You Can Learn to Fight Right: The Art of Forgiveness. LifeGroup Study and Devotional Readings. Sunday, February 7 th

Transcription

1 You Can Learn to Fight Right: The Art of Forgiveness LifeGroup Study and Devotional Readings Sunday, February 7 th ICEBREAKER: Did you have siblings growing up? What did your fights look like when you were kids? Who started them? Who ended them? THE ART OF FORGIVENESS During this teaching series we have been looking at how to fight right. A key part of that process is the art of forgiveness. Forgiveness is a gift you give to yourself and the offender. It is not easy but it is always the right thing to do. The goal of today s study is to explore what the Bible says about being forgiven by God and how that forgiveness must guide our forgiveness of others. When we learn how to fully receive God s forgiveness and to forgive ourselves then we are in a place where we can fully forgive others. When we do that, we learn how to fight right! Let s dig into the The Art of Forgiveness together. A Biblical Definition of Forgiveness: The word forgive means to wipe the slate clean, to pardon, to cancel a debt.

2 3 truths from the Bible about God s Forgiveness: 1. We All Need It: A fundamental truth in the Bible is that we all need forgiveness. This is key to our understanding of God s nature and ours. Many people fail to take these two realities (God s nature and ours) into account when they think about their sin. Norman Greenbaum s song, Spirit in the Sky has a line that reads, Never been a sinner. I ve never sinned. I ve got a friend named Jesus. Sadly, many people buy into the idea that they are not any worse than the next guy so they really don t need to be forgiven for anything. The standard by which we measure our need of forgiveness should not be comparing ourselves with other people. We must measure ourselves against God s standard. His is what really matters! READ Romans 3:21-26 Let s focus in on what Paul wrote in verse 23 all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. Imagine you re at an archery field. Way down the field in the distance you see your target that piece of paper with circles and the bull s eye in the middle. If you fired your bow from 100 yards, mark where you think you might land on the target. Be honest!

3 In Romans 3:23, God tells us that we all miss the bull s eye! No matter how good we are, none of us live up to His holy standard. The most important element of God s nature is His holiness. Understanding God s holiness is key to understanding His grace, mercy and forgiveness. God s holiness is foundational to all other aspects of His character. Why is our understanding of God s holiness so important to understanding our need for forgiveness? Let s continue to examine Romans 3:21-26 to see what we can learn about our need for God s forgiveness. Divide your LifeGroup into 2 groups. Group 1: Look at verses What are Paul s key points? How does this impact your understanding that we all need God s forgiveness Write them down and prepare to share them with the rest of the group. Group 2: Look again at verses What are Paul s key points? How does this impact your understanding that we all need God s forgiveness? Write down your thoughts and prepare to share them with the group.

4 2. We Need to Ask for It: Here s a second truth when it comes to God s forgiveness. We need to ask for it. Universalism is the belief that all people will eventually be forgiven because of what Jesus has done on the cross. In other words I don t need to do anything! I can live any way I want and believe anything I want and I ll still be saved in the end. Scripture, however, clearly teaches that we need to ask for God s forgiveness. Read 1 John 1:5-10 The Gnostics a religious group that existed in John s day, believed that they could live a sinless life. They thought their higher knowledge would somehow lift them above the realm of sin. In these verses, John reminds us that we Christ-followers still struggle with sin (see Romans 7:14-25) but there is a way to be forgiven. John focuses on an important aspect of living in fellowship with God. If we live in the light we ll have a life-saving experience of God s forgiveness. Using the chart below to record what these verses teach about the two contrasting viewpoints on our need to be forgiven by God. What is result of each of these perspectives? I Don t Need God s Forgiveness I Do Need God s Forgiveness Reflection and prayer: Let s not leave this section of the study without applying what we re learning. Take a few minutes now in group to ask God to search your heart. If you are aware of an area of your life where you need to be forgiven, why not ask Him right now? Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you and lead me along the path of everlasting life. Psalm 139:23-24

