Very dear to the LORD are the lives of his followers. He cares when they face death. (Psalm 116:15)
We struggle with this truth......especially when the follower who faces death is someone dear to us. We want to leverage our own thoughts and opinions against God and say things like, “If you really loved her, You would have healed her!”, or, “Why couldn’t it have been someone else?!?!”
Yesterday Billie went to be with Jesus. I can't be sad for her......she had fought hard for the past 20 years, and today is the first day she's found rest. But for her husband and son and parents and siblings and countless friends.....my heart is breaking. And the pain they feel isn’t lost on God.........if He cares when one of His followers faces death, then he cares when the loved ones lose someone they love. In fact, Jesus met this head on when He said:
Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
(Matthew 5:4)
And if I may, allow me to remind you of something Moses said to Joshua:
The LORD will lead you. He himself is with you. He will not fail you or leave you. Don't worry. Don't be afraid!" (Deuteronomy 31:8)
My prayers today are for Billie’s family and friends. Her mother said to me, “There was pain in her birth and there is pain in her death.” And I said, “The pain at her birth quickly passed. The pain in her death will linger. But this is temporary for there is a reunion coming.......and it is eternal!”
Hold on to hope in Jesus, friends.......hold on to hope in Jesus.
Monday, June 06, 2016
Thursday, May 05, 2016
Who's That Message For?
I was driving in another town today and saw a church sign that caught my eye. It was one of those nice, LED signs where the pastor or media person could display any message they chose to display. There were actually several message rotating through on the sign, but one in particular caught my eye. Here's what it said:
We preach Christ crucified!
When I saw that message, as true as I'm certain it is, it immediately raised a question in my mind:
Who is that message for?
Is it for the church person who's not satisfied at their current church? Is it for the church down the street who, as you perceive it, doesn't preach Christ crucified? Is it meant to be a reminder to their own congregation? Is it meant to be some kind of statement of superiority and deeper theology?
My objective here isn't to mock this church, but to raise the question - the very relevant question - who's that message for?
When someone is exploring faith, they're probably not concerned about the fact that Jesus was crucified. When someone feels lost and is searching for something they can hold on to, I don't think they're driving by churches wondering, "Do they preach Christ crucified?" When someone has lost hope and is searching for direction, I don't believe they're looking for a crucified Christ, but a risen Christ. When a relationship is on the brink of falling apart or a loved one has received a terminal diagnosis or a family or friend has lost their life, I'm pretty sure the first thing to come from a person's mouth when they meet with a pastor isn't, "Do you preach Christ crucified?"
I've pastored for 30+ years and not once have I received a phone call asking if we preach Christ crucified. I have, however, received countless calls asking if there's hope out there, asking if there is any solution to a horrible situation, if peace can be found, if there's an answer for all of the pain.........
I'm confident that this message on the church sign was put out there with the best of intentions......but......while the crucifixion of Jesus paid for our sins and should be preached, it's the resurrection that assures us of God's grace and forgiveness and offers us hope for all of life's "messyness".
So yes, preach Christ crucified, but also preach Him risen! And by all means, preach that He is the hope of all mankind!!!
Friday, March 13, 2015
In The Midst of the Mess
There’s a tension that most of us have dealt with, and it shows up in the form of some questions. Questions like: How do I know where I stand with God? If there is a God, how are we doing? Can God hear my prayers, and does He care?
To help answer those questions, I want to show you a conversation that God had with a man in the Old Testament named Abraham. But here’s a modern day story to kind of create the context. One afternoon, a man was working at home and suddenly hears the sound of lots of breaking glass. He runs to the kitchen and finds his 17-year-old daughter standing, barefoot, in this sea of glass.
She looked up and said, “Dad, I’m so sorry!!” She had reached for a glass when the shelf broke, sending numerous glasses to the counter top and floor. The dad looked at the mess and said, “I can’t believe that you did that. You can just stand there and figure out how to get out of this mess yourself!”
Some of you think that’s what God is like. You think that He stares at you in the mess of your own making and says, “You made the mess, you clean it up because you have to clean up what you mess up. You sinned, you fix it.” Yet, for those of you think God is like that, you don’t believe for a single moment that this guy left his daughter standing in her little sea of glass - and he didn’t. The truth is, he did what any good father would do. He rescued his daughter.
