Forgiven (2)

Unashamed, FORGIVEN, and Forever Alive

I began a sermon series last week that I titled “Unashamed, Forgiven, and Forever Alive”. This morning we will look at the wonderful gift of forgiveness that we have as a result of what we call Easter. I am grateful that Christianity is not simply a philosophy but an eternal reality that was completed by Jesus the Son of God.

Last week we looked at a longer passage in Isaiah 53. Today I want to look specifically at a single verse from that prophetic word.

Isaiah 53:5 NIV

But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.

I love the for’s in the verse. “…pierced for our transgressions” – action then purpose. “…crushed for our iniquities” – again, action followed by purpose. “…punishment (on Jesus)…wounds” – bring peace and healing. His actions were with purpose. How can we celebrate Easter without understanding the benefits that we’ve received?

Jesus Celebrates the Passover with His Disciples

Today we celebrate Palm Sunday on the calendar. It is the day that Jesus entered Jerusalem to the shouts of the people. The people had hoped that when Jesus went into Jerusalem that He would turn towards the throne but instead He turned toward the temple. Just days later those shouts of praise would become angry shouts to crucify Him.

There was a lot that took place the following week. Tune into KSBJ’s “Journey to the Cross Easter Text Messages” to get a chronological feel for the events of the week. For today’s message I would like to focus on what happened on the Thursday of that week – commonly called the Lord’s Supper or the Last Supper.

Luke 22:14–23 NIV

When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table. And he said to them, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God.” After taking the cup, he gave thanks and said, “Take this and divide it among you. For I tell you I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.” And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you. But the hand of him who is going to betray me is with mine on the table. The Son of Man will go as it has been decreed. But woe to that man who betrays him!” They began to question among themselves which of them it might be who would do this.

With the other gospels we see much more that took place. There were conversations among the disciples and the example of servanthood as Jesus washed their feet. Jesus foretold of what was about to happen and other things as well. But, at the heart of the activities was the Passover, a meal that had been celebrated for more than a thousand years.

Ābar

Stay with me as we put some ideas together. We’ll get back to the Passover, but I guess it would be good for us to begin to talk about forgiveness.

In the ot, the most direct words for forgiveness are sālaḥ (“forgive”) and sĕlîḥâ (“forgiveness”). Forgiveness is also expressed by stating that one will not “remember” the offense or will not “count” the offense against someone. More figuratively, forgiveness may be compared with physical removal like “lift up” or “pass over” (which is what we are tying into this morning). Other figurative meanings could be “to cover, to atone, to clean and repair, to cure, to wipe, or to be clean.[1]

What stands out to me is the role of the person doing the forgiving. Forgiveness is intentional on their part – choosing not to remember, lifting up, passing over, and more. As a forgiven individual, what right do I have to continue to remember my failures and trespasses? (But I get ahead of myself).

The Shadow

For many of us, when I say “pass over” you immediately associate it with a celebration that began thousands of years ago and continues today in both the Jewish and the Christian traditions. It is, of course, the Passover.

Exodus 12:21–23 NIV

Then Moses summoned all the elders of Israel and said to them, “Go at once and select the animals for your families and slaughter the Passover lamb. Take a bunch of hyssop, dip it into the blood in the basin and put some of the blood on the top and on both sides of the doorframe. None of you shall go out of the door of your house until morning. When the Lord goes through the land to strike down the Egyptians, he will see the blood on the top and sides of the doorframe and will pass over that doorway, and he will not permit the destroyer to enter your houses and strike you down.

Exodus 12:29–30 NIV

At midnight the Lord struck down all the firstborn in Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh, who sat on the throne, to the firstborn of the prisoner, who was in the dungeon, and the firstborn of all the livestock as well. Pharaoh and all his officials and all the Egyptians got up during the night, and there was loud wailing in Egypt, for there was not a house without someone dead.

Many of us remember Hurricane Ike. Even as far inland as my home in Tomball, the winds were still Category 2 or more (I believe it was weak 3). Cindy’s mom and dad were staying with us, and Cindy and I had moved into the guest room upstairs. I remember hearing the hurricane pass overhead and wondered if the roof would stay on.

Could you imagine as the angel of the Lord went through Egypt. Homes without the blood applied experienced the horror of finding their firstborn child dead. Home after home erupted in screams and wailing for their dead. Hebrew mothers and fathers listened at midnight and waited but the angel of the Lord passed over and left their homes alone.

