brother or sister 00:17:57.319 --> 00:18:00.879 for whom Christ has shed his own blood. 00:18:03.439 --> 00:18:05.500 If we're to approach our opponents 00:18:05.500 --> 00:18:06.119 with gentleness, 00:18:06.219 --> 00:18:07.039 according to 2 Timothy, 00:18:07.139 --> 00:18:08.479 how much more should we approach 00:18:08.479 --> 00:18:09.899 a brother or sister in Christ 00:18:09.899 --> 00:18:10.699 with gentleness? 00:18:13.399 --> 00:18:15.639 Six, be clear and specific. 00:18:16.079 --> 00:18:17.839 Our kindness needs to be matched 00:18:17.839 --> 00:18:18.939 with clarity. 00:18:19.759 --> 00:18:20.419 How about the sin 00:18:20.419 --> 00:18:21.099 that we've observed? 00:18:23.099 --> 00:18:24.319 You know, before approaching someone 00:18:24.319 --> 00:18:25.119 with a corrective word, 00:18:25.199 --> 00:18:26.359 get it clear in your own mind 00:18:26.359 --> 00:18:27.399 what it is you've observed 00:18:27.399 --> 00:18:28.539 and how it may be harmful 00:18:28.539 --> 00:18:29.519 to them and to others. 00:18:29.639 --> 00:18:30.399 You might even want to 00:18:30.399 --> 00:18:32.199 write out a few words 00:18:32.199 --> 00:18:33.119 or sentences on paper 00:18:33.119 --> 00:18:34.299 just to kind of help you 00:18:34.299 --> 00:18:35.559 be able to communicate it 00:18:35.559 --> 00:18:36.679 clearly and objectively. 00:18:37.799 --> 00:18:38.579 A corrective word 00:18:38.579 --> 00:18:39.859 is not going to be helpful 00:18:39.859 --> 00:18:41.159 unless it's specific 00:18:41.159 --> 00:18:42.500 and clear. 00:18:45.239 --> 00:18:46.099 Seventh and last, 00:18:46.239 --> 00:18:46.799 follow up. 00:18:46.799 --> 00:18:49.639 If they receive the word 00:18:49.639 --> 00:18:50.879 of correction well, 00:18:51.000 --> 00:18:51.960 then follow up with a call 00:18:51.960 --> 00:18:52.700 or a conversation 00:18:52.700 --> 00:18:53.579 not too long afterward 00:18:53.579 --> 00:18:54.480 and commend the evidence 00:18:54.480 --> 00:18:55.460 of Christ in their life. 00:18:55.579 --> 00:18:56.480 Remind them that you love them 00:18:56.480 --> 00:18:58.039 and you're excited to see 00:18:58.039 --> 00:18:59.159 what God's doing in their life. 00:19:00.039 --> 00:19:01.399 If they don't respond well, 00:19:01.519 --> 00:19:02.720 follow up by letting them know 00:19:02.720 --> 00:19:03.519 that you love them 00:19:03.519 --> 00:19:05.559 and you desire their good, 00:19:05.639 --> 00:19:07.419 that you're happy to be wrong 00:19:07.419 --> 00:19:08.180 if the correction 00:19:08.180 --> 00:19:09.079 was pretty subjective 00:19:09.079 --> 00:19:10.619 and that you're praying for them 00:19:10.619 --> 00:19:12.819 as they consider your observation. 00:19:12.819 --> 00:19:16.500 So there are some 00:19:16.500 --> 00:19:17.879 just general pointers 00:19:17.879 --> 00:19:18.720 to how to go about 00:19:18.720 --> 00:19:19.759 this work of rebuke. 00:19:19.859 --> 00:19:20.000 You know, 00:19:20.039 --> 00:19:21.339 I spent more time 00:19:21.339 --> 00:19:22.000 kind of going through that 00:19:22.000 --> 00:19:23.339 because we don't do this culturally. 00:19:23.779 --> 00:19:24.779 We'd much rather snipe 00:19:24.779 --> 00:19:25.740 about someone on Twitter 00:19:25.740 --> 00:19:27.339 than actually talk to them 00:19:27.339 --> 00:19:28.200 face to face 00:19:28.200 --> 00:19:29.299 in love 00:19:29.299 --> 00:19:31.279 to actually restore them, right? 00:19:32.859 --> 00:19:33.779 If we had more time, 00:19:33.819 --> 00:19:34.279 we could talk about 00:19:34.279 --> 00:19:35.379 the other side of things. 00:19:35.779 --> 00:19:36.980 How to receive 00:19:36.980 --> 00:19:38.039 a rebuke 00:19:38.039 --> 00:19:39.319 or a word of correction well. 00:19:39.319 --> 00:19:39.919 Well, 00:19:39.919 --> 00:19:42.139 briefly there, 00:19:42.240 --> 00:19:43.119 if someone corrects you, 00:19:43.200 --> 00:19:44.099 even if it feels like 00:19:44.099 --> 00:19:45.439 90% of the rebuke 00:19:45.439 --> 00:19:46.119 is off the mark, 00:19:46.399 --> 00:19:47.599 look for the 10% 00:19:47.599 --> 00:19:48.700 that's on the mark 00:19:48.700 --> 00:19:50.480 and take it to heart 00:19:50.480 --> 00:19:51.819 as God's gracious work 00:19:51.819 --> 00:19:52.279 of redemption 00:19:52.279 --> 00:19:53.039 in your life 00:19:53.039 --> 00:19:53.939 because you know what? 00:19:54.000 --> 00:19:54.919 Chances are a lot more 00:19:54.919 --> 00:19:56.759 than 10% is probably true. 00:19:59.059 --> 00:20:00.519 We all have sin 00:20:00.519 --> 00:20:01.599 that needs to be corrected. 