In a similar way, mankind - because of sin and selfishness - made a huge mess of the world. And if God really cared and was truly compassionate, He had to decide: “Do I wade into this mess and try to find a starting point for cleaning up the mess that someone else has created, or, do I just hang a big, ‘Out of Order’ sign over the earth?”
The great news is this: God decided to wade in by choosing a single man named Abraham. God chooses Abraham and tells him three things: “I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you." (Genesis 12:4, NIV) All three of those things happened.
God told Abraham that all the people groups on earth were somehow going to be influenced, or be better off because of him. Then God said, “Look up at the heavens and count the stars--if indeed you can count them. So shall your offspring be." (Genesis 15:5, NIV)
Then there is a statement that is SO powerful: “Abraham believed the LORD, and he credited it to him as righteousness.” (Genesis 15:6, NIV)
In this simple statement, we find the nature of the relationship between God and man. In this statement, God defines the terms. Abraham believed, and that’s what was required. This statement makes faith incredibly simple. There’s nothing more that’s necessary. God told Abraham that he would be a great nation, even though he had no children yet, and Abraham believed. Or to put it another way, Abraham put his faith in God.
It’s that simple. Abraham didn’t have to jump through hoops or do a bunch of spiritual calisthenics. He put his faith in God. Period. In a single moment and a single expression of faith, God said to Abraham, “I am giving you the gift of a right standing with me. Abraham, I accept you because you believed and trusted in me.” In other words, Trusting in God results in a right standing with God.
It’s almost impossible to comprehend that God would make this standard so simple, but He did. When we find ourselves in our own mess, our own sea of glass, God steps in and says, “The way you enter into a relationship with me is by believing me and trusting me.” No, it’s not always easy, but when we do we find that God, His love and His promises are real.
To help answer those questions, I want to show you a conversation that God had with a man in the Old Testament named Abraham. But here’s a modern day story to kind of create the context. One afternoon, a man was working at home and suddenly hears the sound of lots of breaking glass. He runs to the kitchen and finds his 17-year-old daughter standing, barefoot, in this sea of glass.
She looked up and said, “Dad, I’m so sorry!!” She had reached for a glass when the shelf broke, sending numerous glasses to the counter top and floor. The dad looked at the mess and said, “I can’t believe that you did that. You can just stand there and figure out how to get out of this mess yourself!”
Some of you think that’s what God is like. You think that He stares at you in the mess of your own making and says, “You made the mess, you clean it up because you have to clean up what you mess up. You sinned, you fix it.” Yet, for those of you think God is like that, you don’t believe for a single moment that this guy left his daughter standing in her little sea of glass - and he didn’t. The truth is, he did what any good father would do. He rescued his daughter.
In a similar way, mankind - because of sin and selfishness - made a huge mess of the world. And if God really cared and was truly compassionate, He had to decide: “Do I wade into this mess and try to find a starting point for cleaning up the mess that someone else has created, or, do I just hang a big, ‘Out of Order’ sign over the earth?”
The great news is this: God decided to wade in by choosing a single man named Abraham. God chooses Abraham and tells him three things: “I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you." (Genesis 12:4, NIV) All three of those things happened.
God told Abraham that all the people groups on earth were somehow going to be influenced, or be better off because of him. Then God said, “Look up at the heavens and count the stars--if indeed you can count them. So shall your offspring be." (Genesis 15:5, NIV)
Then there is a statement that is SO powerful: “Abraham believed the LORD, and he credited it to him as righteousness.” (Genesis 15:6, NIV)
In this simple statement, we find the nature of the relationship between God and man. In this statement, God defines the terms. Abraham believed, and that’s what was required. This statement makes faith incredibly simple. There’s nothing more that’s necessary. God told Abraham that he would be a great nation, even though he had no children yet, and Abraham believed. Or to put it another way, Abraham put his faith in God.
It’s that simple. Abraham didn’t have to jump through hoops or do a bunch of spiritual calisthenics. He put his faith in God. Period. In a single moment and a single expression of faith, God said to Abraham, “I am giving you the gift of a right standing with me. Abraham, I accept you because you believed and trusted in me.” In other words, Trusting in God results in a right standing with God.
