SERMON OUTLINE FOR AUGUST 23, 2009
Pastor Peter Hogeterp

Covenant Christian Reformed Church

Winnipeg, Canada

 

   

Scripture Reading: Matthew 18:21-35

Sermon Title: THE ANATOMY OF FORGIVENESS (5th in a Series on Paradoxes)

 

Introduction:

Every one of us has experienced the pain of someone hurting us, wronging us, causing us grief. Sometimes they did it intentionally, but often not. Sometimes they are sorry, but often not. We have two choices then: either hang on to the hurt, or let it go. Hanging on hurts only us. But how do we let go?

 

  1. What forgiveness is not.

a)     Forgiveness is not pretending it doesn’t hurt

b)    It is not excusing

c)     It is not smothering the conflict

d)    It is not the same as accepting people

e)     It is not tolerance for unacceptable behaviour

f)     It does not reduce the size of the evil.

 

  1. A Biblical definition of Forgiveness

a)     God acknowledges evil for the horror it is

b)    Sin makes God angry

c)     What He does when He forgives is: He does not hold our sin against us nor treat us as we deserve (Psalm 103:10)

 

  1. When someone hurts us, what are our choices?

a)     We can ignore it and pretend it never happened

b)    We can live with the pain and keep holding it against that person

c)     We can get even

 

  1. Or we can forgive. What does forgiveness look like?

a)     It comes out of an awareness that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23)

b)    The person who has sinned may be dealing with bigger issues than I am

c)     I have a choice about where I will place my energies: do I want to work on continue to hang on to the hurt, or do I want to work on letting go?

d)    The person most helped by my forgiving those who have hurt me is ME

 

Conclusion:

What needs to happen for forgiveness to take hold? Does there have to be restoration? What if the person is unrepentant? Lewis Smedes, in his book Forgive and Forget, calls forgiveness “love’s unexpected revolution against unfair pain.”