“FORGIVENESS” Matthew 6:12
FBCF – 3/14/21
Jon Daniels
INTRO – Unmarked tombstone outside Sydney, NY – has one 3-syllable word on it: “Forgiven.”
What freedom! What joy! What relief & release comes w/ that 1 single word: “Forgiven.”
Let’s talk about forgiveness today.
EXPLANATION – Matthew 6:12
One of the realities of the Lord’s Prayer is that it is so familiar to so many of us. One writer said that it “may be the single set of words spoken more often than any other in the history of the world” (Timothy Keller, Prayer, p. 109). We have to be careful & cognizant of how we can possibly allow its familiarity to cause us to lose the impact of it in our lives. It is THE PRAYER that Jesus Himself gave to us as the key to unlocking the deep reservoir that prayer truly is. But we may not realize that b/c of its familiarity.
Like when I preached at FBCF for the first time. All of a sudden in the middle of my sermon, a train roared by w/ its horn blaring just a block from here. Unnerved me. Thought, “How am I going to preach here every Sunday w/ that happening?” Now that I’ve gotten used to it, I barely notice it.
Same thing can happen w/ the Lord’s Prayer. We can get so used to it that we barely notice how precious & how powerful it truly is. Just as those freight trains roar through our town carrying their cargo to their destination, so the Lord’s Prayer carries us right into the presence of our Father who is in heaven.
The Lord’s Prayer is divided into 2 sections:
- First is all pointed God-ward
o Before we begin bombarding the throne room of God with all of our needs & issues, we need to make sure we acknowledge who we are talking to & praise Him for who He is.
- Second is all pointed us-ward
o Bringing our needs & petitions to the Lord is such a blessing when we know that we have a heavenly Father who loves us deeply & knows what we need every moment of every day. We may not always understand what He is doing, but we can always trust that He is working all things together for our good & for His glory.
One of the “us-ward” items that we ALL have to deal with is the issue of forgiveness – receiving God’s forgiveness for ourselves & granting forgiveness to others, including ourselves. And that’s what we are going to look at today in this sermon on “Forgiveness.”
There are 3 main words in the verse today:
- “forgive”
- “debts”
- “debtors”
“forgive” – to leave, leave behind; send away; let loose
“debts” – that which is owed; an obligation
“debtors” – one who must; a person who is under obligation
Sin saddles us w/ a debt that we cannot pay, & yet God demands that it be paid. You & I can’t pay that debt. All the animal sacrifices in the OT couldn’t pay the debt.
APPLICATION – We are to forgive others as God in Christ has forgiven us.
HOW TO WE RECEIVE GOD'S FORGIVENESS?
Children’s SS teacher asked class, “How do you receive God’s forgiveness?” Little boy answered, “You gotta sin!”
- And we all have b/c we are all sinners.
A famous psychiatrist once said that if he could ever convince the patients in his psychiatric hospitals that their sins are forgiven, 75% of them could walk out the doors the next day.
- Realize that you have a debt that has to be paid - "ALL HAVE SINNED"
- Recognize that ONLY Jesus can pay that debt - Jesus paid a debt He didn’t owe b/c we owed a debt we couldn’t pay.
- Reach out in faith & accept His payment for your sin debt
HOW DO WE FORGIVE OTHERS?
A man once said to John Wesley, “I never forgive.” Wesley’s wise reply: “Then, sir, I hope you never sin.”
- Point: You can’t expect & assume God’s forgiveness of your sins if you’re not forgiving others of their sins.
“WHY FORGIVE” (Elmer Towns)
- You are commanded to forgive – Mark 11:25 – “Whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him [drop the issue, let it go], so that your Father who is in heaven will also forgive you your transgressions and wrongdoings [against Him and others].” (AMP)
- The example of Jesus – Luke 23:34 – “Jesus said, ‘Father, forgive them, because they don’t know what they are doing.’” (NCV)
- To prosper spiritually – Matthew 18:35 – “This king did what my heavenly Father will do to you if you do not forgive your brother or sister from your heart.” (NCV)
- To be a testimony – Colossians 3:13 – “Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others.” (NLT)
- To receive forgiveness – Matthew 6:15 – “But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive the wrongs you have done.” (GNT)
Quoted Mark 11:25 earlier. But let’s look at other verses there.
- Mark 11:22-26 – “Jesus replied to them, ‘Have faith in God. I assure you: If anyone says to this mountain, ‘Be lifted up & thrown into the sea,’ & does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him. Therefore. I tell you, all the things you pray & ask for—believe that you have received them, & you will have them. And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven will also forgive you your wrongdoing. [But if you don’t forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your wrongdoing.]”
To move a mountain, there is a condition. In order to see God move a mountain, you must be on good terms w/ Him.
- Refusal to forgive another person blocks God’s ability to forgive you. Then that means that there is no longer any fellowship. And if there’s no longer any fellowship, then He’s not hearing your prayers. If He’s not hearing your prayers, then He’s not moving your mountains. Refusing to forgive is proof that you really don’t have faith in Him. (Tony Evans)
HOW DO WE FORGIVE OURSELVES? – This last category of forgiveness may be the hardest of all. How do I forgive myself?
We’ve all got those places in our lives where we failed in some way – maybe a major way - & the regrets are so big that we struggle mightily w/ forgiving ourselves. Maybe that where you are today. Not only have you failed in some way, but the enemy has convinced you that you are a failure.
- Let someone down in some way
- Gave into some type of sexual sin
- Had an abortion or paid for someone to have an abortion
- Became addicted to drug, alcohol, porn, food
- Unfaithful in marriage
- Abused someone in some way
- Suffered abuse but you blame yourself
- Lied to your best friend
- Destroyed someone’s career
- Workaholic & missed out on your kids’ lives
- Ruined your physical health through sinful, hurtful activities
- Know God called you to ministry but you ran from it
- And the list goes on & on
What does it mean to forgive ourselves? “It is accepting God’s forgiveness of all our past sins & failures so completely that we let ourselves off the hook for our pasts as God Himself has done. It means that since I must forgive others totally, I must equally forgive myself totally.” (R.T. Kendall, How to Forgive Ourselves – Totally, p. 6)
How to do this:
- List your struggles – Be specific & honest
- Lay them down as best as you can – not easy to do
o Grieve over them
o Hate your sin, but not yourself
o Remember that God has cast your sins into the sea & put up a “No fishing” sign!
- Listen to the right voice – the Holy Spirit
- Love yourself – not pop psychology or Oprah or Dr. Phil advice
o Love neighbor as love yourself – Mark 12:31
- Lean on trusted Christian friends, pastor, Christian counselor
- Load up on Scripture
o Especially Rom 8:28
CONCLUSION/TAKEAWAY
Refrigerator magnet – “Pray hardest when it is hardest to pray.” (Toby Mac)
Which is hardest for you to pray?
- Asking God for forgiveness & salvation?
- Asking God to help you forgive others?
- Asking God to help you forgive yourself?
