Bumper Cars and Social Experiments
Notes
Transcript
Have you ever driven bumper cars? They are so much fun. Everything that you are not supposed to do in a regular car, you get to do in bumper cars. You are constantly bumping off of each other.
What is ironic about bumper cars is that you don’t have to actually pay someone to bump off of people. We spend all of our lives bumping into each other. Not literally. But, emotionally, spiritually.
Our lives are constantly affecting other peoples lives. And their lives are constantly affecting our own.
Unfortunately, while we would like to think we are affecting people for the good. The majority of the time, we are not affecting people for good. Instead, instead good deeds pushing people in good directions. It is our sin, whether purposefully or not, striking, pushing, misusing people.
Every single one of us are sinners. To sin is to violate divine law. Sin is an act that transgresses something forbidden or ignores something require by God’s law or character.
We are called to imitate the holiness of God. But, we are flawed, finite beings, who cannot attain that mark. We live sinfully. Sometimes, by the grace of God, we show ourselves better that we actually are. But, other times, we live according to the fullness of our depravity.
And in those moments, we are that bumper car, slamming into one person, ricocheting onto someone else, causing reactions and chain reactions. Sometimes, we are not intentionally trying to collide, but we do it accidentally, not realizing the results of our choices. Other times, we are laughing manically as we careen toward the next car.
We are living in a cosmic bumper car arena.
We could talk about how we should hold our sinful tendencies in check so that we do not negatively bump into other people. But, the issue before us today is how do we respond when someone bumps into us, whether accidentally or purposefully.
We do respond to those who sin against us.
Today, we are going to discuss the definition, the reconciliation, the forgiveness, and the judgment of sin. Through it, we will see that the kingdom-follower imitates the king’s perspective on sin, forgiveness, and reconciliation.
Before we dive in, will you pray with me?
1. The Definition of Sin
1. The Definition of Sin
Before we can dive into this passage, we need to unpack this concept of sin.
Many times, I will have discussions with people on whether specific actions or decisions will be sinful.
They’ll make an appointment with me: “Would it be a sin if….” And fill in the blank.
I normally answer something like: “If you think that you should ask me about it, than you probably shouldn’t do it.”
We, as humans are caught up with the list. What is on the list of sin and what is not on the list of sin. Where is the edge of the cliff and how close to the edge can I walk without falling off into the abyss of sin.
As Erwin Lutzer points out:
Christ’s definition of sin penetrates far deeper than a list of sins on a membership card. It goes to our inner desire, motivations, and secret thoughts.
Erwin W. Lutzer
It’s simply the desire to have my own way, completely played out in our lives.
Or, another way of putting it,
So an inclusive definition of sin would be anything that does not conform to the glory of God.
Charles Caldwell Ryrie
The glory of God, his character of holiness and perfection is the standard by which we are judged. It is the law by which we are judged.
John writes:
Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness.
Everytime we sin, everytime we live according to our own desires instead of character of God, breaking his standard, we are wallowing in lawlessness, in sin.
We might say: “Oh, I’m not hurting anyone by doing this.”
Well, everything we do affects someone, whether right away or later. It’s like swimming in a mudhole. It doesn’t affect anyone right then. But, then you start walking through town and giving people hugs. Your action of swimming in the mudhole just made them dirty.
When we sin, we make the decision to follow ourselves instead of God, and that affects our next actions, it affects our viewpoints, it affects how we treat people later, the relationships we pursue or don’t pursue. Those actions tear at our soul, and as relational people, when our soul is torn, those around us are affected.
I could give a long list of sins and the examples of those sins hurting others. But, I don’t want us to think in lists, but in concepts.
Besides, you all have experienced what I am talking about.
Sin is anything that does not conform to the glory of God.
Well, what do we do, when someone sins against us. When their actions toward us do not conform to the glory of God. When they swim in the mudhole and then give us a hug.
2. The Reconciliation of Sin
2. The Reconciliation of Sin
Well, we seek reconciliation.
I have to say, forgiveness and reconciliation are two different things. We are going to talk about forgiveness second, though technically, forgiveness must happen before reconciliation can.
Reconciliation is the restoration of friendly relationships and of peace where before there had been hostility and alienation. Two parties forced apart, brought together through mutual understanding, forgiveness, and love.
Jesus talks about reconciliation in our passage:
Matt 18 15-19
“If your brother or sister sins, go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. If they listen to you, you have won them over. But if they will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’ If they still refuse to listen, tell it to the church; and if they refuse to listen even to the church, treat them as you would a pagan or a tax collector.
“Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.
“Again, truly I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven.
What Jesus is urging his followers to do, is not normal. When we have been hurt by someone else, we do not normally try to reasonably talk to them about our sin. We normally take two extremes.
We ignore them, either by ignoring the issue and pretending nothing happened, or by actually ignoring them and pretend that they were never born.
The other extreme is that we make sure they understand how much we were hurt, by making them hurt.
Both extremes are living according to our desires instead of the holiness of God.
We are called to not move away or against someone, but to move toward them.
How do we do this?
