Sunday, December 15, 2019

Many Reasons for Christmas Part 3: Forgiveness

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Review: The Many Reasons of Christmas Pt. 1 - Sin
Point 1: The reason for Christmas is God’s quid pro quo. 
Point 2:  The reason for Christmas is it takes away the loneliness. Matthew 1:23 
Point 3:  The reason for Christmas it reveals the real you. Luke 2:9  
Point 4: The reason for Christmas is it brings joy.   Luke 2: 10 
The Many Sounds of Christmas Pt 2 - Love
Point 1:  God is in charge of Love. Vs 7, 8 3:1 7 
Point 2:  You cannot get away from Gods Love. Eph 3: 18, 19 
Point 3:  God’s love takes away our sinVs 9,10 (TLB) 
Point 4: Love is a verb.  Vs 11, 12
Clip #1 courtroom scene Sermon Bumper
Pericope: Mt 18:21-35 - 21 Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?”22 Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times. 23 “Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. 24 As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand bags of gold was brought to him. 25 Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt. 26 “At this the servant fell on his knees before him. ‘Be patient with me,’ he begged, ‘and I will pay back everything.’ 27 The servant’s master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go. 28 “But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred silver coins. He grabbed him and began to choke him. ‘Pay back what you owe me!’ he demanded. 29 “His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it back.’  30 “But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. 31 When the other servants saw what had happened, they were outraged and went and told their master everything that had happened.  32 “Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. 33 Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’ 34 In anger his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed. 35 “This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”
Sermon Text: Matt 18: 21 Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?”
Sermon Title: The Many Reasons for Christmas Pt 3 – 5 Reasons to Forgive
Introduction: Peter raises the question that we all have asked…HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE DO TO THIS. In fact how do I forgive someone like this brother did in the clip?
Point 1: Forgiveness promotes contrition.vs. 26 “At this the servant fell on his knees before him. ‘Be patient with me,’ he begged, ‘and I will pay back everything.’
Psalms 51:17 - My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise.
In the parable Jesus talks about forgiveness in response to Peter’s question we find the person who needs forgiveness begging for it.  He is in a posture of brokenness.  He loses all sense of pride.  He begs in a way that is commensurate to what he owes.  He does not debate whether he should ask for forgiveness.  He lays it all on the line.
Scripture calls it contrition.  Contrition is complete brokenness.  The Greek definition means a crushing from the inside out.  One scholar said it is a full internal repentance that happens from the inside out.  David put it this way in Ps. 51:17 My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart   you, God, will not despise.
Psalms 51:17 THE MESSAGE
Going through the motions doesn’t please you, a flawless performance is nothing to you. I learned God-worship
   when my pride was shattered. Heart-shattered lives ready for love don’t for a moment escape God’s notice..
David said it is the sacrifice that gets God’s attention.   
Forgiveness promotes this kind of repentance.  
Point 2: Forgiveness cancels debt – vs. 24, 27 TLB - 24 In the process, one of his debtors was brought in who owed him $10 million!$10 million, literally, “10,000 talents.” Approximately £3 million. 27 “Then the king was filled with pity for him and released him and forgave his debt.
According to the text the man who begged for forgiveness was forgiven a debt totaling $10,000,000.  Clearly that was an amount he could never pay off in a lifetime.  The average high school graduate will only make 1.5 million in a lifetime.  So he would need several lifetimes to pay off the debt, but no need because he was forgiven the debt.  
How would you like to be forgiven a debt you cannot pay off?  Immediately we think of our mortgage or car payment or student loans or maybe business loan.  Well you have a bigger debt than that.  It accumulates interest from the day you were born.  That’s your sin debt.  Your sin debt has three categories.  Sin of adoption.  Sin of commission and sin of omission.  Under the sin of commission we have sin we purposely do and accidentally do.
People will take on your offense and forgiveness or lack thereof.  When someone hurts you, your friends get upset.  They will stay mad as long as you do.  when you say you have forgiven the person more often than not they will too.  This is not only true on the individual end but also the larger community.  Example:  Nelson Mandela South Africa Truth Commission.  The opposite is happening in our country.  President Trump says something offensive.  Doubles down.  Everyone retreats to their tribes with no forgiveness.  Forgiveness can correct the problems in our community if we do it.  Christmas is the power of forgiveness.  That’s why pardons are given during Christmas.  
Transition:  Forgiveness promote contrition.  Forgiveness cancels. 
Point 3:  Forgiveness corrects the community.  Vs. 30-32 -  30 “But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. 31 When the other servants saw what had happened, they were outraged and went and told their master everything that had happened.  32 “Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to.
In the text Jesus added this interesting exchange between the man that’s forgiven, a person you owed him and their friends.  The exchange goes something like this:  the forgiven man sees someone who owes him.  He refuses to pay him back because he does not have the money. He askes for forgiveness but does not receive it.  This causes an uproar in the community.  Their friend immediately goes to tell the owner.  
This gives us some insight about what happens in a community when forgiveness takes place.  The community is estranged because of this.  This shows the power forgiveness has in the community.  Forgiveness corrects the community.  Forgiveness also causes you to confront your own conviction.  
Point 4: Forgiveness causes you to confront your own conviction.  Vs. 34-35 -  34 In anger his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed. 35 “This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”
Matthew 6:12 And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
In the final verses of the parable Jesus shows us how serious God takes forgiveness.  Failure to forgive brings conviction on us and sets the person who offended free.  In other words, Jesus the parable teaches the man who did not forgive after he was forgiven suffered a worse fate.
When you don’t forgive you are held prisoner by your unforgiveness.  It’s drinking poison hoping the other person will die.  Jesus put it this way in Matt 6:12  And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
Point 5: Forgiveness sets you free
Clip Mother Emanuel church scene SC
Life Application:
Heavenly Father, _________ has taken _____ from me.  I have held on to this debt long enough.  I choose to cancel this debt.  _________ doesn’t owe me anymore.  Just as you forgave me, I forgive ____________.  
1. Determine what they owe you.
2. The debt cannot be repaid so cancel it. 
3. Apologies promises and restitutions cannot erase an experience.
4. Forgiveness is a verb and act of your will not your feelings.
5. Ignore the rattling chains.  

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