And When You Pray/And Forgive Us As We Forgive - The Proof Of Principled Forgiveness - 09/05/2021

START HERE SEPT . . . 5th GP "...And When You Pray" And Forgive Us As We Forgive Matthew 6:12; 14 & 15 Embracing God's Heart on Forgiveness: Excuse-Proof Forgiveness The Proof of Principled Forgiveness Matthew 18:21-35 Matthew 18:28-35 which reads: 28 "But that servant went out and found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii; and he laid hands on him and took him by the throat, saying, 'Pay me what you owe!' 29 So his fellow servant fell down at his feet and begged him, saying, 'Have patience with me, and I will pay you all.' 30 And he would not, but went and threw him into prison till he should pay the debt. 31 So when his fellow servants saw what had been done, they were very grieved, and came and told their master all that had been done. 32 Then his master, after he had called him, said to him, 'You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you begged me. 33 Should you not also have had compassion on your fellow servant, just as I had pity on you?' 34 And his master was angry, and delivered him to the torturers until he should pay all that was due to him. 35 "So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses." START This morning, our mini-series on forgiveness continues. It is originally taken from the Lord's prayer in Matthew 6:12 where we pray: And forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. For a deeper look at forgiveness, we have elicited help from the parable concerning "unlimited forgiveness" found in Matthew 18. Our focus is on verses 34 and 35. But first, here's how we came to this point. Let's walk it down with down with a quick review beginning at Verse 30 says: 23 Therefore the kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. 24 And when he had begun to settle accounts, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. 25 But as he was not able to pay, his master commanded that he be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and that payment be made. 26 The servant therefore fell down before him, saying, 'Master, have patience with me, and I will pay you all.' 27 Then the master of that servant was moved with compassion, released him, and forgave him the debt. 28 "But that servant went out and found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii; and he laid hands on him and took him by the throat, saying, 'Pay me what you owe!' 29 So his fellow servant fell down at his feet and begged him, saying, 'Have patience with me, and I will pay you all.' 30 And he would not, but went and threw him into prison till he should pay the debt. 31 So when his fellow servants saw what had been done, they were very grieved, and came and told their master all that had been done. 32 Then his master, after he had called him, said to him, 'You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you begged me. 33 Should you not also have had compassion on your fellow servant, just as I had pity on you?' 34 And his master was angry, and delivered him to the torturers until he should pay all that was due to him. 35 "So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses." In Verse 33 we feel the master's regret. It wreaks of disappointment. God is disappointed with us when we don't extend the same measure of mercy to others that He extends to us. [33 Should you not also have had compassion on your fellow servant, just as I had pity on you?'] A man must forgive in order to be forgiven. He who will not forgive his fellowmen cannot hope that God will forgive him. Matthew 5:7 says: "Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy." James 2:13 says: "For judgment is without mercy to one who has shown no mercy." Divine and human forgiveness go hand and hand. Now, we come to the crux of today's message, verses 34 and 35. 34 And his master was angry, and delivered him to the torturers until he should pay all that was due to him. 35 "So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses." In verse 34, two things stand out: That the master was angry at the behavior of the forgiven servant, and that the unforgiver is in the hands of the torturers. The anger here expresses the seriousness of how God feels about unforgiveness - especially as it relates to our blindness, resistance, and unwillingness to extend to others the same measure of forgiveness, He has extended us. As far as being turned over to the torturers to be tortured . . . this is a picture of the believer (or any person) who refuses to forgive. Torturers are skilled in the action or practice of inflicting severe pain or suffering on someone as a punishment, or to force them to do or say something. What are some types of torture, pain and suffering might an unforgiving person experience? While I ask you to think about that, I want to stress some sensitive realities in this verse: 1. The master is personally angry. 2. The master, symbolic of God, turned the unforgiving servant over to the torturers. 