Putting it Together

I want to read an excerpt from Andrew Paterson that draws the OT and NT together:

John has a particular perspective on Christ’s death and how it achieved redemption. It is the category of Passover sacrifice. It is not an accident that ‘the hour’ of Jesus’ death falls during a Passover feast, or more specifically that it is following the Passover meal with the disciples that Jesus went out to arrest, trial, and execution. The Passover ritual, rooted back in the deliverance from Egypt, called for each worshipper to bring a lamb ‘without blemish’ or broken bones, and present it to the priest to be slain and for its blood to be dashed against the base of the altar. This recalled the slaughter of the Passover lambs in Egypt and the smearing of their blood with the hyssop plant on the lintels of their houses, by which the people’s escape from judgment and their liberation from bondage were won. So Jesus comes, as God’s own Lamb, without blemish or broken bone (33) in the perfection of his obedience, and there at Calvary, in the presence of the hyssop plant (29), he offers freely the one ‘full, perfect and sufficient sacrifice, oblation and satisfaction for the sins of the world’. As he cries, ‘It is finished,’ and gives himself up for death, the knife falls, and all the sacrifices of the ages are gathered up and rendered obsolete forever. Because he has died, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, for all who have come and trusted in the virtue of that sacrifice there is ‘no longer any sacrifice for sin’ (Heb. 10:18).

No one took Christ’s life from him. They couldn’t. Jesus himself laid down his life. The words John uses literally mean ‘he handed over his spirit’ (v. 30). This was the final act of obedience to his heavenly Father. And as we watch this scene unfold with John, we again remember those words heard earlier in his Gospel: ‘I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep’ (10:11); ‘Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends’ (15:13).

By becoming the Passover Lamb, Jesus chose to allow death to ‘pass over’ those who have applied the blood of Jesus to their lives. We are forgiven!

Remembering the Passover

In our modern communion we celebrate the Passover. Through the forgiveness provided by the Blood of Christ, you have been ‘passed over’. God, who knows your failings, chooses to pass over you because of your faith in Him.

I’ve asked that the communion be celebrated after the message today because I wanted each of us to understand the marvelous benefits of the sacrifice of Christ. We see that “he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities;” Those both reference our sins and the forgiveness that God gives willingly because of the sacrifice of Christ. But there is more…

“…the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.”

The Lord showed me something new this week that I hadn’t ever put together. Of course, I’ve seen the word healed many times, but I’ve always thought in terms of spiritual healing. There is more going on here.

Isaiah 53 continues to describe the scene about Calvary in verse five: “But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed.” The word “stripes” can be literally translated “bruise.” This signifies the entire wounding or bruising of Christ including the stripes that were laid on His back, the buffeting, the plucking out of His beard, the nails driven into His hands and feet, the crown of thorns placed on His brow and the spear that was thrust into His side. All of Christ’s bodily sufferings were for the purpose of bringing forgiveness and healing to all humans. Peter confirmed this in his quote of Isaiah 53:5:

1 Peter 2:24 NIV

“He himself bore our sins” in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “by his wounds you have been healed.”

Peter was referring to physical healing because he used the Greek verb iaomai, which is always associated with physical healing and physical ailments when used in the New Testament.[2]

I must confess; I don’t understand why some people get healed and others don’t. What I do have is the faith to believe that God can heal, and I can grab onto this truth and believe in faith that healing has been provided for me and for you.

Paul seemed to have this great truth in mind when he wrote to the church at Corinth (1 Cor. 11:17–30)… Paul warned them: “For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body. For this reason many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep” (1 Cor. 11:29–30). Paul believed that many were weak and sick among the Corinthians because they were “not discerning the Lord’s body.” The sacrifice of the Lord’s body has provided physical strength and healing for humanity. Although healing is provided in the atoning work of Jesus Christ, believers must still appropriate by faith what Christ has made available.[3]

So, as we take communion today we acknowledge that healing has been provided by the body of Jesus Christ through His wounds

Let’s take the bread in faith in remembrance of Christ!

And we acknowledge that God ‘passes over’ us because of the blood of Christ that has been applied to our lives.

Let’s take the cup in remembrance of Christ!

[Worship]

Altar response – acceptance of forgiveness and acceptance of healing.

[1] J. David Stark, “Forgiveness,” ed. Douglas Mangum et al., Lexham Theological Wordbook, Lexham Bible Reference Series (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2014). [2] Guy P. Duffield and Nathaniel M. Van Cleave, Foundations of Pentecostal Theology, Revised & Updated., vol. 2 (Los Angeles, CA: Foursquare Media, 2016), 36. [3] Guy P. Duffield and Nathaniel M. Van Cleave, Foundations of Pentecostal Theology, Revised & Updated., vol. 2 (Los Angeles, CA: Foursquare Media, 2016), 36–37.