Transcript What is total forgiveness

WHAT IS TOTAL FORGIVENESS
Talk 2,3
Youth Conference Oct. 2012
SUMMARY OF THE TALK
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
What total forgiveness is NOT
What total forgiveness IS
How do we know that we have totally
forgiven someone?
The consequences of unforgiving spirits
How to forgive totally
ST CYRIL OF JERUSALEM

‘And forgive us our debts as we also forgive our
debtors.’ For we have many sins. For we offend
both in word and in thought, and very many
things we do worthy of condemnation; and ‘if we
say that we have no sin’ (1 John 1.8), we lie, as
John says. The offenses committed against us
are slight and trivial, and easily settled; but
those which we have committed against God are
great, and need such great mercy. Take heed,
therefore, lest for the slight and trivial sins
against you, you shut out for yourself forgiveness
from God for your very grievous sins.
(Catechetical Lectures, 23.16)

What total forgiveness
is NOT
1. APPROVAL OF WHAT THEY DID
“No one, sir,” she said.
“Then neither do I
condemn you,” Jesus
declared. “Go now and
leave your life of sin.”

Jn 8:11
2. EXCUSING WHAT THEY DID


The LORD said to Moses, “How long will these
people treat me with contempt? How long
will they refuse to believe in me, in spite of
all the signs I have performed among
them? 12 I will strike them down with a
plague and destroy them, but I will make
you into a nation greater and stronger than
they. Nu 19:11,12
In accordance with your great love, forgive
the sin of these people, just as you have
pardoned them from the time they left Egypt
until now.” Nu 14:19
3. JUSTIFYING WHAT THEY DID

Justifying = making it right or Just
“Would
you discredit
my justice?
Would you
condemn me to
justify yourself?
Job 40:8
4. PARDONING WHAT THEY DID
Pardoning
is to release
the offender form the
consequences like
penalty.
5. RECONCILATION

that God was reconciling
the world to himself in
Christ, not counting
people’s sins against
them..... We implore you
on Christ’s behalf: Be
reconciled to God 2 Cor 2:19,20
6. DENYING WHAT THEY DID
Do
not repress (involuntarily =
unconscious)
7. BLINDNESS TO WHAT HAPPENED


..
Blindness is voluntarily act
it keeps no record of
wrongs. 1 Cor 13:5
8. FORGETTING
For
I will forgive their
wickedness
and will remember
their sins no more.”
Heb 8:12
God has made the choice , we too have to
make the choice
Choice
ST. IGNATIUS BRIANCHANINOV
"Resentment
or rejection of love is
rejection of God. God withdraws
from a resentful person,
deprives him of His Grace, and
gives him up to spiritual death,
unless the person repents in good
time so as to be healed of that
deadly moral poison, resentment.
9. REFUSING TO TAKE THE WRONG
SERIOUSLY
We
can not truly forgive
until we see the actual
thing we are forgiving,
and how serious it is.
God did so.
10. PRETENDING THAT WE ARE NOT HURT
 Fixing
our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer
and perfecter of faith. For the joy set
before him he endured the cross,
scorning its shame, and sat down
at the right hand of the throne of
God.
Heb 12:2
“If I said something wrong,” Jesus
replied, “testify as to what is wrong.
But if I spoke the truth, why did
you strike me?”
Jn 18:23

What total forgiveness
IS
1. BEING AWARE OF WHAT SOMEONE
HAS DONE AND STILL FORGIVING THEM.
“Therefore,
the kingdom of
heaven is like a king who
wanted to settle accounts
with his servants. As he
began the settlement ...
Matt 18:23,24
2. IT IS A CHOICE TO KEEP NO RECORDS
OF WRONG

.. Love
 Total
keeps no records of
wrong. 1 Cor 13:5
forgiveness is not initially a
feeling , it is painful choice at first.
But later we feel it- and it is a good
feeling.
3. REFUSING TO PUNISH
 This
is the essence of total
forgiveness. It is when we give up
the natural desire to see them ‘get
what’s coming to them.
It
is mine to avenge;
I will repay.
Deut 32:35, Rom 12:19, Heb 10:30
4. NOT TELLING WHAT THEY DID
 Tell
your father of confession and a
spiritual guide for a therapeutic
reason not for any other reasons.
I
have been forgiven means:
1)
2)
I won’t be punished for my sins
Nobody will know about my sins ,
for sins under the blood of Jesus
Christ will not be exposed or held
against.
 Who
steals my purse, steals trash;
‘Twas mine,’ tis his , and he has been
slave to thousands.
But he that filches from me my good
name
Robs me of that which not enriches
him,
And makes me poor indeed.
From Othello, by William Shakespeare
5. BEING MERCIFUL
Blessed
are the merciful,
for they will be shown
mercy. Matt 5:7
The
merciful man does
good for his own soul..