Well, it’s best if we follow Jesus’ example. Paul describes our state before Jesus:
For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life!
We were God’s enemies. Our sin made us God’s enemies. That’s pretty serious. What did Jesus do? Did he throw fireballs at us so that we would understand just how much we hurt him? Did he ignore the issue?
No, he came and lived among us.
The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
He experienced our lives, while speaking the truth about sin and judgment, calling us to be reconciled through him.
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
He didn’t wait for us to come to him. He came to us and provided a way for us to turn from our sin and toward him.
In the same, we are called to go to those who have sinned against us and provide a way for them to turn from the sin and to us.
We start by going to the person directly and talking with them about what they did.
This is in the spirit of what Paul wrote in Gal 6 1
Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted.
The word restore is a medical term that is used to set a broken bone. That can be painful, but necessary. It requires tenderness, patience, love. All things that we would like to be used if the tables were turned.
If that conversation doesn’t work, we bring others, and others, until finally we have exhausted all avenues for reconciliation, and leave the person sadly to their sin, praying for them to be restored sometime to us. Just as God
who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.
Before we can seek reconciliation, we have to forgive the sin that has been done.
3. The Forgiveness of Sin
3. The Forgiveness of Sin
Forgiveness is even harder than reconciliation.
Jesus tells a parable about forgiveness.
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.
Such an amazing story!
Let’s put some things into perspective, shall we?
10,000 was the largest single number that Greek could express. And the talent was the largest unit of currency. So, this parable is particularly graphic. Jesus grabbed the largest measure that he could think of. The combined annual tribute of Galilee and Perea was only 200 talents. Judea, Samaria, and Idumea was 600 talents. So, the poor man owed the king more money than existed in circulation in the whole country at the time.
Conversely, if the master sold the man and family, he might get one talent. That’s not much. The servant begs to be allowed to take time to pay back the debt, but that would take probably 250,000 years.
He had a debt that he could not pay.
This man was a fool to get so far into debt. He didn’t deserve to be forgiven.
But, the master cancels the debt. wipes it completely off.
Jesus says that is how we are supposed to forgive. We had a debt that we could not pay. A debt in the hands of the creator of the universe. If we spent all of eternity in hell, we could not work off that debt.
But, God looked at the debt, look at Jesus, looked at us, and said: it’s completely forgiven. I’m not going to hold it against you.
That’s what forgiveness is. You look at the debt that someone owes you and you don’t hold it against them.
Forgiveness does not mean forgetting. The master doesn’t forget the debt that the servant owed. Everything the master looks at the deficit in his spreadsheet, he’s going to remember. God doesn’t forget our sin, either. He chooses to not hold it against us.
We cannot forget how others have hurt us. Instead we make the willful choice to release them from the debt they owe us, to not hold it against them.
How can we do that? Well, because Jesus paid the penalty for that sin 2000 years ago. If we are willing to accept that payment for our account, we must be willing to accept that payment for their account.
You might say: but the person who sinned against me is not a Christian. Their payment is not complete.
Well, then leave their state in the hands of a holy God. He can judge a lot better than you can. And if we are unwilling to forgive, no matter the person, we are setting ourselves up to all kinds of personal problems and worse.
4. The Judgement of Sin
4. The Judgement of Sin
God has promised to judge all sorts of sins, including the refusal to forgive.
Jesus continues the parable:
“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.
“This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”
This statement is very similar to what Jesus said in
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.
Jesus’ viewpoint clear: forgiveness out to be in direct proportion to the amount forgiven. The first servant had bene forgiven all, so he should have forgiven all. We who have placed our faith in Jesus Christ have had all our sins forgiven through the blood of Jesus Christ. So, we should be willing to forgive from the heart no matter how many times the act occurs.
Someone might come back and say, what about consequences. Well, forgiveness doesn’t negate the natural causes of our sin. It doesn’t remove discipline and the need to show the seriousness of sin. But, that question is a clever way to stop talking about forgiveness. And only those who are uncomfortable with forgiveness would ask it.
Jesus clearly through his sermons teaches about a group of people who claim to be his followers, but actually are not.
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’
If someone consistently refuses to forgive someone, they are showing that they have not truly understood the amount that they themselves have been forgiven. They have a Gospel issue. It’s not that they will lose their salvation. It’s that they were never previously saved.
As one person notes: “Frighteningly, many in Christian circles today seem in danger of this judgment because they refuse to forgive fellow believers, speak kindly to them, cooperate with them, or accept their apologies.”
If we have been impacted by the blood of Jesus Christ, we will live differently. We will live in forgiveness, seeking reconciliation, as we live this sinful bumper car life that we are in.
If we refuse, we are already under God’s judgement. And that should make us shake in our boots.
Is there someone you need to forgive? Is there someone you need to reconcile with? Don’t let this week go by without resolving that. If you need help, we’ve got brothers and sisters here who have been right where you are. Talk with them and follow Jesus.
If you look at yourself and you realize that you are not reconciled to God, having never been forgiven through the blood of Jesus Christ. Turn to him today. Talk to me. Talk to someone else about this decision. Don’t let today go by without making it.
