Father, we're going to open your word now.
We're going to look deeply into your word.
And Father, we're not always honest with you.
We're not always honest, Father,
that we don't really think your word is practical,
that we don't believe your word, we don't trust your word.
Father, we ask that your Holy Spirit would work deeply within us,
that we might honestly come to your word
and that your word might come with power
into the very center of who we are,
that we might be gripped by the gospel
and become disciples of Jesus,
confident and joyful in the gospel.
And this we ask in Jesus' name. Amen.
Please be seated.
So we're going through a different sermon series this summer.
I need to start my clock. There we go.
We're doing a series of one-verse sermons,
deeper, meditating on God's word.
And sometimes it's actually two verses.
It's basically one sentence.
Today, as part of that series,
we're actually going to, we're sort of looking at one long sentence,
but practically speaking,
we're going to camp in a few words
at the very, very end of this verse.
And Andrew, if you could just put it up,
we're going to read it all together in a second.
And just so you sort of have a bit of a sense
of where this is in the book,
in the book of Colossians,
in the first two chapters,
Paul basically tells people in a very powerful way
who Jesus is and what he accomplished
in his life and in his death upon the cross.
And then chapter three and chapter four
address the question,
well, if this is true,
like if this is true,
if this is who Jesus is
and this is what he accomplished,
then how should we live?
Like what does that mean
in terms of how we live our daily lives?
And in chapter three,
which is where this new part of the book starts,
Paul uses three sort of very simple images
to try to launch into how we should live.
He uses the image of first of all,
setting our mind on something.
It's a very, very practical thing.
If you think about it,
every one of us,
when we wake up in the morning,
we have our mind set on something.
I mean, at a very short term level,
my mind is set on going to the bathroom
and then having a cup of coffee.
I mean, that's how my mind is set
as soon as I wake up.
But throughout the day,
we have our mind set on different things.
I got to do this.
I got to do that.
I want to make sure I don't do that.
And our minds can be set on other things.
Gosh, I'm still bothered that so-and-so said that to me.
Or boy, I'm going to say something to them
or whatever it is.
But we have our mind set on something.
And so Paul just says,
the first thing you should do
in terms of who Jesus is
and what he's done for your life
is you should set your mind on Jesus
and think about where the gospel leaves you
at the end of the days,
which is in the new heaven and the new earth
with him forever.
So set your mind on that.
It doesn't mean you don't think about having a coffee,
but just set your mind on Jesus.
And then the second and third image are linked
because if we think about it,
all throughout the week,
we take clothes off and put clothes on.
All week, we put clothes on,
take clothes off, put them on,
mix and match,
take some off, put others on.
And so Paul uses this simple image
of taking certain clothing off
and then putting certain clothing on.
And just before this,
he's listed the sort of types of vices,
bad things that we do.
And he said, you should take these off.
Just sort of imagine when you wake up
or throughout the day,
I'm going to take this off.
I'm going to take my anger off.
I'm going to put it over here.
I'm going to take my, you know,
bitterson off.
I'm going to put it over there.
And then just so you don't walk around naked,
he gives this image of putting some clothing on.
And that's where we are in this verse.
So if you would read the scripture text out loud with me,
that would be very helpful.
And it goes like this then together.
Put on then as God's chosen ones,
holy and beloved, compassionate hearts,
kindness, humility, meekness, and patience,
bearing with one another.
And if one has a complaint against another,
forgiving each other as the Lord has forgiven you,
so you also must forgive.
Great passage of scripture.
Now, here's the thing,
which is at the level of the Greek,
you're just going to have to trust me,
the original language,
there's a very interesting thing about this verse.
There's five things that we're asked to put on, right?
We're asked to put on compassionate hearts,
kindness, humility, meekness, and patience.
But the way that the verse works
is that those can only happen,
those five things can really only happen
if we bear with one another and forgive one another.
That's at the level of the original language.
That's how the sentence flows.
In other words, it says,
you're dreaming,
you're smoking a controlled substance,
which will soon no longer be a controlled substance in Canada.
You're smoking such substances
if you think you can be patient,
patient with people without forgiving.
If you think you're going to be compassionate without forgiving,
you're smoking something.
If you think you're going to be humble or meek without forgiving,
you're sort of smoking something.
And that's how it works at the original language.
And so what we're going to do, if you could put up the short form, Andrew,
this entire sermon is us going to camp on these few words.
