It's good to see you all here. I'm glad you have joined us this morning. This morning as we
turn to God's Word, we're going to continue our series in the Lord's Prayer.
And if you want to turn with me there, it's in the Pew Bibles in page 761. We've been looking at
this prayer in detail, and we're going to continue to do that. If you remember the first part of the
Lord's Prayer, our three requests regarding God, that His name would be holy, that His kingdom would
come, and that His will would be done. And then in the second half of the prayer, Pastor Nick preached
about last week, praying for daily provision, for daily bread, for daily help, daily grace
from our Heavenly Father in our various circumstances. And today we come to the second
part of the prayer that is more us-centered, centered on our needs. And the prayer is,
forgive us our debts. And so that's what we're going to be looking at this morning. So let me go
ahead and read. I'm going to read the whole prayer and the two verses after because they're very relevant
for this morning's text. So I'll start in verse 9 of chapter 6. We'll read it. I'll pray for God's help,
and then we'll look at it together. Matthew 6, verse 9. Pray then like this, our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For if you forgive others their trespasses,
your Heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their trespasses,
neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. Please pray with me.
Oh, Lord, we come to your Word this morning, and this is both a glorious and an incredibly terrifying text.
Lord, to look at forgiveness, Lord, is not easy. And so, Lord, I ask for your help this morning.
Lord, I pray that you would be with me as I speak, that I would speak as I ought to.
And Lord, that you would be with each heart, each soul in this room, that we would be ready to receive
the truth of your Word. Lord, that our hearts would be willing to submit and recognize, Lord, the power of your Word.
Lord, that our minds would be able to understand your Word, that our wills would be moved to do
as you have asked us to. Lord, we thank you that as we ask for these things, we know that
your Holy Spirit is at work among us, and I pray that you would continue that work.
In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.
Jesus tells us in this request to pray,
Father, forgive our debts as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And so, we're going to explore this prayer by asking three questions of it.
The first one is, what is forgiveness that we're asking for? What is it that we're actually asking for
when we ask this question, or when we pray this prayer?
The second question is, why? Why do we need this forgiveness?
And thirdly, it is, how do we understand our need to forgive others as well as to be forgiven?
What's the relationship between those ideas?
So, that's what we're going to look at this morning.
If you're a note taker, there's your outline.
And so, I always look at Amanda, because I know Amanda's a really, I don't even know if she takes notes,
but she's really organized.
So, I figured she might be.
Anyway, so those are your three points if you're looking for it.
So, the first question we're going to ask is,
what is this forgiveness that we are asking for?
And I just want to go back to the very basic idea of what is forgiveness?
It is when something is owed to another, and that thing that is owed is canceled.
That's a very simple definition of forgiveness.
So, for example, one of the easy ways to picture this is in a financial situation.
A bank loans me $10,000, right?
I owe them $10,000, right?
I incur a debt when I borrow that money, and until I pay it back, I owe them this thing, right?
But if that bank comes to me and says, we have chosen to forgive your debt, what does it mean?
It means the account is closed.
It means the debt is no longer needing to be repaid because they have erased it
or taken away the need for repayment.
And they will no longer pursue me for that money.
So, that's what fundamentally forgiveness is in a conceptual way.
So, what does Jesus mean here when he says, forgive us our debt?
Now, we might look at that word and think, does that mean that we owe God money?
No, that's not what it means.
This word debt is used regularly in the Bible to refer not to financial things,
although it does refer to that, but it also refers regularly to spiritual things.
We know this particularly because in parallel passages,
the Bible uses different words in the same thing.
So, in verse 14, if you look down just two verses later,
Jesus is clearly talking about the same topic, and he uses the word trespass.
Trespass is to transgress or to cross over a boundary, to break a law.
And this is what, this is the picture then of this spiritual debt that is incurred.
If I break the law, then I owe the law keepers something.
I owe society something.
