Anatomy of Forgiveness —Part #1—11-9-08
The Anatomy of Forgiveness—
Part #1—
11-9-08
Other Idea
· What forgiveness is
· What forgiveness isn’t
· Maybe do that contrast in week #2
Perhaps—take the present notes—boil them down to list contrast??
· Or Use next week list to summarize the concepts
**
Need to Chart out
· Where is forgiveness POINTED in the teaching
· Towards God—Others—Self?
**
Story
· Regroup Last Week’s testimony—Dean Smith—Mom’s Murder
· Lots of layers
· Forgiveness one of the greatest keys we deal with in life
Testimony by Cindy
Giving Forgiveness is just a theory until someone WRONGS you.
· RECEIVING forgiveness is just a theory until you need it
o We’ve blown it
o We catch a glimpse of our sinful heart
o We see how desperately we need forgiveness
Want to talk about the The Anatomy of Forgiveness
Forgiveness is a powerful thing—a CORE to LIFE!
· It is a KEY to life that opens doors of
o Salvation
It Releases Love in our heart for God
· Luke 7: 47
, Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much: but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little.[1]
·
47 Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven—for she loved much.[2]
Forgiveness Releases BLESSING/Joy
· Ps 32
1 Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered.
2 Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord does not count against him and in whose spirit is no deceit.
[3]
Oh, what joy for those whose disobedience is forgiven, whose sin is put out of sight! 2 Yes, what joy for those whose record the Lord has cleared of guilt,* whose lives are lived in complete honesty!
[4]
Real Joy—now live in HONESTY
· Intimacy possible—transparency
· Safe
· Ever felt like had to cover up—hide—lie who you really are
· Forgiveness is a MIRACLE
o Transforms our lives!
o CLEAN SLATE: New Beginnings- second chances
o In our lives
· It’s key in restoring our relationship with God
o Opens the door to a new beginning for us
· It’s a key piece that opens the door Brings healing
o Begins opportunity for restored relationship
Pardon: Really like the word ‘pardon’
· When you pardon others
· You are not holding anything they have done against them
· No longer able to be accountable
Think of presidential pardon
· You were ALREADY judged
· Convicted—SENTENCED
· Not saying didn’t commit crime
· After pardon—Can NEVER be prosecuted for the crime
That is the way God forgives us
· He grants a pardon from the King of kings
· When God forgives—He isn’t holding our sins against us anymore!
· He PARDONS our SINS!!!!
Forgiveness works in THREE basic relationships in our lives
· God and Us
· Us and Others
· Towards Ourselves
Each of these areas are a teaching in themselves
· Giving overview today
· ANATOMY—how something works—put together
Forgiveness
· One of those things we need to REGULARLY have working in our lives
· Forgiveness like a good engine oil
o Keeps the engine from seizing
o Keeps things lubricated—working well together
· When Forgiveness flowing properly in our lives
o Like an engine—running with oil that is constantly being refreshed—GOTTA CHANGE OIL!!!!!!
o The Work of Forgiveness needs to be CONSTANTLY refreshed in our lives
o Doesn’t ‘overheat’ (check with Ron)
o Impurities don’t build up on the inside of the engine and corrode the parts
o Parts don’t ‘rub on each other’—but things work at top efficiency. (BOC)—Apply Other Relationships.
o Just like you need to REGULARLY Change your oil
o Forgiveness needs to be RENEWED in our lives on a regular basis
Need to receive/give forgiveness regularly
· I need to receive
o From God
o To those around me
o I give those a lot of opportunity for the gift of FORGIVENESS to operate in their lives!
· I need to give it
o As I extend Grace/forgiveness to others
o Something happens on the inside
§ Dean—Forgiveness is the BEST gift we give to ourselves
o Graced releases on the inside of ME
o Forgiveness greatest gift give to self
· Part of inhale/exhale of Christian life
· Lord’s Prayer
o Taught to daily pray
Matt 6: 12 and forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us.
o Do you have that DAILY habit?
§ Anything standing between you and me, Lord?
§ Anyone I need to forgive?
§ Anyone I need to ask forgiveness???