Can you say them out loud with me?
That would be very helpful.
As the Lord has forgiven you,
so you also must forgive.
Let's say it together again.
As the Lord has forgiven you,
so you must forgive.
I want to keep saying must also, but there you go.
So very, very simple.
Now let's just be right honest about it right off the bat.
None of us here believe that.
None of us do.
We all profoundly think it's impractical.
We think it's all right.
Sorry, some of you have, I've just offended some of you.
I'm a bit too, you know, maybe,
but maybe some of us more or less believe it most of the time.
See, here's the thing.
If you're a guest here this morning,
there's something you have to know about Christians,
is that we Christians know that with our lips
and on the outside of our body,
we're supposed to say certain things, so we do.
We're very good at it, like trained seals.
But inwardly, we don't really believe a lot of this stuff.
And often we don't want to be very honest about the fact
that we're a bit divided around these things.
This past week, just on Thursday,
I had the great honor of being able to speak on Parliament Hill
to some of the staffers there
through the Parliament Hill Christian Fellowship.
There were about 20 people there, and it's a great honor.
I take it as a great privilege when I get invited to speak there.
I gave them an early draft of this sermon,
which is what I do when I get invited to speak there.
I give them an early draft of what I'm working on.
And I said to them that, you know, if we're honest,
we don't think this is practical.
And we don't think it's really something we should do
in a whole pile of situations.
I said, could you imagine that if you go back
and one of the things that you're dealing with with your boss
is that the other party is slandering you?
And not only are they slandering you,
but they've been very, very effective
in getting the press to swallow the slander
and the lies and the innuendo and the spin.
And the press is going like crazy after your boss.
And it's just really terrible
and upsetting all of the things that they're saying.
And how many of you do you think
would say to your boss
that what you need to do is forgive them?
I didn't get anybody to put their hand up and say,
that's what I tell my boss to do all the time.
You've just got to forgive them.
Just forgive the other party.
Just forgive the Globe and Mail and the writers.
Like, hold on a moment.
Like, you see, George,
it's all right to forgive, like, for small things.
But, like, for big things?
Like, really?
And I gave them this example.
There's no particular example,
but we all know, and they all knew, by the way,
nobody on Parliament Hill said things like this
don't happen on Parliament Hill.
I said, what if one of you,
you know, maybe you're working for a cabinet minister
or you're just working for an important MP,
and the MP's been doing something naughty.
That's bad.
And it comes out.
And so the MP,
there's a little bit of ambiguity around this,
or the prime minister or the cabinet minister,
they say, listen, it would be terrible for the party.
It would be terrible for the cause.
It would be terrible for the movement
that we represent in Canada
if I go down for this.
So I'd like you to take responsibility for it
to the staff worker.
In a sense, I'd like you to fall on your sword for me.
I'd like you to fall on my sword for me.
And I'd like you to take the blame,
and I'd like you to say to the press that I,
the, you know, the whatever,
the cabinet minister didn't know anything about it.
They're completely innocent.
It's all on me.
I did it all.
It's my fault.
And the cabinet minister or the MP says to you,
don't worry about it.
I mean, it's going to be really hard for you,
but I'm with you.
I got your back,
and me and the party will make it up to you later.
Yes, right?
And then you do that.
You fall on your sword.
The press dumps on you.
Maybe there's some even legal consequences to you or fines.
And then three months, six months, nine months,
it's all over.
You're waiting for the party or the backers
to make it up for you, and they forget all about you.
In fact, you're a hot potato.
They don't want to have anything to do with you.
And your career is ruined,
especially nowadays with social media.
That can follow you for the rest of your life.
It might mean for the rest of your life,
you don't get as good a job as you would have had
if you hadn't fallen on your sword.
And the cabinet minister and the other people,
they just go on.
They're having a great life.
Parties in the papers, all that.
Things go on well, but your life is ruined.
And then, what does it say here?
As the Lord has forgiven you,
so you also must forgive.
Like, if we come across a woman
who's been abused by her dad for years,
do we tell her,
as the Lord has forgiven you,
so you also must forgive?
Well, why don't we?
Well, it's because we don't really believe this is true.
Right?
But as Christians, we don't want to say that out loud.
So I'm saying it.
So here's part of the thing.
Part of the reason that we have a hard time with this text,
in practice,
as the Lord has forgiven you,
so you also must forgive.
Isn't it just,
I hope you memorize this text.