5 3. Forgiveness from God is Only Possible When We Forgive Others THE LORD S PRAYER: READ: Matthew 6:9-13 As a group, take time now to pray through the Lord s Prayer out loud together. Our Father in heaven, may your name be kept holy. May your Kingdom come soon. May your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. Give us today the food we need, and forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us. And don t let us yield to temptation, but rescue us from the evil one. READ: Matthew 6:14-15 Forgiving others is a reflection of a repentant, regenerate heart, which makes our own forgiveness possible. Those who have experienced God s forgiveness will forgive. Jesus implies that those who are unwilling to forgive have not perceived God s mercy and perhaps have never truly repented. NLT study Bible notes - How do these verses and the text notes above help you understand how our willingness to forgive others is so tightly tied to God s forgiveness of us? - How do you reconcile this idea with the truth that we re saved by God s grace alone, not by anything we do including forgiving others? - What objections do you have to the idea of forgiving others regardless of what they ve done? - What is a key idea or step you d like to take from this study? PRAYER: Take some time to thank God as a group for His incredible forgiveness. He paid a huge price to make it possible. Is there someone you need to forgive? Ask the group to pray for you for God s strength to do the difficult work of forgiving. Got Questions? Have Feedback? We re looking for questions for our Q&A Week Feb. 21 st. your questions to fightright@creeksidechurch.ca CREEKSIDE PRAYER SUMMIT Join us for our next Prayer Summit on Sunday, February 28 st at 6:00 pm at Creekside. Mark your calendar!

6 DEVOTIONS This week s devotionals are designed to help you dig deeper into the Art of Forgiveness. As you read the Bible and the insights each day, allow God to speak to your heart about forgiveness. Are there areas of your life that you need to ask for God s forgiveness? Are there wrongs that others have committed to you for which you need to forgive? Allow God to prepare your heart to seek His forgiveness and to forgive others as He shows you His plan. May God bless you as you commune with Him this week. Day 1: Am I Practicing the Art of Forgiveness? In Matthew 6:12, Jesus taught us to pray forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us. While we may agree that forgiving others is a good idea, we often fail to think through what it looks like to actually live out forgiveness. About 300 years ago, Thomas Watson said that we are practicing the art of forgiveness when we have the following attitudes and actions. Question: When do we forgive others? Answer: When we strive against all thoughts of revenge; when we will not do our enemies mischief, but wish well to them, grieve at their calamities, pray for them, seek reconciliation with them, and show ourselves ready on all occasions to relieve them. (Thomas Watson, Body of Divinity, p. 581) Notice that the art of forgiveness requires both action and heart attitude on our part. On the one hand, forgiveness is very practical in nature, as we resist taking revenge and as we wish our offender well. On the other hand, our actions are useless unless that are accompanied by a heart attitude praying for them, being willing to reconcile, grieving over their calamities. As Ken said on Sunday this kind of forgiveness is hard, but it is what serves as the foundation living a free and joyful life in God s presence. In the coming days we ll break down Thomas Watson s definition of forgiveness into parts and consider each of their meaning for living out forgiveness. PRAYER: Dear God, please work in my heart again today and prepare me to live out the art of forgiveness. Help me to go to the hard places, to turn all of my anxieties over to You. In Jesus Name, Amen.

7 READ: Romans 12:17-21 DAY 2: Am I Striving Against All Thought of Revenge? Never pay back evil for more evil. Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honourable. Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone. Dear friends, never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. For the Scriptures say: I will take revenge. I will pay them back. says the LORD. Instead, If your enemies are hungry, feed them. If they are thirsty, give them something to drink. In doing this you will heap burning coals of shame on their heads. Don t let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good. How might you rewrite these verses in your own words using one or two sentences? Here is a key part to practicing the art of forgiveness: we are to strive against all thoughts of revenge. Many movie plots are based on the opposite approach. We cheer as the star of the movie exacts perfect revenge on his opponent at just the right moment! Ah, sweet revenge! Yet, God calls us to something higher and better we are to leave revenge to Him. Notice from these verses that it s OK to be angry about the offence. God is not saying we need to downplay or ignore it when we ve been hurt. What He says is, Leave the payback to me. God is the perfect judge and He promises that one day each of us will give an account to Him. So let God do his work and rest in the fact that you can conquer evil in your life by doing good. PRAY: Dear God, help me to win the battle with revenge. I m so tempted to fantasize about what I might do to get back at my offenders. Give me the strength to leave the revenge to you, to pay back evil with good. In Jesus Name, Amen.