In the parallel passage of this prayer in Luke, it says,
forgive us our sins, for we ourselves forgive everyone who is indebted to us.
It's fascinating to see it there where you see both the word indebted,
then paralleled by the word sin, right?
And sin fundamentally means missing the mark,
but biblically it means not meeting God's righteous standards,
not being the people that God created us to be.
And we may think about sin as doing wrong things, right?
We cross a line.
We miss the mark.
We get a stain on our moral life because of something we do.
But in fact, the Bible has a much grander picture
of the problem of the debt that we owe to God.
Because in the storyline of the Bible,
we were created to know and have a relationship with our Creator.
And in that relationship, we are meant to love Him,
to obey Him as a Creator King,
to cherish and adore Him,
to recognize Him as a loving Heavenly Father
in all of those roles that we should then respond to Him
with worship, with obedience,
with joy, with love, and all these things.
So sin isn't merely slipping up,
but it's a much greater relational offense
because what the Bible then says is,
we have rejected that relationship with God.
We have said, no, thank you, God.
We want to go our own way.
This is exactly what Adam and Eve did in the garden.
God, thank you for all of these things,
but I'd rather do it my way.
I'd rather be co-equal with you
rather than being under you in relationship.
I would rather be independent
rather than dependent on you.
John Piper describes sin in this way.
Bear with me because it's a beautiful
but fairly long quote.
He says that sin is any word or deed
where the glory of God is not honored,
the greatness of God is not admired,
the wisdom of God is not esteemed,
the beauty of God is not treasured,
the goodness of God is not savored,
the promises of God are not believed,
the commandments of God are not obeyed,
the justice of God is not respected,
the wrath of God is not feared,
the grace of God is not cherished,
the presence of God is not prized,
and the person of God is not loved.
Who of us have not sinned?
If this is what sin is,
and it is,
it is what the Bible tells us.
And so the forgiveness that we are asking for
is of this great debt
that we owe to our Creator
of what we have done
in ways that are in rebellion against Him
and what we have not done
in ways that would be to glory
and honor and love and serve Him.
And that is true for all of us.
And so Jesus is assuming this
as He says,
forgive us our debts,
forgive us our trespasses,
forgive us our sins.
This is why we need to pray
for God's forgiveness.
But some of you might be thinking,
why?
Why does God need to forgive this?
Can't He just be like the bank
and say,
nah, it's okay.
No problem.
I'll just overlook it.
I'll just erase it.
No cost to you.
Can't He just do that for us?
Well,
we might think so.
And we might want that.
And of course,
humanly,
this is how we always think about it.
Because we think,
well,
God understands.
He knows what I meant.
He,
you know,
it wasn't that bad.
All of the excuses
that we come up with our own mind
to minimize our sin.
And then we think,
why can't God just overlook that?
But then we look out at the world
and we look at a sex trafficker
or a rapist
or a serial killer
or,
you know,
there are certain things
that we all in our society know
are heinous crimes.
They are terrible abuses
of other people.
Typically,
those are the ones
that capture our heart,
not tax evasion.
But it's all sin,
right?
But these are the ones
where we all have this sense,
that's wrong.
And it's not just
that's wrong,
but I want those people
to be punished.
I want them to have to pay
for their crime.
And do you know why
we have that instinct?
We have that instinct
because God put it in us.
Because the God of the universe
is a God of justice
and mercy.
And in His goodness,
He cannot let sin
stand in the world
and not be dealt with.
Justice demands a response
and there must be
some kind of response.
And so,
we have this problem
because we want God
to just erase
our little foibles,
but then other people
sin,
well,
we really want justice
for that.
And it can't be that.
God is either
the God of justice
everywhere
or He's not a God
of justice at all.
Right?
Imagine a state trooper
who pulls you over
and he says,
well,
did you see the sign?
The sign says 55.
And you said,
yeah,
but nobody's obeying it.
Why'd you pull me over?
