Creating a Culture of Blessing IX

God’s Forgiveness

Creating a culture of Blessing IX

We are finishing our series

Here at Mokuaikaua we are about Creating a Culture of Blessing.

We believe this is God’s mission for our church.

201 years ago a group of missionaries arrived here in Kailua Kona in response to the invitation and prayers of two young men from Hawaii, Henry Opukahai’a and Thomas Hopu.

On April 4 1820, our beloved church Mokuaikaua was founded, Rev Asa Thurston after meeting with the King Kamehameha, and the Queen Regent Kaahumanu, they gave them permission to start churches and schools, King Kamehameha the second Liho-Liho gave his house and canoe house to be the first church and school.

The missionaries came to Hawaii to fulfill the great commission to preach the gospel, baptize them, and disciple them to obey everything Jesus thought us.

Mokuaikaua is committed to carry out this inheritance, April 1820 also marked the beginning of one of the greatest revivals in history, 97% of the population of Hawaii came to Christ, by 1840 Hawaii had the largest church in the world, Haili church in Hilo, a church with 11thousand members.

The aim of a culture of blessing, is to reach out to others, is to be a blessing not only to our congregation but to all who come across our path.

Through our series we saw what we need to have and do to create a culture of blessing.

Today I would like to talk about God’s Forgiveness.

We need to experience and practice, God’s forgiveness

The word forgiveness in the new testament in Greek is Aphiemi What means Forgiveness, to let go of offenses and financial debit.

Is the only way we can build a culture of blessing, the only way Jesus can build, His church.

Let’s pray

1 Forgiveness bring us freedom,

set us free,

When we experience God’s forgiveness in our lives, we experience freedom, peace, and we learn to forgive others.

We let go of our offenses and resentments and this huge burden is lifted from us.

All of us carry a heavy burden of sin. God gave us a conscience, He poured His Spirit upon all men, all of us know what is right and wrong, some people choose to ignore the voice of their conscience, and their hearts becomes hard, their conscience is seared.

Act 2:16 but this is [the beginning of] what was spoken of through the prophet Joel:

Act 2:17 'AND IT SHALL BE IN THE LAST DAYS,' says God, 'THAT I WILL POUR OUT MY SPIRIT UPON ALL MANKIND; AND YOUR SONS AND YOUR DAUGHTERS SHALL PROPHESY, AND YOUR YOUNG MEN SHALL SEE [divinely prompted] VISIONS, AND YOUR OLD MEN SHALL DREAM [divinely prompted] DREAMS;

In an environment where forgiveness is nurtured love and peace abounds, we are able to have a greater compassion and love for each other.

“Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” Eph 4:32

Jesus taught his disciples about forgiveness, Peter asked Him a question about how many times should we forgive, 7 times? Peter thought this was already a big number but Jesus answer 70 th times 7, basically saying you forgive as many times is necessary.

Then he tells a parable about a servant who for some reason owed his king 4 life times, of work making good money, impossible to repay it. We only have one life time.

He listened to the servant request , and he forgave him.

But later that same servant encounters another servant friend of his who owed him 100 days of work an amount thousands of times smaller than what he owed, and this servant asked him for mercy and he had none. The servants who saw what he did went before the king.

Mat 18:32 Then his master called him and said to him, 'You wicked and contemptible slave, I forgave all that [great] debt of yours because you begged me.

Mat 18:33 Should you not have had mercy on your fellow slave[who owed you little by comparison], as I had mercy on you?'

Mat 18:34 And in wrath his master turned him over to the torturers (jailers) until he paid all that he owed.

Mat 18:35 My heavenly Father will also do the same to[every one of] you, if each of you does not forgive his brother from your heart."

Jesus message was clear, if we ask your Heavenly Father for forgiveness, He will forgive us, but if we refuse to forgive others, we will suffer the consequences.

2 The absence of forgiveness

creates an environment of chaos, where everyone is a victim, and nobody takes responsibility for any wrong doing.

The topics we hear so frequently on the news today, cancel culture, Black lives matter, in justice against natives American’s, Asians, racism. They are all based on some kind of injustice. But if forgiveness is not the goal they will become the next oppressor.

Every people group and nation in the world have gone through some injustice and evil. Tragic stories filled with pain and suffering.

Everyone fell short of the glory of God.

Rom 3:23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

All of us have sinned, there is no one righteous, we all need to be forgiven.

Is impossible To make the history of every place right without continuing to hurt others, that’s why Jesus gave His life for you and me.

When we refuse to submit to God and forgive, we become worse than those who wronged us

2Ti 3:1 But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come:

2Ti 3:2 For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,

2Ti 3:3 unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good,

2Ti 3:4 traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God,

2Ti 3:5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!