Well, here's part of the problem
is because whether we're aware of it or not,
we know our own heart.
And so what goes on in our own heart?
Well, what goes on in our own heart
is we know what we're like at a certain level.
We know what we're like
when it comes time for us to ask for forgiveness.
Because that's what an apology is.
So you do something wrong,
maybe do a set of things wrong,
and your wife calls you on it.
And you say,
I'm really sorry for doing that.
And then what's the very next word?
But.
And it's a big but.
And then we say,
well, I'm really sorry for doing that.
But.
I am really sorry for doing that.
Seven words.
And then we say
a couple of hundred words
or a thousand words after the but.
But I was tired.
Well, but I, you know,
I, I, I,
but, you know, you're overreacting.
But, and you can fill in the blank, right?
And what we've done
is we've actually not asked for forgiveness.
We've asked for the person
to accept our deception and our excuses.
Can you say that text with me again, please?
As the Lord has forgiven you,
so you also must forgive.
So one of the reasons we don't agree with this text
is because we're fundamentally confused about forgiveness.
So, Andrew, if you could put this up.
And by the way,
I have set an all-time record today
for a sermon with sermon points.
I, if you added it up,
I think I have a 27 or 28 point sermon.
10 minutes a point.
We're going to be here till late in the afternoon.
No, just joking.
If you can't put this all,
if I, hopefully this is helpful to you.
And if you can't,
if you're curious later on,
it will be on the webpage
if you want to look it up.
But here's what forgiveness is not.
Forgiveness is not believing their excuses.
That's not what forgiveness is.
Forgiveness is not being gullible.
Forgiveness is not forgetting what they did.
Forgiveness is not pretending you were not hurt.
Forgiveness is not pretending it was not wrong.
Forgiveness is not letting the other person
who wronged you off the hook.
Forgiveness is not making excuses for them
because their excuses sucked.
And you can think of some better excuses for them.
And so you make those excuses for them.
How many of us have lived with violent or abusive
or alcoholic people
and that's what we've done?
Made excuses for them.
And we think we're forgiving them.
Forgiveness is not turning a blind eye to their actions.
Forgiveness is not approving of what they did.
Forgiveness is not saying that what they did
was not really wrong.
Forgiveness is not being deceived by the wrongdoer.
Forgiveness is not succumbing to pressure
from others to cave.
Isn't that what happens so much?
Like just think of the young woman
who's been abused by her dad.
Maybe verbally, maybe physically for a long time.
And what is it that the mom says?
What is it that their siblings say?
Come on, just like go along with it.
It wasn't really that bad.
Like just come on.
Like we like to be able to have a nice time
around the supper table
and here you are grumpy with a long face.
Like come on.
Come on.
Forgive them.
Right?
That's what they say.
That's what we say.
Forgive them.
In other words,
succumb to the pressure that we're putting on you
and cave on this.
Forgiveness is not encouraging injustice.
Forgiveness is not repressing what happened.
Forgiveness is not living in denial.
Forgiveness is not surrendering to the perpetrator.
Forgiveness is not being an enabler
to the wrongdoers and the perpetrators.
None of those things are forgiveness.
None of them.
George, why are you saying that?
What's our text today?
This is why this text is such an important text to memorize.
The text says,
As the Lord has forgiven you,
so you also must forgive.
Jesus doesn't do any of those 17 things I just mentioned.
He doesn't say,
he doesn't make the excuses for you.
He doesn't turn a blind eye.
He doesn't enable you.
He doesn't succumb to wrongdoers.
You see, the fact of the matter is,
is it's the very part,
if you're a guest here this morning,
one of the things I've been saying a lot lately
is I don't believe in the God that Canadians believe in.
From a Canadian point of view,
I am an atheist.
I don't believe in the God that Canadians believe in.
I believe in the God revealed by Jesus.
And the God revealed by Jesus
is very different than the God
that most Canadians believe in.
And it's the very heart of the biblical DNA.
It's the very heart of Jesus' DNA of the gospel.
The very heart that never does God call evil good.
Never.
Never does God surrender to evil.
Never.
God is always just.
He's always true.
He's always merciful.
And he does forgive.
And so none of these things that I just listed
could possibly be what God means
when it says,
as the Lord has forgiven you,
so you also must forgive.
Because Jesus doesn't do any of those things.
You see, it's also,
if you could put up the next point, Andrew,
it's also that forgiving another person does not mean
that things have to go back to normal
or that the wrongdoer will not face consequences.
