November 20, 2017

"However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.” Luke 10:20

For over forty-five years I have been addicted to the thrill of being a life-changer. It still amazes me that a God like Him can use a man like me to change the eternal destiny of another human being! But He has, and He does, and He will continue to do so! There are people will spend eternity in Heaven with Jesus who may have ended up in eternal agony if I had not shown up in their town!

That is an incredible blessing for which I am profoundly grateful!

The reason the Lord can use me to be a life-changer is because He changed my life! He changed my life through some life-changers who had their lives changed by the mercy and grace of God! As they witnessed to me about their life-change and showed me how I could experience life-change I chose the change!

In the context of this Scripture text, Jesus has called seventy-two of His followers who have had their lives changed to go out and be life-changers. When they went out in His power and shared His good news they saw lives dramatically changed! As they returned to Him to report the amazing life-changes they had witnessed they were overwhelmed with  great joy!

So was He!

God calls you to a changed life for two basic reasons:

1) You need a fundamental spiritual transformation

2) He needs to use you to fundamentally change the lives of others.

Have you been changed by the grace of Jesus Christ through faith?

Do you confidently know your name is written in heaven?

If you are sure you have had a spiritual life-change, who's life have you changed?

Life-changers have their lives changed in order to be used to change the lives of others!

November 19, 2017

“For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins” Matthew 6:14-15

You will never fully enter into your freedom in Christ until you learn the freedom of forgiveness.

Someone has said, “Jesus is telling us that there is a vital link between the way you treat other people and the way God in heaven is going to treat you. Let’s face it. We don’t like that. On one level we tend to think it would be good if we could hate someone for what they did to us and still have the blessings of God, still be filled with the Spirit, still walk in joy every day, still radiate the love of Jesus, and still have our prayers answered. We’d much prefer if we could just have our relationship with God insulated and encapsulated so we could treat other people any way we like. Jesus says, “No deal. You can’t have it that way.” Unless you forgive you will not be forgiven. This is a hard word, isn’t it? But it is a hard word of grace.”

How do we know when we have truly forgiven?

What does forgiveness look like?

Here are a few helpful guidelines (taken partly from Kendall and also from a list by the Puritan author Thomas Watson, as supplied by Waylon Moore):

                            
1. Face what they did and forgive them anyway.
2. Don’t keep bringing it up to them.
3. Don’t talk about it to others.
4. Show mercy instead of judgment.
5. Refuse to speak evil of others.
6. Choose not to dwell on it.
7. Pray for them.
8. Ask God to bless them.
9. Do not rejoice at their calamities.
10. Help them when you can.

Augustine called this text “a terrible petition.” He pointed out that if you pray these words while harboring an unforgiving spirit, you are actually asking God not to forgive you. Ponder that for a moment. If you pray “Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors” while refusing to forgive those who have wronged you, this prayer which is meant to be a blessing becomes a self-inflicted curse. In that case you are really saying, “O God, since I have not forgiven my brother, please do not forgive me.” That is why Charles Haddon Spurgeon, the great English preacher, said that if you pray the Lord’s Prayer with an unforgiving spirit, you have virtually signed your own “death-warrant.”

During one period of his life, John Wesley was a missionary in the American colonies—primarily in the area that would become the state of Georgia. There was a general by the name of Oglethorpe with whom Wesley had some dealings. General Oglethorpe was a great military leader, but he had a reputation as a harsh and brutal man. One day he said to John Wesley, “I never forgive.” To which Wesley replied, “Then, sir, I hope you never sin.”

You have been released from your sins by the grace of God in Jesus Christ.

You must be willing to release those who have sinned against you.

If you will choose to give grace and not hold grudges you will experience the joy and freedom God longs to flood your soul with.

November 18, 2017

"And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors." Matthew 6:12

You owed a debt of sin you could never have paid. But in His great love and grace, God sent His Son to die on the cross to settle your debt and save you from your sin!

That is the amazing news of the Gospel!

But as God freely forgave your sins through Christ He also expects you to forgive others who sin against you. 

