Obey Forgive (27 of 35)
Series: Obey Everything
Steve Jones
Matthew 18:21
SERMON SUMMARY: This sermon addresses Jesus' command to forgive by noting that we: 1) STRUGGLE with forgiveness, 2) Jesus STRETCHES our forgiveness, 3) God EXERCISES big forgiveness, and 4) Grace OBLIGATES our forgiveness.
INTRODUCTION: Today we'll do a deep dive into Jesus' command to forgive those who sin against us. But before we talk about what forgiveness IS, let's talk about what forgiveness isn't.
1) Forgiving isn't folly. ''Fooled me once shame on you. Fooled me twice shame on who? Me.'' (Gomer Pyle). Those who sin against us may be ''repeat offenders.'' Forgiving them doesn't mean we let them take advantage of us again. You can forgive and still establish ''boundaries'' to protect yourself. If your spouse cheats on you, forgive them. But restoration of the relationship will require boundaries, counselling and a process to rebuild trust.
2) Forgiving isn't ''shielding.'' You can forgive the person who stole your car but that doesn't mean they won't go to jail for grand theft auto.
3) Forgiving isn't reconciliation. Reconciliation takes two people - forgiveness is unilateral. Whether or not the RELATIONSHIP is restored depends on whether there is repentance and a process to re-establish trust. You can have forgiveness without reconciliation, but you can't have reconciliation without forgiveness.
4) Forgiveness is not tyrannical. What I mean by that is you cannot demand that someone else forgive YOU. It would be nice if they did, and they probably SHOULD, but that is under their control, not yours. You are responsible for you; they are responsible for them. Same with love.
With those caveats, let's note four aspects of obeying forgiveness.
I. WE STRUGGLE WITH FORGIVENESS (remember)
Matthew 18:21 ''Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, ''Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?''
Peter is struggling ...
Series: Obey Everything
Steve Jones
Matthew 18:21
SERMON SUMMARY: This sermon addresses Jesus' command to forgive by noting that we: 1) STRUGGLE with forgiveness, 2) Jesus STRETCHES our forgiveness, 3) God EXERCISES big forgiveness, and 4) Grace OBLIGATES our forgiveness.
INTRODUCTION: Today we'll do a deep dive into Jesus' command to forgive those who sin against us. But before we talk about what forgiveness IS, let's talk about what forgiveness isn't.
1) Forgiving isn't folly. ''Fooled me once shame on you. Fooled me twice shame on who? Me.'' (Gomer Pyle). Those who sin against us may be ''repeat offenders.'' Forgiving them doesn't mean we let them take advantage of us again. You can forgive and still establish ''boundaries'' to protect yourself. If your spouse cheats on you, forgive them. But restoration of the relationship will require boundaries, counselling and a process to rebuild trust.
2) Forgiving isn't ''shielding.'' You can forgive the person who stole your car but that doesn't mean they won't go to jail for grand theft auto.
3) Forgiving isn't reconciliation. Reconciliation takes two people - forgiveness is unilateral. Whether or not the RELATIONSHIP is restored depends on whether there is repentance and a process to re-establish trust. You can have forgiveness without reconciliation, but you can't have reconciliation without forgiveness.
4) Forgiveness is not tyrannical. What I mean by that is you cannot demand that someone else forgive YOU. It would be nice if they did, and they probably SHOULD, but that is under their control, not yours. You are responsible for you; they are responsible for them. Same with love.
With those caveats, let's note four aspects of obeying forgiveness.
I. WE STRUGGLE WITH FORGIVENESS (remember)
Matthew 18:21 ''Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, ''Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?''
Peter is struggling ...
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