Some of you know, maybe not all of you,
but my father's a convicted pedophile, spent time in jail.
He was a pedophile against young girls.
And I had a role in having him go to jail.
And part of the role that I had in helping,
I'll jump,
in having him go to jail
was that after we unearthed
what he'd been doing for many, many decades,
four women,
a couple of them in their 40s
and others in their 20s,
decided that they would bring charges against my father,
not so much because they wanted to punish him,
but they wanted to make sure
that he was on record as a pedophile
so that if he ever went to a youth group
or something
and they had him do a police check,
it would come out that he was on the list.
And I,
this is all family.
These are cousins
and I won't go into all the other details
to protect some of the victims,
but I was sort of with one other person
was the one who unearthed it.
I was the one who confronted my father.
It was a very, very difficult day.
It was a July 2nd,
quite a few years ago
when I went to my dad and said,
I know your secret
and told him what he had been doing.
And,
and so these four looked to me
for support and encouragement
when they decided
that they were going to bring charges
against my father
and I supported them,
encouraged them as the victims
and I started to face tremendous pressure
from my extended family
to use my influence as a pastor
to tell them
that they had to forgive my father
and forgive my father
meant that he did not
have to have charges pressed against him.
The pastor of my parents' church
sent me letters
telling me that if I was a real Christian,
I would use my influence
to tell these four people
who were all Christians
that as Christians
they had to forgive
and forgiving would mean
that they didn't bring charges
and so my dad wouldn't have to go to jail.
And it's caused,
even today,
a profound division in my family.
I stood with the victims
and the victims went forward
and my dad went to jail.
And that's had a rever...
It's continued to have
an effect right to today.
But you see,
what they thought
was that forgiving
meant that there's no consequences,
that things go back to normal,
but that's not true.
Forgiving is different
than having certain consequences
still befall a person.
It's quite different.
And, you know,
another example is
if somebody stole $50,000
from us as a church,
it would be this text,
as the Lord has forgiven you
so you also must forgive
would mean that we would have to forgive
the person who stole $50,000 from us.
We're a small church,
that's a lot of money.
But you know what?
After we've forgiven them
and maybe even after
and after they've been reconciled,
potentially assuming
that they've been
penitent
and want to amend their life,
they could come back
into our church
because we've forgiven them,
but they could never be
treasurer again,
could they?
Just as my dad
should never look after
young girls
for the rest of his life,
even if he's healed,
and it would be wrong
to put him
into a place
he can be forgiven,
but the family
should have accepted
that it was a good
and wise thing
that he'd be on the list
of pedophiles.
For the good of my father,
the true good of my father,
and for the true good
of potential future victims.
So you see,
forgiveness,
forgiving another person
does not mean
that things have to go
back to normal
or that the wrongdoer
will not face consequences.
If you could put up
the next point, Andrew,
true forgiveness
always involves
forgiving the inexcusable
wrong done to you.
True forgiveness
always involves
forgiving the person
for the inexcusable
wrong done to you.
And we all go,
whoa,
one moment.
Do you see how confused we are?
Didn't we all just agree
that forgiveness
wasn't accepting excuses?
Didn't we all agree
that all,
I mean,
didn't we all sort of
see the instant wisdom?
See,
this is the problem
why we're so confused.
You see,
the problem we're so confused
is the reason people
don't pursue forgiveness
is they think forgiveness
is being gullible,
it's being weak,
it's being a doormat,
it's wearing a t-shirt
that says,
please kick me.
It's,
you know,
it's being deceived,
it's succumbing
to perpetrators,
it's succumbing
to peer pressure.
We think all these
wrong things
about forgiveness
and that's why
we don't pursue it.
That's why we don't
think it's practical.
Even though the Bible,
for Christians,
the Bible tells us
that it's practical
because I'm going to
explain in a moment
why it's unbelievably
practical
to the entire human race.
And at the same time
then when we say
so forgiving,
you know,
because there are
obviously sometimes
mitigating factors
for things,
you know,
and all,
but when we think,
whoa, whoa,
forgiveness actually
involves forgiving
the inexcusable
wrong done to you,
we,
because we want
to sneak in excuses.
We want to return
to being confused
about what forgiveness is.
You see,
this text
is confronting us
at the level
of the heart,
who we are
before the living God,
who we really are
before the living God.
But this is what
forgiveness is.
