Part 1 - Unforgiveness Series

FAITH

PART 1 – UNFORGIVENESS

First Baptist Church of Tawas City Michigan

Rev. Bruce A. Shields

www.tawasbaptist.org

WELCOME

• Visitors (Visitor Cards & Prayer Request Cards in pews)

• Food Bank Success (Approximately 900 lbs. of food.)

• Please keep donating (especially with the holidays coming.)

SCRIPTURE READING

Mark 11:22-24

“22"Have faith in God," Jesus answered. 23"I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, ’Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen; it will be done for him. 24Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.

People get all excited when they read these three verses.

Perhaps it’s because they tell us what we can get from God, what God can do for us, and how we can use our faith to receive.

Nearly everyone stops reading with verse 24, but this principle Jesus is trying to teach to us which started in verse 22, describing what some call “possibility faith,” doesn’t end with verse 24!

In the following verses, Jesus makes two more statements that are vitally important for faith.

The first is in verse 25;

Mark 11:25

“25And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins."

Jesus ties this thought to verse 24 with a conjunction.

If this had been edited correctly, there would be a comma between verse 24 and 25 not a period, joining these two verses as they were meant to be together.

Most people though stop reading at the end of verse 24 and get all excited about receiving things they desire.

Too many Christians live in this kind of fantasy world saying “I can move mountains! ‘Cause Jesus said so!” yet, they can’t stop the sin in their lives.

We need to get focused as Christians.

Believers need to get their feet planted on the Rock if they are to get anything done for themselves and the rest of the kingdom.

Remember we are part of a whole, as Christians we are the body of Christ.

Notice in verse 25 that God calls holding grudges against our fellow man “trespasses.”

This is serious.

He didn’t say against our brother which would mean other Christians.

He says, “If you hold ANYTHING against ANYONE”

In your NIV you will notice that there is no verse 26, but it jumps right to 27.

This is because verse 26 was not found in some of the older transcripts and is believed to have been added by King James.

But if you turn to the book of Matthew 6:15, we will find the same verse.

Matthew 6:15

“But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.”

Really, it is a sin to hold grudges against people.

People will say, “Well, I can forgive, but I’ll never forget what they’ve done to me.”

That’s not forgiving.

“..I’m never going to forget what they did to me.”

The Amplified Bible says, “And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him and let it drop.”

“Yeah, but you don’t know what they did to me,”

Have they killed you?

Have they hung you on a cross?

Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, because they don’t understand what they are doing.”

When did He say that?

While they were STILL doing it.

He didn’t wait for them to stop, of until He wasn’t mad anymore.

Jesus didn’t say, “Father forgive them, but let’s not forget what they are doing.”

Just, Father forgive them.

When somebody says something about you that you don’t like, you say, “I’m not going to let them get away with that!”

“They’re not going to make me look like a fool and get away with it!”

Then, out of the other side of your mouth, you say, “Oh, thank God, I’m confessing that God will meet all of my needs.”

How can God meet your needs when you are not living in line with God’s word?

Look at what He says in 26 again;

Matthew 6:15

“But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.”

If grudges are a sin against God, and these scriptures show that, then how can you sin against God and expect God to answer your prayers?

Terri and I ran into some extended family members last week.

One of which is gay.

Her girlfriend is seriously ill in the hospital.

She is a convicted child molester, and drug abuser living a gay lifestyle.

Does God love her? Absolutely!

But the only prayer that can go out in a situation like that is a prayer for salvation.