It’s almost impossible to comprehend that God would make this standard so simple, but He did. When we find ourselves in our own mess, our own sea of glass, God steps in and says, “The way you enter into a relationship with me is by believing me and trusting me.” No, it’s not always easy, but when we do we find that God, His love and His promises are real.
Wednesday, February 25, 2015
"Mistaker" vs "Sinner"
In my last article I wrote about a starting point for faith as an adult, and I concluded the article with a question: “Who is Jesus?” When it comes to faith in God, that’s the question that has to be answered.
Another question we have to deal with is, “Am I a sinner?” We don’t like that question, so in our culture we’ve removed the word, “sinner” and replaced it with a word that’s easier for us to bear. We’ve replaced the word “sin” with the word, “Mistake”.
“Mistake”, however, is a terrible word. Here’s an example of why: Brian Williams, news anchor for NBC, claimed to have been in helicopter that was shot down by a RPG. This is a story that he’s told, in various forms, for 12 years. Then, last week, he recanted the story saying that he, “made a mistake” in remembering. But wait a minute, that’s not a mistake. I may not know exactly what it is, but it’s way bigger than a mistake. A mistake is when you forget to carry the 2 on a math test. A mistake is when you’re trying to drive and look at a map at the wrong time and you make a left instead of a right. Those are mistakes. But a 12 year mistake?
The idea of a mistake is insufficient knowledge. But we’ve all used the word “mistake” to talk about things where we knew exactly what we were doing. In fact, sometimes we make mistakes on purpose.
What do you do with a mistake? You correct it. But the problem isn’t “mistakes”. The problem is us. We resist the idea that it just might be a sin problem. So to help all of us out, let me give you the “101 definition” of a sinner. This isn’t theological, this is just a simple definition. Sinner: Someone who knows better, but does it anyway.
When Jesus talked about sin, He always talked about it in connection to relationship because sin breaks relationship. Adam and Eve, in the Garden of Eden, had this close relationship with God, but sin broke that relationship. If you’ve ever broken a relationship it’s because you did something that you shouldn’t have done, or someone else did something they shouldn’t have done or both of you did things you shouldn’t do. And it broke the relationship. So, because of that, Jesus’ entire purpose of talking about sin was not condemnation, but restoration.
Jesus knew that as long as you just think you’re making mistakes, you will never seek the thing you need most to bring restoration. He says, “You’re heavenly Father wants you to be restored to Him, and the only way to be restored is to seek forgiveness. And the only way you’ll seek forgiveness is if you realize you didn’t simply make a mistake. It’s bigger than that. And it’s not the first time. The fact is, you’re a sinner.”
But Jesus doesn’t end with sin condemned. It goes from sin to condemned to, “I need to ask forgiveness.” And when we ask for forgiveness, we can be restored to God. But if we never ask for forgiveness we can never be restored to God because mistakers think they can self-correct, and they never get there.
Here’s my point: Recognition of sin is what paves the way to restoration of relationship. In our minds we think, “Once I say I’m a sinner, ‘boom’, the bottom falls out.” But Jesus says, “That’s not it at all. You need to just look at me and say, ‘I have sinned’ and ask for forgiveness. And as soon as you do I’m going to give you what a mistaker never asks for. I’m going to give you forgiveness and I’m going to restore you to me.”
So here’s another question to wrestle with: Ask youself, “Am I a ‘mistaker’, or am I a ‘sinner’?” And when you honestly answer that question, what will you do about it?
Another question we have to deal with is, “Am I a sinner?” We don’t like that question, so in our culture we’ve removed the word, “sinner” and replaced it with a word that’s easier for us to bear. We’ve replaced the word “sin” with the word, “Mistake”.
“Mistake”, however, is a terrible word. Here’s an example of why: Brian Williams, news anchor for NBC, claimed to have been in helicopter that was shot down by a RPG. This is a story that he’s told, in various forms, for 12 years. Then, last week, he recanted the story saying that he, “made a mistake” in remembering. But wait a minute, that’s not a mistake. I may not know exactly what it is, but it’s way bigger than a mistake. A mistake is when you forget to carry the 2 on a math test. A mistake is when you’re trying to drive and look at a map at the wrong time and you make a left instead of a right. Those are mistakes. But a 12 year mistake?