· Need to have a Lifestyle of forgiveness—in and out
Clutter
· In Natural—life gets CLUTTERED
o Family life
o Can be embarassing
o Tacoma house Reality STORY!!
· Some of us can be a bit like pack rats
o Dumping your baggage
o Cleaning out closet—Nancy verses me
o Pack rat
o Need to regularly do a ‘power dump’—get rid of the debris that clogs the engine
o Change oil
o Many of us revving up cleaning for Thanksgiving guests
o Why do we WAIT?
What about forgiveness areas of YOUR life?
· Are you a pack rat?
· Constant Dumper??
o (E-mail)
SO. . . . . . What Does Forgiveness Do?:
Forgiveness Defined
· Hebrew word: ‘absolve’, ‘release fully’—more of the time translated ‘forgive’.
· More often it is translated ‘bear up’ and ‘lift up’
So what does forgiveness do?
· Lifts our Sins off of our lives
· Develop
· Sin—Burden—last week
Interesting—Jesus
· Did that exactly
· Bore our sins Is 53: 6
Yet the Lord laid on him
the sins of us all.
·
· Lifted them off of us
· Took burden of sin from us—put it on himself (Is 53)
Release Judgment
· Not Saying what happened to you was RIGHT
·
· I Forgive—not because what happened was RIGHT—but because it SETS ME FREE
TG:
· Far too emotional
· Act of the will
· Sometimes immediate release
· Other times
o Dean’s example
o Layers
o Feelings follow (Soul-Spirit-Body)
How does Forgiveness work in relationships?
When Forgiveness is extended—it makes a place for the OPPORTUNITY for Relationship to be Restored
· What Does do I mean?
· Ken Lawson
· Someone can be willing to offer forgiveness
o But if other one doesn’t repent/own their part—relationship can’t be restored
o Forgiveness does not EQUAL Restored Relationships
o It opens a door of OPPORTUNITY towards a potential restoration.
Example: God
· One another
· Furthermore, forgiveness opens doors for relationship
· But we have to walk THROUGH the door
· Walk out restoration
Some of you may have taken first step—committed life to Lord
· Once Forgiveness begun—that’s first step—heart is clean
· NOW—need to walk with Him—Let Him change nature
· Forgiveness opportunity
There are DIFFERENT LAYERS
· Boundaries in relationships
· Forgiveness does not EQUAL trust
· Or Intimacy
In fact, in some relationships, you can face TOUGH things
· Teaser for next week—Toxic Relationships
·
(Does that mean?
· Tough relationship disclaimer
· Forgiveness NOT intimacy/access)??????
When Unforgiveness flowing in our lives
· Can literally DESTROY the life inside the engine
· Describe the process of what happens when the oil isn’t changed
· When it runs dry
· Corrosion
· Parts rub
· Overheat
· Ultimately it can BLOW your engine
· Throw a rod
Forgiveness insulates us
· Protects us
·
What Does Unforgiveness Do?:
Unforgiveness is a Weight we carry on our lives
· Last week illustration
· Unforgiveness sin
o We need unforgiveness LIFTED from us
· Hebrew definition
· Hebrew word: ‘absolve’, ‘release fully’—more of the time translated ‘forgive’.
· More often it is translated ‘bear up’ and ‘lift up’
So what does forgiveness do?
· Lifts our Sins off of our lives
·
Unforgiveness BLOCKS God’s MERCY in our Lives
Matthew 6:14 For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.
· That’s a HEAVY deal
· That MY Unforgiveness can block God’s MERCY in my Life
· That’s why it’s such a SERIOUS things
Drink poison to get back at the other
· It Doesn’t WORK!
Unforgiveness moves us into Bitterness
Linked Disease
· Ulcer
· Heart Disease
· To Emotional Stress
Bitterness is like cancer
· Eats at you
·
So Many times, We make the other person the enemy
· When in fact, UNFORGIVENESS is the Enemy
· We can pick at issue—destroys our lives
Pres. James Garfield
James Garfield was a lay preacher and principal of his denominational college. They say he was ambidextrous and could simultaneously write Greek, with one hand and Latin with the other.
