In Sermon Illustrations: "Ask Forgiveness"

Childlike Forgiveness

Contributed by Ramon Canals on Jun 5, 2009

CHILDLIKE FORGIVENESS A few months ago, I was in El Paso holding an evangelistic meeting, and the young people were serving dinner to the mothers being that it was Mother’s Day. I was seating in a chair watching what was going on, and right in front a four-year-old girl pushed a two-year-old boy, ...read more

Tags: Forgiveness General

Denomination: Adventist

Forgiving Jerks

Contributed by W Pat Cunningham on Sep 7, 2008

Forgiving Jerks There's great power in our hands. It's the power to forgive a jerk-bully, a jerk-cheater, a jerk-thief. It’s powerful because it's unexpected. Jerks expect us to cry, run, or take revenge. The last thing they expect is forgiveness. That's why it's so disarming. Forgive them ...read more

Tags: Forgiveness For Others

Denomination: Catholic

Forgiveness Is Freedom

Contributed by Bobby Scobey on Dec 31, 2008

Forgiveness is Freedom Forgiveness is surrendering my right to hurt you for hurting me. Forgiveness does not pretend there was no offense; it does not dismiss wrongdoing. It does not say, "Oh, that's all right; forget it." True forgiveness is realistic. Lewis Smedes gave a great definition: ...read more

Tags: Forgiveness General

Denomination: Pentecostal

Forgiveness Quotations

Contributed by Sermon Central on Jan 13, 2009

FORGIVENESS QUOTATIONS The late great English religious writer and philanthropist, Hannah More (1745 - 1833) once said: "Forgiveness is the economy of the heart...forgiveness saves the expense of anger, the cost of hatred, the waste of spirits." The late great American Protestant theologian, ...read more

Tags: Forgiveness General

Overwhelming Forgiveness

Contributed by Davon Huss on Dec 12, 2011

OVERWHELMING FORGIVENESS A wonderful example of how to practice the lifestyle of grace comes from an incident in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, on October 2, 2006, when a man entered an Amish schoolhouse and murdered 5 girls while wounding 5 others before killing himself. As horrific as this ...read more

Tags: Forgiveness For Others

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

The "Stream Of Forgiveness"  PRO

Contributed by Ken Pell on Apr 14, 2013

THE "STREAM OF FORGIVENESS" Mirosalv Volf wrote a fantastic book on forgiveness titled "Free of Charge: Giving and Forgiving in a Culture Stripped of Grace." In the book he uses the beautiful imagery of a stream to show how God's character (love) is poured into us by His Spirit and becomes our ...read more

Scripture: Colossians 3:13

Tags: Forgiveness For Others

Denomination: Nazarene

The Power Of Forgiveness  PRO

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Jan 20, 2014

THE POWER OF FORGIVENESS An African woman gave her heart to Christ. Her husband was the chief of a Zulu tribe. When she told him what she had done, the chief beat her brutally. As she was lying in the floor bleeding, the man mocked her and said, “Now, what can your Jesus do for ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 4:31-32, Luke 23:34

Tags: Forgiveness, Enemy, New Birth, Forgiving Others

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

The Importance Of Forgiveness

Contributed by Sermon Central on Mar 13, 2014

Life assurance is far more valuable and important than life insurance. One famous atheist said, "The one thing I envy about you Christians is that you have someone to forgive you." A man by the name of Val Patterson died on July 12th of this year due to cancer. He knew the end was coming, so he ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 32:1-5

Tags: Confession Of Sin, God's Forgiveness, Guilty Conscience

Forgiveness For Everyone?

