Expect Forgiveness
Faith Expectations Part 2
05/04/08 PM
Reading: Luke 15:11-24
Text: Luke 15:11-32
[This lesson and this series are drawn from the writings of Tom Allen in his book “What to expect now that you believe.”]
Faith Expectations
This lesson is another in the series I call Faith Expectations. I know it is probably true of many gathered here tonight, I know it true for myself, that when we had obeyed the call of the gospel, accepted Jesus as our Lord and Savior, and been Baptized into Him there were great expectations of what our faith would do in us, for us, and through us. And we are justified in these expectations:
2 Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.”
John 10:10b “I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.
We are right to have high hopes for our faith. As believers we should never lose the “great expectations” of our faith especially since the greatest expectation will one day be fulfilled in the return of our Lord and Savior. Until that day it remains for us to balance our expectations with the reality of living as sojourners in this world. And so let us consider a great expectation of our faith: Expect Forgiveness.
Introduction
Some stories are seemingly unbelievable. When you read or hear of them you accept them “with a grain of salt” not really convinced that the events could occur in real life. Our text for today is a story like that, one that just seems too good to be true, to perfect for the real world. It is the story told by Jesus that describes the depth of man’s sin and the heights of God’s grace. It is a story of repentance and forgiveness. And as much as it seems too perfect, it is a real story, one in which each of us plays the lead role.
I.Forgiveness Defined
A.Aphesis: Greek meaning release from bondage or prison
1.– a pardon, of offenses (letting them go as if they had never been committed), remission of the penalty
2.Usage in NT NASB (17) - forgiveness, 15; free, 1; release, 1
3.Carries nuances of release from the debt of sin: Romans 6:6b “…so that we would no longer be slaves to sin;”
4.This is the liberty of the sons and daughters of God, this is the freedom experienced by the prodigal son returned.
[So what kind of forgiveness can we expect? Let’s consider the characteristics which spring from this story…]
II.Characteristics of Forgiveness
B.Unexpected
1.Prodigal’s expectation was for some kind of consequence for his actions, some kind of retribution to be paid. He expected to be “a servant” in his father’s household, not even favored among the household slaves.
a.It’s understandable why he would feel this way. The word Sin literally means “to miss the mark.”
b.Deep in every heart is the nagging feeling that we don’t measure up and that we owe something for the sorry state of our lives.
c.But an often overlooked detail occurred: read Luke 15:20
2.We might have expected the father to hold out until the prodigal had made some apology or demonstrated contrition.
a.The father had been keeping a look out and ran to meet his son and kissed him before any words were spoken.
b.The father offered his affection and compassion to the son as soon as he had seen him returned. So it is with the unexpected forgiveness of our Father in Heaven.
3.We often feel like the prodigal, that we must work or perform some penance or charitable action to earn our way into God’s good graces but the truth is we cannot. The good news is that we don’t have to because Jesus has paid our debt.
a.Ephesians 1:7 “In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace”
b.God desires all to come to repentance, to be forgiven, don’t confuse that with the expectation that we somehow deserve to be forgiven.
c.God forgives us because it is His pleasure to do so and the sacrifice of Jesus paid the price for our sin, not because we in any way warrant it or earned it.
d.That is grace: God’s unmerited, undeserved, and unearned favor.
[To say “expect forgiveness” is really the same as saying “expect the unexpected.” We can only expect forgiveness because pardon has been freely offered to us by the high cost of Jesus. This brings us to our next characteristic…]
C.Undeserved Read Luke 15:21
1.Prodigal knew what he deserved
a.The Father could have simply agreed and left it at that. “You know what son, you are absolutely correct. You’ve shamed me and worried your mother to death. I might consider allowing you to work as a slave but you are no longer a part of this family.”
2.We can’t expect any thing more than did the prodigal. We do not deserve to be a part of God’s family.
a.Thank God that: Psalm 103:10 “He has not dealt with us according to our sins, Nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.”
D.Unearned
1.Prodigal knew he was not worthy of his father’s response, he had not earned the reception given.
a.Which is exactly the Lord’s point: forgiveness cannot be earned, only granted.
b.Ephesians 2:8-9 “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.”
