Sermon Transcript:
Well, I just know that as we even say this word forgiveness, and you think about what God may be calling you to do in the coming days, I know that for many in the room, it brings about anxiety. And so just know that I'm praying for you. And I know that none of the issues that we're talking about are easy. Well, I want to begin with a story that is in the New Testament in the book of Luke chapter seven. And it's a story about a woman who is known as a sinful woman because of her choices in life. And she comes to Jesus at a moment when others are around the table. And they began to realize that this sinful woman is going to touch the feet of our Lord and Savior. And as she's doing that she's going to break a jar of expensive perfume over his feet, and she's going to wipe his feet with her hair, then one of the Pharisees that is with them is thinking to himself, why is Jesus allowing the sinful woman to touch him at all? And Jesus, knowing his thought says, I have something to say to you? And so he says, Okay, what is it teacher, and that's where we're going to pick up our story today. And so here it is, in Luke chapter seven, it says this right here. Then Jesus told him a story. A man loaned money to two people, 500 pieces of silver to one and 50 pieces to the other, but neither of them could repay him. So he kindly forgave them both cancelling their debts. Who do you suppose loved him more after that? Simon answered, I suppose the one for whom he canceled the larger debt. That's right, Jesus said, Then he turned to the woman and said to Simon, look at this woman kneeling here, when I entered your home, you didn't offer me water to wash the dust from my feet, but she has washed them with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You didn't greet me with a kiss, but from the time I first came in, she has not stopped kissing My feet, you neglected the courtesy of olive oil to anoint my head, but she has anointed My feet with rare perfume. I tell you, her sins, and they are many have been forgiven. So she has shown me much love. But a person who is forgiven little shows only little love. Then Jesus said to the woman, Your sins are forgiven. The man at the table said among themselves, Who is this man that he goes around forgiving sins, and Jesus said to the woman, Your faith has saved you go in peace. Now, you may be familiar with that story, you may be hearing it for the first time. But I want us to be reminded once again, that forgiveness is all over in this story. And that the point of this story is for us, if we call ourselves believers, Christ's followers were to tap into our superpower, this whole idea that we are people who have been forgiven, so that we can then engage a lost and dying world with that power with that peace means that we can tap into our superpower, this whole idea of forgiveness that flows from our heart, because we've received it first and foremost, from our Lord and Savior. What it does is it means that we are now distributors of peace, because we have peace. I don't want to be flippant, like the old Oprah Winfrey giveaway, but it's just that all I give like, you get a car, you get a car, you get a car, it's like you get forgiveness, you get forgiveness, you get forgiveness. I thought about this in terms of the superhero motif, and I was reminded of a popular movie in the last couple of years. And this whole idea of Shazam. And he realizes with his young friend that I've got power, I've got Lightning in my hands. It's this whole idea that we have to realize that in our going in our very lives in our very touch, that we have the power of forgiveness, we just need to tap into this, because it's already been done. For those who are believers. I'm reminded of this chart that we've been looking at over the last couple of weeks and will be reminded that we can't get this out of order, we have to first understand that God forgives us. That's what those who stepped into the baptismal pool this morning, said and understood it and realize that God's forgiven me, there's a God in heaven and he's forgiven me, then we are then enabled internally to grant forgiveness. And then finally, we're able to offer reconciliation to our fellow men and women around us. We can't get this out of order. I'm gonna hang out a little bit today at that third part, because I know that's been probably one of the most difficult things for us to think about the implications of us knowing have to forgive people that have hurt us so greatly when things we're reminded about is that this takes faith It takes faith that results in forgiveness of ourselves that enables me and you to forgive others. Think about this principle that we learn from this story of this woman. She's forgiven much. She understands the litany of sins that she has done and gone through. And so therefore, what is it say she's unable to do, by the power of the Holy Spirit by the power of God Himself, she able to love much, if you and I don't think we're that bad, or don't think God can forgive us because we've gone too far. Both of these ideas are a denial of the love and forgiveness of our Lord and Savior. Do we see that this morning? See, we can fall off either way, we can either say, You know what, I've gone too far. I've gone too far down the road of destruction. So therefore God, your your, your power, it can't help me. That's one denial. Or, you know what, I've done some bad things, or I'm not as bad as him or her. I mean, like, yeah, I need forgiveness, but they need a whole lot of forgiveness. Both of those missed the point missed the mark. Sometimes you've heard this whole phrase of, I can't forgive myself or, you know, you need to forgive yourself, which is a popular term and sort of self help understanding. Maybe you've even felt that. But anytime we sort of find ourselves hanging out there too long. It is, as I've already stated, a denial of the power of God to be able to do that work in your life. And in mind, it's