My father’s mother, my grandmother was 100% Brazilian Indian, a native with all the rights to the land and tribe she came from.

She was captured in the jungle and brought to civilization she grew up in an orphanage until she was 15 when she married my grandfather.

I didn’t know much about her, until I was in my 30s. I was in a worship meeting, and all the sudden in a vision I saw this old Indian man crying and hitting his chest in much pain. I ask the Lord what was that all about, the man in my vision was alone crying for all who had died, only than I understood that her whole tribe, was wiped out. And I needed to forgive the men who did that in Jesus.

What about her land her family? What should I go after? If go after my rights of generations ago, how many people will have to loose their lives and wealth to make the wrong done to me, be made right?

If we really want to find who committed the first offense we need to go back to the garden at the fall of men, because of Adam and Eve’s sin, evil came into the world, after that the rest is history.

Yes Someone needs to pay for it, needs to be punished, someone needs to die, that’s why God sent His only son, Jesus to pay for all.

Lack of forgiveness is the perfect platform for bitterness

Heb 12:15 Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you,and thereby many be defiled;

Everyone who lives in bitterness will not only have one relationship destroyed, it will destroy every relationship they have.

Mat 6:14 For if you forgive others their trespasses [their reckless and willful sins], your heavenly Father will also forgive you.

Mat 6:15 But if you do not forgive others [nurturing your hurt and anger with the result that it interferes with your relationship with God], then your Father will not forgive your trespasses.

3 Jesus ultimate vision for the church is to be one with Christ one with the Trinity

Unity it was one of Jesus final prayers His desire is that we become one with Him and each other. This level of unity can only be obtained when we forgive each other, stop judging and submit to each other.

Jesus just before being arrested, crucified and resurrected prayed this prayer

Joh 17:20 "I do not pray for these alone [it is not for their sake only that I make this request], but also for [all] those who [will ever] believe and trust in Me through their message,

Joh 17:21 that they all may be one; just as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be one in Us, so that the world may believe [without any doubt] that You sent Me.

Joh 17:22 I have given to them the glory and honor which You have given Me, that they may be one, just as We are one;

Joh 17:23 I in them and You in Me, that they may be perfected and completed into one, so that the world may know[without any doubt] that You sent Me, and [that You] have loved them, just as You have loved Me.

It is impossible to walk in unity without practicing forgiveness

Forgiveness is a choice from our hearts, yes God needs to empower us to do it, specially if the offense was traumatic, all we need to do is to ask him.

I still remember Corrie ten boom, who during the second world war would protect Jews by letting them to hide in her house, she and her sister were arrested sent to a concentration camp where her sister end up dyeing, now after the war she was speaking at a church about forgiveness, at the end of her sermon a prison Gard who was responsible for her sister death, came to shake her hand, right there she cried out to the Lord and she stretch her hand in faith, God gave her the grace to forgive.

Sometimes all we need to do is to cry out to Him and stretch out our hand.

We are called into the ministry of reconciliation

2Co 5:17 Therefore if anyone is in Christ [that is, grafted in, joined to Him by faith in Him as Savior], he isa new creature [reborn and renewed by the Holy Spirit]; the old things [the previous moral and spiritual condition] have passed away. Behold, new things have come [because spiritual awakening brings a new life].

2Co 5:18 But all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ [making us acceptable to Him] and gave us the ministry of reconciliation [so that by our example we might bring others to Him],

Forgiveness is a must to build a culture of blessing,

Forgiving each other produces freedom in our lives and the lives of others, the lack of forgiveness creates conflict and eternal separation from God, death. Forgiveness is how we will fulfill Jesus prayer of unity with Him and each other.

All this begins when we make Jesus the Lord of our lives.

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. Joh 3:16 To receive Jesus we need to accept Him as God’s son,

we need to repent from our sins and a life of selfishness,

ask Him to be your Lord and savior, not that we deserve it, but is a gift from God.

If this is your desire today, please repeat this prayer after me? Heavenly Father I’m sinner, I’m sorry for my sins, I repent of my sins I’m willing to turn away from my sins. I receive Christ as my savior, I confess Him as Lord And from this moment on, I want to follow and serve Him, in the fellowship of His church, In Jesus name, Amen!

1Co 11:23 For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread;

1Co 11:24 and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, "Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me."

1Co 11:25 In the same manner Healso took the cup after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me."

1Co 11:26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death till He comes.

1Co 11:27 Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord.

Heb 9:14 dead works, acts, sins

E mau aku ka loko maika’i o ka Haku, Iesu Kristo; me ke aloha a ke Akua, a me ka launa pu ‘ana mai o ka Uhane Hemolele ia ‘olua, a me makou apau. Amene.