00:20:01.759 --> 00:20:03.399 We need this daily, 00:20:03.579 --> 00:20:04.619 continual work 00:20:04.619 --> 00:20:05.539 of rebuke 00:20:05.539 --> 00:20:06.039 and correction 00:20:06.039 --> 00:20:06.700 in our lives. 00:20:06.779 --> 00:20:07.439 Be grateful 00:20:07.439 --> 00:20:08.460 that someone was willing 00:20:08.460 --> 00:20:09.779 to actually love you 00:20:09.779 --> 00:20:10.759 enough to do it. 00:20:15.019 --> 00:20:16.019 But rebuking sin 00:20:16.019 --> 00:20:17.039 is only one half 00:20:17.039 --> 00:20:18.039 of the response 00:20:18.039 --> 00:20:19.279 that Jesus commands here. 00:20:20.160 --> 00:20:20.680 Dealing with sin 00:20:20.680 --> 00:20:21.039 in the church 00:20:21.039 --> 00:20:21.720 isn't just about 00:20:21.720 --> 00:20:22.660 expecting it 00:20:22.660 --> 00:20:23.519 or rebuking it. 00:20:23.640 --> 00:20:23.960 Lastly, 00:20:24.079 --> 00:20:24.579 Jesus says 00:20:24.579 --> 00:20:26.120 we must forgive it. 00:20:27.819 --> 00:20:29.140 Look back at verse 3. 00:20:29.759 --> 00:20:30.799 Pay attention to yourselves, 00:20:30.900 --> 00:20:31.380 Jesus says. 00:20:31.440 --> 00:20:32.240 If your brother sins, 00:20:32.340 --> 00:20:32.759 rebuke him 00:20:32.759 --> 00:20:33.720 and if he repents, 00:20:33.880 --> 00:20:34.480 forgive him. 00:20:35.600 --> 00:20:36.860 And if he sins against you 00:20:36.859 --> 00:20:38.539 seven times in the day 00:20:38.539 --> 00:20:39.279 and turns to you 00:20:39.279 --> 00:20:40.419 seven times saying, 00:20:40.539 --> 00:20:41.039 I repent, 00:20:41.179 --> 00:20:43.219 you must forgive him. 00:20:46.279 --> 00:20:47.299 Now what does it mean 00:20:47.299 --> 00:20:47.839 to forgive? 00:20:52.359 --> 00:20:53.639 Earlier in Luke's gospel 00:20:53.639 --> 00:20:54.539 in chapter 7, 00:20:54.659 --> 00:20:56.000 Jesus uses the illustration 00:20:56.000 --> 00:20:57.599 of canceling a debt 00:20:57.599 --> 00:20:59.459 to describe forgiveness. 00:20:59.460 --> 00:20:59.640 forgiveness. 00:21:01.779 --> 00:21:02.500 In other words, 00:21:02.600 --> 00:21:03.740 forgiveness is 00:21:03.740 --> 00:21:05.279 giving up the right 00:21:05.279 --> 00:21:07.319 to seek repayment 00:21:07.319 --> 00:21:07.980 from the one 00:21:07.980 --> 00:21:08.600 who harmed you 00:21:08.600 --> 00:21:09.700 to pay them back. 00:21:12.059 --> 00:21:13.240 What does that look like? 00:21:16.660 --> 00:21:17.059 Well, 00:21:17.140 --> 00:21:17.539 it means that 00:21:17.539 --> 00:21:18.299 in our actions 00:21:18.299 --> 00:21:20.620 we refuse to hurt 00:21:20.620 --> 00:21:21.779 that other person directly, 00:21:21.920 --> 00:21:22.660 doing to them 00:21:22.660 --> 00:21:23.660 what they did to us 00:21:23.660 --> 00:21:24.759 or doing something 00:21:24.759 --> 00:21:25.579 maybe equivalent. 00:21:25.579 --> 00:21:28.539 But it also means 00:21:28.539 --> 00:21:29.480 that in our words 00:21:29.480 --> 00:21:30.500 we refuse to 00:21:30.500 --> 00:21:31.759 cut the person down 00:21:31.759 --> 00:21:32.639 in front of others, 00:21:33.279 --> 00:21:34.059 repaying them back 00:21:34.059 --> 00:21:35.539 by damaging their reputation 00:21:35.539 --> 00:21:36.159 a little bit. 00:21:38.960 --> 00:21:40.259 But not just our actions 00:21:40.259 --> 00:21:40.720 and our words, 00:21:40.799 --> 00:21:41.379 it also means 00:21:41.379 --> 00:21:42.399 that in our hearts 00:21:42.399 --> 00:21:45.379 we refuse to indulge 00:21:45.379 --> 00:21:46.619 in ill will 00:21:46.619 --> 00:21:47.519 against them, 00:21:48.559 --> 00:21:49.419 imagining all those 00:21:49.419 --> 00:21:50.279 horrible things 00:21:50.279 --> 00:21:51.139 we'd like to happen 00:21:51.139 --> 00:21:51.559 to them 00:21:51.559 --> 00:21:52.859 because they wronged us. 00:21:55.579 --> 00:21:56.500 And it means 00:21:56.500 --> 00:21:58.240 even in our prayers, 00:21:58.839 --> 00:22:01.460 instead of ignoring them 00:22:01.460 --> 00:22:02.659 or hoping for their pain, 00:22:03.019 --> 00:22:04.480 that we pray positively 00:22:04.480 --> 00:22:05.460 for their growth. 00:22:08.259 --> 00:22:09.319 And all this means 00:22:09.319 --> 00:22:09.799 that forgiveness 00:22:09.799 --> 00:22:10.740 also entails 00:22:10.740 --> 00:22:11.460 an openness 00:22:11.460 --> 00:22:13.659 to a restored relationship. 00:22:16.500 --> 00:22:17.279 But I think 00:22:17.279 --> 00:22:17.960 I should point out here 00:22:17.960 --> 00:22:19.079 that what that openness 00:22:19.079 --> 00:22:20.659 to restoration looks like 00:22:20.659 --> 00:22:21.460 will look differently 00:22:21.460 --> 00:22:22.359 depending on the nature 00:22:22.359 --> 00:22:23.039 of the offense. 