INTRO Notice the word as in verse 12
We are praying that God will treat us like we treat others
Former President Gerald Ford, in his book, "A Time to Heal", focused on the confusing and tragic twilight of the Nixon presidency. Clearly, Nixon was guilty of a cover-up in the Watergate case, but he refused to admit it. His pride kept him from doing so. If he had been willing to confess his guilt and ask the American people for forgiveness, he would probably have received it.
President Ford then faced a grievous dilemma, Should he let the legal charges run their course and allow Nixon to be indicted and tried? Should he pardon him? If he decided on justice, the process would probably have taken years and would have blotted out everything else in the country until it was over. He therefore decided to pardon the former president, feeling it was the best for the nation.
He explained his decision: "America needed recovery, not revenge. The hate had to be drained and the healing begun."
* I proclaim to some here today
* It's time for hate to be drained
* And time for healing to begin
* We all at one time or another face the choice...
o Revenge or Recovery
* People hurt us
o Wrong us
o Offend us
o Lie about us
o Abuse us
o Mistreat us
o Leave us
* Because of sinful nature
* It becomes a natural response to become...
...bitter
...resentful
...vengeful
* The world is full of broken relationships...
...wounded spirits
...unresolved issues
* People who have been truly hurt
* And never forgive that person
* The unforgiveness grows into bitterness and hatred
* Hatred is one of the most destructive forces in life
o It's like cancer
o It tears down emotions
o It destroys your true personality
o It's poison to the body
o It not only destroys others
o But also destroys you
Shakespeare: "Heat not the furnace so hot that
you singe yourself."
Matthew 18:21-35
We've talked a lot about Peter lately
Honestly, if it wasn't for Peter...
I wouldn't have scripture for half my issues
"And Peter"
Here he asked a question that I am grateful for
Because I had been wronged
And needed God's counsel on how to forgive
The question is not if people will do you wrong
The question is how will you respond
Peter wants to know:
1. How many times do I have to forgive someone before I get revenge
I believe Peter had an anger problem
Peter chose 7 because
The Jewish law required you forgive someone 3 times
So Peter doubled that and added one as a bonus!
He thought he had a bargain!
Peter's issue here is not if he'll forgive the person
He just doesn't want to over forgive
Jesus is not giving a math lesson here
Nor is He giving you a number chart to check off your forgiveness to offenses
70x7 -- every time is like the first time
490 1xweek -- take 9 ½ years
To illustrate this Jesus gives a parable:
I want to break it down into three points:
1. A Debt
2. A Deal
3. A Dungeon
1. A Debt -- vs 23-25
* 10 thousand talents
* The entire tax on Galilee for one year was 200 talents
* The man owed an equivalent of 50 years of taxes on the entire region of Galilee
* The average working man would have to work 20 years in order to earn one talent
* This man would have had to work 500 years to pay back the debt
* In our money it would equate to 10 million dollars
* The point is that it was an un-payable debt
Expand salvation story
2. A Deal -- vs 26-30
He paid a debt He did not owe
Exactly what Jesus did on the cross
o The slate is lean
o The debt is canceled
o All we have to do is ask
o Redeemed...financial word
This man who had just been forgiven
Throws another man into prison
I proposed he really didn't want payment, he wanted punishment
There are some whose offender has apologized
But you think that you are punishing them by holding a grudge
And not letting them off the hook
The man only owed him 100 Denari
Which is about 100 days wages
o In today's money that's about $15
He puts the man in jail until he can repay
Not only is the man ungrateful he is unreasonable!
He really doesn't want to resolve the issue
He wants the man to be miserable in jail
But the key to forgiveness is to stop focusing on what someone did to you
And start focusing on what God did for you
Get your mind off the $15 and on to the $10 million
3. A Dungeon -- vs 32
NOTE: vs 35
This is how my Heavenly Father will treat you
* Unforgiving people always end up in their own prison
James 2:13
Because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment!
* We will receive God's forgiveness in the same way we give forgiveness to others
* As we forgive our debtors
* There are many who have repented...
Love God
Pay tithes
Come to church
Involved in ministry
Sing, shout
* But, made no progress
* Haven't got your breakthrough
* Seems your prayers aren't answered
* Your goals aren't met
* Your victory keeps falling short
Psalms 66:18
If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me
* You're in a dungeon / prison / bondage / stronghold
* Seems you never make any progress
* Everyone is passing you by
* The question is, who haven't you forgiven?
Your dad
Your mom
Your friend
Your brother
Your sister
Your son
Your daughter
* Forgiveness is when you release to the Lord any bitterness that you feel you have the right to have toward someone
* Forgiveness is giving up my right to hurt you for hurting me
* WEBSTER definition of Forgiveness:
Ceasing to feel resentment against an offender
* But forgiveness is more than a warm feeling
* It is an act of the will
* This man was turned over to torturers
* The will of the tormentors
* The original Greek work Tormentors translates as:
1. Torturer
2. One who bring pain
3. One who harasses and brings stress
4. One who brings pain to body and mind
* The tormentors are evil spirits of Satan
* Different ways might be...