And he's like,
oh,
you're right.
I'll just pass.
I'll just forget it.
Right?
And then he keeps doing this
over and over again.
Well,
you know what?
That means that there's no,
that sign no longer
has any value
and there is no more
functional speed limit
on that road.
And when we're asking God
to simply absolve sin
without justice,
we're asking Him to say,
actually,
there is no righteousness
and there is no way
to call good,
good and evil,
evil.
And friends,
that is a terrible world
and it is not the world
that the Bible shows us.
Instead,
we have a God
who is committed,
committed to justice.
justice.
So much so
that the rejection
of God,
who is the author of life,
results in,
according to Romans 6, 23,
death.
It says,
the wages of sin
is death.
What we earn,
right?
What we end up owing
is our very life.
God says that
when we sin,
we then put ourselves
under a condemnation
of death
and we are,
we are caught in that,
right?
Why is it so severe?
Well,
because God is so great.
If we sin against
our local public library
by not returning
the latest Tom Clancy novel,
right?
That's bad,
right?
But what will they do?
They'll fine us
$15 to replace the book
or $30
because of the restocking fee.
And that's what it'll be.
Because the public library
isn't a great thing,
right?
It's a small thing.
I mean,
it is a great thing.
Public libraries are wonderful.
They're important in the world.
But compare that
with like treason
against your country,
all right?
This is a great offense
against a much greater entity
and that offense is greater.
So imagine then
what the weight
of an offense is
against the creator
and sustainer
of the world itself.
This is why death
is the wages
of our sin
because it is
an infinite offense
against an infinite God.
So we need forgiveness.
All of us
need forgiveness
because we can't pay that back
except through death.
And our only hope
is that God
might in His mercy
forgive.
And of course,
this, friends,
is the very heart
of Christianity.
This is the very heart
of the gospel
because He has done this.
He has both satisfied
justice
and shown mercy.
And how has He done this?
He has sent
His Son, Jesus,
the sinless one,
the one who never
incurred any debt
against God
because He was without sin,
who came and lived
His life among us
and offered Himself up
on the cross
for the forgiveness
of our sins,
dying the death
that is the repayment
to satisfy God's justice
so that we
might receive
the benefit
of forgiveness.
Many of you know
the imagery.
It's like being
in a courtroom
and you've been found guilty
and you must pay
a fine that you can't pay.
And the judge
bangs his gavel
and says,
condemned,
you must pay this now.
But then He steps
out of the judgment seat,
comes down,
and He says,
and I will pay this
myself for you
so that you can go free.
This is what God did
by sending Jesus.
And so,
Paul can write
to Christians
in Colossae
in Colossians 2, 13,
and you who were dead
in your trespasses
and the uncircumcision
of your flesh,
God made alive
together with Him,
having forgiven us
all our trespasses
by canceling
the record of debt
that stood against us
with its legal demands.
This He set aside,
nailing it to the cross.
Friends,
this is
at the very heart
of what Christianity is,
that our God
has worked
to achieve
both justice
and mercy for us
so that we might
be forgiven
of our sin
because of Jesus.
What good news
this is,
friends,
this morning,
if you are here
and you don't know
the forgiveness
that comes
through faith
in Jesus Christ,
I implore you,
turn to Him,
repent of your sin,
confess that it's wrong,
confess that you can't
do anything
to save yourself
and trust in Jesus
what He has done
for you
and know
His forgiveness.
Now,
some of you
are sitting here
thinking,
okay,
but I've been a Christian
for a long time.
I've heard this story
before.
So,
why does Jesus
ask me
to keep praying
this prayer?
Haven't I already
been forgiven?
haven't I already
know that that's true?
And yes,
that's true
in a sense
that's very important.
But,
the short answer
to that question
is,
you have to keep
praying this prayer
because it is
right to do.
Because we need it.
We do need
to keep asking
for forgiveness.
That Christians
are to pray this
on a regular basis.