00:22:24.220 --> 00:22:24.960 Keep in mind, 00:22:24.960 --> 00:22:26.759 saying I forgive you 00:22:26.759 --> 00:22:28.720 doesn't necessarily 00:22:28.720 --> 00:22:30.440 mean I trust you. 00:22:32.480 --> 00:22:33.340 Trust is something 00:22:33.340 --> 00:22:34.279 that has to be restored 00:22:34.279 --> 00:22:34.920 over time. 00:22:36.620 --> 00:22:37.380 And the speed 00:22:37.380 --> 00:22:38.559 at which that occurs 00:22:38.559 --> 00:22:39.480 depends on the behavior 00:22:39.480 --> 00:22:40.620 and the situation, right? 00:22:40.720 --> 00:22:42.380 Imagine you discovered 00:22:42.380 --> 00:22:43.200 that a close friend 00:22:43.200 --> 00:22:44.759 was taking personal things 00:22:44.759 --> 00:22:45.620 that you had shared with them 00:22:45.620 --> 00:22:46.380 and was gossiping 00:22:46.380 --> 00:22:47.319 about you to other people. 00:22:48.579 --> 00:22:49.759 Now, if you lovingly 00:22:49.759 --> 00:22:50.640 confronted this person 00:22:50.640 --> 00:22:51.600 and they repented, 00:22:52.880 --> 00:22:53.840 forgiveness would mean 00:22:53.839 --> 00:22:55.500 not paying that person back 00:22:55.500 --> 00:22:56.299 in all the ways 00:22:56.299 --> 00:22:57.099 we just described 00:22:57.099 --> 00:22:57.699 in your actions, 00:22:57.819 --> 00:22:58.279 in your words, 00:22:58.339 --> 00:22:58.959 in your thought life, 00:22:59.000 --> 00:22:59.899 even in your prayer life. 00:22:59.959 --> 00:23:01.299 You would relinquish 00:23:01.299 --> 00:23:01.779 your rights 00:23:01.779 --> 00:23:02.799 to pay them back. 00:23:03.139 --> 00:23:04.299 You would release them 00:23:04.299 --> 00:23:05.059 from that debt 00:23:05.059 --> 00:23:05.659 and be open 00:23:05.659 --> 00:23:06.919 to a restored relationship. 00:23:08.619 --> 00:23:09.480 But forgiving 00:23:09.480 --> 00:23:10.279 that person 00:23:10.279 --> 00:23:11.319 doesn't mean 00:23:11.319 --> 00:23:12.359 you have to immediately 00:23:12.359 --> 00:23:13.740 trust that person. 00:23:15.819 --> 00:23:16.599 Until a person 00:23:16.599 --> 00:23:17.220 shows evidence 00:23:17.220 --> 00:23:18.039 of true change, 00:23:18.819 --> 00:23:19.799 oftentimes you shouldn't 00:23:19.799 --> 00:23:20.959 necessarily trust them. 00:23:20.960 --> 00:23:23.539 In fact, 00:23:23.640 --> 00:23:24.460 to immediately 00:23:24.460 --> 00:23:25.519 retrust a person 00:23:25.519 --> 00:23:26.240 with sinful habits 00:23:26.240 --> 00:23:26.880 could actually be 00:23:26.880 --> 00:23:28.100 enabling them to sin. 00:23:28.180 --> 00:23:28.940 So trust is going 00:23:28.940 --> 00:23:29.819 to take time. 00:23:30.279 --> 00:23:30.740 Reconciliation 00:23:30.740 --> 00:23:32.380 is going to take time. 00:23:35.120 --> 00:23:36.240 But in most cases, 00:23:36.340 --> 00:23:37.380 as trust is rebuilt, 00:23:37.480 --> 00:23:38.140 the relationship 00:23:38.140 --> 00:23:40.200 will slowly be restored. 00:23:41.819 --> 00:23:42.700 And what all this means 00:23:42.700 --> 00:23:43.279 is that walking 00:23:43.279 --> 00:23:44.200 the road of forgiveness 00:23:44.200 --> 00:23:45.860 is one area 00:23:45.860 --> 00:23:46.840 where we especially 00:23:46.840 --> 00:23:47.799 need each other. 00:23:47.799 --> 00:23:50.700 if you've experienced 00:23:50.700 --> 00:23:51.319 a real wrong 00:23:51.319 --> 00:23:52.079 from another believer 00:23:52.079 --> 00:23:52.759 and you're wrestling 00:23:52.759 --> 00:23:53.980 with what forgiveness means, 00:23:54.220 --> 00:23:55.659 talk to a pastor 00:23:55.659 --> 00:23:56.460 or an elder 00:23:56.460 --> 00:23:58.119 or talk to an older, 00:23:58.299 --> 00:23:58.960 mature Christian. 00:23:59.119 --> 00:23:59.940 Don't try to just 00:23:59.940 --> 00:24:00.960 figure that out 00:24:00.960 --> 00:24:01.720 by yourself. 00:24:02.619 --> 00:24:03.839 Let others help you 00:24:03.839 --> 00:24:05.200 out on this journey. 00:24:07.119 --> 00:24:07.639 After all, 00:24:07.680 --> 00:24:08.879 forgiveness isn't necessarily 00:24:08.879 --> 00:24:10.440 a once-and-done event. 00:24:10.559 --> 00:24:11.720 It is very much 00:24:11.720 --> 00:24:12.399 a process. 00:24:13.039 --> 00:24:14.359 And we need to walk 00:24:14.359 --> 00:24:15.079 with one another 00:24:15.079 --> 00:24:15.940 down that road. 00:24:15.940 --> 00:24:19.860 But as we come back 00:24:19.860 --> 00:24:20.700 to Luke 17, 00:24:20.799 --> 00:24:21.779 make no mistake about it, 00:24:21.820 --> 00:24:23.019 Jesus says that forgiveness, 00:24:24.519 --> 00:24:25.900 giving up our right 00:24:25.900 --> 00:24:27.240 to pay the other person back, 00:24:27.960 --> 00:24:29.279 is non-negotiable. 