Forgive One Another

But as he looked at the bleeding body lying on the ground he was suddenly stricken with guilt for what he had done. So he took the man to the emergency room of the hospital & then came to the church building. And he spent the whole night in prayer, asking God to forgive him for what he had done.

He said that as he prayed & sought God, he felt an overwhelming peace. So he took off his dirty clothes & left them there, putting on new clothes, clean ones out of his knapsack. And he wrote, "Now I’m going to go out & try to right the wrongs that I have done."

B. Paul said that when you are baptized into Christ you put on Christ. You are clothed with Christ. All the filthy rags of self righteousness that we have been wearing are no longer important. We are new & we are clean because we have been forgiven.

Paul said, "Now you forgive one another just as God, in Christ, has forgiven you."

CONCL. I wonder if we can behave like that today? I wonder if these words are just words written to people in the 1st Century who didn’t know any better, or if they are written to people today whose behavior hasn’t changed all that much?

I wonder this morning if you need the kindness of God, if you need to feel His tender touch? He understands you. He knows what you think. He knows your worries, your concerns, your disappointments, your joys. And He is anxious to forgive you & to forget your sins.

We offer His invitation with great confidence because we know that God waits to see what you will do with His love. I pray you will do something with it as we stand & sing.