The idea of a mistake is insufficient knowledge. But we’ve all used the word “mistake” to talk about things where we knew exactly what we were doing. In fact, sometimes we make mistakes on purpose.
What do you do with a mistake? You correct it. But the problem isn’t “mistakes”. The problem is us. We resist the idea that it just might be a sin problem. So to help all of us out, let me give you the “101 definition” of a sinner. This isn’t theological, this is just a simple definition. Sinner: Someone who knows better, but does it anyway.
When Jesus talked about sin, He always talked about it in connection to relationship because sin breaks relationship. Adam and Eve, in the Garden of Eden, had this close relationship with God, but sin broke that relationship. If you’ve ever broken a relationship it’s because you did something that you shouldn’t have done, or someone else did something they shouldn’t have done or both of you did things you shouldn’t do. And it broke the relationship. So, because of that, Jesus’ entire purpose of talking about sin was not condemnation, but restoration.
Jesus knew that as long as you just think you’re making mistakes, you will never seek the thing you need most to bring restoration. He says, “You’re heavenly Father wants you to be restored to Him, and the only way to be restored is to seek forgiveness. And the only way you’ll seek forgiveness is if you realize you didn’t simply make a mistake. It’s bigger than that. And it’s not the first time. The fact is, you’re a sinner.”
But Jesus doesn’t end with sin condemned. It goes from sin to condemned to, “I need to ask forgiveness.” And when we ask for forgiveness, we can be restored to God. But if we never ask for forgiveness we can never be restored to God because mistakers think they can self-correct, and they never get there.
Here’s my point: Recognition of sin is what paves the way to restoration of relationship. In our minds we think, “Once I say I’m a sinner, ‘boom’, the bottom falls out.” But Jesus says, “That’s not it at all. You need to just look at me and say, ‘I have sinned’ and ask for forgiveness. And as soon as you do I’m going to give you what a mistaker never asks for. I’m going to give you forgiveness and I’m going to restore you to me.”
So here’s another question to wrestle with: Ask youself, “Am I a ‘mistaker’, or am I a ‘sinner’?” And when you honestly answer that question, what will you do about it?
Monday, February 16, 2015
THE Question
Everything has a starting point, including faith. For most of us, our faith journey started somewhere in childhood and included things like, “God is good”. Along the way you heard that God punishes evil and rewards good, so you’d better be a good little boy or girl because God rewards good people, and He doesn’t really reward the bad people. And someone told you that God answers prayer. But for many people, as they grew older, their childhood faith didn’t do so well under the rigors of adult life.
Yeah, God is good but there’s a lot of bad things in the world. And there seem to be a lot of good things that go unrewarded and bad things that get rewarded. And God answers prayer, but He didn’t answer your prayer - at least not the way you wanted Him to. Sometimes our childhood faith and what started off so fresh and so real and so passionate as kids just doesn’t seem relevant in the world in which you live.
Part of the problem with Christianity is that when we grew up we were taught the Bible. That, in and of itself, isn’t a problem, but in some ways the way we were taught the Bible is a problem. As a child, we were taught that it was the Word of God, it was inspired and infallible. So we went off to college and we were told that, even though it was sacred, it wasn’t scientific and it wasn’t factual. And even though there were stories in here that were inspirational, they weren’t necessarily true. The thing is, “The Bible Says” is not an adequate starting point or returning point for many adults. But here’s the good news: “The Bible says” was never intended to be the starting point for the Christian faith.
“The Bible says”, wasn’t the starting point when Christianity started. the New Testament wasn’t put together for about 350 years after the events of Jesus’ life. The phrase, “New Testament” doesn’t even show up until about 250 AD. So for the first 250 to 350 years of Christianity, countless people became Jesus followers, but not because, “The Bible says”.
These people trusted in Christ and found a relationship with God. But the fact remains, the starting point for the Christian faith is not, “The Bible says”. The starting point for the Christian faith is not, “just believe”. The starting point for the Christian faith, whether they told you this as a child or not, is a question. And the question isn’t, “Were Adam and Eve really naked?” The starting point isn’t, “Did they really put all those animals in the ark? Was there really an ark, anyway? Was there really enough water in the atmosphere to flood the whole earth? Was creation 7 real days or were they longer days?” The question, the foundation, the thing you have to wrestle with if you’re looking for a starting point or looking at re-starting your faith, is this:
Who is Jesus?
