“Be as ready to forgive others as God for Christ’s sake has forgiven you.”
Ephesians 4:32-5:2 – J.B. Phillips New Testament (PHILLIPS)
31-32 Let there be no more resentment, no more anger or temper, no more violent self-assertiveness, no more slander and no more malicious remarks, Be kind to each other, be understanding. Be as ready to forgive others as God for Christ’s sake has forgiven you.
5 1-2 As children copy their fathers you, as God’s children, are to copy him. Live your lives in love—the same sort of love which Christ gives us and which he perfectly expressed when he gave himself up for us in sacrifice to God.
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Today the question is: what is forgiveness? What does it look like? What isn't it? We have heard from Jesus that it is essential. It is not icing on the cake of Christianity. If we don't experience it and offer it to others, we ourselves become bitter and resentful towards others. An unforgiving spirit brings with it more unclean spirits such as, anger, rage, resentment, depression. And when we look at Ephesians 4: 31 we are to put these things off from us because we are a New Creation in Christ.
Let’s go to Matthew 18:32-35:
Matthew 18:21-35 – J.B. Phillips New Testament (PHILLIPS)
The necessity for forgiveness
21 Then Peter approached him with the question, “Master, how many times can my brother wrong me and I must forgive him? Would seven times be enough?”
22-27 “No,” replied Jesus, “not seven times, but seventy times seven! For the kingdom of Heaven is like a king who decided to settle his accounts with his servants. When he had started calling in his accounts, a man was brought to him who owed him millions of pounds. And when it was plain that he had no means of repaying the debt, his master gave orders for him to be sold as a slave, and his wife and children and all his possessions as well, and the money to be paid over. At this the servant fell on his knees before his master, ‘Oh, be patient with me!’ he cried, ‘and I will pay you back every penny!’ Then his master was moved with pity for him, set him free and cancelled his debt.
28-30 “But when this same servant had left his master’s presence, he found one of his fellow-servants who owed him a few shillings. He grabbed him and seized him by the throat, crying, ‘Pay up what you owe me!’ At this his fellow-servant fell down at his feet, and implored him, ‘Oh, be patient with me, and I will pay you back!’ But he refused and went out and had him put in prison until he should repay the debt.
31 When the other fellow-servants saw what had happened, they were horrified and told their master the whole incident.
32-35 Then his master called him in. “‘You wicked servant!’ he said. ‘Didn’t I cancel all that debt when you begged me to do so? Oughtn’t you to have taken pity on your fellow-servant as I, your master, took pity on you? And his master in anger handed him over to the gaolers till he should repay the whole debt. This is how my Heavenly Father will treat you unless you each forgive your brother from your heart.”
The point of Matthew 18:35 is that if we hold fast to an unforgiving spirit, we allow the Accuser – Satan to lie to us and all he will do is fill your mind with doubt, fear and unbelief. Let’s see what the word of God says about forgiveness and how we should apply it to our lives, I will categorize them:
1. Resist thoughts of revenge:
Romans 12:19 – J.B. Phillips New Testament (PHILLIPS)
19 Never take vengeance into your own hands, my dear friends: stand back and let God punish if he will. For it is written: ‘Vengeance is mine. I will repay’.
2. Don’t Repay Evil with Evil:
1 Thessalonians 5:15-18 – J.B. Phillips New Testament (PHILLIPS)
Be sure that no one repays a bad turn by a bad turn; good should be your objective always, among yourselves and in the world at large. Be happy in your faith at all times. Never stop praying. Be thankful, whatever the circumstances may be. If you follow this advice you will be working out the will of God expressed to you in Jesus Christ.
3. Wish your enemies well and Pray for them:
Luke 6:28 – J.B. Phillips New Testament (PHILLIPS)
27-28 “But I say to all of you who will listen to me: love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, and pray for those who treat you badly.
4. Grieve at their calamities:
Proverbs 24:17 – New King James Version (NKJV)
17 Do not rejoice when your enemy falls,
And do not let your heart be glad when he stumbles;
5. Love your enemies, and pray:
Matthew 5:44 – J.B. Phillips New Testament (PHILLIPS)
43-45 “You have heard that it used to be said, ‘You shall love your neighbour’, and ‘hate your enemy’, but I tell you, Love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Heavenly Father. For he makes the sun rise upon evil men as well as good, and he sends his rain upon honest and dishonest men alike.
6. Live at peace with everyone:
Romans 12:18-19 – J.B. Phillips New Testament (PHILLIPS)
18 As far as your responsibility goes, live at peace with everyone.
19 Never take vengeance into your own hands, my dear friends: stand back and let God punish if he will. For it is written: ‘Vengeance is mine. I will repay’.
7. This is God’s will for You:
Romans 12:20-21 – J.B. Phillips New Testament (PHILLIPS)
20-21 ... these are God’s words: ‘Therefore if your enemy hungers, feed him; if he thirsts, give him a drink; for in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head’. Don’t allow yourself to be overpowered with evil. Take the offensive—overpower evil by good!
All these point to a forgiving heart. And the heart is all important as previously mentioned. Jesus said in Matthew 18:35—"unless you forgive your brother from your heart." Forgiveness is not the absence of anger at sin. It is not feeling good about what was bad or wrongly done. Anger against sin and its horrible consequences is fitting up to a point.