Why do I say this?
Well,
I'm going to turn
briefly to the gospel
or to the letter
of 1 John.
If you want to go
with where you can,
1 John chapter 1
verses 1,
5 through 9.
I want to read
this passage
to explain to you
why Christians
also need to continue
to pray this prayer.
John writes this,
starting in verse 5.
This is the message
we have heard from Him
and proclaimed to you,
that God is light
and in Him
is no darkness
at all.
If we say
we have fellowship
with Him
while we walk
in darkness,
we lie
and do not practice
the truth.
But if we walk
in the light
as He is in the light,
we have fellowship
with one another
and the blood
of Jesus His Son
cleanses us
from all sin.
If we say
we have no sin,
we deceive ourselves
and the truth
is not in us.
If we confess
our sins,
He is faithful
and just
to forgive us
our sins
and to cleanse us
from all unrighteousness.
Now friends,
this letter
was not written
to the whole world.
This letter
was written
to a church.
This letter
was written
to people
that the Apostle John
assumes
are followers
of Jesus
and understand
the fundamental
forgiveness
that God
has worked
in Christ.
But what He says
is we need
to continue
to pray
because this side
of eternity
we will continue
to sin
even as Christians.
We never excuse it.
We never encourage it.
We never coddle it.
But friends,
we will continue
to sin
this side of glory
when we will be
transformed
and become
without sin
once more.
many people
think that Christianity
is about being
good people
and that being
a good Christian
is being better
and better
at not sinning.
And that leads
Christians to think
well I need to hide
my sin
because I can't show
that I've sinned
or else people think
I'm a bad Christian.
But what John says
is we all sin.
If we say
we have not sinned
we lie
and the truth
is not in us.
But we say
we have fellowship
with a holy God
who is without sin
and this is
an untenable situation.
So what's the solution?
Verse 9
is the solution.
If we confess
our sins
He is faithful
and just
to forgive us
our sins
and cleanse us
of all unrighteousness.
So for the Christian life
this is meant
to be not
merely an entrance
into
but an ongoing practice
of what Christians
should be like.
I've sinned
against you.
I'm sorry.
Will you forgive me?
I've sinned.
I repent of that sin.
I know it's wrong.
Will you forgive me?
And we say this
to God
every day
because we never meet
that perfect standard
that John
Piper
laid out for us
earlier
of doing everything
for the glory of God.
and we do it
with one another
because we regularly
sin
against one another.
We are selfish.
We are proud.
We are cruel.
And we are meant
to be people
who know
that in our sin
we have a Savior
who has
done all
that is necessary
for us
to be forgiven.
So we come back
again
and again
to this practice.
And friends
that should make
a Christian community
who are not proud
and self-righteous
and condemning
of others
who don't do well
but instead
a community
of people
who are humble
and thankful
and gracious
and joyful
and kind.
God
because when we know
that we are sinners
saved by grace
when we know
that we regularly
practice
this prayer
forgive us
our sins
Lord
as we confess
and repent
of them
this makes
our hearts
the kind
of hearts
where the soil
of the grace
of God
can flourish
and grow.
So friends
this is why
we need to pray
this prayer
because if we
have not known
yet the initial
forgiveness
of Christ
we need it
desperately
and if we have
known that
initial forgiveness
of Christ
we need it
desperately
we need it
on an ongoing
basis
until glory
so we need
to be praying
this prayer
for all of us.
This then
raises
as we looked
at this then
we need to ask
the third question
because Jesus
didn't simply say
forgive us our debts
and then move on.
He said
forgive us our debts
as we forgive
our debtors.
How do we
understand
the relationship
between our need
for forgiving
others
and our
being forgiven
by God?
When you're
reading this
in the English
language
verse 12
verse 14
and 15
make it even
more explicit
there is a
very clear
relationship
between these
two things.
Basically
he's saying
you cannot
be forgiven
if you don't
forgive others.