After you've taken away
all of the mitigating
circumstances,
in fact,
actually this is a really
important thing
for those of us
who are Christians,
a lot of times
when we think
we've confessed
our sins to God,
what we have done
is actually just
made excuses to God.
And then afterwards
we get up our knees
and we go like this
and we say,
ah, there you go,
I've done a good job
with telling God
my excuses.
We haven't actually
just asked for forgiveness.
Because we have
a hard time believing
that God will actually
forgive us
at a very deep level.
You see,
unforgiveness,
this is just a talk
here to the Christians,
when we don't forgive,
it's a bit of a sign
as to how real
the gospel is
to our heart.
You know,
fortunately,
the gospel doesn't
have to be perfectly
real to our heart
to be saved
because God
does all the work.
Thanks be to God.
I put my hand up
to reach for him
for mercy.
He crosses
the infinite distance.
He does,
deals with all my sin.
He gives me
the righteousness of Jesus.
He does everything.
He holds on to me.
I don't hold on to him.
Thanks be to God.
That's the truth
about how the gospel works.
But growing as a Christian
is learning
to start to have
and allowing
the Holy Spirit
to start to bring
the gospel home
to deeper levels
of who you are
so the gospel
becomes real to you.
And part of that process
is realizing
that as the Lord...
Can you say...
Could you put the text
up again, Andrew?
Sorry.
Can you say that
all with me again?
As the Lord
has forgiven you,
so you also
must forgive.
My hope is
you remember this
more than whatever
I have to say.
So...
Like...
Okay, George.
How on earth
can you actually
forgive the inexcusable
wrong
which is done
to you?
Well, before we talk
about that,
very briefly
I have to talk
just a little bit
about what happens
to most of us
when we're wronged.
And we go in a couple
of different directions,
maybe three
sort of different ways
that we go
when somebody wrongs us.
And rather than
forgiving them,
what we do
is we forget about it
or we make excuses
and other words like that.
But we actually...
We're not really
dealing with the wrong.
The wrong is in there
still eating away at us.
And one of the main
ways that we respond
to being wronged
when we don't forgive
is by bitterness
and resentment.
Bitterness and resentment.
We think every day
or maybe every week
about the things
that that person
did to us.
The opportunities
that were now lost to us.
The innocence
that we will never get back.
The shame that we carry.
The honor that we lost.
The financial...
The dollars
that it has cost us
to deal with this.
And we think about it
and we think about it
and we get bitter
and we get resentful
about it.
And if you could put up
the next point, Andrew.
And here's the simple thing.
Harboring bitterness
and resentment
is like eating laxatives
and hoping that the other person
gets the runs.
Never works.
Use that example
I gave on Parliament Hill.
You fall on your sword.
Your career is ruined.
Your finances
are never going to be as good.
Your reputation
has never been as good.
And meanwhile,
the guy you did it for,
the gal you did it for,
they're having champagne
with the high and the mighty.
They've forgotten about you
a long time ago.
And every day,
you eat that bitterness,
you eat that resentment,
and you're having laxatives,
and you're getting the runs.
They're not.
Because it never works that way.
Harboring bitterness
and resentment
over what's done to you.
Being grumpy about it.
It just bends
our life out of shape.
Another way we deal with it
is we just...
We want to...
We want to be angry at them.
Here's a fellow that I know,
and he became a Christian
late in life,
and he told me
after he'd become a Christian
that he realized
that the way he...
That he had a motto
when he was in business.
And it sort of made him
a bit of shame now,
but his motto
when he'd been in business,
he'd seen it on a cup
or a poster.
He actually...
He went to church all the time,
so he had this biblical thing,
but it was,
you know that,
Yea, though I walk
through the valley
of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil.
And then it said,
For I am the meanest
SOB in the valley.
And that's how
we made it through life.
You do me,
I'm going to do it
ten times to you.
You slander me,
you won't believe
what I can do back to you.
You take me on,
you are finished.
Who wants to be that person?
And who wants to be a person
who's eating bitterness
and resentment,
which is another way...
And by the way,
depression,
a lot of times,
depression,
as you all know,
is violence outward
turned in on the self.
And we're not able...
We want to be the meanest
SOB in the valley.
But the fact of the matter is,
there's a lot of meaner guys
and gals out there.
And so we get depressed,
turning the anger inside.
And then the third thing
we can do is,
we just often end up
becoming completely
and utterly cynical
about the whole thing.
