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Intro: Stephen’s last words
The first martyr of the New Testament Church was Stephen.
Listen to his last words as he died at the before those who persecuted him unto death.
As stones were hurled at him, Luke tells us that.
Would these words come out of your mouth if you were being killed as Stephen was?
Or to move from the hypothetical situation to reality;
Do these words come out of your mouth when you are cut off in traffic?
Do these words come out of your mouth when you are falsely accused?
Do these words come out of your mouth when you are betrayed by those who you love?
The radical words of Stephen reflect a heart that is inclined to forgive even the worst offenses.
And a heart that forgives is what our text calls us to this morning.
Paul has been writing on the Christian life.
And there are two main actions that we are called to do.
These actions paint the picture of a person who is in need of a change of clothes.
Col 3.5-11 call us to put off our old clothes that no longer fit us… the clothes of sexual immorality, impurity, anger, wrath, malice and the like…
Our text picks us in the middle of the sentence that Tait preached on last week.
Tait preached last week about the new clothes that are fitted for God’s people.
Our text picks up right in the middled of this sentence.
V 13 shows us the overflowing effect of having put on the new clothes from v12.
When we put on compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, we will bear with one another and forgive one another.
There’s nothing subjective about these Christ-like virtues.
And moreover there is nothing subjective about the way we are called to forgive.
There is a small word in v 13 that is easy to overlook.
But the small words are often the most important ones.
Colossians 3:13 (ESV)
13 …if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.
If we are to rightly forgive one another, we must reflect the perfect model of forgiveness.
So let’s first remember how Christ forgave us.
I. Remember how Christ forgave you
First, we should remember that God’s forgiveness is a result of God’s very nature.
Recall God’s revelation of himself right after Israel broke God’s law and worshiped the golden calf.
This revelation is found in Exod 34… but before it, let me point out where it fits in the book of Exodus
Just two chapters prior to God’s revelation of himself to Moses, Israel was found worshiping an idol — this graven image of a calf that was made of gold
Israel had broken this command in Exod 32 — so they deserved to nothing but God’s wrath
God is not just able to forgive — but he willing to forgive
And more than being willing to forgive — it is God’s very to forgive those who repent!
Why does God want to forgive sinners?
This is why John says
God forgives us — because he is faithful and just — that’s who he is.
With God’s justice in mind, let’s remember…
Remember the cost of Christ’s forgiveness
Again, let’s recall Exod 34:5-7
God will by no means clear the guilty — so does that mean he won’t clear our sins?
No!
He just said he does forgive iniquity transgressions and sin
This means he will not turn a blind eye towards the guilty
Sin always has a cost
Sin must be dealt with by blood
Either the blood of the sinner
Or the blood of a substitute in the sinners place
Our sin has a price — and for those who believe in Jesus — the price has been paid for in full through Christ’s death on the cross.
So then, who are those to whom he forgives?
Remember who God’s people are
The people of faith are often unfaithful
King David — Recall his adultery with Bathsheba and the murder of her husband Uriah
While being far from walking in the way of the Lord
David repented
The Apostle Peter — also denied Jesus.
Not once, or twice… but three times!
Yet Jesus restored Peter in the threefold restoration found in Jn 21.
God saves even his people when they are unfaithful
God forgives even the worst of sinners so long as they are repentant of their sins
Lk 18 tells of the self-righteous Pharisee and the repentant tax collector.
And who was it who was right with God?
It wasn’t the self-righteous pharisee… rather, it was the repentant tax collector who recieved mercy.
Jn 8 again pits about the self-righteous scribes and Pharisees up against the woman who was caught in adultery… do you remember Jesus’ words to those self-righteous men?
Christ is the friend of sinners!
And his forgiveness was most vividly displayed there on the cross
Such were we
Enemies of God
Dead in our sins
Worthy of nothing, except death…
But despite all this our God forgave our sins and even continues to forgive us when we stumble and fall!
Finally, let’s remember the extent of Christ’s forgiveness
Once our sins are forgiven — what does Jesus do with our sins?
Does he keep a record of them?
Is it three strikes and your out of the family of God?
Will we be held acceptable on the last day for the sins for which we have repented?
This might be how we treat one another — and we might think Jesus is like us...
But what does the Bible say
Understand how this Psalm would have sounded to to the ears of the original audience…
Those who hadn’t reached the edge of either the east or the west — this was the greatest distance that could be expressed
The removal of our sin is beyond what could be imagined
Have you ever lost something in the ocean?
It’s as good as gone
Far better — what about in the middle of the ocean — where there is no land in sight
This is the way Christ has forgiven us
His is inclined to forgive
He payed the price to forgive
He forgives even the worst of sins and the worst of sinners
And he forgives us completely
Having remembered the forgiveness that we have in Christ, let’s consider our text again
Paul calls us further than remembering Jesus’ forgiveness of us.
But he calls us to forgive each other as Christ has forgiven us.
So let us…
II.
Imitate Christ’s forgiveness
If we have have put on the Christ-like virtues from v 12 — then it is only fitting that the effect would be that we would look like Christ.
V 10 tells us that the new self that we have put on is renewing us in knowledge after the image its creator.
And perhaps one of the clearest ways Christ is shown in us is by the way we forgive one another.
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