Letting Go
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
“For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
PRAYER.
The definitions of the term “ forgive” are to:
1. Stop feeling angry or resentful toward someone for an offense, flaw or mistake
2. To cancel a debt.
To understand the nature of unforgiveness, you must first understand forgiveness.
Forgiveness is the process by which we let go of resentment or offense. Many times we think of forgiveness as being a declaration of right and wrong, but this isn’t the case.
In fact, forgiveness is more about you than it is about the other person because it holds you back more than it does then.
Forgiveness is simply a letting go and a stepping away from anger leading to sin.
Naturally, we cannot look at forgiveness without looking at Offense
Point 1: The Trap of Offense
Point 1: The Trap of Offense
The word in the Greek for offense is skandalon and it simply means “The trigger of a trap.” and it was used to reference the part of the trap that the bait was
attached to.
It is the mechanism by which a trap becomes effective
Just like we have to bait a trap for a mouse, so does the enemy bait his trap.
You see, if we saw the trigger alone, we would not be compelled to come, so just like the mouse will come to the cheese masking the trigger, so will we come to the trigger out of our pride and anger.
The whole thing works best when we stay in offense
“You don’t know what they did to me.” “You don’t understand”
We remain stuck because it feeds our flesh to remain angry and it can lead to host of sin.
As long as the enemy can keep us in offense, he can keep us imprisoned.
We Must Learn to let go because living in offense will cause us to grow cold and be ineffective for the kingdom. This is the enemy’s intent.
And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. But he who endures to the end shall be saved.
Offense is a part of life:
Offense is a part of life:
Then He said to the disciples, “It is impossible that no offenses should come, but woe to him through whom they do come!
Jesus tells us that we don’t want to remain in it, but he also gives warning to those who would bait the hook. We would be wise to heed His words.
You see, if we get keen to the spiritual things seeing things from outside of ourselves, we can use offense to diagnose our own spiritual condition
Offense is a pretty good indicator of someone’s level of spiritual maturity because it lets you know whether or not they have caught on to the enemy’s schemes
and see the larger picture aside from themselves. The Gospel is relational, it is about putting others before ourselves.
In fact, offense is also relational.
Point 2: Offense is Relational
Point 2: Offense is Relational
For it is not an enemy who reproaches me;
Then I could bear it.
Nor is it one who hates me who has exalted himself against me;
Then I could hide from him.
But it was you, a man my equal,
My companion and my acquaintance.
We took sweet counsel together,
And walked to the house of God in the throng.
What we can see here is that my level of offense is directly proportionate to my expectation from you.
Has anyone ever heard the quote “Betrayal never comes from an enemy?”
There is actually some truth to this. In fact, the closer we are to someone, the more we expect from them.
Let’s pretend we are scoring offense on a level of 1 - 5 (with a low level of offense being 1 and a high level being 5)
Let’s also score our closeness and expectation on a level of 1 - 5.
DESCRIBE A SITUATION.
So maybe, our level of offense can also be a function of just how much we love a person, but we are just so clouded by staying in offense, that we do not see the larger picture and therefore refuse to move forward.
We talked about anger and pride baiting the hook.
“Be angry, and do not sin”: do not let the sun go down on your wrath,
We know that offense will come and that it is okay to remain angry, but what is not okay is to remain in anger and offense.
The Genus Hedera Helix or common climbing ivy.
It is parasitic in nature and it consumes its host depleting it of resources.
Anger and offense do this same thing on a spiritual level.
We spend so much time being offended and angry that we become ineffective for the kingdom even to the point where some of us eventually grow cold. People who are offended seldom pray for those who have offended them.
Inversely, it is hard to remain angry at someone you are constantly praying for.
Unforgiveness is a spiritual block to the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives.
What is the way out?
What is the way out?
Point 3: Forgiveness is the way out
Point 3: Forgiveness is the way out
If forgiveness was a process by which the other party was declared right, then Jesus atoning death on the cross would’ve been declaring us right rather than making us right.
“For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
Looking back at that original verse, we see that our forgiveness from God is contingent on how we forgive others. It is not about us.
Do you think God is being punitive here or do you think in His all knowing power, He understands that parasitic nature of offense and anger that leads to sin causing a separation between you and Him?
And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.
Once we reflect on God’s ultimate act of forgiveness toward us, we realize that we are in absolutely no position to speak.
Charles Spurgeon once said:
“While others are congratulating themselves, I have to sit humbly at the foot of the cross and marvel that I am saved at all.”
When we can dial in on the fact that God forgave us for much more than we could ever forgive anyone else for.
But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection.
My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.
Forgiveness is the letting go that causes us not only to reflect on God forgiving us but that gets us unstuck and makes us effective for the kingdom once more removing the spiritual blocks from our life allowing us to mature to an ultimate completion in Christ.
How effective for the kingdom do you really want to be? Are you willing to put yourself to the side?
Altar Call.
