Forgive, Forgive, Forgive
Pastor Paddick Van Zyl
21-07-2020
Sermon Outline
Scripture Reference:
Matthew 6 : 9; 14-15 NCV
9 Forgive us for our sins, just as we have forgiven those who sinned against us.
14 Yes, if you forgive others for their sins, your Father in heaven will also forgive you for your sins. 15 But if you don’t forgive others, your Father in heaven will not forgive your sins.
Matthew 18 : 21-22 TPT
21 Later Peter approached Jesus and said, “How many times do I have to forgive my fellow believer who keeps offending me? Seven times?”
22 Jesus answered, “Not seven times, Peter, but seventy times seven times!
Theme:
The necessity to forgive and be forgiven
Introduction:
"There's a Spanish story of a father and son who had become estranged. The son ran away, and the father set off to find him. He searched for months to no avail. Finally, in a last desperate effort to find him, the father put an ad in a Madrid newspaper. The ad read: Dear Paco, meet me in front of this newspaper office at noon on Saturday. All is forgiven. I love you. Your Father. On Saturday 800 Pacos showed up, looking for forgiveness and love from their fathers." 1
Sermon message:
There are probably countless people living with unforgiveness in their heart and many more that die holding onto unforgiveness. This is a tragedy!
"General Oglethorpe once said to John Wesley, "I never forgive and I never forget." To which Wesley replied, "Then, Sir, I hope you never sin." Unknown. 2
As human beings, (human nature) living in a broken world, and redeemed by grace and the blood of Christ, we so easily tend to judge and hold grudges and we are not that quick to forgive when we are wronged. We like putting people in cages and holding onto the key (revenge). But we are slow to repent of our sin before God.
Tim Keller “Only God has the wisdom and right to know what a person deserves. You must never try to give people what they deserve (revenge).”
If David had killed King Saul (1 Samuel 26)he would have become Saul, he would have put another Saul on the throne .If you stay angry and don’t forgive, someone, you become them. Let’s look at the following important scriptures about forgiving others:
Ephesians 4:32
Mark 11:25
Colossians 3:13
Micah 7:18
Psalm 32:5
James 5:14-15
What did Jesus mean when He said to Peter to forgive seventy times seven? Live a forgiving and repentant life. Continuously forgive others and live a life of repentance.
What did Jesus do when He hung in the cross at Calvary? Luke 23:34. As Jesus was nailed to the cross with my sin, with your sin, He forgave.
Why did King Saul lose the anointing and David increased in the anointing? Saul was self seeking and self absorbed, David knew how to forgive and repent. God was his everything.
Forgiveness always involves paying a price. That’s the gospel.
Tim Keller remarks that you can never forgone someone to whom you feel superior to. Thank about that for a minute. Forgiveness involves humility. It takes humility to forgive someone who asks for forgiveness and to ask for forgiveness from another person. Our modern day culture is one of utter self-exertion. Forgiveness is self-renunciation. Look at Jesus, our example.
In Matthew 18, the parable of the unforgiving debtor, Jesus explains what happens to someone who will not forgive :
“34 In a fury of anger, the king turned him over to the prison guards to be tortured until all his debt was repaid.35 In this same way, my heavenly Father will deal with any of you if you do not release forgiveness from your heart toward your fellow believer.” TPT
John Wesley in his commentary notes the following on this passage:
“His lord delivered him to the tormentors - Imprisonment is a much severer punishment in the eastern countries than in ours (Western countries). State criminals, especially when condemned to it, are not only confined to a very mean and scanty allowance, but are frequently loaded with clogs or heavy yokes, so that they can neither lie nor sit at ease: and by frequent scourgings and sometimes rackings are brought to an untimely end. Till he should pay all that was due to him - That is, without all hope of release, for this he could never do. How observable is this whole account; as well as the great inference our Lord draws from it:
1. The debtor was freely and fully forgiven;
2. He wilfully and grievously offended;
3. His pardon was retracted, the whole debt required, and the offender delivered to the tormentors for ever.
And shall we still say, but when we are once freely and fully forgiven, our pardon can never be retracted? Verily, verily, I say unto you, So likewise will my heavenly Father do to you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses. “3
Closing:
In Closing, I would like to read the following:
"Bruce Goodrich was being initiated into the cadet corps at Texas A & M University. One night, Bruce was forced to run until he dropped -- but he never got up. Bruce Goodrich died before he even entered college.
A short time after the tragedy, Bruce's father wrote this letter to the administration, faculty, student body, and the corps of cadets: "I would like to take this opportunity to express the appreciation of my family for the great outpouring of concern and sympathy from Texas A & M University and the college community over the loss of our son Bruce. We were deeply touched by the tribute paid to him in the battalion. We were particularly pleased to note that his Christian witness did not go unnoticed during his brief time on campus."
Mr. Goodrich went on: "I hope it will be some comfort to know that we harbor no ill will in the matter. We know our God makes no mistakes. Bruce had an appointment with his Lord and is now secure in his celestial home. When the question is asked, 'Why did this happen?' perhaps one answer will be, 'So that many will consider where they will spend eternity.'" 4
Your life, my life is at all times on display to the world, the unsaved. They are looking at us as a reflection of Jesus Christ and the gospel. They look at how we forgive, how we love. Let us bring glory to God our Father each day, by His grace,
Amen.
End Notes:
Bible Gateway
New Century Version (NCV) The Holy Bible, New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.
The Passion Translation (TPT), The Passion Translation®. Copyright © 2017 by BroadStreet Publishing® Group, LLC. Used by permission. All rights reserved. thePassionTranslation.com
1 Bits & Pieces, October 15, 1992, pp. 13. Sermon Ilustrations.com http://www.sermonillustrations.com/a-z/f/forgiveness.htm
2 Sermon Illustrations.com http://www.sermonillustrations.com/a-z/f/forgive_and_forget.htm
3 Wesley’s Explanatory Notes on Matthew 18 : Bibestudytools.com https://www.biblestudytools.com/commentaries/wesleys-explanatory-notes/matthew/matthew-18.html
4 Michael Williams, Our Daily Bread, March 22, 1994 : Sermon Illustrations.com http://www.sermonillustrations.com/a-z/f/forgiveness.htm