Why do you and I struggle to forgive others when they wrong us?

That's a complicated question and demands complex answers but at the root of the problem is the failure to remember how great God's forgiveness was toward us for how could be mindful of that and not be able to forgive another?

Jesus told a parable to illustrate that point. He said there was a man with a multi-million dollar debt to his master that he could never repay and the master demanded payment. Knowing he could never pay what was owed the debtor cried out for mercy. So pitiful was his pleading that the master was moved with compassion and forgave him the great debt.

You would think that the man forgiven such a large amount would have been filled with joy. But instead, he went to a neighbor who owed him a small amount and ruthlessly demanded payment from him!

When the master found out about him lack of mercy he became angry at the man and had him thrown into debtors prison!

That is such an accurate portrayal of you if you fail to forgive someone who has wronged you!

Jesus made it clear in this prayer that to be forgiven we must forgive others!

What specifically happens if you don't forgive?

1. Your fellowship with the Father is blocked.

2. The Holy Spirit is grieved.

3. Your prayers will not be answered.

4. God leaves you alone to face the problems of life in your own power.

5. The devil gains a foothold through your bitterness.

6. You force God to become your enemy.

7. You lose the blessing of God on your life.

8. You waste time nursing a wounded spirit.

9. You become enslaved to the people you hate.

10. You become like the people you refuse to forgive.

Unless you forgive you will not be forgiven.

Is there someone you need to forgive?

Debtors To God

"And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors." Matthew 6:12

The word "debt" is another word for "sin" but "debt" is a more correct translation of the original Greek text. 

Actually, "debt" is a good word picture for what sin is! Sin is "missing the mark" or falling short of the standard.

God is a Holy and cannot abide sin. So, if I sin (when) I have fallen short of God's nature and His standard which puts me in a moral and spiritual debt to Him. And it is a debt I have no ability to ever pay. Each time I sin my level of debt deepens.

If you have ever been in debt financially you can begin to grasp the spiritual condition you find yourself in as a sinner. The more you sin the greater the debt, the deeper the hole you find yourself in and the more hopeless you feel. Every month as a new payment comes due you begin to panic realizing you cannot make the payment so you will fall deeper in debt and feel more hopeless.

A large and growing debt burden can crush you!

What do you do when you owe a debt you cannot pay while the debt continues to grow?

Do you cry?

Do you fret?

Do you resign yourself to a hopeless existence?

Do you become depressed?

Do you self-medicate with alcohol or drugs?

Well, when you owe a debt it either has to be paid or it has to be cancelled by the creditor. Right?

That brings us full circle in this thought.

We are debtors to God owing Him an ever-mounting moral debt that we have no hope of ever paying. Our only hope is for God to cancel the debt or release us from it!

God did both!

He paid your debt by sacrificing Jesus, His Son, on the cross of Calvary. Jesus, because He was sin-free (debt-free) was able to take the death penalty for you and the blood He shed on the cross atoned for your sins!

Jesus paid your debt and released you from the penalty of it!

All you have to do is believe it and receive it by trusting Jesus as your Savior!

What do you call a gift so great as that?

Grace!

November 16, 2017

"And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors." Matthew 6:12

"For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins."  Matthew 6:14-15

Augustine called this text “a terrible petition.” He pointed out that if you pray these words while harboring an unforgiving spirit, you are actually asking God not to forgive you. Ponder that for a moment. If you pray “Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors” while refusing to forgive those who have wronged you, this prayer which is meant to be a blessing becomes a self-inflicted curse. In that case you are really saying, “O God, since I have not forgiven my brother, please do not forgive me.” That is why Charles Haddon Spurgeon, the great English preacher, said that if you pray the Lord’s Prayer with an unforgiving spirit, you have virtually signed your own “death-warrant.”

During one period of his life, John Wesley was a missionary in the American colonies—primarily in the area that would become the state of Georgia. There was a general by the name of Oglethorpe with whom Wesley had some dealings. General Oglethorpe was a great military leader, but he had a reputation as a harsh and brutal man. One day he said to John Wesley, “I never forgive.” To which Wesley replied, “Then, sir, I hope you never sin.”

