Tag Archives: forgive us

A WALK THROUGH THE LORD’S PRAYER – 6

Prayer, ,

And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.”

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭6‬:‭12‬ ‭NIV‬‬

The next request in Jesus’ model prayer is pivotal to receiving answers from God. For Him, unforgiveness was not a once-off consideration but an on-going issue between people, that forms a barrier, not only between humans in conflict but also between God and unforgiving people. 

What’s the issues?

God cannot forgive those who sin against Him if they refuse to forgive one another. It’s as simple as that!

Let’s unpack the real meaning of forgiveness. 

When we sin, that is, when we do not believe His Word, we transgress the instructions God has given us for living in harmony with Him and with one another…we incur a debt which must be paid before we can be reconciled. Our debt is first to God and then to the one we have offended. 

The sin-debt we owe God is unpayable because sin’s consequence is death. 

“The one who sins is the one who will die…”

‭‭Ezekiel‬ ‭18‬:‭20‬a NIV‬‬

Our debt to God is so huge that God’s forgiveness is the only way we can escape death…that is, eternal separation from God and all that He is. 

Jesus said…

“I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?””

‭‭John‬ ‭11‬:‭25‬-‭26‬ ‭NIV‬‬

And so, through Jesus, God has provided forgiveness so that He can acquit us from all our guilt and treat us as perfectly righteous. 

“God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”

‭‭2 Corinthians‬ ‭5‬:‭21‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Once our debt is paid, it is erased from God’s record. It would be illegal for God to demand payment a second time for a debt He Himself has paid. 

Now, let’s see how this applies to forgiveness between people who have wronged and been wronged.

Since, through the death of Jesus, God has erased the guilt of all people for all time, the debt of sin  incurrred when one person sins against another, has already been forgiven. 

God always acts within His own legal system. This means that when one person withholds forgiveness from another, he/she is acting illegally and automatically cancels God’s forgiveness. 

What is the solution? Forgiveness is not about emotions. It’s about doing the right thing within the framework of God’s justice system. Since the sin of the wrongdoer has already been forgiven, all the offended person must do is to release the offender from guilt by looking the person in the face or in the heart and saying, “You owe me nothing!”

If our attitude is hard and judgmental, we may elevate ourselves above our offender, reducing our expression of forgiveness to a hypocritical, hollow; and meaningless exercise. Jesus’ example will help us to overcome a bad attitude and replace it with compassion, which is the heart of forgiveness. 

“Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” 

‭‭Luke‬ ‭23‬:‭34‬a NIV‬‬

In answer to Peter’s question …Jesus told a parable which perfectly illustrates forgiveness and the consequences of unforgiveness…

“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?” Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times. 

“Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand bags of gold was brought to him. 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. 

“At this the servant fell on his knees before him. ‘Be patient with me,’ he begged, ‘and I will pay back everything.’ The servant’s master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go. 

“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. 

“His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it back.’ 

“But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. When the other servants saw what had happened, they were outraged and went and told their master everything that had happened. 

“Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’ In anger his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed….”

…ending with the solemn warning…

“This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭18‬:‭21‬-‭35‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Can you see, then, how important it is that we include this consideration in our communication with the Father? All our interactions with God are automatically cancelled if we entertain barriers between ourselves and others. 

“We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ…If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.”

‭‭1 John‬ ‭1‬:‭3‬, ‭6‬-‭7‬ ‭NIV‬‬

“DON’T LOOK AT ME, GOD”

Gospel, ,

Years ago, I watched a DVD seies on the Christian life by a Presbyterian pastor. One of his points dealt with his attitude towards sin.

He referred to a situation in his life when he had said or done something to offend his wife. Instead of humbly confessing his sin to God and to his wife, his shame led him to run from them, creating an atmosphere of tension and alienation. He summed up the situation with these words, “Don’t look at me, God!”

How often, because we misunderstand grace, we tell God, with or without words, “Don’t look at me, God!” We allow sin to disturb our fellowship with God and people, isolating ourselves by guilt and shame from our family or fellow believers.

