“The God of the Second Chance”
Luke 15:11-32
Simon Wiesenthal was a Jewish prisoner in a concentration camp during World War II. He suffered much at the hands of the Nazis but not as much as some of his friends and family who lost their lives in very cruel ways. One particular day Simon was taken away from his work group to speak to a dying SS soldier. The dying soldier wanted to confess his atrocities and sins to Simon. The soldier told Simon about specific instances when he had been ordered to kill Jewish families and complied. The soldier asked Simon to forgive him. The man appeared to be truly repentant of his sins and wanted to confess to Simon, who for him represented all Jews.
Simon was faced with a very difficult choice between compassion and justice. Simon decided to say nothing and left the soldier’s bedside. The soldier died sometime during the night. Simon was often haunted by the memory of the soldier and wondered whether he had done the right thing.
Simon’s choice wasn’t as simple as it sounds. The issue at stake wasn’t only whether Simon could forgive the soldier personally but whether he had the right to forgive him in the name of the victims who had died at the hands of the soldier.
What would you have done had you been in Simon’s place?
Are there limits to forgiveness? Why or Why Not?
What do you think Jesus would have done had he been in Simon’s place?
It’s much easier to talk about forgiveness than it is to actually practice it isn’t it? But forgiving other’s isn’t the only difficult thing to do, sometimes it’s just as difficult to ask for forgiveness for something we’ve done wrong.
The more I deal with people the more I realize the importance of forgiveness. In any relationship that goes bad forgiveness could have made a difference. Look at marriage, for example. When a husband and wife have an argument forgiveness is a must for the relationship to continue on. If either the husband or the wife won’t ask for forgiveness or extend forgiveness to their spouse then the relationship will be broken. That’s part of the reason there are so many broken marriages today.
How many of you remember the group “Chicago”? They have a song which I love called “Hard to Say I’m Sorry.” In the beginning of the song the author tells us that the woman he loves has just informed him that they need to take a break from each other and in response to her words he says “It’s hard for me to say I’m sorry. I’ll make it up to you, I promise you, but it’s hard for me to say I’m sorry.” Oh how the words of the song ring true in our own personal lives. It’s really hard to say we’re sorry. And because of that difficulty our relationships with the ones that we love are torn apart. This isn’t only true between a man and a woman, this extends to children, and friends, and to every relationship in life. When we hurt another person it’s so difficult for us to humble ourselves and admit that we were wrong and to truly ask for forgiveness. Sometime it’s even more difficult to forgive someone who has hurt us because we don’t want to trust them again. It’s much easier to build a wall and refuse to let them into that place that they once held in our hearts. Do you know why? Because we don’t want to be hurt again.
I believe that if you and I can learn to ask for forgiveness and grant it in exchange that the relationships that we are a part of can be transformed and we can experience the fulfillment and peace that God desires for us. I believe this because I believe that we serve a God who has modeled that forgiveness for us. We serve the God of the Second Chance.
Our story today is a familiar story. It’s the story of the Prodigal Son. You know it well. It’s about a rotten young man who one day demands that his dad pay up what he owes him and when he had gotten everything that he had coming to him and had succeeded in breaking his father’s heart he left not to be heard from for some time. This young man spent all his money living foolishly and when he ran out he discovered that those he thought were his friends were only interested in his money. He was forced to take a job taking care of a farmer’s pigs. The story tells us that this young man was so hungry that he wanted to eat the pigs food. And finally he woke up and realized that his father’s servants had it better than this. He decided to drag himself home and request a job as a servant. He knew that he wasn’t worthy of being called a son any longer. He also knew how he had broken his father’s heart. He never would expect his father to forgive him for that. Let me pause and ask you a question: how many of you have relationships like this with a child or someone else you love who has wondered off and broken your heart? How many of you have a relationship with someone you once cared deeply for who took your heart and smashed into a million pieces? I know that there are some of you here who know how this father must have felt. But here’s where our lesson and our challenge comes in. Because when Jesus told this story he knew how a person like this father would typically feel. He knew what it meant to be hurt, to be betrayed. And he knew how difficult it is for us, as human beings, to let go of that anger and resentment that we harbor against that person who has injured us. But he wanted to teach us something. He wanted to teach us what God the Father is like.
When that young man returned home we’re told that his father saw him at a distance and ran with arms wide open to greet him. He didn’t ask if he was sorry. He didn’t demand that he make it up to him. He didn’t even wait for an apology. He ran to him, embraced him, and kissed him and then he threw a party for him. This father exemplified a forgiveness which is unbelievable. The type of forgiveness that is almost too good to be true. But you know what? It is true. It’s the forgiveness that God gave us. You see God wasn’t interested in whether we were sorry or how we would make it up to Him. God was only interested in giving us a second chance. And now you and I, as followers of Jesus Christ are called to live that same type of forgiveness. We’re called to take it seriously. Jesus taught us to pray, “Forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us.” Think about those words: We’re asking God to forgive us based on the way in which we forgive those who hurt us. If God were to base his forgiveness of your sins on your forgiveness of others, how would you feel? Think about those people that have hurt you so deeply who you’ve been holding that grudge against. Do you want God to hold a grudge against you? We need to take this seriously.