When we pray, “Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors,” we are asking God to forgive our sins according to the same standard we have used in forgiving the sins of others. There are 11 words in the text, but only one of them is important for our purposes. It’s the little word “as.” Everything hangs on the meaning of that word. “As” is the conjunction that joins the first half of the petition with the second half. When Jesus says “as,” he is setting up a comparison between the way we forgive and the way God forgives us. This text says that we set the standard and then God follows the standard. We establish the pattern and then God follows that pattern in the way he deals with us. When you pray this prayer you are really saying, “O God, deal with me as I deal with other people. Deal with me as I have dealt with others.” We are virtually saying, “O God, I’ve got a neighbor and I did some favors for my neighbor and my neighbor is ungrateful to me for all I have done. I am angry with my neighbor and I will not forgive him for his ingratitude. Now deal with me as I have dealt with my neighbor.” It’s as if we’re praying, “O God, that man hurt me. I am so angry I can’t wait to get even. Deal with me as I have dealt with him.” We set the standard and God follows our lead.

Unless you forgive you will not be forgiven. To refuse to forgive someone else and then to ask God for forgiveness is a kind of spiritual schizophrenia. You are asking God to give you what you are unwilling to give to someone else. The fifth petition of the Lord’s Prayer tells us you cannot have it both ways. Do you want to be forgiven? You must forgive others.

10 Steps To Forgiveness

"Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us." Matthew 6:12

Is He really saying what it sounds like He is saying here?

It sounds like what He is saying is if you don't forgive those who have sinned against you He can't forgive you. But that can't be right, can it? 

Actually, yes it is!

In fact, that is precisely what it means!

If you can't receive God's grace for your sinfulness then you won't be able to extend grace to others. That's pretty much what it means. The fact is simple even if the forgiveness isn't.

So, my relationship with others has a direct effect on my relationship with God?

Yes!

Wow! That's serious!

So, what do I need to do?

What does forgiveness look like? The answer will vary depending on the person involved and what they did to you. Here are a few helpful guidelines (taken partly from Kendall and also from a list by the Puritan author Thomas Watson, as supplied by Waylon Moore):

1. Face what they did and forgive them anyway.

2. Don’t keep bringing it up to them.

3. Don’t talk about it to others.

4. Show mercy instead of judgment.

5. Refuse to speak evil of others.

6. Choose not to dwell on it.

7. Pray for them.

8. Ask God to bless them.

9. Do not rejoice at their calamities.

10. Help them when you can.

Let me ask you a few questions in regard to this list. 

Is this not exactly what Jesus did for you?

Aren't you thankful that He did?

Does He then have the right to demand this of you?

Are you willing to forgive like this?

Where are you struggling?

Will you ask Him to give you grace to forgive? The same grace He used to forgive you?

November 14, 2017

"And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors." Matthew 6:12

There is one  phrase I always work into my wedding ceremonies and it is this, "And never forget that marriage is the union of two good forgivers."

If you were to interview 50 couples who have been married for 25 years or more there would be five or six common denominators that they would attribute the longevity of their relationships to and one of those attributes would forgiveness.

Imagine a scenario like this. Things have been a bit tense between you and your spouse recently and to prevent it from escalating you apologize saying, "Please forgive me I have been hard to live with lately."

Your spouse replies, "No!"

"No? What do you mean, no?"

"No, I won't forgive you!"

"Really?"

"Really! I will not forgive you! I can't forgive you!"

Where can that conversation go from there?

For that matter, where can a relationship go from there?

Christianity is not a religion it is a relationship with a loving and living God! It is a relationship that was made possible through forgiveness. That forgiveness is made possible by the blood of Jesus Who paid the penalty for our sins by His death on the cross.

So, a relationship born out of forgiveness requires continued forgiveness to sustain it!

No wonder Jesus taught His disciples to pray, "Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us."

Forgiving is hard but Jesus says, "You have a prayer!"