CYPRESSWOOD CHURCH OF CHRIST
September 11, 2005
CONTINUE TO PRAY FOR:
Our congregation Our nation, leaders and military
Various friends, relatives and co-workers David and James in the military
Our students The victims of the hurricane
SPECIAL NOTE:
Today is the fourth anniversary, if we can say it that way, of the attack on the U.S. That attack has led to more deaths in the war on terror to keep us from facing terror here. We want to remember the families who lost love ones, the neighbors friends, and the business co-workers. We want to especially remember the heroes then, the fire and police personal, who gave their lives to say others. We also want to remember our service men and women, those who serve with distinction, putting their lives in danger, and helping to present a better picture of America to the world. We also want to remember those who gave the ultimate in service to our nation to keep us free.
Maybe the article below will have something to say to you about forgiveness and praying for those who hate us and what our attitude should be.
AS WE HAVE FORGIVEN
“This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive a brother or sister from your heart” (Matthew 18:35).
I have a friend, a good friend. He has preached for both large and small congregations, rural and city. He has spoken at a number of workshops over the years. He grew up in the church. But he has committed a sin, a very bad and destructive sin. He repented, thank God. Over the last few years he has struggled with what he did and what he can now do. But he has had the desire to return to preaching; and he is a good preacher. He asked some advice from some important people. They told him in a very kind way, “There are some things you can do and there are some things you can’t do.” Humm.
Matthew 18 is a discussion by Jesus that began with a question: “Who, then, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” Jesus called a child into the midst of His disciples and told them that they must be like this child, humble and open. He then talked about causing a child to stumble or sin. He continued by discussing the rescue of a wandering sheep. How then do we deal with sin? Verses 15-18 are very familiar to us, though not always practiced very well. Go to your brother or sister, one on one, and discuss the problem of sin (and by implication any disagreements one might have). Proceed as far as necessary to rescue the one who has sinned. N.T. Wright says that “This is hugely serious and I don’t think most of us have even begun to get to grips with it” (“Evil and the Justice of God, lecture five: Deliver Us From Evil, p. 7, www.westminister-abbey.org/event/lecture/archives/030616_justice_lecture.htm).
Peter then asked a very important question. “Lord, how many times shall I forgive someone who sins against me? Up to seven times?” Jesus replied: “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.” A footnote in the TNIV has “seventy times seven.” This combination has shown up in scripture before. In each case, some type of forgiveness is involved. The first is in Daniel 9. This chapter is a prayer of national repentance offered by Daniel from Babylonian captivity. Israel would be in captivity because of their sins for seventy years (vs. 2). After the prayer and in a vision, Daniel is told that “Seventy sevens are decreed for your people and your holy city to finish transgression, to put an end to sin, to atone for wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the Most Holy Place” (vs. 24). Would Peter have grasped this idea when Jesus said “seventy times seven”? “What Jesus is saying is that the new age is here, the age of forgiveness, and that his people are to embody it” (Wright, ibid.). This is what Daniel was looking forward to and what Jesus would bring about.
Another text of sevens is found in Leviticus 25. The Year of Jubilee was the fiftieth year after counting “seven times seven years -- so that the seven Sabbath years amount to a period of forty-nine years” (vs. 8). The Jubilee was a time of forgiveness of debt and restoration. Again, would Peter have caught the implications? This is what is behind the prayer, “forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us” (Matthew 6:12). This is the return of the exile/captive people to the presence of God. They are welcomed back as forgiven people in Christ.
Then Jesus told the parable of the Unmerciful Servant. In the parable, a servant who owed a huge amount of money, some suggest $10 million dollars, plead with the king, and is forgiven this great debt. Wouldn’t we all like that? To have our credit debts, medical bills, and house payments canceled would be a wonderful thing. The forgiven servant went out and met one who owed him about $100. The picture is that this happened immediately. Would the servant be merciful? No. Rather he had the man arrested and thrown into prison. The king was told this and the servant was called to account for not being merciful. Then comes the key text. “This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive a brother or sister from your heart.” That is the purpose of verse 15 when we go to our brother; to forgive them from the heart.
We know many texts from scripture that speak of forgiveness. But what happens then? Three examples come to mind. The first is David. After his sins of adultery and murder (and others during this incident), when confront, he repented confessing “I have sinned against the Lord” (see 2 Samuel 11-12). There is much more to this. He had struggled physically as well as spiritually between the sins and the confession (see Psalms 32 and 51). During that time and after, his enemies sought to destroy him, the most notable being his own son Absalom; though the Psalms of lament make it clear there were others. What does God do in all of this? He forgives David and David remains on the throne of God (see 1 Chronicles 29:23) as king. Then God blessed David and Bathsheba and blessed them with a son called Jedidiah, which means loved by the Lord. We know him as Solomon.
Another example is that of Manasseh. Of all the kings who ruled in Jerusalem, he was the most wicked. The son of Hezekiah, he returned idolatry and other sinful activities, overturning his father’s reforms. He was so wicked that he was captured and taken to Assyria. While in prison there, he humbled himself greatly before God and sought Him. God brought him back to Jerusalem where he attempted to changed the sinful ways of the city (see 2 Chronicles 33).
One other example is found with Peter himself. Peter was always speaking and acting, sometimes rashly. He was the one who wanted to walk on the water with Jesus. He confessed first that Jesus was the Messiah. He asked the question about forgiveness. And he said that he would never deny Jesus but would die with Him. Well we know that he did denied Jesus three times. We see the pain when Jesus’ eyes met his and Peter wept alone. After the resurrection, Peter struggled because of what he did. When we see them on the beach (John 21), Peter was still struggling. Would God forgive him? We see that He does. Peter becomes the first to speak (Acts 2) and a leader in the Jerusalem church.
This all brings me back to my friend. We seem to have an attitude that a Christian who has sinned, especially one that we consider very bad, cannot ever return to his former situation. Some of us have witnessed that one who repents is told that God and the church have forgiven him but…, and there is the problem. There are some things he will not be able to do. Some will wait to see if he “really” repented. If he has then maybe we will let him read a scripture or say a prayer or allow him to serve at the table, after sufficient time has past. A few will not forget what he did and will remind any who will listen of his sin. There are any number of reasons for this, one of which is keeping the church holy. One who has disgraced the church must be limited to his public activity.
Now look at David, Manasseh, and Peter. God not only forgave them but allowed them to continue in their positions. What are we missing here? Maybe it goes to another parable. A woman had entered a Pharisee’s house and began to weep on Jesus’ feet and drying them with her hair. Simon, and others, questioned all of this (see Luke 7:36-50). Jesus then told a parable about two people who owed a man some money, one about five thousand dollars and one about fifty. Both debts were forgiven. “Now which of them will love him more?” The answer given was the one who had a greater debt forgiven. With that answer Jesus showed the difference between the “sinful” woman and Simon. The lesson here is that the one forgiven more loves more and the one forgiven little loves little. Ouch. How does that apply to my friend, and to us, and to me? Maybe some think the way they do is because they have loved little.
I’m glad to say that my friend is going back into preaching. Maybe someday he will be in our area and we can go and hear him. He is a good preacher. And he has been forgiven much and has much love to give. How about us? How much love do we have?
George B. Mearns