Prov. 11:17
6. GRACIOUSNESS
 When
Jesus had raised Himself up
and saw no one but the woman, He
said to her, “Woman, where are
those accusers of yours? Has no one
condemned you?”
She said, “No one, Lord.”
And Jesus said to her, “Neither do I
condemn you; go and sin no more.
Jn 8:10,11
7. IT IS AN INNER CONDITION
For
out of the abundance of
the heart the mouth speaks.
Matt 12:34
 Then
Jesus said, “Father, forgive
them, for they do not know what
they do.”
And they divided His garments and
cast lots. Lk 23:34
8. IT IS THE ABSENCE OF BITTERNESS

And do not grieve the Holy
Spirit of God, by whom you
were sealed for the day of
redemption. 31 Let all
bitterness, wrath, anger,
clamor, and evil speaking be
put away from you, with
all malice. Eph 4:30,31
9. DECLARING GOD’S GOODNESS
For
those who struggle with
god’s right to allow evil- and
we all have done this- there
still must be a genuine
forgiveness on our part, for
any bitterness grieves the
Spirit.
10. FORGIVING OURSELVES
I
know God forgave me but I can
not forgive myself.
And
the second is like
it: ‘You shall love your
neighbour as yourself.
Matt 22:39
ELDER SAMPSON OF RUSSIA
 The
drunkard, the fornicator, the
proud—he will receive God’s mercy.
But he who does not want to
forgive, to excuse, to justify
consciously, intentionally ... that
person closes himself to eternal life
before God, and even more so in the
present life. He is turned away
and not heard.
HOW DO WE KNOW THAT WE
HAVE TOTALLY FORGIVEN
SOMEONE?
Joseph Example (Gen.45)
1. DO NOT LET ANYBODY
KNOW WHAT SOMEONE SAID ABOUT
YOU OR DID TO YOU
Then
Joseph could not
restrain himself before all
those who stood by him, and
he cried out, “Make
everyone go out from me!”
So no one stood with him
while Joseph made himself
known to his brothers. Gen 45:1
2. DO NOT ALLOW ANYBODY TO BE AFRAID OF YOU
OR INTIMIDATED BY YOU
And
Joseph said to his
brothers, “Please come
near to me.” So they
came near. Then he said:
“I am Joseph your brother,
Gen 45:4
3.WE
WILL WANT THEM TO FORGIVE THEMSELVES
AND NOT FEEL GUILTY
he said: “I am Joseph
your brother, whom you sold
into Egypt. 5 But now, do not
therefore be grieved or angry
with yourselves because you sold
me here; for God sent me

....Then
before you to preserve
life. Gen 45:4,5
No
denial
4. WE WILL LET THEM SAVE FACE
 And
God sent me before you to
preserve a posterity for you in
the earth, and to save your lives
by a great deliverance. 8 So now it
was not you who sent me here, but
God; and He has made me a
father to Pharaoh, and lord
of all his house, and a ruler
throughout all the land of
Egypt. Gen 45:7,8
5. WE WILL PROTECT THEM FROM THIER
GREATEST FEAR

“Hurry and go up to my father, and say to him,
‘Thus says your son Joseph: “God has made me lord of
all Egypt; come down to me, do not tarry. 10 You shall
dwell in the land of Goshen, and you shall be near to
me, you and your children, your children’s children,
your flocks and your herds, and all that you
have. 11 There I will provide for you, lest you and your
household, and all that you have, come to poverty;
for there are still five years of famine.”’
12 “And behold, your eyes and the eyes of my brother
Benjamin see that it is my mouth that speaks to
you. 13 So you shall tell my father of all my glory in
Egypt, and of all that you have seen; and you shall
hurry and bring my father down here. Gen 45:9-13
6. IT IS A LIFE LONG COMMITMENT
 Seventeen years later
When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father
was dead, they said, “Perhaps Joseph will hate
us, and may actually repay us for all the evil
which we did to him.” Gen 50:15
 15
Joseph said to them, “Do not be afraid, for am I
in the place of God? 20 But as for you, you meant
evil against me; but God meant it for good, in
order to bring it about as it is this day, to save
many people alive. 21 Now therefore, do not be
afraid; I will provide for you and your little
ones.” And he comforted them and spoke
kindly to them. Gen 50:19,21
 19
7. PRAYING FOR THEM TO BE BLESSED
And the LORD restored Job’s
losses when he prayed for
his friends. Indeed the LORD
gave Job twice as much as he had
before. Job 42:10