really being convinced that his forgiveness is not enough. His blood is not enough. And what Jesus is saying over and over again, yes, it is. It's enough for that woman. And it's enough for that prideful, man, it is enough. And I don't think maybe we found ourselves like that prideful man where you think I haven't done anything wrong to be forgiven for not as much as her they are mostly the center or you are mostly the center. Again, this all gets into how we're going to interact with others that we know need forgiveness that that we have received. But the forgiveness not only includes me, and you it does include them. I've said from the beginning, here we are on the third week that we all know situations that we're currently a part of, or that we came out of, or that we're going to go into that requires our forgiveness. It requires our forgiveness. That's what the Scriptures demand of us. But we know it's hard, right? We know it's hard. We know it's a process. But we all have right now that person or that situation, right? You don't even have to close your eyes and you get a picture, you get an image of that which has caused you so much angst, and maybe even driving you mad or hurting your heart. Or you think to yourself, This is the enemy that I didn't ask for or the torture I didn't deserve. Don't think you're so bad. Or don't think that they're so bad that God can't forgive them because they've gone too far. Let's look at the book of Luke again, one chapter back chapter six. And this is really a condensed version of what is often referred to as the Sermon on the Mount. In the book of Matthew. It's also in the book of Luke, in a more condensed version, we're going to look at that Luke chapter six, beginning verse 38, says this Love your enemies, like Whoa, let's just be real clear. When someone has harmed us wronged us hurt us in some way. They are in the category of enemy in our hearts, even if we haven't said that out loud. Love your enemies, do good to them, lend to them without expecting to be repaid, then your reward from heaven will be very great. And you will truly be acting as children are the most high. For he is kind of those your unthankful and wicked, you must be compassionate. Just as your father is compassionate. Do not judge others and you will not be judged. Do not condemn others, or it will all come back against you. Here's that word. Forgive others. This just happens to be a passage about forgiveness, forgive others, and you will be forgiven. Give and you will receive your gift will return to you in full press down shaken together to make room for more running over and poured into your lap. The mount you give will determine the amount you get back. Love your enemies, man.
That's always a phrase, we know that somewhere in the Bible. And it is just one of those things that we're doing, not to him, right? Not him, Lord, not her Lord. I can't keep doing it. Lord, I don't want to be walked all over. And then you ask yourself, Where is the justice and all that and we'll talk about that. But in the meantime, what about you and me? How are we going to respond because we're we're thinking about those three different levels, our connection with God, our connection with ourselves and our own heart and knowing where our hearts out at the moment and then being able to reconcile with our brothers and sisters, whether they're brothers or sisters in Christ or just fellow man or woman. Key is here's the key second point this morning. Compassion is the key to forgiveness. You See it in that text, we have to understand how compassionate the Lord has been to us in order to then in return be compassion toward someone else to have compassion towards someone else, it realizes that they are hurting to you, and I can't fix them, whoever they are you and I can't change them or the situation, whatever it is, but you and I can be an instrument or a catalyst for them coming to Christ, whether it's a believer who needs to be humbled and hit their knees, or someone who does not yet know the Lord, but needs to know Christ that can only occur though I'm gonna be real clear, that can only occur when you're not been healed first. That's why I love this image of the bandaid over the heart. It's the idea that we have been healed. But the bleeding has to stop for us right before we can dry to go out and help someone else bleeding out, you understand that right? You don't want to be attended to by a medical doctor whose cut open themselves in bleeding out you want him or her to be fixed first, go ahead and sum them up first, so that they can then Sew me up. It's the same way with forgiveness. It's like oxygen on an airplane, you've been on those flights, when they say make sure you take care of yourself, then if you have any little ones are those with you, then make sure they have oxygen. If we don't choose compassion, what did he say, Pastor, I hear you on all that I'm gonna go a different route. If we don't choose compassion, which I'm arguing is the key to forgiveness. What we'll end up with, is trying to control the situation. You ever been there trying to control or manage the situation. And what we're trying to control. What it will always lead to is some form of judging or condemning. And I want you to see that from the text in the book of Luke here chapter six, you can see that in the whole context of have compassion, have forgiveness, do not judge do not condemn. Why because it all come back to you. It's like a boomerang. When you and I start delving out that when you start delving out judgment and condemnation, instead of compassion and love, is ultimately what comes back around and hits us too. That's not karma, folks, that's called reaping what you and I so it's that whole idea you've heard this phrase before live by the sword die by the sword you ever known someone like this? You just ready to get ready to fight ready to rumble ready to have that sword living by the sword dying by the so we've all been