00:24:32.539 --> 00:24:33.059 Of course, 00:24:33.120 --> 00:24:34.059 there are lots of reasons 00:24:34.059 --> 00:24:34.740 we could give 00:24:34.740 --> 00:24:35.559 for why forgiveness 00:24:35.559 --> 00:24:36.960 is a really good thing, 00:24:37.100 --> 00:24:37.340 right? 00:24:37.920 --> 00:24:39.080 It prevents bitterness 00:24:39.080 --> 00:24:40.460 from growing in our hearts. 00:24:40.900 --> 00:24:42.220 It stops a cycle 00:24:42.220 --> 00:24:43.279 of retaliation 00:24:43.279 --> 00:24:44.140 and paybacks 00:24:44.140 --> 00:24:45.040 and escalation 00:24:45.040 --> 00:24:46.160 of hurts and wrongs. 00:24:46.259 --> 00:24:47.120 It repairs 00:24:47.120 --> 00:24:48.320 and it heals relationships 00:24:48.320 --> 00:24:49.100 that have been broken. 00:24:49.580 --> 00:24:50.320 All these things 00:24:50.320 --> 00:24:51.080 are good things. 00:24:51.160 --> 00:24:52.660 All that is wonderfully true. 00:24:53.060 --> 00:24:53.360 But friends, 00:24:53.400 --> 00:24:54.300 at the end of the day, 00:24:54.500 --> 00:24:55.400 followers of Christ 00:24:55.400 --> 00:24:56.259 must forgive 00:24:56.259 --> 00:24:57.360 for the simple reason 00:24:57.360 --> 00:24:59.580 that Jesus commands us 00:24:59.580 --> 00:25:00.120 to forgive. 00:25:03.240 --> 00:25:04.720 There's no way around it. 00:25:06.000 --> 00:25:06.800 Jesus is telling 00:25:06.800 --> 00:25:07.480 his disciples 00:25:07.480 --> 00:25:09.600 that they must not only 00:25:09.600 --> 00:25:10.220 be vigilant 00:25:10.220 --> 00:25:11.280 to rebuke sin 00:25:11.280 --> 00:25:12.000 in a fellow believer, 00:25:12.000 --> 00:25:13.000 but even more than that, 00:25:13.059 --> 00:25:14.480 they must be just as vigilant 00:25:14.480 --> 00:25:16.339 to forgive sin 00:25:16.339 --> 00:25:17.319 in a fellow believer 00:25:17.319 --> 00:25:19.119 when they repent. 00:25:25.059 --> 00:25:25.619 In fact, 00:25:25.660 --> 00:25:26.400 the only thing worse 00:25:26.400 --> 00:25:26.900 than a church 00:25:26.900 --> 00:25:28.099 that doesn't rebuke sin 00:25:28.099 --> 00:25:29.579 is a church 00:25:29.579 --> 00:25:30.660 that doesn't forgive sin. 00:25:33.720 --> 00:25:34.640 And this forgiveness 00:25:34.640 --> 00:25:35.740 is to have no limit, 00:25:35.900 --> 00:25:36.759 no end point, 00:25:37.079 --> 00:25:38.160 even seven times 00:25:38.160 --> 00:25:39.119 in the same day. 00:25:39.119 --> 00:25:41.299 radical, 00:25:41.759 --> 00:25:43.139 repeated forgiveness. 00:25:43.619 --> 00:25:44.939 This isn't an option. 00:25:45.599 --> 00:25:46.599 It's a command. 00:25:46.959 --> 00:25:49.199 You must forgive, 00:25:49.439 --> 00:25:50.159 Jesus says. 00:25:53.439 --> 00:25:54.299 And to that, 00:25:55.319 --> 00:25:56.319 the apostles respond 00:25:56.319 --> 00:25:57.099 in verse five, 00:25:57.659 --> 00:25:57.959 Lord, 00:25:58.939 --> 00:25:59.959 increase our faith. 00:26:03.119 --> 00:26:04.000 It's sort of funny. 00:26:04.139 --> 00:26:04.299 You know, 00:26:04.359 --> 00:26:05.379 I've read a lot of commentators 00:26:05.379 --> 00:26:05.939 on this passage 00:26:05.939 --> 00:26:07.019 and they're all sort of like, 00:26:07.019 --> 00:26:08.759 it just seems sort of like 00:26:08.759 --> 00:26:09.539 a string of pearls. 00:26:09.660 --> 00:26:10.700 How does it all fit together? 00:26:11.599 --> 00:26:12.319 And yet I'm thinking, 00:26:13.000 --> 00:26:14.500 if at the end of verse four 00:26:14.500 --> 00:26:15.099 you're not saying, 00:26:15.240 --> 00:26:15.319 Lord, 00:26:15.420 --> 00:26:16.059 increase our faith, 00:26:16.139 --> 00:26:16.779 something is wrong. 00:26:18.859 --> 00:26:19.660 Seven times 00:26:19.660 --> 00:26:20.500 in the same day? 00:26:21.579 --> 00:26:22.519 Surely we don't have 00:26:22.519 --> 00:26:23.639 the spiritual muscle 00:26:23.639 --> 00:26:25.099 to lift that sort of weight. 00:26:25.740 --> 00:26:26.379 We're going to need 00:26:26.379 --> 00:26:27.379 a lot more faith 00:26:27.379 --> 00:26:28.000 to do that, 00:26:28.079 --> 00:26:28.279 Jesus. 00:26:29.680 --> 00:26:30.400 We don't have 00:26:30.400 --> 00:26:30.920 what it takes. 00:26:33.319 --> 00:26:34.420 You've felt that way, 00:26:34.539 --> 00:26:34.980 haven't you? 00:26:37.019 --> 00:26:38.160 Jesus says, 00:26:38.240 --> 00:26:39.000 you must forgive 00:26:39.000 --> 00:26:39.700 and your heart says, 00:26:39.779 --> 00:26:40.639 I can't do it. 00:26:40.700 --> 00:26:41.839 I don't have the faith 00:26:41.839 --> 00:26:42.440 to do it. 00:26:44.139 --> 00:26:45.160 But look at what 00:26:45.160 --> 00:26:46.420 Jesus says in response. 00:26:47.559 --> 00:26:49.599 It is not the quantity 00:26:49.599 --> 00:26:50.440 of faith 00:26:50.440 --> 00:26:51.400 that matters here. 00:26:52.559 --> 00:26:53.299 It's merely 00:26:53.299 --> 00:26:54.680 the presence of faith. 