Just defeated and cynical.
We don't harbor bitterness,
we don't harbor anger,
resentment,
but we are just cynical
and we just,
we've just in a sense
given up life
and we go through life
giving up.
So,
could you put the
scripture text up again?
Sorry, Andrew,
you've been great today,
by the way.
As the Lord...
Can we say this together again?
As the Lord has forgiven you,
so you also must forgive.
So what is it?
Here's...
If you could put up
the next point...
Here's the reminder then.
True forgiveness...
If you could put it up, Andrew.
True forgiveness
always involves
forgiving
the inexcusable wrong
done to you.
That's what it is.
It's always
forgiving
the inexcusable wrong
that was done to you.
Forgiving the person
for the inexcusable wrong
that they was done to you.
So how on earth
can this ever possibly happen?
Well, it does.
It has happened
and it happens today.
If you could put up
the next point, Andrew.
And I struggle
with this wording
and I know it's not perfect
and I, you know,
if I do this sermon
20 times,
maybe I'll eventually
get the grammar right
or one of you will help me.
But here it is.
Earthly forgiveness.
That is the forgiveness
that we actually see in life
is a mystery.
It's a mystery.
We're going to talk
about it more.
whereby you bear
much
or most of the cost
of the wrong
that was done to you.
But you bear it
in a way
that results
in you being free.
And it's a mystery
how it is
it can happen.
How it is
that some people
the wrong
eats away at them
and makes them
cynical and defeated
in life
and lethargic.
For some,
the anger
and the wrong
that's done to them
just makes them bitter
and resentful
and grumpy.
For some,
the wrong
that is done to them
makes them violent
and aggressive,
makes them racist,
just makes them
foul-mouthed
and anger-driven.
And why it is, though,
that there is this thing
called forgiveness
whereby there is a way
of, in a sense,
bearing or embracing
the true,
inexcusable wrong
and the cost
that that has done
to you
and there is a way
of bearing that
that results
in freedom.
The great example
of this
over the last
20 or 30 years
is, of course,
Nelson Mandela.
Nelson Mandela
who endured
the terrible
horrible horrible
and all those
decades lost
in jail.
And I,
he didn't forgive
right away
but by the time
he emerged
he had forgiven
and he was
the freest man
in South Africa.
He was freer
than the people
who hated him,
freer than the people
who feared him,
freer than his own
race,
his own people
who hadn't forgiven.
He was free.
Somehow or another
and he's not a Christian.
I'm using him
as an example
of how the fact is
that somehow or another
he didn't forget
the wrong that was done.
He didn't pretend
that there was
no wrong done.
He didn't excuse
the wrong that was done.
Somehow or another
he took the wrong
that was done to him
and he bore it
in such a way
that,
and it doesn't
something that happens
in a moment
but in the far side
of this act
of forgiving
which is a way
of approaching
the wrong
in a way
that when you
it's,
you've processed
it all through
or it's processed
all through you
that you're actually
free.
You see,
if you could put up
the next point,
Andrew,
here's how we know
that we've forgiven.
When you finally
forgive,
you are left
with a clear
eyed freedom
from bitterness
and resentment
fight or flight
and tower
or cower.
And how we know this,
you see,
that's one of the reasons
why we have to forgive
even the dead
or the people
who have done wrong
to us 20 or 30 years ago
and they've long
forgotten about us.
It might be a teacher
or the coach
who just was
unbelievably cruel
to you
and long ago
they forgot
you existed
and you're carrying
things around
but all of a sudden,
maybe you see
the person
or you're in
their presence
or you see
a picture
of the person
or you smell
a smell
that reminds you
of the person.
Isn't it funny
how sometimes
a certain smell
can trigger
all sorts of memories?
And as soon as
you have those memories
come back,
all of those times
you're feeling
like your fist
starts to clench,
you tighten up
or you start to cry
or you feel depressed
or you feel the bitterness.
It means,
brother and sister
in Christ
that you haven't
forgiven the person
because on the far side
of forgiveness
is a freedom
whereby you can
remember the person
and you can remember
all of those things.
You haven't forgotten
them,
you remember them
but you can remember
in freedom,
clear-eyed freedom
without bitterness,
without resentment,
without fight or flight,
without towering
over them
or cowering
under them
because of their violence.
So the fact of the matter
is,
is that forgiveness
actually happens
both in Christians
and in non-Christians.