8 DAY 3: Am I Wishing My Offender Well? READ: Luke 6:27-31 But to you who are willing to listen, I say, love your enemies! Do good to those who hate you. Bless those who curse you. Pray for those who hurt you. If someone slaps you on one cheek, offer the other cheek also. If someone demands your coat, offer your shirt also. Give to anyone who asks; and when things are taken away from you, don t try to get them back. Do to others as you would like them to do to you. Rewrite these verses in your own words using one or two sentences: In this radical teaching, Jesus tells us this about practicing the art of forgiveness. Bless those who curse you. Remember this is what Jesus did when He went to the cross. He allowed the soldiers to mock Him. He let them pull out his beard, beat his back with a whip and push a cruel crown of thorns down onto his head. As He hung on the cross they had nailed him to, He prayed, Father, forgive them. For they know not what they do. Luke 23:34. Jesus modeled for us what He wants us to practice. We are to wish our offenders well. We are to want the best for them, to desire their happiness and welfare. This radical teaching is the pathway to freedom from our anger, bitterness and resentment. Through blessing our enemies we know what God s grace, love and mercy toward us truly means. PRAYER: Dear God, please help me to wish my offenders well. You know what a struggle this is for me, LORD, as I m sure it was for You. Please replace my anger, bitterness and resentment with your love, grace and peace, and help me to bless my enemies. In Jesus Name, Amen.

9 DAY 4: Am I Grieving My Offenders Calamities? READ: Proverbs 24:17-18 Don t rejoice when your enemies fall; don t be happy when they stumble. For the LORD will be displeased with you and will turn his anger away from them. Rewrite these verses in your own words using one or two sentences: A close associate of revenge is gloating over the hard times of our offenders. When we have been hurt by someone, it s natural to feel satisfied and even happy when they encounter difficulties. Ha! Serves them right! we say. They had it coming to them! The art of forgiveness means we give up gloating over the calamities of our offenders. Instead, when our enemy faces difficulties, we are truly sad for their struggle and we desire to help them. Exodus 23:4-5 says, If you come upon your enemy s ox or donkey that has strayed away; take it back to its owner. If you see that the donkey of someone who hates you has collapsed under its load, do not walk by. Instead, stop and help. This is the practical side of the art of forgiveness. If I see a way I can help my offender who is in a tough spot, I step in to help. Who knows what God might do to change my heart and the heart of my offender when I live out the art of forgiveness in this way? PRAYER: Dear God, please help me to truly grieve for my offender s calamities, to be sad when they go through a struggle. Even more, help me to be willing to step alongside them and help as it is appropriate. In Jesus Name, Amen.

10 DAY 5: Am I Praying for My Offender? READ: Matthew 5:43-45a You have heard the law that says, Love your neighbour and hate your enemy. But I say, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you! In that way you will be acting as true children of your Father in heaven. How would you rephrase these verses in your own words in one or two sentences? A sure sign that we have forgiven our offender is when we come to the point where we are able to pray for them. In this case, we are not praying for God s judgement on them, but for His blessing in their life. As we pray in this way, God does a healing work in our heart. This is a process of change in us He often does over time. The first time you pray, you may feel no differently about your offender, but you have obeyed God, which is good! The 10 th time you pray, your perspective and feelings about your offender may begin to turn. Perhaps the most powerful pathway to our own healing is through this avenue of praying for our enemies. As we do this, we experience the true freedom God longs for us to enjoy. PRAYER: Dear God, please help me pray for my offender and not give up! I want to pray your blessing in their life. As I do this, please heal my heart toward them. Help me to do this work of prayer in Jesus Name and for your glory. Amen.