00:26:56.059 --> 00:26:57.240 If you have even 00:26:57.240 --> 00:26:58.700 the tiniest seed 00:26:58.700 --> 00:26:59.299 of faith, 00:26:59.420 --> 00:27:00.480 you can do 00:27:00.480 --> 00:27:01.579 what you once 00:27:01.579 --> 00:27:03.279 thought was impossible. 00:27:03.279 --> 00:27:07.339 because it had 00:27:07.339 --> 00:27:08.299 such a vast 00:27:08.299 --> 00:27:09.220 and tenacious 00:27:09.220 --> 00:27:10.039 root system, 00:27:10.139 --> 00:27:11.019 the mulberry tree 00:27:11.019 --> 00:27:12.059 was proverbial 00:27:12.059 --> 00:27:12.940 in Jesus' day 00:27:12.940 --> 00:27:14.119 for being particularly 00:27:14.119 --> 00:27:15.619 difficult to uproot. 00:27:16.019 --> 00:27:16.720 There were actually 00:27:16.720 --> 00:27:17.519 some regulations 00:27:17.519 --> 00:27:18.619 in the Jewish Mishnah, 00:27:19.279 --> 00:27:19.720 which was sort of 00:27:19.720 --> 00:27:20.539 a collection of rules 00:27:20.539 --> 00:27:21.059 and regulations, 00:27:21.240 --> 00:27:21.920 that you weren't 00:27:21.920 --> 00:27:22.660 supposed to plant 00:27:22.660 --> 00:27:23.480 a mulberry tree 00:27:23.480 --> 00:27:24.960 within 75 feet 00:27:24.960 --> 00:27:25.700 of a cistern 00:27:25.700 --> 00:27:26.259 because they knew 00:27:26.259 --> 00:27:27.379 it would mess it all up. 00:27:27.380 --> 00:27:31.380 But Jesus says, 00:27:31.520 --> 00:27:32.040 take a look 00:27:32.040 --> 00:27:33.560 at that gnarly, 00:27:33.720 --> 00:27:34.800 immovable thing 00:27:34.800 --> 00:27:36.940 with its roots 00:27:36.940 --> 00:27:38.360 stuck deep down 00:27:38.360 --> 00:27:38.860 in the earth, 00:27:38.960 --> 00:27:40.120 sort of like that wound, 00:27:41.420 --> 00:27:42.340 sort of like that hurt, 00:27:42.460 --> 00:27:43.380 sort of like that wrong 00:27:43.380 --> 00:27:44.240 that you've been bearing. 00:27:45.740 --> 00:27:46.740 You can't imagine 00:27:46.740 --> 00:27:47.820 how you would ever 00:27:47.820 --> 00:27:49.060 be able to dig that up 00:27:49.060 --> 00:27:50.000 and get rid of it. 00:27:50.800 --> 00:27:51.600 You don't think 00:27:51.600 --> 00:27:52.580 you have enough faith 00:27:52.580 --> 00:27:53.600 to actually forgive, 00:27:54.040 --> 00:27:54.560 but Jesus says, 00:27:54.660 --> 00:27:55.620 I'm not asking 00:27:55.620 --> 00:27:57.200 for heroic-sized faith. 00:27:57.380 --> 00:27:58.360 I'm just asking 00:27:58.360 --> 00:27:59.440 that you trust me. 00:28:03.520 --> 00:28:04.700 One writer put it this way. 00:28:06.440 --> 00:28:07.000 He said, 00:28:07.100 --> 00:28:08.280 faith is like a window 00:28:08.280 --> 00:28:09.740 through which 00:28:09.740 --> 00:28:10.780 you can see something. 00:28:12.720 --> 00:28:14.080 What matters is not 00:28:14.080 --> 00:28:14.740 whether the window 00:28:14.740 --> 00:28:15.720 is six inches high 00:28:15.720 --> 00:28:16.900 or six feet high. 00:28:17.000 --> 00:28:18.740 What matters is the God 00:28:18.740 --> 00:28:19.960 that your faith 00:28:19.960 --> 00:28:21.460 is looking out on. 00:28:23.000 --> 00:28:24.540 If it's the creator God, 00:28:25.540 --> 00:28:26.720 if it's the God 00:28:26.720 --> 00:28:27.259 incarnate 00:28:27.259 --> 00:28:28.240 and the person of Jesus, 00:28:28.380 --> 00:28:29.059 if it's the God 00:28:29.059 --> 00:28:29.860 living and active 00:28:29.860 --> 00:28:30.740 in the Holy Spirit, 00:28:31.220 --> 00:28:32.220 then the teeniest 00:28:32.220 --> 00:28:33.500 little peephole 00:28:33.500 --> 00:28:34.180 of a window 00:28:34.180 --> 00:28:35.120 will give you access 00:28:35.120 --> 00:28:35.779 to power 00:28:35.779 --> 00:28:37.240 like you've never dreamed. 00:28:44.180 --> 00:28:44.759 You see, 00:28:44.799 --> 00:28:45.500 our deepest problem 00:28:45.500 --> 00:28:46.059 with forgiveness 00:28:46.059 --> 00:28:47.860 isn't that our faith 00:28:47.860 --> 00:28:48.640 is too small. 00:28:48.759 --> 00:28:49.720 Jesus can work with 00:28:49.720 --> 00:28:50.720 even the tiniest 00:28:50.720 --> 00:28:51.380 amount of faith, 00:28:51.380 --> 00:28:52.660 and that is good news. 00:28:54.820 --> 00:28:55.740 The problem isn't 00:28:55.740 --> 00:28:56.280 that our faith 00:28:56.280 --> 00:28:56.960 is too small. 00:28:57.920 --> 00:28:58.760 The problem is 00:28:58.760 --> 00:28:59.340 that our pride 00:28:59.340 --> 00:29:00.080 is too big. 00:29:02.600 --> 00:29:03.700 Jesus tells a parable 00:29:03.700 --> 00:29:04.400 in verses seven 00:29:04.400 --> 00:29:05.040 through nine 00:29:05.040 --> 00:29:10.080 about a master 00:29:10.080 --> 00:29:10.820 and a servant. 