Not, “Is the Bible true?” Not the other 20 things we could debate because they’re fun to debate. The question is, “Who is Jesus”? “Who is Jesus” is the question that will always be THE question. Because, once you answer that question, you will discover that many of those other questions begin to answer themselves.
Jesus said this, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. The only way to the Father is through me.” (John 14:6, NCV)
Let me invite you to wrestle with what Jesus said in light of the question, “Who is Jesus?”. And if you have more questions, I, and my colleagues in churches across the community, would be glad to help you find the answers.
Yeah, God is good but there’s a lot of bad things in the world. And there seem to be a lot of good things that go unrewarded and bad things that get rewarded. And God answers prayer, but He didn’t answer your prayer - at least not the way you wanted Him to. Sometimes our childhood faith and what started off so fresh and so real and so passionate as kids just doesn’t seem relevant in the world in which you live.
Part of the problem with Christianity is that when we grew up we were taught the Bible. That, in and of itself, isn’t a problem, but in some ways the way we were taught the Bible is a problem. As a child, we were taught that it was the Word of God, it was inspired and infallible. So we went off to college and we were told that, even though it was sacred, it wasn’t scientific and it wasn’t factual. And even though there were stories in here that were inspirational, they weren’t necessarily true. The thing is, “The Bible Says” is not an adequate starting point or returning point for many adults. But here’s the good news: “The Bible says” was never intended to be the starting point for the Christian faith.
“The Bible says”, wasn’t the starting point when Christianity started. the New Testament wasn’t put together for about 350 years after the events of Jesus’ life. The phrase, “New Testament” doesn’t even show up until about 250 AD. So for the first 250 to 350 years of Christianity, countless people became Jesus followers, but not because, “The Bible says”.
These people trusted in Christ and found a relationship with God. But the fact remains, the starting point for the Christian faith is not, “The Bible says”. The starting point for the Christian faith is not, “just believe”. The starting point for the Christian faith, whether they told you this as a child or not, is a question. And the question isn’t, “Were Adam and Eve really naked?” The starting point isn’t, “Did they really put all those animals in the ark? Was there really an ark, anyway? Was there really enough water in the atmosphere to flood the whole earth? Was creation 7 real days or were they longer days?” The question, the foundation, the thing you have to wrestle with if you’re looking for a starting point or looking at re-starting your faith, is this:
Who is Jesus?
Not, “Is the Bible true?” Not the other 20 things we could debate because they’re fun to debate. The question is, “Who is Jesus”? “Who is Jesus” is the question that will always be THE question. Because, once you answer that question, you will discover that many of those other questions begin to answer themselves.
Jesus said this, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. The only way to the Father is through me.” (John 14:6, NCV)
Let me invite you to wrestle with what Jesus said in light of the question, “Who is Jesus?”. And if you have more questions, I, and my colleagues in churches across the community, would be glad to help you find the answers.
Tuesday, February 10, 2015
Iowa Gubernatorial Inauguration
On January 16, 2015, Governor Terry Branstad and Lieutenant Governor Kim Reynolds took their oaths of office. I had the privilege of offering the benediction at the inauguration, and also had the privilege of presenting a charge to Lieutenant Governor Reynolds on Thursday evening, January 15 at the Service of Dedication.
However you voted in the election, let me challenge you to hold our leaders up in prayer. Below is the charge I presented to Lieutenant Governor Kim Reynolds. Please join me in praying for her and all of our local, state and national leaders.
Lieutenant Governor Reynolds,
When we think of individuals in the Scriptures, we tend to think of men. David, Moses, Abraham, Jesus.....the list goes on. But the Scriptures also include many significant female characters who left their mark in history through their leadership qualities.
Eve shows us that leaders are the target for temptation and that leaders have to face challenges and make difficult choices.
Rebekah shows us that leaders are always willing to give, often giving more than they’re asked for. They put the needs of others before their own.
Miriam shows us that leaders look out for the helpless, that they don’t side with bullies and they defend the defenseless.
Deborah teaches us that leaders inspire their followers. They’re cheerleaders who encourage, motivate, and inspire their followers with supportive words.