That's what
he's saying.
But what's
the relationship
here?
Okay we're
going to get
into a little
grammar word
nerdery here
because we've
got to get
into this
to get it
right because
when we
read this
we typically
think this
is causal.
This is an
if then
statement.
If I
forgive others
then God
will forgive
me.
Right?
Because that's
often how we
read if then
statements.
Right?
But this is
not actually
in Greek.
There are like
four conditions
of Greek
if then
statements.
And you
can talk
to some
of our
Greek scholars
about all
of those.
But this
one in
particular
is not
I believe
a causal.
But instead
it is a
conditional
statement.
Here's a
quote from
a grammar.
Right?
The if
in verse
14 is used
in conditional
sentences to
designate what
is expected
to occur
under certain
circumstances
from a given
standpoint in
the present.
That is you
would read it
if as it is
to be expected
you forgive
one another
then God
will forgive
you.
Here's an
example to
try to
clarify this.
If I went
to my father
and I said
if I am
your son
I will
inherit
your I
will get
your inheritance.
Right?
There is an
assumption
because he
knows that I'm
his son and
I know that
I'm his son.
So it's not
that there's
this question
of whether
I am or
not and it's
not that my
sonship is
causing this
inheritance to
be triggered.
It is a
part of a
whole conditional
these things
go together
and cannot
be separated
out.
Does that
make sense
a little bit?
How it's a
little different
from if a
stranger walked
in to the
reading of my
father's will
and said
well if I'm
a son
then I get
the inheritance
right?
Be like
well no
you gotta
prove that
you're the
son.
There's
a lot
I don't
assume that
this person
walking in
from the
street is
a son
at all.
Right?
So there's
an assumption
that these
things go
together.
I might
say they're
more correlation
than causation.
They must
both be
true.
Because here's
the sting in
forgiveness.
One who
cannot forgive
others
cannot truly
know the
forgiveness of
God.
And one who
forgives can
only do so
because they
know truly
the forgiveness
of God.
Jesus tells us
a parable in
Matthew 18
and if you
want to turn
there we're
going to look
at this for
just a minute
just to flesh
this out a little
more.
Alright?
Matthew 18
starting in
verse 25.
It's the
parable called
the parable
of the
unforgiving
servant and
I'm going to
summarize a
bunch of it
and then read
a couple of
verses because
it's a bit
long.
A king
wanted to
settle the
accounts with
his servant
and he found
one servant
who owed
him 10,000
talents.
Now there's
a lot of
discussion about
how much
10,000
talents is but
the sum is
it's more
money than
anyone would
reasonably have
in a lifetime.
It is way
too much for
it to ever
be reasonably
paid back.
And this
servant fell
on his knees
before the
king and
begged,
please,
please be
patient with
me.
Don't cast
me into
prison because
I owe this
debt.
And verse
27 says,
out of pity
for him,
the master
of that servant
released him
and forgave
him the
debt.
So this
servant then
walks out
and he
finds his
buddy,
another
servant,
who owed
him money.
He still
owed him a
significant amount
of money,
100 denarii,
which is like
100 days wages.
You do the
math on what
that would be
like today.
It's a lot,
right?
So he owed
him a lot
of money and
he said,
you have to
pay me now.
You have to
pay me now or
I'm going to
put you in
jail.
And the
guy said,
please be
patient with
me.
The guy
said,
no way,
you're going
to jail.
And the
king found
out about
it.
Verse 32
is the
summary of
this parable
Jesus is
telling.
Then his
master summoned
him and said
to him,
you wicked
servant,
I forgave
you all
that debt
because you
pleaded with
me.
And should
not you have
had mercy
on your
fellow servant
as I had
mercy on
you.
And in
anger his
mercy delivered
him to
the jailers
until he
should pay
all his
debt.
So also
my heavenly
father will
do to
every one
of you
if you
do not
forgive
your brother
from your
heart.