Contributed by Tim Smith on Feb 11, 2015

Lloyd Prator writes, “Take Adolph Hitler or better Joseph Stalin because he killed more people. What if, at the last minute, as Stalin lay dying, he turned his heart to Jesus and confessed his sins? Suppose he repented at the last minute, repented of the 14 million Russians Stalin killed… Would he ...read more

Scripture: Luke 23:32-43

Tags: Forgiveness, Repentance

Denomination: Methodist

Forgiving And Forgetting

Contributed by Ed Vasicek on Mar 9, 2020

Once upon a time in their marriage, Saul Rosenberg did something really stupid. Ethel Rosenberg chewed him out for it. He apologized, they made up. However, from time to time, Ethel would mention what he had done. "Honey," Saul finally said one day, "why do you keep bringing that up? ...read more

Scripture: Jeremiah 31:34, Luke 17:3-4

Tags: Forgiveness, Marriage, Reconciliation, Forget, Forgive, Argument  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Independent/Bible

What Forgiveness Is Not

Contributed by Dr. Larry Petton on Dec 31, 2021

WHAT FORGIVENESS IS NOT by Dr. Larry Petton (excerpt from my book, "I CAN'T FORGIVE"). Text: Ephesians chapter 4 Ruth Bell Graham described a successful marriage as the "union of two great forgivers." Forgiveness has been described as, “Me not hurting you, because you ...read more

Tags: Forgive Them, Father, Forgiveness, Bitterness, Unforgiveness  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Childlike Forgiveness

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 31, 2022

A few months ago, I was in El Paso holding an evangelistic meeting, and the young people were serving dinner to the mothers being that it was Mother’s Day. I was seating in a chair watching what was going on, and right in front, a four-year-old girl pushed a two-year-old boy, who fell on the floor ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 6:12

Tags: Grace, Forgiveness

Overwhelming Forgiveness

Contributed by Sermon Central on Dec 31, 2022

A wonderful example of how to practice the lifestyle of grace comes from an incident in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, on October 2, 2006, when a man entered an Amish schoolhouse and murdered 5 girls while wounding 5 others before killing himself. As horrific as this was, the greater story was the ...read more

Scripture: Psalm 65:3

Tags: Grace, Forgiveness

I Do Not Ask The Wounded Person How He Feels, I ...

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 12, 2007

"I do not ask the wounded person how he feels, I myself ...read more

Tags: Forgiveness General

A Young Boy Was Overheard Asking His Playmate, ...  PRO

Contributed by Mark Hodges on Jun 14, 2001

A young boy was overheard asking his playmate, "Wouldn’t you hate to wear glasses all the time?" "No," came the answer, "not if I had some like my grandma’s. She always sees when people are tired or sad, and she knows just what to do to make them feel better. One day I asked her how she could see ...read more

Tags: Christian Love, Compassion, Forgiveness General

Denomination: Baptist

Forgive Me My Nonsense As I Also Forgive The ...

Contributed by Stan Rodda on Oct 13, 2004

"Forgive me my nonsense as I also forgive the nonsense of those who think ...read more

Tags: Forgiveness For Others

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

Forgive Me My Nonsense As I Also Forgive The ...  PRO

Contributed by Sermon Central on Apr 12, 2007

Forgive me my nonsense as I also forgive the nonsense of those ...read more

Tags: Competition

Example Of Extreme Forgiveness

Contributed by Ed Vasicek on Feb 17, 2020

Twenty years ago, Rwanda experienced a horrible genocide as one tribal group attacked and massacred another over tribal rivalry. Here is one story of forgiveness from that horrid era. “He killed my father and three brothers. He did these killings with other people, but he came alone to me and ...read more

Scripture: Luke 17:3-4

Tags: Grace, Forgiveness, Reconciliation, Restitution, Apology  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Independent/Bible

Father, Forgive Them...  PRO

Contributed by Warner Pidgeon on Mar 27, 2009

FATHER, FORGIVE THEM... Many years ago, long before any of us were born, and long before our great grandparents were born, a young man walked into town. His clothes were old and well worn. His shoes had holes, and he carried all of his possessions in a small, dirty bag. When he first arrived in ...read more

Scripture: Luke 23:34

Tags: Forgiveness General

Denomination: Anglican

Edison: Complete Forgiveness

Contributed by Jim Kane on Apr 26, 2010

EDISON: COMPLETE FORGIVENESS When Thomas Edison and his staff were developing the incandescent light bulb, according to Ken Sande, it took hundreds of hours to manufacture a single bulb. One day, after finishing a bulb, notes Sande, Edison handed it to a young errand boy and asked him to take it ...read more

Tags: Forgiveness For Others

Denomination: Church Of God