If you want to read
a great book
on forgiveness,
look at the book
not Amazing Grace
but Amish Grace
written by some sociologists
analyzing what went on
when the Amish people
forgave the man
who murdered
the young girls.
I think it was in 2006
or 2008,
not that long ago
that it happened.
It happens.
So how is it
this is even possible?
What here you see
is where the Bible
is so helpful
because I think
only Christians
can account
for how it is
that forgiveness
is possible.
Could you put up
the scripture quote again?
Andrew,
you've been great.
Say it together with me.
As the Lord
has forgiven you
so you also
must forgive.
See,
here's the thing.
If you put up
the point now,
the cross
was God
bearing the cost
to forgive you
of your inexcusable wrongs.
The cross
was God
bearing the cost
to forgive you
of your inexcusable wrongs.
You see,
when the Bible says
that the Lord
forgives you,
how did he forgive you?
Actually,
if you go back
later on,
I'm not going to
look at it now,
go back later on
and look at
Colossians 2,
verses 13 and 14.
And in Colossians 2,
verses 13 and 14,
Paul talks about
how it is
that Christ forgives us.
And the image
he gives is this.
He gives a very
simple image
to his hearers
who'd seen
many crucifixions.
And here,
it's very helpful.
We have this
reproduction
of a stained glass window
and it's,
you know,
very,
very traditional
and all that.
but you see,
over the cross,
it was customary
in the time
of the Romans
that when somebody
was crucified,
they would often
put on the actual cross
the charge
against the person
that was leading
to their death.
And what Paul suggests
in Colossians 2,
verses 13 and 14
is that you,
that George
and you
and Andrew
and Diane
and each person here,
we're to imagine
that what really
happened on the cross
is that as Jesus
is dying on the cross,
what's put on the cross
is all the inexcusable wrongs
that George Sinclair
has done
from his moral awakening
to his death,
which is still for me
in the future.
Every inexcusable wrong
for which a cost
must be paid,
every single,
nothing left out,
inexcusable wrong
was listed
on the cross
and as Jesus
is dying,
he is bearing
the cost
of forgiving
my inexcusable wrongs.
Clear-eyed,
undeceived,
perfect clarity,
perfect knowledge.
He bears them
in himself.
And because
we Christians
believe that Jesus
is God,
the Son of God,
and that human beings
are made
in the image of God,
it means that
in a way
that only he could do,
it means that
he can bear
the cost
of forgiving
the inexcusable wrongs
of every single one
who is here in this room
and of every single person
on the planet
because we human beings
are made in his image.
And you see,
this is what is so profound
about the gospel
is that that means
that when Jesus
dies on the cross,
on one hand,
it is something
that happens
real.
It really happens.
It really happened
on a dusty hill
just outside the gates
of Jerusalem.
Like,
it really happened.
But while it really
happens on earth,
it is something cosmic
happening at the same time.
While it really happens
in time,
it is something
happening eternal
at the same time
that has bearing
on every,
every time.
While it's really
happening in a particular
place,
because of who he is,
it happens
and it's available
for every place,
every time,
every person.
That the Lord
bears the cost
of the inexcusable wrongs
that we have done
and pays that cost
so that you and I
can be forgiven.
So this mystery
of forgiveness,
Christians believe
in common grace.
Nelson Mandela,
I don't believe
he was a Christian,
but when he is able
to forgive,
he is in a sense
participating in this
mystery of what
Christ has done.
Not in a way that
will save Nelson Mandela,
that we have to put
our faith and trust
in Jesus,
but this mystery
is a true mystery.
It really happened.
It really broke
into our time.
And even people
who can't acknowledge
the source
can experience
the fruit.
But for those of us
who are followers
of Jesus,
Andrew,
could you put up
the scripture text
again?
As the Lord
has forgiven you,
so you also
must forgive.
We can understand
Jesus forgiving
the inexcusable
in us.
Just want to
dry it up
in a bit of a close.
If you could put up
the next point,
Andrew,
just to try to bring
it to a close,
one of the things
that you can pray
is that God
teach me,
lead me,
and help me
to forgive.
God teach me,
lead me,
and, oh sorry,
I got that out of order,
didn't I?
No?
You did it.
Okay, we'll do this one,
and now I have it
in the right order.
So here's a few things,
very quick things
about forgiveness.
Forgiveness,
generally speaking,
is not a moment,
it's a quest.
