"Forgiveness"

Matthew 18:21-35 | 9/17/2017

1. Forgiveness is a Choice I can choose to forgive or not

• Scarlett Lewis lost her 6-year-old son Jesse in the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School. He was one of 20 children killed in that horrific attack in 2012 -- an absolute nightmare come to life. Parents such as Scarlett were devastated. At first, all Her rage was directed at the shooter and also at the mother who unwittingly armed him. But then she made the choice to forgive.

• " Forgiveness felt like I was given a big pair of scissors," she said These scissors helped her to cut her tie to the shooter and regain her personal power. "It started with a choice," she said, "and then became a process." At her son's funeral, she urged mourners to change their angry thoughts into loving ones. She saw this as a way to change the world.

2. Jesus urges us to make the choice to forgive

• Notice he responds to Peter's question about the number of times we should forgive. "Lord," asks Peter, "if another member of the church sins against me, how often should I forgive?" Once ... twice ... three times ... "as many as seven times"?

• "Not seven times," says Jesus, "but, I tell you, seventy-seven times." Other translations of this verse say "seventy times seven times" ... totaling 490 times (vv. 21-22). forgiveness should be countless ,limitless, numberless

3. Jesus's teaching on forgiveness is important because forgiveness is good for you.

• Forgiving the people who hurt us that’s tough remember Scarlet Lewis how hard would that be?

• To forgive someone who killed your child. Still, Jesus recommends it because forgiveness is good for you.

• Forgiveness can enable you to regain your personal power, just as it did for Scarlett Lewis. Remember she said, “Forgiveness felt like I was given a big pair of scissors,". These scissors helped her to cut her tie to the shooter and regain her personal power. "It started with a choice,

• “Recall those scissors she cut hatred, she cut rage, she cut bitterness, she cut harm, but as she was cutting she was gaining power. Forgiveness verses

4. We know forgiveness is good for us, but on the other hand if we're unforgiving that's bad for us.

• Many people are unforgiving Unfortunately, many people fail to forgive. Jesus tells the story of a servant -- who owes several million dollars. Let's call him John Since John cannot come up with the cash, the boss orders him to be sold, along with his wife and children and possessions.

• Well, John throws himself to the ground and begs to be given more time to pay. Out of pity for him, the boss tells his henchmen to release him and he forgives his debt

• John leaves the boss's house, he sees another servant who owes him a few dollars. He grabs the man -- let's call him George -- by the throat and says, "Pay what you owe."

• George hits his knees and begs John for more time to settle his debt. But John refuses and throws George into prison until he can pay up. Although John has been forgiven a debt of several million dollars, he cannot find it in his heart to go easy on George over a few denarii. (vv. 28-30).

• When Johns fellow servants see what's happening, they reported what they saw, the boss summons John and asks him, "Should you not have had mercy on George as I had mercy on you?"Gulp! John knows that he is in trouble. The boss then has little patience with him. 34In anger his master turned him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed. 35"This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart." And so God will do "to every one of you," promises Jesus, "if you do not forgive your brother or sister from your heart" (vv. 31-35).

5. Jesus demands that we forgive other people

• Make the choice to Forgive Forgiveness is Good for you Un Forgiveness is bad

• Colossians says forgive as the Lord has forgiven you

• Matthew says if we do not forgive others who sin against us we will not be forgiven

• Ephesians says Be kind compassionate to each other and forgive each other as Christ Jesus forgave you.

• Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing." (Lk 23:34).

• Remember when we forgive we are empowered because we have cut hatred, she cut rage, cut bitterness, she cut harm, the more we cut the more we are empowered..

• Jesus insists that we make the choice to forgive, day after day, and turn it into a process that makes us stronger and stronger.