there, though. How many times have you and I we've gotten into a conflict with someone. And then we find ourselves full of bitterness, hate we even have a grudge. That's a term we don't think about very often. And you think about this, and they say Man, if they come at me one more time with their dysfunction, their hurt their sin, you know, we're going to take out them with our own out of control actions, we think we're in control. But the more we try to control what happens, the more what blows up in our face, we've all been there before, right? We've all done this before. And that's not going to be true, even if it's just interpersonal conflicts in your home, not not full blown enemies that you are not sure to do with or what to do with outside the home. Because what will happen is, is that when we run across this whole idea of someone's done something, they're offended, I'm offended. We're both offended. What ends up happening is we ratchet it up. You ever done this before? When you're in conflict, the temperature keeps rising. You go here, I'll go here you go here. I'll go here. I'll go here. And we'll just keep ratcheting up. Why? Because we're both trying to what squish the other person and or their argument. But compassion, because we've all been there, right? Is it just my household? I don't know. Maybe it maybe but we've all been there, right? We've all been there. And compassion, though, will lead you and me to a posture of forgiveness. At least if someone says, timeout, I surrender. I'm tired of trying to control this situation. I'm going to be the instrument of compassion because God has been compassionate with me. There's at least an opportunity for reconciliation, or restoring relationship or peace in our own life and the relationships. But what if they don't change? What if they keep harming What am I supposed to do? And how much does I think about that? Well, good news. The Scripture helps us out with that as well. So we're going to look at a third passage this morning. That helps us to think through this whole idea of compassion and forgiveness. Bless those who persecute you. Don't curse them. Pray that God will bless them. Be happy with those who are happy and weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with each other. Don't be too proud to enjoy the company of ordinary people. And don't think you know at all. Never pay back evil with more evil. Do things in such a way that everyone can see. You are honorable do all that you can to live in peace with everyone. Difference. Never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. For the scripture say I will take revenge. I will pay them back says the Lord. Instead, if Your enemies are hungry, feed them. If they are thirsty, give them something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals of shame on their heads. Don't let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good. See, I told you I had to pray for myself and others in the room. Because I know anxiety is rising among our hearts right now, as we're considering and thinking about them that person that situation, because we're hearing again, the call of God, not just from Jesus, but now repeating in some of the Pauline letters in Romans chapter 12. Praying and blessing our enemies, right? That means those that have hurt us that have caused harm to us, Lord already told you, I don't have it in me, I do not have it in me, I want to smite them. My capacity to take this is up to is up to here. Right, whatever that situation is. But what the Scriptures say is don't smite them. Don't repay evil for evil. Why? What is it say here in the text? Why not? They're gonna get away with it. Does injustice prevail when we just allow people to continue on in their sin? No, says the righteous anger of God will take care of them when we are kind, right when they are unkind. It heaps burning coals. Think about what those are. Right? So think about that. So he's burning coals on their head. What that means is it actually shames them, it makes them see how stupid they are, or how they're acting? Because what it does is this kind word, the soft answer, turneth away wrath or the situation, or really dealing with our hearts. So the anger and bitterness we have towards them. That again, is justified at some level, and we feel justified in trying to control it. God's saying to us, no, no, listen, we need to find a way to be kind, even in the midst of their fault. See, the default mode, for your human heart and for my human heart is to maintain control of my life. I'm in control, no one tells me what to do. And we even think about that in terms of salvation. Think about this, all other world religions that besides Christianity is some level of earning your salvation, isn't it? It's just that whole idea of at the end of my life, I want to make sure that my good outweighs My bad. Or even if there's a God in heaven, I'm really working out and doing what I'm supposed to be doing. I don't know about them. But I know I'm doing I'm supposed to be doing. All that does is maintain a heart that wants to control my own life and my own salvation. And that idea of free grace, think about what we did we baptize these people here. We're saying, in spite of all that they've done, and all that they ever will do. They are justified, they're made right with God, God freely gives grace, what is grace, grace is getting something that you and I don't deserve. We've all received grace. What it does, though, is when you receive grace, think about heaping the coals on your head. At first, it is both insulting and unnatural to the self absorbed human heart. Think about that, right? Because that's why sometimes when you try to be kind, it can even blow up in your face worse, can it why because it feels they that even even infuriates maybe the individual even more why? Because it robs them, of the self pity and the self righteousness they need in order to maintain their angry disposition towards life.