Ephesians 5:1-2 says: “ 1-2 As children copy their fathers you, as God’s children, are to copy him. Live your lives in love—the same sort of love which Christ gives us and which he perfectly expressed when he gave himself up for us in sacrifice to God.”
Before you were born again:
- God has loved you with a special, personal, saving love from all eternity.
- His Son gave his life for you to take the place of your judgment.
- God was satisfied by the substitute and sacrifice of the Son. The debt was paid.
Then after you were born again:
- Through Faith in Christ you were brought back to a relationship with God.
- God adopted you into his family as a child of his own.
- And God forgave all your sins and there is no condemnation.
So we remember that forgiving others sets us Free, free from the temptation of Satan and his demonic forces and it brings us in closer fellowship with the Father. To be forgiven is such sweetness that honey is tasteless in comparison with it. But yet there is one thing sweeter still, and that is to forgive. As it is more blessed to give than to receive, so to forgive rises a stage higher in experience than to be forgiven.
Acts 20:32-35
New King James Version (NKJV)
32 “So now, brethren, I commend you to God and to the word of His grace, which is able to build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified. 33 I have coveted no one’s silver or gold or apparel. 34 Yes, you yourselves know that these hands have provided for my necessities, and for those who were with me. 35 I have shown you in every way, by laboring like this, that you must support the weak. And remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’”
FAITH THAT IS SEEN
Mark 2:5, "When Jesus saw their faith, he said unto the sick of the palsy, Son, thy sins be forgiven thee."
MATTHEW 9: 1-8, MARK 2: 1-12, LUKE 5: 17-26
Faith can be seen. Just as Jesus explained to Nicodemus in John 3:8, faith is like the wind. Faith itself is invisible, but saving faith is always accompanied by corresponding actions which can be seen (James 2:17-26).
It was not only the faith of the paralytic that Jesus saw, but also that of his four friends (Mark 2:3). This demonstrates the effect our intercession in faith can have upon others. Jesus saw their faith. However, although our faith released on behalf of others is powerful, it is not a substitute for their faith. It is simply a help. The person who is to receive the miracle must have some degree of faith, also. Even Jesus could not produce healing in those who would not believe (Mark 6:5-6). In this instance, it is evident that the paralytic himself also had faith because he was not resistant to the four who brought him; and he got up and obeyed Jesus' command (v. 7) without having to be helped.
Why did Jesus minister forgiveness of sins to this man instead of meeting the obvious need he had of healing? God is more concerned with the spiritual health of a man than his physical health. Or, Jesus, through a word of knowledge, may have perceived that the real heart-cry of this man was to be reconciled to God. In some instances (not all - John 9:2-3), sickness was a direct result of sin. Therefore, Jesus would be dealing with the very root of the paralysis. Whether or not this man's paralysis was a direct result of sin, sin in our life (that has not been forgiven) will allow Satan to keep us in his bondage. Through Jesus' act of forgiving this man's sins, the paralytic was free to receive all the blessings of God, which certainly included healing.
The point Jesus is making is that both forgiveness of sins and the healing of the paralytic are humanly impossible. If Jesus could do one of these things, He could do the other. He then healed the paralytic showing that He did, indeed, have the authority to forgive sins. In Jesus' day, the people were more inclined to accept His willingness to heal than they were to accept His forgiveness of sins without the keeping of the law. Today, the church world basically accepts forgiveness of sins, but doubts His willingness to heal. They were never meant to be separated. Believe and receive all God has for you today.
CHOOSE TO BELIEVE
John 12:39-40 "Therefore they could not believe, because that Esaias said again, He hath blinded their eyes, and hardened their heart; that they should not see with their eyes, nor understand with their heart, and be converted, and I should heal them."
JOHN 12:37-40
This could be interpreted as the ultimate teaching in predestination. That interpretation would be that these people were never given the opportunity to believe because of Isaiah's prophecies. However, the Word of God makes it clear that "whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved" (Romans 10:13); "Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me" (Revelation 3:20); and "whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely" (Revelation 22:17). No one has ever been denied the opportunity to accept salvation (Timothy 2:11).
Mark 6:5 says that "he (Jesus) could there do no mighty work, save that he laid his hands upon a few sick folk, and healed them." In that instance, it is evident that the reason Jesus couldn't do any mighty work was not because He didn't possess the power, but because He chose not to use that power against a person's will. He couldn't perform the mighty works because of His decision to uphold our freedom of choice.
Likewise, these Jews could not believe because of their choice to reject Jesus. They could not believe because they chose not to believe. "They stumbled at the stumbling stone" (Romans 9:32), which was Jesus.
Isaiah did not predestine them to this fate. Rather he saw that very few would receive the report (Isaiah 53:1) about the Messiah, and therefore would be kept from the knowledge of salvation because they rejected Him in whom all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are found (Colossians 2:3). This is what Isaiah prophesied, and it came to pass. Be careful what you choose.
Kind Regards
Sean Ali | Testing Tools, Data and Automation | Africa Technology
Address: Ground Floor, Block A, 268 Republic Road, Randburg
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E-mail: sean.ali@absa.co.za
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