Ruth teaches us that leaders demonstrate loyalty and devotion to those they serve and the people who have helped shape them.
And Mary of Nazareth shows us that leaders embrace great opportunities with willingness and enthusiasm and know that the greater the possibility there is for failure, the greater the opportunity there is for success.
Lieutenant Governor, it is not by chance that we stand here again, this evening, as we did 4 years ago. That evening I stated that clearly, God had prepared you for such a time as this. I reiterate that this evening. You have demonstrated exceptional leadership, as these women in the Scripture have done, and as such, the people of Iowa have re-elected you to serve them in the office of Lieutenant Governor, giving you continued opportunity to make Iowa a better place to live, work and raise a family.
As you, once again, accept this great privilege and responsibility, will you continue to be challenged by the Word of God and the people of Iowa to be a servant leader?
Will you continue to work for the betterment of the people of Iowa, consistently and determinedly seeking the best for each individual, and the state as a whole?
Will you continue to pursue advancement in all facets of life for every Iowan and continue to set an example for all Iowans in character, integrity and openness?
Will you welcome wise counsel as you uphold the duties of the office of Lieutenant Governor, and pray daily for wisdom and guidance as you serve the people of Iowa?
If, under God, this is your intent and the purpose in accepting this high calling, please signify the same by affirming: “With God’s help, I will.”
[Lieutenant Governor Reynolds: “I will.”]
And now, I challenge you, as God challenged Israel’s King David: Trust in the LORD, and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness. Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him, and he will act.
(Psalm 37:3 & 5, ESV)
However you voted in the election, let me challenge you to hold our leaders up in prayer. Below is the charge I presented to Lieutenant Governor Kim Reynolds. Please join me in praying for her and all of our local, state and national leaders.
Lieutenant Governor Reynolds,
When we think of individuals in the Scriptures, we tend to think of men. David, Moses, Abraham, Jesus.....the list goes on. But the Scriptures also include many significant female characters who left their mark in history through their leadership qualities.
Eve shows us that leaders are the target for temptation and that leaders have to face challenges and make difficult choices.
Rebekah shows us that leaders are always willing to give, often giving more than they’re asked for. They put the needs of others before their own.
Miriam shows us that leaders look out for the helpless, that they don’t side with bullies and they defend the defenseless.
Deborah teaches us that leaders inspire their followers. They’re cheerleaders who encourage, motivate, and inspire their followers with supportive words.
Ruth teaches us that leaders demonstrate loyalty and devotion to those they serve and the people who have helped shape them.
And Mary of Nazareth shows us that leaders embrace great opportunities with willingness and enthusiasm and know that the greater the possibility there is for failure, the greater the opportunity there is for success.
Lieutenant Governor, it is not by chance that we stand here again, this evening, as we did 4 years ago. That evening I stated that clearly, God had prepared you for such a time as this. I reiterate that this evening. You have demonstrated exceptional leadership, as these women in the Scripture have done, and as such, the people of Iowa have re-elected you to serve them in the office of Lieutenant Governor, giving you continued opportunity to make Iowa a better place to live, work and raise a family.
As you, once again, accept this great privilege and responsibility, will you continue to be challenged by the Word of God and the people of Iowa to be a servant leader?
Will you continue to work for the betterment of the people of Iowa, consistently and determinedly seeking the best for each individual, and the state as a whole?
Will you continue to pursue advancement in all facets of life for every Iowan and continue to set an example for all Iowans in character, integrity and openness?
Will you welcome wise counsel as you uphold the duties of the office of Lieutenant Governor, and pray daily for wisdom and guidance as you serve the people of Iowa?
If, under God, this is your intent and the purpose in accepting this high calling, please signify the same by affirming: “With God’s help, I will.”
[Lieutenant Governor Reynolds: “I will.”]
And now, I challenge you, as God challenged Israel’s King David: Trust in the LORD, and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness. Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him, and he will act.
(Psalm 37:3 & 5, ESV)
Wednesday, June 18, 2014
Forgiving those who have hurt us........
How do we forgive those who have hurt us? Odds are that when you read that line, someone’s name immediately came to mind. There was something they did to you in the past that is still fresh and raw and painful. Someone has wounded you, lied to you, taken advantage of you and that wound is very fresh.