Then Job answered and said: “I have heard many
such things; Miserable comforters are you all!
3 Shall words of wind have an end? Or what
provokes you that you answer? Job 16:1-3
WARNING!!!
Never
go to a person you have
had to forgive and say to him ‘I
forgive you’ this will be a
counter-productive every time
unless it is to a person that you
happen to know is yearning for
you to forgive him. Otherwise
you will create a stir that you
will not be able to cope with.
THE CONSEQUENCES OF
UNFORGIVING SPIRITS
1. WE LOSE OUR FORGIVENESS
This is how my heavenly
Father will treat each of
you unless you forgive
your brother or sister from
your heart.” Matt 18:35

“
2. THE HOLY SPIRIT IS GRIEVED
 And
do not grieve the Holy Spirit
of God, with whom you were sealed
for the day of redemption. 31Get rid
of all bitterness, rage and anger,
brawling and slander, along with
every form of malice. 32 Be kind and
compassionate to one another,
forgiving each other, just as in
Christ God forgave you. Eph 4:30-32
3. YOU ARE LEFT TO YOURSELF
The
backslider in heart will
be filled with his own ways,
But a good man will be satisfied
from above. Prov. 14:14
lest Satan should take
advantage of us; for we are
not ignorant of his devices.
2 Cor 2:11

4. YOU MAKE YOURSELF AN ENEMY OF GOD
Where do wars and fights come from among
you? Do they not come from your desires for
pleasure that war in your members? 2 You lust
and do not have. You murder and covet and
cannot obtain. You fight and war. Yet you do not
have because you do not ask. 3 You ask and do
not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may
spend it on your pleasures. 4Adulterers
and adulteresses! Do you not know that
friendship with the world is enmity with God?
1
Whoever therefore wants to be
a friend of
the world makes himself an
enemy of God. Jas 4:1-4
5. YOU LOSE YOUR ANOINTING’S POTENTIAL
Rejoice always, 17 pray without
ceasing, 18 in everything give
thanks; for this is the will of God
in Christ Jesus for you.
19 Do not quench the
Spirit. 20 Do not despise
prophecies. 21 Test all things; hold
fast what is good. 22 Abstain from
every form of evil. 1 Thes 5:16-22
16
6. NO AUTHENTIC FELLOWSHIP WITH THE
FATHER
If we say that we have
fellowship with Him, and walk
in darkness, we lie and do not
practice the truth. 7 But if we
walk in the light as He is in the
light, we have fellowship with
one another, and the blood of
Jesus Christ His Son cleanses
us from all sin. 1 Jn 1:6,7
6
DO NOT PLAY GOD BUT SEEK NEED
 Necessary – Is it necessary to say this?
 Encourage – will this encourage ? Will it make
them to feel better?
 Edify - will it edify? Will it build them up and
make them stronger as a result if what you would
say?
 Dignify – will it dignify that person? That’s the
way Jesus treated other people; he gave them a
sense of dignity.
WHEN I CAN ADVISE OR ADMONISH
Now I myself am confident
concerning you, my brethren,
that you also are full of
goodness, filled with all
knowledge, able also to
admonish one another.
14
Rom 15:14
HOW TO ADMONISH
Motive: The motive should be love not
condemnation
Level of speech: I am a sinner like you
and even I am the chief sinners.
Measure of speech: We measure
everything to the absolute truth of the
Word of God not on personal opinions.
HOW TO FORGIVE TOTALLY
1. Make the deliberate and irrevocable choice
not to tell anybody about what they did
2. Be pleasant to them should you be around
them
3. If conversation ensues, say that which
would set them free from guilt.
4. Protect them from greatest fear.
5. Keep it up today, tomorrow , this year and
next.
6. Pray for them.
FIVE LEVELS OF PRAYER
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
Duty : it is obedience , even if you are doing it
because you feel you have to.
Debt : this when you are so conscious of what
you have been forgiven that you cannot but pray
for your enemy.
Desire: now you have reached the stage where
you actually want to pray for those who have
hurt you.
Delight : this is taking desire a step further , it
is when you love doing it.
Durability : this means what you took on as a
life-long commitment becomes a lifestyle.