#7 UNDERSTANDING LOVE: FORGIVENESS
By Wade Martin Hughes, Sr. Kyfingers@aol.com
LOVE UNDERSTANDS: To refuse to forgive is like burning a bridge that crosses
the gap between us and heaven.
REAL LOVES FINDS FORGIVENESS EASY.
FORGIVENESS IS THE SWEET FRAGRANCE OF THAT THE ROSE LEAVES ON
THE HEEL OF THE PERSON THAT CRUSHED IT.
TEXT:
Ephesians 4:32 And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even
as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.
Matthew 6:12 And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
Matthew 6:14 For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:
15 But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
Matthew 6:14 (MSG) "In prayer there is a connection between what God does and what you
do. You can't get forgiveness from God, for instance, without also forgiving others.
15 If you refuse to do your part, you cut yourself off from God's part.
A small boy was praying: Lord forgive us our debts, as we forgive those that are dead set
against us...
HE CALLS ME FRIEND!
I love to go visiting it is part of my job.
Often while in my times of visitation I started running in local pastor.
He is one of the few pastors that I know that is very active in visitation.
We got to know each other very well at the funeral homes, hospitals, rehab, rest homes,
and the jails.
I would say: HOW IS MY BROTHER TODAY?
He always answered with a standard line: VERY WELL, MY FRIEND!
The way he would say: my friend was in the most cutting way.
I never understood this. I saw him several times a week every week.
We would met in the hall of the hospitals or rest homes.
He always answer cuttingly: VERY WELL, MY FRIEND.
26 years we have weekly played in the rest home. As we would play and sing,
he would stand in the doorway with tracts in his hand.
Often he would request: ONE DAY AT A TIME, we would play and sing it for him.
One day he was standing in the door way crying as we played.
After service I ask him: Is something wrong? Can I help you?
He shook my hand and said: MY FRIEND YOU ARE SUCH A GOOD MAN DOING
GOOD WORKS REPRESENTING JESUS, I AM SO SORRY YOU ARE GOING TO HELL!
Now I understood why he could never call me brother.
His church taught if you played the guitar or music you are going to HELL in a hand basket.
I did not know how to respond. I said: I CALL YOU MY BROTHER.
He left. Hundreds of times I have met him during visitation since then.
I still call him: "BROTHER." He still calls me: "FRIEND!"
REAL LOVE UNDERSTANDS FORGIVENESS IS ABOVE THE RULES.
THE RELIGIOUS CROWD TENDED TO REJECT JESUS BECAUSE HE WAS A FRIEND OF
THE DOWN AND OUT --- JESUS LOVED SINNERS...
There was a crowd gathered and they invited Jesus come and dine with us.
The crowd was the religious and social elite.
They were a crowd of EXCLUSIVE GOOD PEOPLE. They were the PHARISEE group.
Luke 7:39 Now when the Pharisee which had bidden him saw it, he spake within himself,
saying, This man, if he were a prophet, would have known who and what manner of woman
this is that toucheth him: for she is a sinner.
SHE IS NOT LIKE US... WE ARE SO GOOD AND SHE IS SO BAD...
THIS BECOMES A TYPE OF UNFORGIVENESS....
TO UNDERSTAND LOVE WE MUST UNDERSTAND FORGIVENESS MUST BE THE FOCUS...
THERE IS A GREAT DANGER WHEN THE RULES BECOME MORE IMPORTANT THAN THE
PEOPLE...
Matthew 15:2 Why do thy disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? for they wash not
their hands when they eat bread.
The Pharisee group were SEPARATIST.
They were very SELF-RIGHTEOUS and had GREAT PRIDE.
The Pharisees got so FOCUSED ON THE RULES AND FORMS... CEREMONIES.
In this time period people ate with their fingers.
THEY HAD TO RUB THE FIST IF ONE HAND IN HOLLOW OF THE OTHER HAND...
YOU HAD TO WASH YOUR HANDS A CERTAIN WAY.
