FORGIVENESS, JESUS TAUGHT US HOW

Key Verse:  Luke 23:34

“Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do”

• What do you say to someone when they have said something about you to someone else?
• How about if someone does something to make you loose your job?
• What is your reaction when someone rejects you?
• How would you feel if someone hurt someone in your family?
• How would you react if your best friend was murdered?

Jesus tells us we need to forgive the people who offend us.  (Mt. 18)

Forgiveness is a hard thing to learn about and do, but Jesus taught us how.  Let us take a look at the power of His forgiveness:

Matthew tells us (in Mt. 26:67-68) that they spit in his face, jeered, slapped and banged Him around.

Luke states (in Luke 23:11-12) that, being mightily offended, Herod turned on Jesus with his soldiers joining in taunting and jeering Him and (in verses 63-65) that they poked fun at Jesus, slapping Him around and taunted Him.

Matthew shows how Jesus was rejected (Mt. 27:22) when “They all shouted, "Nail him to a cross!"

After this Matthew shares that Pilate’s soldiers weaved a crown of thorns and put it on His head, then they mocked Him, spit on Him and struck him on the head with a staff. (Mt. 27:29-30)

Next they crucified Him (nailing Him to the cross).  (Mt. 27:35; Rom. 6:6)

If this all was not enough to hurt, offend and shame Him, Luke tells us that they even gambled over His clothes all the while making faces and taunting Him.  (Luke 23:34-36)

“And Jesus prayed, Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.”

With all this done to Him, He CHOSE to forgive.  He asked His Father, God, to forgive as well.  The key to forgiveness is choosing to forgive.  The power of forgiveness is in Jesus Himself.

If He forgave these grave injustices done to Him through the pain of the beatings and the cross, what right do we have to hold any un-forgiveness toward anyone?  We have no right to hold un-forgiveness, none what-so-ever.  Jesus commanded us to forgive (Mt. 6 & Mt. 18) yet, how can we truly forgive when we are still hurting?  We cannot, but Jesus can.

In mission school I was taught to see how powerful forgiveness was through how Jesus forgave from the cross.  I was taught to get off by myself and:

1. Ask the Lord to forgive me for my anger and resentment
2. Ask Him to enable me to forgive the person who had hurt me
3. Say out loud, “__________, you hurt me and I do not feel like forgiving you, but I choose to forgive you.  By the same power the Lord Jesus forgave with from the cross, I choose to forgive you.”
4. I was to say this as many times as needed until the point where the person who offended me could walk into the room and I would feel no anger or animosity toward them.  (Mt. 18:22 – seventy times seven!)

So, if someone offends you, please do not wait until they come and apologize to forgive them.  Do it now.  Do it now!

THE MINISTRY OF WORSHIP - Part I

John 4:23 "A time will come, however, indeed it is already here, when the true (genuine) worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth (reality); for the Father is seeking just such people as these as His worshipers."  AMP Bible

We all have an idea of what worship is, or at least we think we do.  Is it not singing and praying in church.  No, that is not worship.  Worship, by Webster’s definition is reverence, loving devotion, and idolizing, so we can see it does entail more than just prayer or singing.  What we do in church is just an outward showing of what is inside us.  One man goes to church and sings the songs because it is expected of him and it “feels good” to do so.  He is not worshiping.  Where is the reverence, idolizing and loving devotion in that?  The other man goes to church with God on his mind, being thankful to Him for everything He has done for him, making Him the focus of his time, giving his tithes with joy to God knowing He will use them for His glory, singing out with joy in response to God’s Presence.  That is worship.  An outsider looking in would see no difference between the two men; both would be singing and praying, but only one would be worshiping.

True worship comes from the relationship we have with the Lord.  If we look at our lives, would it be true to say that we are living God centered lives?  Are we focused on the material things or on God?  God is jealous of our worship.  ”Do not worship any other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.”  (Ex. 34:14)  It is not that He needs our worship, but the simple fact is that He takes great pleasure from our worship and adoration of His Name.  True worship is our way of ministering to God.  It also benefits us, so that we may express our love and adoration to him, for what He has done in our lives.  To be truly worshiping we need to stay focused on what and Who He is.

