Sermon "the Challenging Discipline Of Forgiveness (Forgiveness Is For Everyone)

Forgiveness Is For Everyone

Scripture Matt 18: 21-35 “Then Peter came to him and asked, “Lord, how often should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times?” 22 “No, not seven times,” Jesus replied,“but seventy times seven! 23“Therefore, the Kingdom of Heaven can be compared to a king who decided to bring his accounts up to date with servants who had borrowed money from him. 24 In the process, one of his debtors was brought in who owed him millions of dollars. 25 He couldn’t pay, so his master ordered that he be sold—along with his wife, his children, and everything he owned—to pay the debt. 26 “But the man fell down before his master and begged him, ‘Please, be patient with me, and I will pay it all.’ 27 Then his master was filled with pity for him, and he released him and forgave his debt. 28 “But when the man left the king, he went to a fellow servant who owed him a few thousand dollars. He grabbed him by the throat and demanded instant payment. 29 “His fellow servant fell down before him and begged for a little more time. ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it,’ he pleaded. 30 But his creditor wouldn’t wait. He had the man arrested and put in prison until the debt could be paid in full. 31 “When some of the other servants saw this, they were very upset. They went to the king and told him everything that had happened. 32 Then the king called in the man he had forgiven and said, ‘You evil servant! I forgave you that tremendous debt because you pleaded with me. 33 Shouldn’t you have mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had mercy on you?’ 34 Then the angry king sent the man to prison to be tortured until he had paid his entire debt. 35 “That’s what my heavenly Father will do to you if you refuse to forgive your brothers and sisters from your heart.”

Introduction: After Jesus taught on reconciliation and unity, Peter came asking, just how far should forgiveness extend. The Lord had just spoken of the duty of seeking reconciliation with those who trespassed against us (Mt 18:15-17), and there seems to have been some doubt in the mind of Peter how far this principle should be carried. Peter generously offered until seven times? It is stated that the Jewish Talmud that forgiveness must be extended to one who confessed his fault, but this was limited to three repetitions of the offence. Peter had an idea that the Savior's rule would insist on still greater forbearance. The number seven came into his mind.

All of us have been wounded in some way by another person, mentally, emotionally, or even physically. Yet, forgiveness is a powerful tool to help us experience a greater degree of joy and freedom. While life can be filled with painful events and tragedies, we can rebound and move on quickly from life’s even most difficult situations when we learn to practice forgiveness. What does the parable of the unforgiving servant teach us? Jesus taught that God desires forgiveness and reconciliation most. Though perfect in all His ways, God is willing to forgive every repentant sinner. He forgave a debt we cannot repay, so we should be ready to forgive others. The servant who did not forgive in the arable was tortured. Perhaps Jesus is referring to the way a person feels when they cannot forgive. They remain bitter and resentful and end up suffering the most.

Of all the discipline given by Jesus, forgiveness maybe the most difficult. Forgiveness require every person to accept individual responsibility: Then we must accept what has happened and decide to show yourself compassionate. We must recognize the Remorse: Use guilt and remorse as a gateway to positive behavior change. Finally we must desire restoration: Make amends with whomever we're forgiving, even if it's yourself. Accept and offer renewal as we learn from the experience and grow as a person. Forgiveness is hard even for Christian. If you’re like most people, the very thought of forgiving an enemy probably makes you feel uneasy. This doesn’t make you a bad person—it just makes you human.

Forgiveness is difficult because its human nature to protect ourselves, to avoid being exploited or used by others, so if we can’t hit back, we simply avoid the other person. Therefore, any discussion of forgiveness must begin by thinking carefully about the desire for retaliation. Retaliation is basically to even the score by reversing any gains that might be had by the aggressor. Other might seek revenge. Revenge is an extreme form of retaliation that is meant to cause suffering and not reconciliation. Revenge is driven by the perception (real or not) that that person can never change. That person is stubborn, whose mind cannot be turned, and whose behavior must be stopped. Even though forgiveness is hard, even for Christians, Jesus gives Peter some reasons to forgive a repentant person, not just three times or seven times, but seven times seventy. Forgiveness is for everyone because everyone is indebted.