By that I mean
is it's not that
you have some
emotional breakthrough
and in a moment
just like that
you're able to forgive.
I believe in the
sovereignty of God,
I believe in miracles,
and so I believe
sometimes some people
in an instant
are able to forgive.
I believe that happens,
but generally
the main way
that the Holy Spirit
works in a Christian's life
is through a longer process.
I had a man
who assaulted me
in my office
quite a few years ago,
and I had to fire him
the next day.
Because he had
a very important
leadership role
in the church,
and it took me
at least 12 years
before I was able
to forgive him.
I had to pray
almost every day
that I would forgive him.
And then one day
he came to church,
and I realized
that I'd forgiven him.
That somewhere along
that line
I had forgiven him.
And a quest means
that it's not just
something you've done
in a moment.
And the second thing
about forgiveness
is that you have
to ask the Lord
to show you.
It's a good thing
to ask the Lord
to show you
who you need
to forgive.
If you are dealing
with regular grumpiness,
I have a shock for you.
Being grumpy
is not a fruit
of the Holy Spirit.
And if you have
a regular grumpiness,
it probably means
that you have someone
that you haven't forgiven
that you've got to forgive.
And I'd actually
also say this
to two other types
of people,
and I include myself
at this.
If you have a problem
with being very timid
and unable to confront,
it probably means
you have some unforgiveness
in your life
that you haven't dealt with.
If you are very overbearing
and violent with people,
it probably means
that there's some things
that you haven't forgiven.
And so it's a really good thing
under God
to just say,
Father,
I don't think
I have this unforgiven,
but no, Father,
I am grumpy so much.
And now George told me
it's not a fruit
of the Holy Spirit.
Dang.
So, Father,
please show me
who I have to forgive
or what I have to forgive.
And then, thirdly,
ask the Lord
to help you forgive.
He loves hearing
that prayer from us.
Ask the Lord
and say,
Lord,
I can't forgive this person.
I want to forgive them.
Help me to forgive.
And say that prayer every day
because here's the thing,
the final thing.
Seek to forgive
until you are free.
Seek to forgive
until you are free.
So just now,
that was the other thing.
A couple of things.
You know,
one simple thing,
especially if you're not a Christian
and you're not quite sure
if you want to bring Jesus into it,
everybody can pray this prayer.
Obviously,
Christians have it
in a far more powerful way.
God, teach me, lead me,
and help me to forgive
and fill in the blank.
But the thing I want to end us with,
if you could put up
the final prayer,
number 11,
if you could put that up.
Yeah, it's a bit of a thing.
This is how we're going to end.
You can sort of read that.
I'm going to invite you
to say this prayer out loud
for me,
with me.
I'm going to pray it too.
And it's just,
it's a prayer
that helps to encapsulate
our need for forgiveness
and just what Jesus
has done for us.
And I would suggest
that for some of us,
we could take a prayer like this,
maybe fill in particular
a certain spot,
like a little blank
about help me to forgive
a particular person.
But this expresses
the whole text.
And so I invite you to stand
as we bring this sermon
to a clode.
And if the Lord
has put it on your heart
to forgive,
then maybe you want to pray
this prayer with me.
And by the way,
if you have never given
your life to Jesus,
this can be your conversion prayer.
This can be the moment
that you ask Jesus
to engrave the gospel,
what,
who Jesus is
and what he did,
and engrave it,
write it right in your heart.
And it can be
your conversion prayer.
And for us,
it can be a prayer.
And for those of us
who are Christians,
it's a prayer of growth.
So please pray.
If the Lord puts it on you,
you don't have to pray it out loud.
If it's not,
it's not floating your canoe,
that's,
but if it's,
if the Lord has touched you today,
I invite you to pray this
along with me out loud.
Dear Lord,
I thank you that on the cross,
you paid all of the cost
and forgave the inexcusable wrong
that I am responsible for.
Please pour the Holy Spirit
deep within me
and engrave the gospel on my heart
so that I will remain yours forever
and forgive the inexcusable wrongs
done to me,
living free for your glory.
In Jesus' name,
Amen.
A prayer that we can pray
the rest of our lives.
Father,
pour out the Holy Spirit upon us.
Pour out the Holy Spirit upon us.
Draw us to Jesus.
Help us to remember who He is
and what He did for us on the cross.
And help us to remember it
more and more
and have that become
more and more real to who we are.
And we ask this in Jesus' name.
Amen.