THEY HAD TO RUB THE FIST IF ONE HAND IN HOLLOW OF THE OTHER HAND...
THEN DO THE OTHER.
THEN YOU HAD TO PLACE YOUR TEN FINGER TIPS TOGETHER,
THEN YOU RAISED BOTH HANDS UP SO EXCESS WATER CAN RUN DOWN TO THE
ELBOWS AND THEN THE WATER FALLS TO THE GROUND.
IF YOU DID NOT WASH YOUR HANDS THIS WAY YOU SINNED, AS MUCH AS BREAKING
ONE OF THE TEN COMMANDMENTS.
PHARISEES MULTIPLIED CEREMONIAL ISSUES.
THEY WORSHIPPED THE RULES NOT THE GOD OF THE RULES...
Pharisees loved to MAKE A SHOW OF PRAYER AND FASTING.
Gradually to be a PHARISEE one became VERY BITTER, ANGRY and QUICK TO JUDGE.
In their anger and judgmental-ness they LOST THE POINT OF FORGIVENESS.
In Jesus' day they were THE IN-CROWD.
They demanded GREAT PURITY
IF WE DO NOT UNDERSTAND LOVE, WE CAN GET SO TWISTED THAT WE CAN NOT
WE THE VALUE OF THE PERSON INSTEAD WE SEE TRADITION, HABITS AND
CEREMONIES... FORGIVENESS IS ABOUT PEOPLE...
Love understands forgiveness!
May our value system be the same as God's. Does what breaks God's heart break yours?
Luke 13:15 The Lord then answered him, and said, Thou hypocrite, doth not each one of you
on the sabbath loose his ox or his ass from the stall, and lead him away to watering?
16 And ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan hath bound, lo, these
eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the sabbath day?
If you will be quick to forgive all quarrels would end.
LOVE UNDERSTANDS FORGIVENESS MUST NOT BE CAUGHT UP IN THE MOMENT...
WHERE IS FORGIVENESS? WHERE IS THE MAN?
There was a woman brought to Jesus TAKEN IN ADULTERY.
They did not WANT FORGIVENESS... they desired JUDGMENT...
John 8:11 She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee:
go, and sin no more.
I do not condemn you, woman --- I FORGIVE YOU...
NOW BE CHANGED --- DO NOT DO IT ANY MORE...
FORGIVENESS WAS A GIFT JESUS GAVE THE "BAD WOMAN."
Love understands forgiveness!
We need to grow a special cemetery where we come to bury hurt, frustration, depression,
and hatred. Let us learn to BURY THE FAULTS OF OTHERS.
UNDERSTAND HOW IMPORTANT FORGIVENESS IS TO LOVE.
PEOPLE DISCUSS UN-CONDITIONAL LOVE --- BUT KNOW SOMETHING FORGIVENESS
IS CONDITIONAL --- FORGIVENESS HINGES ON FORGIVENESS...
Matthew 18:21 Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against
me, and I forgive him? till seven times? 22 Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until
seven times: but, Until seventy times seven.
.
Matthew 18:35 So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts
forgive not every one his brother their trespasses.
Mark 11:25 And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father
also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.
26 But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses.
CONCLUSION: Often we try to change the outside without focusing on the internal problem.
We have a disease in the church today. This disease will affect the health
of individuals as well as the corporate body. Have you been hurt? To understand love we must
acknowledge what anger, frustration, revenge and depression could reflect un-forgiveness.
We must FORGIVE OTHERS! Yes, but my friend love understands you must forgive
yourself. If WE WILL FORGIVE--- we can CHANGE. Forgiveness releases negative emotions
and negative feelings. You may be feeling like a VICTIM, it is time to forgive and realize
God's plan for you is to be a VICTOR. WHY ALLOW SOMEONE TO LIVE IN YOUR HEAD
RENT FREE? Real love is quick to forgive. Forgiveness may not change the person that
you forgive, but it will bring a release and change to you.
His servant, Wade Martin Hughes, Sr. Kyfingers@aol.com
We are in a series on UNDERSTANDING LOVE.