I want to quickly outline six Biblical steps to forgiveness which I strongly believe if you will practice will transform your relationships and your entire lives. They will allow you to release the anger that you’ve been carrying around and will allow you to open your heart once again to others so that you can be loved and so that you can experience peace and wholeness.
Step #1 is Choose to Forgive. Forgiveness will not come until you make a choice to extend it. When we choose not to forgive we become bitter and we block the transforming power of Christ in our lives. Our hearts become bound and we are no longer free to love as we are to love. Anger and resentment have tremendous power over our lives, and usually they don’t harm the person with whom you are angry as much as they harm you. We must choose to forgive, whether the person asks for forgiveness or not. If you’re taking notes and you want to write down some scripture passages on this step they are Matthew 18:21-22; Luke 17:4; Ephesians 4:32 and Colossians 3:12-13.
Step #2 is to View Forgiveness as an Act of Obedience to God. If you claim to be a Christian then forgiveness is not an option. It’s a mandate. The Bible tells us in Romans 12:19-21 that vengeance is God’s not ours. We’re told to respond to our enemies in love, and that in so doing they will be ashamed of what they’ve done. We have no choice but to forgive. Christ forgave us. Christ gave us another chance, now you and I are called to do the same. Don’t view forgiveness as an option, see it as a matter of obedience to God.
Step #3 is to Remove Past Offenses from Your Mind. In other words, don’t keep on thinking about the wrongdoing. Husbands and wives, don’t bring up something that your spouse has already asked forgiveness for previously the next time he or she does it. That’s not practicing true forgiveness. I know how difficult it is to forgive and forget, but we can choose not to reenact previous arguments and relive the anger from those moments. We can make a choice to not look at the past but only deal with the present and future. The Apostle Paul says in Philippians 3:13-14 that we are to forget the past and look forward to what lies ahead. Decide here and now that when you practice forgiveness you will truly forgive and will not always bring the past up again and again.
Step #4 is to Meditate on Scripture. I can’t emphasize the importance of this enough. I tell you this all the time, but let me say it again. On your own power you will not have the strength to practice the type of forgiveness that we’re talking about. But on a daily basis our minds and hearts are to be transformed and renewed in the image of Christ and the only way that that will happen is for you and I to into God’s word so that we can be encouraged and empowered to do the unnatural. Without the influence of God’s word in your life you’ll be stumbling along in the dark constantly falling, but remember that God’s word is a lamp for our feet and a light for our path.
Step #5 is to Give Your Hurts to God. Where do we normally vent our anger? We vent it on the ones we love. We take it out in unhealthy ways and in so doing we hurt others. A necessary step in forgiveness is to give your hurt to God as Jesus did when he was hurt. I Peter 2:22-23 says that “Jesus never sinned, and he never deceived anyone. He did not retaliate when he was insulted. When he suffered, he did not threaten to get even.” He didn’t vent his anger on those around him, even though they deserved it. When Jesus hurt the verse goes on to tell us, “He left his case in the hand of God, who always judges fairly.” Jesus entrusted God with his hurt.
Have you been hurt? Is your heart broken? Are you angry? Give your hurt to God. Jesus died for it. Lay it at the foot of the cross.
Finally, step #6 is to Pray for the Offender. This must be one of the most difficult steps of all. We are called to pray for those who offend us. Jesus said in Matthew 5:44 to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us!” Ultimately this is about releasing judgment. It’s not our job to judge that person. God will. This is so hard because secretly we want the person to fail or at least be punished for what they’ve done. Releasing that judgment to God is difficult and radical but it’s also incredibly freeing.
If God were to take the words of your prayer seriously when you say “Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us” what would happen? Where would you stand before God? Has forgiveness really become a reality in your life? It’s not enough to just talk about it, we must truly live it. God is the God of the second chance and God has called us to forgive in the same way.
Maybe today it’s you that’s done the damage. Maybe you’re the one who needs to be asking for forgiveness. Don’t waste another day. Don’t allow the power of anger and pain to bind your heart and control you any longer. Break free from its chains! God wants to give you the freedom that His Son died to obtain for you. Make forgiveness a reality today.
Don’t allow anger to ruin or control your life any longer. Break free from its grip and allow the power of forgiveness to transform your life and your relationships into what you’ve always wanted them to be.