2.Our works can never be good enough to satisfy the requirements of our God.
a.Isaiah 64:6 “all our righteous acts are as filthy rags.”
b.Only one life has ever lived which met the requirements of God, that was the life of Jesus. Only His life was worthy as a sacrifice, only His blood could cleanse our sins and justify us to the Father.
c.Our faith and belief in Jesus secures our place as adopted sons and daughters of God.
E.Unlimited
1.The story would have a much different outcome had the father said:
Thanks for the confession son; I’m really glad you are sorry for all the foolish things you have done. But there are limits to what I can forgive. I can forgive you wasting all the wealth that I spent my life earning but it will take a long time for me to forgive the immorality and riotous living. I may never be able to forgive that.
a.Thankfully the story is clear, no strings attached to the Father’s forgiveness.
b.1 John 1:9 nature of our forgiveness: complete
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
c.Micah 7:18-19 “Who is a God like You, who pardons iniquity And passes over the rebellious act of the remnant of His possession? He does not retain His anger forever, Because He delights in unchanging love. He will again have compassion on us; He will tread our iniquities under foot. Yes, You will cast all their sins Into the depths of the sea.
2.Key word in both texts: All
a.Hebrews 10:10 “By this will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.”
3.Forgiveness based on Jesus power to forgive
a.Good news is that power is greater than any accumulation of iniquity possible no matter how high, no matter how bad it smells.
b.No one can say I’ve committed to many sins to be a candidate for forgiveness, or say I’ve committed the same sin to many times to be forgiven.
c.We have a savior who is absolutely unlimited in His desire and His power to forgive.
d.Sinful woman Luke 7:36-50
[Unexpected, undeserved, unearned, and unlimited, this is the forgiveness we receive by the Grace of God through our faith in His son, our Lord Jesus! What gratitude and hope this brings to our hearts.]
III.Forgiveness Unleashed
A.There is only one response to show our gratitude for the mercy shown us.
1.Jesus and Paul made statements reflecting this.
a.Matthew 6:14-15 “For if you forgive others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions.”
b.Colossians 3:13 “bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you.”
2.Forgiven people forgive
a.Those who do not, don’t understand their own debt.
3.The brother’s problem read Luke 15:25-32
a.It was hard for the older brother to accept his younger brother when he returned, and it is just as difficult to accept “younger brothers” today. People who repent after leading notoriously sinful lives are often held in suspicion. Instead, we should rejoice like the angels in heaven when an unbeliever repents and turns to God. Like the father in the parable, accept repentant sinners wholeheartedly and give them the support and encouragement that they need to grow in Christ.
b.We recognize the brother’s position. There should be consequences. We want a sense of justice met; “pay his dues.”
c.Prodigal did pay dues: memories of shame and guilt, inheritance gone. The older son needed to get his perspective right.
4.In Jesus’ story, the older brother represents the Pharisees, who were angry and resentful that sinners were being welcomed into God’s kingdom. “After all,” the Pharisees must have thought, “we have sacrificed and done so much for God.” How easy it is to resent God’s gracious forgiveness of others considered to be far worse sinners than oneself.
a.(read Luke 18:9-14) Brother represents the self-righteous Pharisees who didn’t know his own sinful state.
5.Forgiven people forgive; easier said in principle then put into practice.
a.Desperate sinners, notorious outcasts, difficult people—all have been offered salvation. God’s people must not stand aside and above, but they must join in heaven’s celebration when those who were lost have been found, when those who were “dead to sin [become] alive to God in Christ Jesus” (Romans 6:11).
b.The same Jesus who granted us forgiveness can put the spirit of pardon into our hearts.
c.As Paul said: Christ lives in me (Galatians 2:20), it can be “Christ forgives through me”
Conclusion:
So we can expect forgiveness from God: unexpected, undeserved, unearned, and unlimited. And we can expect the spirit of pardon to be unleashed from our own forgiven hearts out to those who have offended us. This is what we can expect.
Invitation
