Forgiveness, When the East Meets West

Here is my sermon outline for Janurary 20th

I. Introduction
Luke 23:34
Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing”.

Medea – the play is thousands of years old and yet it could be pulled out of the headlines today.
There are three instances where we need to show forgiveness.

II. Others
Forgiveness is not something lost people understand, but neither are other things that God calls us to do.

What about when a person continues to do things that require forgiveness?

Leonardo Da Vinci Story:

Jesus made it clear that we had to not only forgive, but we must keep forgiving.

Luke 23:34
Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing”. Jesus was willing to forgive those who were in the process of taking his life.

III. Yourself
Forgiving yourself. It sounds kind of odd.
Luke 7:36
Jesus didn’t say, your sins are forgiven, but drive yourself crazy by thinking about what you’ve done.
Paul was present when Stephen was killed, yet he didn't let it stop him from serving after Christ.
IV. God
In some situations there is a tendency to blame God. Though he is perfect and infallible this doesn’t prevent us from shifting blame to him.
Job's story:
In all of this, Job did not sin by blaming God.
Job lost everything, but he knew that all that he had, had been given to him by God, and that it was God’s.
We may not always understand why God is doing something.

V. Conclusion
Matthew 5:23-24 (NLT)
"So if you are standing before the altar in the Temple, offering a sacrifice to God, and you suddenly remember that someone has something against you, [24] leave your sacrifice there beside the altar. Go and be reconciled to that person. Then come and offer your sacrifice to God.
Is there something that is standing between you and God? Someone has wronged you and it weighs heavy on your mind? You lost something and you have laid the blame on God? Not forgiving is robbing you of your joy.