A couple
of observations
about this
parable.
First,
forgiveness
comes
initially
from
the
God
figure
in
this,
the
king,
right?
The debt
was
unpayable
and owed
and God
forgave.
And so we
need to
recognize that
there is a
sense where
the first
forgiveness
is God
initiating this
towards us.
It is in
response to
God's forgiveness
that we can be
forgiving people.
But it is also
then a test.
If we
understand that
truly as we
relate to
other people,
how do we
view them?
Have we
allowed ourselves
to become
bitter,
hardened,
vengeful,
those who
hold on
to slights,
offenses,
or deep,
deep harm,
clinging to it
and holding it
against people?
Christians can
never say,
I will never
forgive that.
One of the
commentators,
can't remember
which one,
this is off the
top of my head,
said that the
reason why we
can forgive
incalculable sin
against us is
because we have
been forgiven
an incalculable
debt before God.
This is the
power of
forgiveness
in the life
of a Christian.
This parable
gives us a clue.
When we see
our sin
rightly,
when we see
how great
an offense
it is,
when we're
not playing
the game
of comparing
ourselves
and thinking,
well,
their sin
was worse
than my sin
and I don't
have to
forgive it
because it
was worse,
but when we
see our sin
as an
incalculable
debt before
God,
then when
others sin
against us,
we can still
say,
I forgive
you because
we have been
forgiven a
sin,
forgiven our
sin so
greatly.
It is through
the lens of
our own
forgiveness that
we are able
to be a
forgiving people.
Now,
there's a lot
of detail
for us to
work through
in what
interpersonal
forgiveness
looks like in
the human
realm,
right?
And I'm
going to
give a few
thoughts and
then I'm
going to
point to
this.
Tim Keller
wrote a book
on forgiveness.
It's awesome
and it will
be for the
first person
who comes up
and asks me
after the
service.
You can
have it,
take it
home and
read it,
but you
have to
promise to
read it and
then give
it to
someone else.
But what
happens when
we have to
forgive?
There are a
few things I
just want to
say to
clarify what
forgiveness of
sin is.
First is that
we have to
recognize that
sin is what
must be
forgiven.
If I make
a mistake,
if I have,
if I am
late because
95 was
closed down
and the
traffic was
stopped and
I was late
to, I have
not sinned
against those
that I came
late to
because truly
circumstances
outside of
my control,
there are
things that
are not
sin in
the world.
We wrestle
sometimes with
the word
sorry.
Sometimes when
you say I'm
sorry, it
means I
empathize with
the pain that
you're feeling.
Sometimes when
we say I'm
sorry, I'm
sorry because I
recognize this
has caused
inconvenience to
you.
These are
appropriate uses.
There are
other times
when we
say I'm
sorry, will
you forgive
me?
In fact, in
my relationship
with my wife,
we've learned we
have to be a
little more
specific to
say will you
forgive me
when we are
confessing I
have sinned
against you.
I have been
selfish.
I have been
uncaring.
I have been
cruel.
I have been
whatever it is
that we have
been.
So we need
to recognize
that it's not
just misunderstanding
or human
fallibility.
It's not
just…
And here's
the thing.
We can sin
and not mean
it too.
It is possible
for us to sin
against other
people unintentionally
because one of
the things we tend
to do is say,
but I didn't mean
it that way.
And that should
be taken into
account.
That's a part of
the interaction.
Oh, well, if you
didn't mean it
that…
But it still
can be sin if
I'm living an
incredibly selfish
life and that
has all sorts of
consequences for
you like you're
abandoned.
I forgot you at…
You know, I forgot
to pick up my
kid at school
again because I'm…
I was working
out of the gym
and I was just
on a roll, you
know, and I…
Did I mean to?
No.
But did I sin
against them?
Well, if I did it
once, maybe it is
an honest mistake.