00:29:10.819 --> 00:29:15.259 And the point 00:29:15.259 --> 00:29:15.980 is that the servant 00:29:15.980 --> 00:29:17.720 could never possibly, 00:29:18.039 --> 00:29:18.519 think about it, 00:29:18.519 --> 00:29:19.079 a servant 00:29:19.079 --> 00:29:20.659 could never possibly 00:29:20.659 --> 00:29:21.639 put in his debt 00:29:21.639 --> 00:29:22.179 the master 00:29:22.179 --> 00:29:23.099 just because he's done 00:29:23.099 --> 00:29:24.019 his duty, right? 00:29:24.619 --> 00:29:25.919 And in the same way 00:29:25.919 --> 00:29:26.500 Jesus is saying 00:29:26.500 --> 00:29:28.200 we can never put God 00:29:28.200 --> 00:29:29.019 into our debt. 00:29:32.039 --> 00:29:33.679 We are unworthy servants 00:29:33.679 --> 00:29:34.759 who don't deserve 00:29:34.759 --> 00:29:35.519 God's favor 00:29:35.519 --> 00:29:36.179 and blessing. 00:29:37.359 --> 00:29:37.599 You see, 00:29:37.679 --> 00:29:38.839 Jesus isn't asking you 00:29:38.839 --> 00:29:40.519 to be a superhero faith. 00:29:41.299 --> 00:29:41.959 He's calling you 00:29:41.959 --> 00:29:42.839 to be a servant 00:29:42.839 --> 00:29:44.039 in humility. 00:29:46.819 --> 00:29:47.559 Because the reality 00:29:47.559 --> 00:29:47.959 is, friends, 00:29:48.079 --> 00:29:49.279 forgiveness is nearly 00:29:49.279 --> 00:29:50.119 impossible 00:29:50.119 --> 00:29:50.980 if we think 00:29:50.980 --> 00:29:51.899 that God owes us 00:29:51.899 --> 00:29:52.299 something. 00:29:54.819 --> 00:29:55.859 If God owes us 00:29:55.859 --> 00:29:56.419 something because 00:29:56.419 --> 00:29:57.240 of our good works, 00:29:57.359 --> 00:29:57.779 because of our 00:29:57.779 --> 00:29:58.579 long labors, 00:29:58.740 --> 00:29:59.159 because of our 00:29:59.159 --> 00:29:59.839 good life, 00:30:00.000 --> 00:30:00.419 because of our 00:30:00.419 --> 00:30:00.899 integrity, 00:30:01.199 --> 00:30:01.659 because of our 00:30:01.659 --> 00:30:02.099 fidelity, 00:30:02.459 --> 00:30:03.299 if we think that 00:30:03.299 --> 00:30:04.759 somehow all that 00:30:04.759 --> 00:30:05.779 earns some kind 00:30:05.779 --> 00:30:06.259 of purchase, 00:30:06.459 --> 00:30:07.099 some kind of 00:30:07.099 --> 00:30:07.980 bargaining chip, 00:30:08.059 --> 00:30:08.439 some kind of 00:30:08.440 --> 00:30:09.559 favor with God 00:30:09.559 --> 00:30:10.420 and puts God 00:30:10.420 --> 00:30:11.120 into our debt, 00:30:11.320 --> 00:30:12.259 there's always 00:30:12.259 --> 00:30:13.340 going to be a limit 00:30:13.340 --> 00:30:14.340 to what we think 00:30:14.340 --> 00:30:15.759 God can ask of us. 00:30:17.160 --> 00:30:18.340 If all our plowing 00:30:18.340 --> 00:30:19.299 and keeping sheep 00:30:19.299 --> 00:30:20.100 and proverbial 00:30:20.100 --> 00:30:21.380 preparing of supper 00:30:21.380 --> 00:30:22.180 somehow means 00:30:22.180 --> 00:30:22.980 that God owes us 00:30:22.980 --> 00:30:23.680 something in return, 00:30:24.120 --> 00:30:25.120 there's always 00:30:25.120 --> 00:30:25.880 going to be able, 00:30:25.980 --> 00:30:26.580 we're always going 00:30:26.580 --> 00:30:27.000 to be able to 00:30:27.000 --> 00:30:28.720 draw the line 00:30:28.720 --> 00:30:30.279 and say this far 00:30:30.279 --> 00:30:31.039 but no further. 00:30:33.900 --> 00:30:35.259 And I guarantee you 00:30:35.259 --> 00:30:36.019 that forgiving 00:30:36.019 --> 00:30:37.180 those who have 00:30:37.180 --> 00:30:37.859 wronged us 00:30:37.859 --> 00:30:38.920 will more often 00:30:38.920 --> 00:30:39.440 than not 00:30:39.440 --> 00:30:40.519 always be the 00:30:40.519 --> 00:30:41.000 line that we 00:30:41.000 --> 00:30:41.379 draw. 00:30:46.180 --> 00:30:47.619 But if you know 00:30:47.619 --> 00:30:49.859 that you've been 00:30:49.859 --> 00:30:51.099 saved sheerly 00:30:51.099 --> 00:30:52.160 and wholly 00:30:52.160 --> 00:30:53.339 by grace 00:30:53.339 --> 00:30:54.619 without any 00:30:54.619 --> 00:30:55.200 contribution 00:30:55.200 --> 00:30:56.480 or any merit 00:30:56.480 --> 00:30:57.299 of your own, 00:30:57.700 --> 00:30:58.660 then everything 00:30:58.660 --> 00:30:59.259 changes. 00:30:59.259 --> 00:31:02.299 if God 00:31:02.299 --> 00:31:02.779 has actually 00:31:02.779 --> 00:31:04.059 canceled our debt, 00:31:04.480 --> 00:31:05.079 staggering 00:31:05.079 --> 00:31:06.619 and boundless 00:31:06.619 --> 00:31:07.480 as it was, 00:31:08.819 --> 00:31:09.740 then how could 00:31:09.740 --> 00:31:10.420 we not turn 00:31:10.420 --> 00:31:11.000 and cancel 00:31:11.000 --> 00:31:11.379 the debt 00:31:11.379 --> 00:31:11.779 of others 00:31:11.779 --> 00:31:12.319 in return? 