Where is YOUR focus today?

PARTY LINES AND OTHER SUCH HINDERANCES

Some of you are old enough to remember when “party lines” were still used in phone service.  When I was young my family’s phone service was on a party line.  That meant that a number of households were connected on the same phone line.  Each household on the party line was assigned a certain number of rings.  Let us say, for example, that your household was assigned four rings.  When the operator was calling your household she would cause the phone to ring four times.  If the phone started ringing, but only rang three times then the call was meant for your neighbor who had been assigned three rings.

Anyone from any of the households on your party line could pick up the phone and listen in on the conversation, but common decency would dictate that one would not listen in on other conversations.  There were abuses of this though, so since your neighbor could know all your business you were usually careful of what you said while on the phone.

Another problem with party lines is that when you went to make a phone call and picked up the phone someone may already be on the line and you would have to wait until they were finished to make your call.

In this day and age we no longer have party lines, but we do have call waiting, answering machines, voice mail among other conveniences.  Yet these can also be hindrances.  If you are talking with someone who has the call waiting feature on their service, your call is interrupted as they put you on hold and see who the other person is.  When you are trying to reach someone who is not home or not able to answer the phone then you will reach their answering machine or voice mail.  This can be very frustrating when you need to get a hold of them in a hurry.

With God there are NO party lines, no one already on the line making you wait, no one to listen in on your conversation, no call waiting, no answering machines or voice mail.  This means that when you want to talk to Him, you can reach Him directly and immediately:  any time, any day, and any hour.  Are you going through a trial, struggling to make ends meet, or in one of life’s emergencies, call out to Him.  Speak immediately and in person with the great I AM!  The Creator of heaven and earth is listening!

WHAT CAN JUST ONE MOTHER DO?

Judges 4

“And the Children of Israel cried unto the Lord: for he (Jabin) had 900 chariots of iron; and twenty years he mightily oppressed the children of Israel.  And Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lapidoth, she judged Israel at that time.  And she dwelt under the palm tree of Deborah…and the children of Israel came up to her for judgment.”  Judges 4:3-5

In Numbers 11:25 we see the prophetic gift has its source in the “SPIRIT OF THE LORD.”  We think of many great men of God who were prophets, but there were great women of God who were His spokespeople too.  Miriam, the sister of Moses was (Exodus 15:20), but Deborah was not like Miriam.  Miriam’s prophecy came with the ecstasy of victory.  Deborah’s came from the calm wisdom that the Spirit of God bestowed upon her.

“History shows many instances where in times of distress, when men despaired, women arose and saved their nation…” –J. P. Lange

Here is a woman who arose to be the instrument of God’s salvation for her nation.  Here is a woman who did not usurp her husband’s authority or position by going out with her own ideas to “right the wrongs” she saw.  Here is a woman who listened to God and spoke what He gave her to speak:  while continuing God’s calling of wife and mother in her own home.  Here is a woman who encouraged the men of Israel to be the delivering instruments of God.

“…AND THE ISRAELITES CAME UP TO HER FOR JUDGMENT…”

In obedience, Deborah arose.  Who was she?  She was a simple mother who reverently worshiped and feared the Lord and brought her family and nation 40 years of rest and peace.

So, what can a mere mother do?  Let’s give our Mothers the opportunity to be the voice and hand of God.  I would like 40 years of rest and peace.  Would you?

WHO IS CALLED TO LEAD?

Dictionary Definitions for “Lead:”

1. To show the way to be going in advance
2. To guide by taking the hand
3. To cause to follow some course of action; to induce
4. To direct the activities

To truly understand leadership let us examine leaders from the past and present.  Consider the following people and ask these questions:

What did God call them to?

Did they fail?

Did they succeed?

Noah (Gen. 6:13-21

He was given a vision of God’s impending destruction of earth’s people

He was told to build an ark of a specific material and size

He was told that God would bring the creatures to the ark

He was told that his family would be saved.

Noah chose to be obedient to God and acted upon the God-given vision, and God’s purpose came to pass.

Abram (later called Abraham) (Gen. 12:1-5)

Was told to move to a new land

That God would bless him and all nations would be blessed through him

Abram was obedient to God’s call and a nation that would bring God to the world was born.