...depression
...fear
...anxiety
...disease
...mental illness
* The stronghold of unforgiveness can block all mercy and grace from flowing
Peace blocked
Harmony in family blocked
Healing blocked
* The medical profession has documented diseases that are caused from chemical poisons released into the body by unforgiveness, bitterness, anger, resentment
FRUSTRATION:
You can...
Repent
Pray
Read your Bible
Nothing can take the place of forgiveness
2 Kings 3:19
You will overthrow every fortified city and every major town. You will cut down every good tree, stop up all the springs, and ruin every good field with stones.
In those days stopping up wells with stones was a weapon to defeat an enemy
The Devil still uses that against us today
Paul's stoning
The Devil blocks our flow
Our emotions are damaged...
...by the rocks of hurts / rejections / mistreatment
Now the River of Living Water no longer flows
It's interesting when Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, he ordered...
Take away the stone
Forgiveness is the stone that will allow you to live again
Forgiveness is not...
Tolerance
Pretending
Forgetting
Diplomacy
Forgiveness is...
A deliberate act of the will
Full pardon
Obedience
Love
Key to freedom
It is breakthrough
James 2:13
Because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment!
CONCLUSION
I used to live in San Francisco
Patti and the kids and I went a couple years ago
We looked from Fisherman's Wharf to the Isle of Pelicans...
...better known as Alcatraz
One of the most escape-proof prisons in the world. From 1933 to 1963 it served as a federal prison and during that time, twenty six prisoners tried to escape, only three got out, but they were never heard from again.
Surrounded by the cold shark infested waters of San Francisco bay, Alcatraz boasted high walls, double locked doors, machine guns in the hands of guards and a staff that could not be bribed.
It is known throughout the prison system as "the big house".
But the worst prison is the one you're in that you created!
Not by what happened to you.
But built brick-by-brick every time you refuse to forgive.
It's a dungeon of a bitter heart
And only you have the key!
Spiderman 3
Revenge in Our Hearts
Peter and Aunt May are notified by police that her husband, Uncle Ben, had not been killed by the man who they originally thought. Rather, the killer was still at large.
Peter began to plot his revenge by opening the door to his dark side. After finding Flint Marko, aka the Sandman, and killing him using tactics Spiderman would never have used, Peter returns to Aunt May seeking approval of his actions.
Her sad response shocked Peter, "Spiderman doesn't kill people". This conversation leads to challenging his wrong way of achieving his desire. She tells him that we don't have the right to decide who gets to live or die and ultimately states "If you allow revenge into your heart, it will destroy you."
Ultimately teaching that we must forgive our enemies.
The Dark Side Has Such a Sweet Taste
The arrival of an alien species that crouches at the door of Peter Parker's life, waiting to devour him, but unable to attach itself until Peter begins to allow evil in his heart is the entire nature of this film.
Watching how the dark side has such a sweet taste when you first begin to walk in it, but how it devours you once it has established a beachhead in your life.
This becomes even more pronounced when we see another major character, his nemesis from the photographer pool, go into a church to pray for Peter Parker to be destroyed, only to have the alien substance fall immediately onto him, turning him into a powerful enemy, who ends up dead because of his spiritual choices.
Spot the Spiritual Truths
Determining the spiritual truths in a film is a powerful thing. The Hero's need or weakness, the opponent's values, the desire line, the times the hero used his new understanding vs. when he resorted to old ways that didn't work.
Discussing (with others) the science of applying story and connecting with the truth of the filmmaker to what Jesus says about the same thing is a wonderful opportunity to weave our conversation with others without making it sound like a Sunday School lesson.
Many people in the church struggle with how much to allow culture into the family. Great cinema tells a story that will help us understand how to live life more fully.
If it is a tragedy, then the hero either makes wrong choices and pays a heavy price...usually death...such as Othello, Citizen Kane or American Beauty...or is betrayed by those to whom he entrusted...like William Wallace in Braveheart.
Class Story Structure Hits a Part of the Human Heart
Most films try to tell of a hero who is broken and who finds himself in some kind of slavery as a result of his wound.
He finds wholeness as he overcomes his old ways of dealing with the world and learns new ways because of his strong desire.
The reason classic story structure also pays off financially is because it hits a part of the human heart by revealing a new, better way to live.
It's amazing how much the conversation that the filmmaker wants to start is already a major part of the one God started a long time ago. Movies allow an opportunity to discuss spiritual issues. Just think, in the past the old ones would have to take their children of Europe to the great cathedrals and point to the sculptures depicting the stories of the Bible or stained glass and use that as a starting point. Or, viewing gargoyles clinging to cathedral spires.
Today we have other opportunities to point at the art they find fascinating and begin a conversation. Do you see Spiderman as a modern gargoyle clinging to a church spire and inspiring spiritual conversation? If you know the film, it isn't too far-fetched.