00:31:14.879 --> 00:31:15.539 But you say, 00:31:15.660 --> 00:31:16.579 it's too costly, 00:31:16.700 --> 00:31:16.819 God, 00:31:16.839 --> 00:31:18.140 I can't do it. 00:31:19.779 --> 00:31:20.140 And yet, 00:31:20.220 --> 00:31:20.879 consider another 00:31:20.879 --> 00:31:21.240 servant, 00:31:21.379 --> 00:31:21.559 friend. 00:31:21.559 --> 00:31:21.660 And 00:31:21.660 --> 00:31:25.519 there was once 00:31:25.519 --> 00:31:25.920 a servant 00:31:25.920 --> 00:31:26.519 who owed us 00:31:26.519 --> 00:31:27.640 absolutely nothing, 00:31:27.640 --> 00:31:29.460 who was under 00:31:29.460 --> 00:31:30.580 absolutely no 00:31:30.580 --> 00:31:31.259 obligation 00:31:31.259 --> 00:31:32.960 and yet who 00:31:32.960 --> 00:31:33.820 freely came 00:31:33.820 --> 00:31:34.540 and did what 00:31:34.540 --> 00:31:35.120 was actually 00:31:35.120 --> 00:31:36.040 not his duty. 00:31:37.720 --> 00:31:38.580 He came and 00:31:38.580 --> 00:31:39.500 actually performed 00:31:39.500 --> 00:31:40.720 the duty of 00:31:40.720 --> 00:31:41.200 another 00:31:41.200 --> 00:31:43.180 in their place. 00:31:43.300 --> 00:31:44.220 He was completely 00:31:44.220 --> 00:31:45.140 and utterly 00:31:45.140 --> 00:31:46.240 worthy 00:31:46.240 --> 00:31:48.660 and he performed 00:31:48.660 --> 00:31:49.400 the duty of 00:31:49.400 --> 00:31:50.180 the unworthy, 00:31:50.440 --> 00:31:50.759 you see. 00:31:52.560 --> 00:31:53.440 Jesus on his 00:31:53.440 --> 00:31:54.860 road to 00:31:54.860 --> 00:31:55.620 Jerusalem here 00:31:55.620 --> 00:31:56.240 will eventually 00:31:56.240 --> 00:31:57.200 end up in the 00:31:57.200 --> 00:31:57.920 capital city 00:31:57.920 --> 00:32:00.080 and while there 00:32:00.080 --> 00:32:00.640 he'll be 00:32:00.640 --> 00:32:01.299 arrested 00:32:01.299 --> 00:32:02.819 and betrayed 00:32:02.819 --> 00:32:04.360 and he'll be 00:32:04.360 --> 00:32:05.080 stripped of his 00:32:05.080 --> 00:32:06.200 clothes and he'll 00:32:06.200 --> 00:32:06.980 be mocked and 00:32:06.980 --> 00:32:07.720 he'll be scorned 00:32:07.720 --> 00:32:08.259 and he'll be put 00:32:08.259 --> 00:32:08.799 to death. 00:32:10.779 --> 00:32:11.779 The Lord 00:32:11.779 --> 00:32:12.880 of all 00:32:12.880 --> 00:32:13.559 will become 00:32:13.559 --> 00:32:14.120 a servant. 00:32:14.119 --> 00:32:26.899 You see, 00:32:26.959 --> 00:32:27.119 friends, 00:32:27.159 --> 00:32:27.379 if you 00:32:27.379 --> 00:32:28.179 experience 00:32:28.179 --> 00:32:29.019 his grace, 00:32:32.019 --> 00:32:38.699 how can you 00:32:38.699 --> 00:32:39.139 not forgive? 00:32:39.140 --> 00:32:39.340 forgive? 00:32:51.340 --> 00:32:51.900 Wouldn't the 00:32:51.900 --> 00:32:52.380 church be a 00:32:52.380 --> 00:32:53.280 strange place 00:32:53.280 --> 00:32:54.300 if we actually 00:32:54.300 --> 00:32:54.880 did this? 00:32:55.700 --> 00:32:56.540 Think about it. 00:32:57.759 --> 00:32:58.520 What if we 00:32:58.520 --> 00:32:59.240 actually put into 00:32:59.240 --> 00:32:59.960 practice what 00:32:59.960 --> 00:33:00.800 Jesus teaches us 00:33:00.800 --> 00:33:01.040 here? 00:33:04.040 --> 00:33:05.020 What if people 00:33:05.020 --> 00:33:05.740 found the 00:33:05.740 --> 00:33:06.820 church to be a 00:33:06.820 --> 00:33:07.520 community of 00:33:07.519 --> 00:33:08.940 people who 00:33:08.940 --> 00:33:10.119 actually love 00:33:10.119 --> 00:33:10.619 one another 00:33:10.619 --> 00:33:12.000 enough to 00:33:12.000 --> 00:33:13.059 have hard and 00:33:13.059 --> 00:33:13.619 awkward 00:33:13.619 --> 00:33:14.599 conversations? 00:33:16.619 --> 00:33:17.740 To correct 00:33:17.740 --> 00:33:18.440 each other in 00:33:18.440 --> 00:33:19.059 gentleness? 00:33:19.420 --> 00:33:20.139 To pursue 00:33:20.139 --> 00:33:21.200 righteousness and 00:33:21.200 --> 00:33:22.200 real repentance? 00:33:24.519 --> 00:33:25.400 Wouldn't that be 00:33:25.400 --> 00:33:26.400 so countercultural? 00:33:28.000 --> 00:33:28.660 And at the same 00:33:28.660 --> 00:33:29.460 time, it would be a 00:33:29.460 --> 00:33:30.339 community of people 00:33:30.339 --> 00:33:31.359 who love each other 00:33:31.359 --> 00:33:33.240 enough to forgive 00:33:33.240 --> 00:33:34.440 again and 00:33:34.440 --> 00:33:35.359 again and 00:33:35.359 --> 00:33:35.900 again. 00:33:39.140 --> 00:33:39.920 And then, when 00:33:39.920 --> 00:33:40.680 people look on 00:33:40.680 --> 00:33:41.319 and say, how 00:33:41.319 --> 00:33:42.819 in the world 00:33:42.819 --> 00:33:43.319 do they do 00:33:43.319 --> 00:33:43.460 that? 00:33:43.519 --> 00:33:43.859 I mean, I 00:33:43.859 --> 00:33:44.140 get it. 00:33:44.160 --> 00:33:44.859 I get on the 00:33:44.859 --> 00:33:46.200 one hand being 00:33:46.200 --> 00:33:47.539 hyper-vigilant 00:33:47.539 --> 00:33:49.380 about righteousness 00:33:49.380 --> 00:33:49.980 and holiness, 00:33:50.099 --> 00:33:50.720 and I get on the 00:33:50.720 --> 00:33:51.279 other hand being 00:33:51.279 --> 00:33:52.079 forgiving, but to 00:33:52.079 --> 00:33:52.940 do them together? 