3. The master made the length of the torture conditional. In other words, he was saying to the unforgiving servant: You're in control of how long your torture will last. You can end it at the point you decide to forgive. Now, let's get an idea of specific types of torture an unforgiving person might experience: [The list could go on and on because tortures typically have not boundaries - except God set the boundaries - and He usually does because torture is torture, not final judgment. So, in reality, a person could live with torment for the rest of their lives - until they let go of unforgiveness. Consider this short list of examples of torture God allows those skilled in the action or practice of inflicting severe pain or suffering on someone as a punishment, or in order to force them to do or say something. • Unrest and Restlessness; Lay down, Get up . . . constantly dogged • thoughts of anger, vengeance, hate, and resentment that have unproductive outcomes for the ruminator [unforgiver], such as increased anxiety, depression, elevated blood pressure, vascular resistance, decreased immune response, and worse outcomes • Sickness: Mental and Physical • Bitterness at life, at God and at People • Always angry, • Accelerated Aging • Bad marriages and relationships • Skewed outlook on life and the world • Unblessed and unfavored in everyway Why is this torture so brutal? Because unforgiveness is brutal! Some of us know of cases where brutality has been inflicted upon some of the most honest and sincere people whoever walked the face of the earth. The servant who owed only 100 denarii appeared quite honest and innocent. But by virtue of the unforgiving disposition of the forgiven servant - a simple molehill of a debt got a man sent to prison and possibly his wife and children too. To refuse to forgive another person produces inner torment. Torment is terrible constant pain. 2 Peter 2:8 talks about this type of torment by referring to Lot down in Sodom. He said Lot was tormented [grieved] daily by the unbridled sins of ungodly people who were blatant about their sins. Sins that that ran counter to God's righteousness and Lots desire to live righteously. Some sinful acts people do go right through you. If we chose to be unforgiving - then we voluntarily turn our lives over to the torturers to be tortured as allowed by God. Sometimes the unforgiver suffers torturing daily, and other times seasonally - either way he or she is dogged by the pain. When we elect to live in unforgiveness as if unforgiveness is acceptable, then we are saying "Christ's forgiveness of us on Calvary is insufficient." Every time we completely forgive, we experience God's sweet and blessed forgiveness of us. [We are blessed by God's forgiveness, but we forfeit the blessings and benefits of that forgiveness when we don't forgive. And we can't afford to miss any of God's blessings. Unforgiveness is one of the greatest self-inflicted punishments a believer can impose upon themselves. When we don't forgive, we experience: • Unanswered Prayers • Poor health • Accelerated Aging • Declining, deteriorating relationships: marriages; family, children, friends, . . . sometimes for generations to come. • Broken Fellowship with Christ; not relationship - we're eternally secure. • Hostility with God . . . God is angered; we experience lack of peace with God. • Tortured life style v. 34 • Blurred spiritual discernment • Compromised witness for Christ - No one wants to hear us.- perceived as being wicked by God v. 32 • Heartlessness/ evil (Matt 18:28 Took fellow servant by the threat; ungrateful .... Pay me what you owe me; forgiveness is not a choice? Unforgiveness is the choice we make!] We place ourselves in a different column when we don't forgive as we have been forgiven. We also place ourselves back into voluntary servitude or bondage - to live beneath the freedom Christ gotten for us - as if we had never been freed or forgiven when we don't forgive. The master originally delivered the forgiven servant from prison, but the forgiven servant put himself back in by being unforgiven. The world's worst prison is the prison of an unforgiving heart. If we refuse to forgive others, then we are only imprisoning ourselves and causing our own torment. Some of the most miserable people you might know or chance to meet (regardless of title) are people who refuse to forgive others. They live only to imagine ways to punish people that have wronged them. But they're only punishing themselves. Finally Verse 35 35 "So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses." This verse is a wakeup call! Because it flat out says, NO BELIEVER (or unbeliever) is exempt when it comes to the principle of forgiveness. No one gets away. Verse 35 says . . . 35 "So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses." Key points: • - Will do to each of you; Each of you - this scares me, because it is talking about me today, right now; this speaks to everyone that has ears to hear, hear what the spirit is saying to the churches • From his heart - This is God's disclaimer. In essence it is saying: God's standard of forgiveness is precise in that it judges the heart, not the nit-picky issues people stew over that are really "a none issue". Those cases where people would rather keep up a fuss, rather than grow up and mature. There's no heart in such cases. • Does not forgive his brother his trespasses - This is picture of a house divided against itself - it cannot stand. If two believers are in the same body [Christ's body] experiencing Christ's complete forgiveness, but one refusing to extend forgiveness to the other [is a slap in Christ's face. God has forgiven us, but we can't find capacity to extend from that forgiveness to forgive one another. [The forgiven servant refused to forgive the 100 denarii servant.] This lesson brings us full circle . . . back to the very petition and principle Jesus said we should pray in Matthew 6:12 And forgive us our debts As we forgive our debtors This is conditional. We individually and personally control the degree of freedom in Christ and life based on our willingness or unwillingness to extend forgiveness. [Matt 6: 12 Forgive us as we forgive .. . . Jesus is saying my forgiveness of you will be mirrored by your drive and motivation to forgive of other. ] The only relief and remedy from torment resulting from unforgiveness is FORGIVENESS. Such forgiveness will come only when Jesus' forgiveness is embraced. END 1 1 1