But if I do it
as a pattern,
then I have a
sinful heart that's
neglecting a
relationship and I
have a sinful
transgression where
I'm not keeping
my word.
And I need to
think through how
do I do that?
Right?
So forgiveness
needs to clarify
what the sin is.
Right?
Second thing is that
forgiving a sin
begins by pointing
out that it's
wrong.
Right?
What you did to
me was wrong.
Only when we
recognize that are
we able to then
say, but I
release you.
I forgive you of
that wrong.
wrong.
And I let go.
Tim Keller has
a great section
in his book about
what forgiving of
sin is not.
And I'm just
going to read
through a bunch
of this list.
It is not
excusing other
people saying,
well, you know,
it's okay because
I understand there
are lots of
reasons.
That's not
forgiveness.
That's just
recognizing there's
a legitimate
excuse.
And that's okay.
forgiveness is
not denying or
whitewashing.
That is, oh,
yeah, it didn't
really hurt or it
didn't really cut.
It's no problem.
No big deal.
We like to say,
but that's not
forgiveness.
That's just
whitewashing it.
Forgiveness is
not merely
refraining from
revenge while
holding on to
bitter resentment
or suspending
judgment saying,
this time I'll
forgive, but next
time you're done.
You're done.
forgiveness is
truly releasing
from the debt
that is owed.
Forgiveness is
not proud
condescension,
forgiving others
as if we also
don't need
forgiveness.
Forgiveness is
not also
abandoning
justice
by seeking
revenge
or simply
avoiding
confrontation.
We might have
different ways
in which we
seek to
forgive in a
way where
we want to
inflict on
other people
something terrible.
And finally,
forgiveness
doesn't mean
that we
restore
immediate
trust
or prevent
reasonable
consequences.
So this is
tricky.
This is where
we realize
forgiveness is a
heart attitude.
Right?
I might
forgive my
son
of
being late
coming home
from curfew.
This is a
hypothetical.
This has not
happened.
But if he came
home from a
curfew, right,
I might forgive
my son
because he said,
Dad, I just
disobeyed you
and I recognize
that and I'm
sorry.
Will you
forgive me?
Son, I forgive
you that.
You're still
grounded for a
week because you
need to learn.
Right?
Now, if I do
that vengefully,
if I do that
with bitterness
in my heart,
if I do that
with my heart
hardened towards
my son,
then I'm not
really forgiving
him.
But he may
still bear the
consequences.
Right?
Someone you
might forgive,
you know,
there's this
amazing story
and you all
know it,
Rachel Denhollander
and the story
of the sexual
abuse in the
gymnastics community.
If you want
to go see,
she has some
really good
stuff written
on this.
But she
writes about
saying to
the abuser,
I forgive
you,
but you
need God's
forgiveness
and you
need the
consequences.
You need to
bear the
consequences of
your sin.
These are
right and
true and we
need to
recognize that
happens on a
global scale.
It happens
interpersonally.
where forgiveness
doesn't mean
now I'm going
to completely
trust you in
everything at
all times.
That trust may
need to be
rebuilt over
time.
Final thought
just on the
nature of
forgiveness
interpersonally
is that we
need to
recognize that
it is both
a decision
and a
process.
And it's
not.
There are
times when
when we
are needing
to process
through with
the Lord
the hurt
that we
feel,
the offense
that we
feel,
those sorts
of things.
But it is
good and
right to
decide I
am going to
forgive this
person and
to allow our
heart to
catch up with
our decision.
it is good
to decide I
will do
this and
then I will
continue to
act as if
that were
true and I
will continue
to think about
that person as
if I have
forgiven them
while my
heart emotions
which we know
don't always
follow as
quickly to our
will as we
want them to
work through
with the Lord
and with
others the
feelings of
hurt, the
feelings of
desire for
revenge that
we often
have.
And so we
need to
recognize that
it may be a
process but I
think the
Bible is telling
us we can't
withhold it
while I get
to the point
where I'm
feeling good
about this.