00:33:54.000 --> 00:33:55.099 How in the world 00:33:55.099 --> 00:33:55.720 do they do 00:33:55.720 --> 00:33:56.140 that? 00:33:58.359 --> 00:33:58.900 And we 00:33:58.900 --> 00:33:59.599 would reply 00:33:59.599 --> 00:34:01.359 with genuine 00:34:01.359 --> 00:34:02.339 humility and 00:34:02.339 --> 00:34:03.139 gratitude and 00:34:03.139 --> 00:34:03.859 perhaps with a 00:34:03.859 --> 00:34:05.359 slight twinkle in 00:34:05.359 --> 00:34:06.139 our eye and say, 00:34:06.240 --> 00:34:06.639 you know, we're 00:34:06.639 --> 00:34:07.259 only unworthy 00:34:07.259 --> 00:34:07.779 servants. 00:34:08.539 --> 00:34:09.519 We've only done 00:34:09.519 --> 00:34:10.400 what's our duty. 00:34:12.279 --> 00:34:12.980 And then they 00:34:12.980 --> 00:34:13.659 would say, oh, we 00:34:13.659 --> 00:34:14.139 could never do 00:34:14.139 --> 00:34:14.440 that. 00:34:14.960 --> 00:34:15.579 We don't have the 00:34:15.579 --> 00:34:16.179 strength to pull 00:34:16.179 --> 00:34:16.719 that off. 00:34:18.659 --> 00:34:19.299 And then we 00:34:19.299 --> 00:34:19.980 could say, if you 00:34:19.980 --> 00:34:21.940 had faith, even 00:34:21.940 --> 00:34:22.940 the size of a 00:34:22.940 --> 00:34:23.920 mustard seed in the 00:34:23.920 --> 00:34:24.799 God that we know 00:34:24.799 --> 00:34:26.940 in Jesus, you 00:34:26.940 --> 00:34:27.639 could uproot a 00:34:27.639 --> 00:34:29.519 forest and plant 00:34:29.519 --> 00:34:30.159 it in the sea. 00:34:32.340 --> 00:34:33.100 Let's pray. 00:34:40.720 --> 00:34:41.680 Oh, Lord Jesus, 00:34:41.840 --> 00:34:42.559 what a healing 00:34:42.559 --> 00:34:43.320 and hard 00:34:43.320 --> 00:34:44.780 teaching you've 00:34:44.780 --> 00:34:45.400 given to us 00:34:45.400 --> 00:34:45.940 this morning. 00:34:47.680 --> 00:34:48.480 Lord, we need 00:34:48.480 --> 00:34:48.980 your help. 00:34:49.140 --> 00:34:49.640 We need your 00:34:49.640 --> 00:34:50.240 help to 00:34:50.240 --> 00:34:52.780 not be 00:34:52.780 --> 00:34:53.660 disillusioned by 00:34:53.660 --> 00:34:54.200 sin in the 00:34:54.200 --> 00:34:54.840 church, and we 00:34:54.840 --> 00:34:55.620 need your help to 00:34:55.620 --> 00:34:56.140 be able to 00:34:56.140 --> 00:34:57.120 lovingly correct 00:34:57.120 --> 00:34:57.740 each other and 00:34:57.740 --> 00:34:58.360 have the courage 00:34:58.360 --> 00:34:58.980 to do that. 00:34:59.180 --> 00:34:59.960 And Lord Jesus, 00:35:00.079 --> 00:35:00.740 above all, we 00:35:00.739 --> 00:35:02.419 need your help to 00:35:02.419 --> 00:35:03.059 be able to 00:35:03.059 --> 00:35:03.599 forgive one 00:35:03.599 --> 00:35:03.939 another. 00:35:08.000 --> 00:35:09.439 God, I'm sure 00:35:09.439 --> 00:35:09.839 that there are 00:35:09.839 --> 00:35:11.079 many of my 00:35:11.079 --> 00:35:11.539 brothers and 00:35:11.539 --> 00:35:12.259 sisters here this 00:35:12.259 --> 00:35:14.839 morning who are 00:35:14.839 --> 00:35:15.679 holding on to 00:35:15.679 --> 00:35:18.119 things, grudges 00:35:18.119 --> 00:35:19.359 and hurts and 00:35:19.359 --> 00:35:20.219 bitternesses. 00:35:22.659 --> 00:35:23.659 Lord, some here 00:35:23.659 --> 00:35:24.259 have been sinned 00:35:24.259 --> 00:35:24.899 against very 00:35:24.899 --> 00:35:25.579 seriously. 00:35:27.119 --> 00:35:28.159 And this call to 00:35:28.159 --> 00:35:29.059 forgiveness feels 00:35:29.059 --> 00:35:30.059 like a call to a 00:35:30.059 --> 00:35:30.699 little death. 00:35:34.079 --> 00:35:35.019 Oh, Lord Jesus, 00:35:35.139 --> 00:35:35.980 help us to see 00:35:35.980 --> 00:35:40.039 that because you 00:35:40.039 --> 00:35:42.900 have died, the 00:35:42.900 --> 00:35:44.619 extension from us 00:35:44.619 --> 00:35:45.480 of forgiveness to 00:35:45.480 --> 00:35:47.559 others can only 00:35:47.559 --> 00:35:48.199 mean life. 00:35:50.759 --> 00:35:51.460 Give us the 00:35:51.460 --> 00:35:52.079 courage and the 00:35:52.079 --> 00:35:52.699 power by your 00:35:52.699 --> 00:35:54.980 spirit to obey 00:35:54.980 --> 00:35:55.679 you, Lord Jesus. 00:35:55.679 --> 00:35:56.940 Christ 00:35:56.940 --> 00:35:58.219 Phil, we 00:35:59.379 --> 00:36:01.179 pray this in your 00:36:01.179 --> 00:36:01.899 strong and holy 00:36:01.899 --> 00:36:02.279 name. 00:36:02.719 --> 00:36:03.019 Amen. 00:36:03.019 --> 00:36:03.179 Amen. 00:36:03.179 --> 00:36:04.179 Yes.