We tend to think that everyone around us knows what we have done and judges us for our bad behaviour…most of all God because we have offended Him. We treat God as though He were human.

What does the Bible say to a situation like this?

Of course, there is a difference between an occasional lapse and a lifestyle of offending others. If we persist in selfish behaviour that puts us in the centre of our world, we will offend others by our thoughtless and careless words and deeds.

For a believer, this attitude of self-absorption is foreign to someone who is “in Christ”.

2 Corinthians 5:17 NIV
[17] “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!”

Does this mean that persistently selfish behaviour is evidence that such a person is not “in Christ”? True believers are those who have been born from above by God’s Spirit, have a new nature, and are learning to obey the Holy Spirit’s leading.

Romans 8:14 NIV
[14] “For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God.”

They exhibit the fruit of the Spirit in increasing measure in their attitude and behaviour.

Galatians 5:22-23 NIV
[22] “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, [23] gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.”

Does this mean that a believer can never sin? No! It means that God has a remedy for those times when we do step outside of grace. He knows that, as long as we are in this life, we are at war with our old fleshly, selfish nature. We do give in from time to time.

However, God has made provision for all sin through the sacrifice of Jesus. His death takes care of all sin for all time. Even before we sin in time, He paid the price and has forgiven us. According to God’s Word, Jesus’ sacrifice was planned before time so that it is effective for all sin in time even before He died.

Instead of denying our guilt or hiding in shame, saying, “Don’t look at me, God,” He calls us to come to Him because He has the solution…

1 John 2:1-2 NIV
[1] “My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. [2] He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.”

1 John 1:8-9 NIV
[8] “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. [9] If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”

Like any loving earthly father, the Father graciously forgives our sin and restores fellowship with Him when we come clean with Him and with one another.

1 John 1:6-7 NIV
[6]” If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. [7] But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.”

THE KEYS OF THE KINGDOM – CONTINUED

Christian Life, ,

5. THE KEY OF FORGIVENESS

Preserving relationships in the kingdom.

Of all the keys Jesus could have highlighted in the prayer He taught His disciples about life in the kingdom of God, He enlarged on only one…

“And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors….”

“For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.”

Matthew 6:12, 14-15 NIV

Forgiveness touches our lives in many ways.

A. God’s forgiveness through Jesus is the foundation of our restored relationship to Him. All sin, the big barrier between God and us, is removed forever giving us free and bold access to Him.

“Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water.”

Hebrews 10:19-22 NIV

B. God’s forgiveness releases us to forgive those who sin against us. Since, through His death, Jesus made forgiveness possible, we forgive others not because we must but because we may.

2 Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. ​ Ephesians 4:32 – 5:1

C. God is passionate about restoring broken relationships. Forgiveness is the only way to heal rifts between offended brothers and sisters in Christ. We forgive others because Jesus paid their debt as well as ours.

D. We can only be free from the ill-will that separates members in God’s family when we let go of the debt that they owe us.

E. Forgiving others mirrors God’s mercy towards us. We forgive freely when we recognise how great God’s mercy is towards us.

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.” Matthew 18:33-35

F. To forgive is to maintain an attitude of humility towards others since we all stand on level ground before God.

G. Forgiving others sets us free from all the emotions that accompany unforgiveness and keep us in bondage to ourselves, especially the killer-emotion of self-pity.

6. THE KEY OF REPENTANCE

Maintaining fellowship with the Father

Repentance is the key that opens the door into new life in Christ.  We must understand that repentance is not an emotion but a decision. Repentance means that we recognise the truth of God’s word and choose to believe what He says. We let go of false beliefs by embracing the truth.

“Don’t copy the behaviour and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.”

Romans 12:2 NLT

A. Repentance is not a once-off decision but a lifestyle of repenting that leads to gradual transformation into the image of Jesus.

B. The old nature with its rebellion against God and thoughts and behaviour that result from rebellion, has been crucified with Christ. It is dead. It cannot be changed but…

C. God has given us a new nature, His own nature characterised by love, submission and obedience. It is our new nature that we nurture through the process of repentance and transformation.