Sometimes we
need to say I
don't feel good
about this but
because of
Christ I say
to you I
forgive you and
I ask for your
prayers to help
me really mean
that.
So that's
just a
beginning because
I know because
I've walked with
some of you
through hard
things and the
process of
forgiveness is
long and
difficult and
weighing out
some of these
things about how
do you restore
a relationship
or how do you
deal with the
issues of trust
how do you work
through these
things is tricky
and so I just
want to acknowledge
all of those
things but then
to come back to
the weight of
what Jesus said
he says we
are to ask
God for
forgiveness as
we forgive those
who have sinned
against us and
this means we
recognize that
forgiveness is
always costly.
The bank when
it cancels the
debt it eats
ten thousand
dollars it
doesn't get back
the ten thousand
dollars that it
loaned me if it
forgives my debt
it just says I've
lost ten thousand
dollars that's the
cost.
If someone sins
against us we
bear the pain of
the offense and
we give up the
satisfaction of
seeing punishment
happening of
revenge we give up
those things.
when we forgive
others it is
costly to let
go of an
expectation of
repayment.
The cost for you
to forgive ones
who have sinned
against you may be
great.
I don't know all
of your stories.
Some of you may be
thinking this morning
this is too much.
He's asking me for
more than he knows
and I just want to
acknowledge that.
I know that some of
you have been very
very deeply sinned
against and you
bear scars and
hurts.
And my prayer for
you is that as
you recognize that
that it will drive
you back to the
gospel that we
begin with.
Because what
great cost did
God bear for
your forgiveness?
He sent his very
own son who did
nothing but obey
and love and
bring glory to
him in all that
he did.
Who came
proclaiming his
kingdom,
exhibiting it by
all that he did
in all of his
interactions,
seeking to help
humanity come
to know the
greatness of God
again.
But at the end
of the day he
knew.
He came to die
for us.
He came to free
us from the debt
that we owe to
God by dying in
our place,
paying the penalty
of death for us
so that we
might not die
because of our
sin but so
that we might
live.
The second
person of the
Trinity, the
one who was
there in
creation, the
one who will
sit on the
throne forever
and ever in
the new heavens
and the earth,
he was a
lamb slain
from the
foundations of
the earth
for us,
for our
forgiveness.
Oh, friends,
what great
mercy that
has God
shown us.
What great
cost has
he paid
for us
and for our
forgiveness?
forgiveness.
Kim read
earlier,
Psalm 32,
David, a
man who
knew the
joy of
his sins
being forgiven.
Blessed is
the one whose
transgressions is
forgiven,
whose sin is
covered.
Blessed is the
one against
whom the
Lord counts
no iniquity
and in
whose spirit
there is no
deceit.
Friends, do
you not hear
the call?
Come and see.
Come and
confess your
sin.
Come and
know the
great joy
that we
have.
The forgiven
heart is a
free heart.
It means no
more hiding,
no more shame,
no more guilt,
no more
bitterness.
forgiveness.
There is
freedom in
our relationships
to confess to
one another
because we
don't have to
hide ourselves
because we
know who we
are.
We can have
empathy and
sympathy towards
others who
sin, have
mercy on one
another, and
forgive when
we have been
sinned against.
There is
freedom for us
to obey God
because we are
not running on
the treadmill
trying to
repay God by
doing enough
good things,
but instead
knowing that we
are forgiven,
we joyfully
say, God, my
life is all
yours.
What can I
do to bring
glory to you?
And there is
freedom in our
worship because
we worship a
God who knows
all of our
sin.
There is
nothing that
is hidden from
his sight,
and yet he
loved this
world so much
that he sent
his son so
that whoever
believes in
him would not
perish but
have eternal
life.
They would
not be
condemned for
their sin,
but they
would be
forgiven through
faith in
Jesus.
This is a
God worth
worshiping.
And this is
what we are
going to do.