In l880, he was elected president of the United States, but after only six months in office, he was shot in the back with a revolver. He never lost consciousness. At the hospital, the doctor probed the wound with his little finger to seek the bullet. He couldn’t find it, so he tried a silver-tipped probe. Still he couldn’t locate the bullet. They took Garfield back to Washington, D.C. Despite the summer heat, they tried to keep him comfortable. He was growing very weak. Teams of doctors tried to locate the bullet, probing the wound over and over.
In desperation they asked Alexander Graham Bell, who was working on a little device called the telephone, to see if he could locate the metal inside the president’s body. He came, he sought, and he too failed. The president hung on through July, through August, but in September he finally died—not from the wound, but from infection.
The repeated probing, which the physicians thought would help the man, eventually killed him..
So it is with people who dwell too long on their sin and refuse to release it to God.
- Roger Thompson
Unforgiveness
· We Rehearse/rehearse/rehearse it
· (Disclaimer)—Bring to light
o BUT—LEAVE at the cross
o Don’t cuddle with it!
o OK to process
But HE has borne our GRIEFS—carried our sorrows
· I understand in healing—LAYERS
· Big splinter—little ones
· Leave at cross
Greatest forgiveness at CROSS
· Father forgive them
· Passion of the Christ—they don’t know
In the Lord’s prayer
· Jesus tied our forgiving other to his forgiveness working in our lives
· I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to block His forgiveness in my life!!!!!!!
Let’s talk about how all work through this thing forgivingv
Last summer
· Studied Teaching by Robert Morris
· Loved what he said about the process of forgiving
o Release
o Receive
o Believe
Release
To forgive others
· Completely Release them from the charges against them
· Pardon
· True forgiveness doesn’t look for vindication/justice
Joseph made choice to RELEASE brothers
· Tell the story
·
· PTLF early days—transition HO/TG—Ldrs
· Joseph
Genesis 50:16
15 When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, “What if Joseph holds a grudge against us and pays us back for all the wrongs we did to him?” 16 So they sent word to Joseph, saying, “Your father left these instructions before he died: 17 ‘This is what you are to say to Joseph: I ask you to forgive your brothers the sins and the wrongs they committed in treating you so badly.’ Now please forgive the sins of the servants of the God of your father.” When their message came to him, Joseph wept.
18 His brothers then came and threw themselves down before him. “We are your slaves,” they said.
19 But Joseph said to them, “Don’t be afraid. Am I in the place of God? 20 You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives. 21 So then, don’t be afraid. I will provide for you and your children.” And he reassured them and spoke kindly to them.
[5]
o Am I in the place of God?
§ He understood his place
o He released Forgiveness long before saw brothers
What about hard cases?
· Next week
· Toxic Relationships/situations
Receive
Rest and Invest
Different Spheres of Relationships
· Different spheres of intensities
· Will call for different spheres of responses
Rest
· Let God vindicate
In toxic situations
· Rest in boundaries
· AS much as is POSSIBLE live at peace with all men
o Some situations aren’t possible
o Forgiveness has wisdom tied to it
INVEST
· IN the restored relationships
· With God
· With others
Believe
Three Places We need Forgiveness to Flow in our Lives
Relationship with God
With one another
With Ourselves
----
[1]The Holy Bible : King James Version. 1995 (electronic ed. of the 1769 edition of the 1611 Authorized Version.) (Lk 7:47). Bellingham WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.
[2]The Holy Bible : New International Version. 1996, c1984 (electronic ed.) (Lk 7:46-47). Grand Rapids: Zondervan.
[3]The Holy Bible : New International Version. 1996, c1984 (electronic ed.) (Ps 32:1-2). Grand Rapids: Zondervan.
* Greek version reads of sin. Compare Rom 4:7.
[4]Tyndale House Publishers. (2004). Holy Bible : New Living Translation. "Text edition"--Spine. (2nd ed.) (Ps 32:1-2). Wheaton, Ill.: Tyndale House Publishers.
[5]The Holy Bible : New International Version. 1996, c1984 (electronic ed.) (Ge 50:15-21). Grand Rapids: Zondervan.