I think about this in terms of how maybe I've referenced it once already, but the famous play in the book, and even movie called Les Miserables. And that whole idea of John bow, John, when he goes to the bishop, and he's brought before the bishop and changed because he stoled items from him, even though the bishop had given him a place to stay, and he'd been in jail. What is the response of the bishop? The bishop then says, No, you forgotten more, I meant to give you even more C covers for him, he covers his sin. And even his gracious on top of that, in that moment, John, John is faced with the reality that there is a higher power that there's more to life than to be angry and to be upset. So he has to turn from his wicked ways and receive the grace and forgiveness of God, that was his only choice or to continue to go down the path of self destruction. So what ends up happening is that when you and I engage them, they that situation, and we've emptied all our emotional, physical, financial or relational resources to help another person who doesn't want to be helped, we will ultimately become more unhealthy in the process. So here's where it gets to. What do I do with an unhealthy individual, a person who I don't know what there's reconciliation to be possible, and is bringing me great harm to myself to have them in my life at least to the level and to the degree that they are threatened. What I wants to see this morning is forgiveness releases our need for retaliation, but not our need for boundaries. Think about this from this text I just read, what does it say? Because you know, we want to control and manage a situation or a person, but it says, Listen, turn them over to the Lord, like, turn them over to the Lord, that we are not to. And I'm going to quote verse 21, here of Romans chapter 12. We don't let evil conquer us. But we conquer evil by doing good. And we don't need to keep the I'm making up this word screwed up, and it's going right. In order to be not conquered by their evil, we may need to set up boundaries. Now, I'm not the first to come up with this term, that I think I even got this phrase from woman who wrote a book on forgiveness named Lisa Turkers. But this whole idea of reconciliation and restoration, it's always the goal and hope. Right? So as long as there is blood in our veins, that's always the goal and hope for people to be reconciled with God and to be reconciled with each other. But it's not always possible at the moment. And we're not called in Scripture to enable anyone's bad behavior. You're saying what enabling is, we often talk about this in terms of drug addiction, you don't want to enable an addict when they are hooked on certain drugs. But think about what we're doing and saying we think about enabling enabling is covering up their choices. So don't, don't just think addiction to drugs, it could be addicted to drama, or blowing things up or going down the same evil, stupid path, it's harming you and others. How do you know this is going on, you know that you and I are enabling someone when we're covering up for their choices, when we're rescuing them from the consequences of their sin or bad choices, when we're smoothing over the issues that they cause of destruction. And I think about this in terms of we we referenced last week, a story of forgiveness and how many times we should forgive them. If we kept going in that passage, it gets into the whole idea of church discipline, or when someone leaves the church. And when we understand that when someone needs to leave a relationship when they need to go out from us because they were not one of us, is really giving them over to the world. In the passages of Scripture, it's actually saying sometimes, we need to give that person over to their folly over to even Satan or to the world to be buffeted, because why that's how God needs to deal with them. And if we continue to enable them, what we find ourselves is we haven't set up these boundaries. And we continue to dance the drama with them. Some of y'all work with these people, some of y'all are friends with these people. Some of you all have relatives, who are addicted to this sort of what harming and hurting either through words and actions over and over again, if you're sitting there thinking, because I don't know what you're talking about. I don't know anyone in my life, who is dramatic in any shape, fashion, or form will turn around, and maybe you write all of us know these people, right? They're always a problem, or they always have a problem and you got to fix it. Now you got to fix it immediately. If things are going smooth, if they're going well what happens they throw a wrench in the plan, right, just to cause chaos. And so what ends up happening is that we need to ask ourselves some hard questions sometimes. Because yes, our heart needs to have a heart of forgiveness towards them. Otherwise, we'll grow bitter or angry ourselves, our heart needs to have a heart towards them of compassion. Otherwise, we'll get sucked in to that cycle. But the boundaries that we may have to take will take wisdom and they may take some time to figure out and discerning of some steps forward. But the definition of insanity y'all all know this, I didn't come up with this definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. And some of y'all you're thinking through some of your relationships right now and you're thinking, Wait a second, I may need to interact with these relationships in different ways, in order to honor God, and in some ways, in a healthy way, honor myself and who God is, how he's made me and what he has for me in my life. How do you know that you and I may have a problem with an individual in