Let me say this right up front: Anytime I talk about this I get some push back. I get, “Chuck, listen, you don't know what so and so did to me. You're going to tell me that I'm supposed to forgive, but you don't know what so and so did to me.” And the truth is, I don't know. But here’s what I do know: If you really want to move past your past, if you really want to get the past to release it’s grip on you, you have to decide to forgive.
Jesus made a statement that speaks to this issue. A doctor named Luke wrote down an account of the events of Jesus’ life and he recorded what Jesus said: What is impossible with men is possible with God. (Luke 18:27, NIV)
Let’s start with the why. Why in the world should I forgive someone who hurt me or hurt someone I love? 2 reasons. First:
Because unforgiveness hurts me.
For some reason we have the idea that when we don’t forgive someone else that we’re hurting them. We’re getting even with them. But that doesn’t make any sense at all. They’re the ones who did the hurting, do you think they really care if you forgive them or not? No. They don’t. So when we don’t forgive someone else, it doesn’t hurt them, it hurts us. The writer to the Hebrews said: Watch out that no poisonous root of bitterness grows up to trouble you, corrupting many. (Hebrews 12:15b, NLT)
Many people have learned to function with a grudge. But Scripture says that love keeps no records of wrong, but bitterness keeps detailed records doesn't it? Unforgiveness is like grabbing broken glass and squeezing it in our hands, it hurts us. Here’s the 2nd reason we must forgive:
Because I will need forgiveness again.
It would be great if we were to repent of our sins and ask God for His forgiveness and that was it......forever. But the problem is, we’re human. Even though our sins are forgiven, we aren’t perfect so we will sin again. So every one of us, regardless of who we are, will need forgiveness again. Here’s what Jesus said: “If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you. But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins.” (Matthew 6:14-15, NLT)
We can shrug that off and say, “It’s not a big deal” all day long, but it is a big deal. It’s a huge deal. I don’t know if you’ve caught on to this yet, but forgiveness doesn’t benefit the person being forgiven, it benefits the person doing the forgiving. Forgiveness doesn’t benefit the person or the people who wronged you, it benefits you! It removes the poison from your heart, and opens the door to receive God’s forgiveness again, and not matter how you look at it, both of those are winning situations!
It’s not enough to know why we should forgive, it’s also helpful to know how to forgive. Here we go:
I first need to pray.
Start with prayer and pray for those that hurt you. Some of you are thinking, “I’ve been praying but God still hasn’t given them hemorrhoids or struck them with lightning!” That’s not the kind of prayer I’m talking about. I’m talking about praying for them like Jesus. While He was on the cross......beaten, bloody, bruised and dying, Jesus said something. As He was hanging there He looked up to Heaven and said: “Father, forgive them.” (Luke 23:34, NLT)
Right as they were hurting Him He prayed. So just start and pray. I’m not going to tell you this will be easy, and I don't want to minimize the pain, but you start there and God can start to do a work in your heart. Start with prayer. Here’s the second step:
Forgive as you have been forgiven.
Forgive the same way God forgave you. “But Chuck, I’m not God.” Of course you’re not God. If you were God you would have forgiven long ago. I know you’re not God, but we need to forgive in the same way He forgives. In the New Testament we have a letter that the Apostle Paul wrote the church in the city of Colossai because, apparently, they were having some issues with forgiveness too. So here’s what He wrote to them: Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. (Colossians 3:13, NLT)
Cut people some slack. You like it when people cut you some slack, don’t you? When you get pulled over for doing 78 in a 70, do you want a ticket, or do you want some slack? When you’re in a hurry and you didn’t come to a complete stop, do you want a ticket or do you want a break? Paul says, “Hey! People have faults. Give ‘em a break. Make allowance for that.” And no, it might not be easy, it might not be clean, there might still be some mess, you still might have to hang in there and work through some things. There might even be some pain on the other side, but hang in there, bear with them.
God forgave you and me of this huge debt of sin, and He calls on us to forgive the offences that others commit against us. Why? Because forgiven people forgive people.
That's what we do. I’m forgiven by Christ and didn’t deserve His grace, therefore because I belong to Him, I offer the same forgiveness that's been given to me.
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