Moses (Exodus 3:1-22)

Called by God to lead the Israelites out of Egypt

He had concerns about his abilities and credibility, but God empowered him for the call

Moses was obedient to God’s call and the nation that Abram started was freed from bondage

Joshua (Joshua 1:1-9)

Called by God’s vision of the territory that God was going to give the Israelites

Encouraged by God to be strong, courageous and obedient to the law

Joshua was obedient and the nation prospered and became successful

Esther (The Book of Esther)

She became a wife and queen to a Persian king, a choice out of her control

Was asked by God to risk her life to save the Jews from death

Esther was obedient and the nation of Israel was delivered from genocide

Ananias (Acts 9:10-18)

A leader in his own community was called by God to go lay hands on the man that was having believers killed.

God told him that this man was a chosen instrument of Him to bear His name before gentiles, kings and the Israelites

Ananias was obedient to God’s call and the ministry of the Body of Christ’s first great evangelist was born.

Dr. David Livingston (the great explorer)

Called by God, as a young man, by being shown a map of Africa that no missionary had ever been 700 miles inland

Already a Christian, set out plans to prepare for the journey (becoming a medical doctor, learning languages)

He traveled to Africa and implemented the plan developed in his youth, healing the sick, learning new languages and teaching people about Christ.

Dr. Livingston was obedient to God’s call, working 37 years in the interior of Africa and brought Christ to many, also providing the foundation for future missionaries to the interior of Africa.

George Washington Carver (inventor & innovator)

Although born to slaves, Carver excelled at learning (a gift God gave him to fulfill his call).  God provided opportunities for education when people of his race were not allowed to go to school.  Wherever he went he shared his love for Christ.  He was remembered as a man of prayer, submitting all of his research to the Lord and waiting for God’s answer.  He discovered uses for the peanut other than eating it resulting in a number of products still in use today:

·         Lard

·         Vinegar

·         Relishes

·         Printer’s ink

·         Dyes,

·         Plastic, Soaps, Coffee,

·         Soft Drinks

·         Wood stains

Billy Graham (famous evangelist)

Became a Christian as a result of Billy Sunday’s ministry in the early 1940’s

Felt a calling but waited on the Lord.

Received a vision for his evangelistic ministry by 1948

Rev. Graham was obedient to God’s call and hundreds of thousands have been saved around the world

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (minister and civil rights champion)

Already a believer and minister God called Dr. King to become a champion for civil rights

Waged war against conditions, not people

By his non-violent creative efforts many unjust laws were overturned allowing equal opportunity and equal protection for all people

Remained persistent (even under death threats) to see his vision of every man and woman of every race be treated as they should be, as individuals created in the image of God.

Dr. King was obedient to God’s call and his work still continues through those who have taken up his dream

Dwight (D.L.) Moody (famous evangelist)

His goal as a young man was to become rich, yet by age 18 God called him to something better

He studied his Bible to become proficient at sharing his faith with young people

His meetings eventually lead him to build a church

Rev. Moody was obedient to God’s call and hundreds of thousands were saved in the United Kingdom, Ireland and the United States

Jimmy Carter (farmer, humanitarian & President of the US)

Already a believer, God called him to run for the President of the US

He chaired a Billy Graham crusade that brought blacks and whites together at a time and place where racial separation was the norm

He spent countless hours as a volunteer for an organization building homes for low-income people

He was open about his faith before his election and throughout his presidency

Carter was obedient to God’s call and many people examined their own relationship with God after seeing him live out his faith.

And more...

It is easy to recognize that these great Christians and even our own Pastors, Sunday School Teachers, Department Heads, etc. are called to lead. In our churches you can see these qualities in all of them, but I believe that EVERY BELIEVER is called to lead and to follow.  In obedience to God we follow the leaders He set over us.  For the most part, we have the following role down pat.  Yet what is the most important role we enact while on this earth?”  Leading the lost to Christ!  Can you imagine if every believer were obedient to this call of leadership what would happen in the world?  Can you imagine hundreds of thousands D. L. Moodys or Billy Grahams?  We each need to examine ourselves and ask the Holy Spirit to enable us to be the leaders He is calling us to be!