our life? Do you ever daydream about the day of letting them have it? You know, I'm talking about you ever you ever you got someone in your life or you've had someone in your life, I promise you, you will have someone in your life where you're like, I can't wait to really just let them have it. Right? I'm gonna these are all the things I'm gonna say when I get towards them. And I can say a problem that they've given me or do you daydream about today, they finally admit all the wrong they've done to you. If you ever have that fantasy, where you're like, they come to you and you're like, oh, and they have the list that you have in your head. And all sudden, they're gonna they're just going to confess all that as if that's where it's gonna go. If you and I have those sorts of daydreaming going on. You and I have a problem with someone and we need to deal with it. But we can't wait on them to do their part. We've got to do our part, which is figure out God But how can I have a heart towards them? Well, I don't want to just smite them, and I don't hate them. And I don't want them to just fall off the edge of the earth. But that I can appropriately set up boundaries for my life. And we all know this, this has happened in relationships, you may have had relationships in this room, a marriage combat or whatever, you had to park different ways. Because there was perpetual sin, in the same way against you over and over and over again. But we've all got someone, we need to forgive and at least set up boundaries for a season. Because there's always hope. And that's why I say for a season and it may be the season is for life, I get that. But there's always hope, right? I mean, we don't want to live in a world where there's not hope for individuals, until they have their last breath, there's always hope. For Salvation first, right, and then for reconciliation with others, because here's what we know and believe we believe that their sin will be dealt with. See, that's where we, a lot of times hold on to unforgiveness, because we feel like we're letting them get away with something isn't that true? You think about this in terms of work. And people who take credit for things you think in terms of your relatives or your home life when you know, things just go bad and really, really bad. And they get really dysfunctional, really sinful, really hateful towards one another? And we think No, I, they've got to have it, I've got to let them have it. And what we're realizing in the Scriptures over and over again, is no you don't, because God's gonna deal with them. And so here's how it's gonna be dealt with their sin, your sin, my sin, it's either going to be dealt with on the cross, which is glorious, and beautiful, and our hope for everyone on this planet, as long as they have breath, that they would turn their eyes towards heaven, and finally confess their sin before God and he would forgive them and grant it. And then also, if that's not the case, and if their sin is not taken care of on the cross, where did the Scriptures tell us? How will it be dealt with? It will be dealt with by God Himself in judgment. So we don't need to do it. We need to figure out a way church to overcome evil with good. Because what we can do is we can change our family tree, you guys know this, I talk about this all the time, we can change our family path, we can overcome and there's a lot of evil enrollments been done to us, we can all go through different times of confession or hurt that we could talk about to one another. I get that. But the we need to figure out a way to overcome evil with good for the sake of ourselves. That's why I said we have to have enough respect for ourselves to be able to figure out God, what is it you have me do, because I care about my future, I care about my children's future. And I care about having a legacy of faith that only comes from Jesus Christ Himself. This this stuff I'm talking about here. This is the nitty gritty nuts and bolts, the hard stuff of Christianity. Everybody knows that this whole idea of loving your enemies, being compassion to someone who's doing something in your face, or worse yet, who has been evil and harmed you and hurt you, and your family, and you, other friends in all kinds of ways, but we can do it. We can do it with God. Having that in us. He says that you and I have the hope of glory. You and I can do this. Just like Shazam has those power in his hands. You and I have the power to forgive but rest assure friends, it must flow from God Himself, so that it can flow to others in our minutes.
Let's pray. Father, I thank you so much for your word. I thank you for how you love us. Hey, you don't leave us. I thank you for these four that made a step today, a journey today that proclaim to this room and anyone who's watching online that they've been forgiven. So Father, as they were reconciled to you, I just pray for a ministry of reconciliation in this church, that we will be men and women who go forth and have relationships that can be restored and that can be reconciled. But father if they can't, Father, I pray for hearts that are hurting right now that are anxious, that are bitter, that are angry, and we feel so justified, Lord, but help us to realize that your shoulders are big enough for this. Your cross is big enough and wide enough for whatever we need to lay at your feet. You will take our burdens upon you and that you will give us a yoke that is easy and light. Father we pray that for ourselves. I pray that for many people in this room so that we obey me, men and women of peace, footsteps of peace Oh may it be true for Life Church, not only this day, but all the days we exist. That's us in Christ's name. Amen.
