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Kalamazoo SDA Church

The Power of God's Forgiveness

Daniel Ferraz

1- Our Need to Forgive

Father in heaven, we thank you that you have promised that where 2 or 3 are gathered, you are in our midst.

And Lord, we thank you that we can worship you freely.

And Father, I pray that we may hear your voice speaking to us today.

Please speak through me, hide me behind the cross, and Lord, we ask that your sheep may be fed, and that your will and your work may be done and accomplished in and through us.

Please, Father, let us not be a hindrance to your work, we pray in Jesus' name, amen.

I have a three-part series on forgiveness, starting today and then next Sabbath and then on the 19th of July, and it's on forgiveness.

And our focus for prayer and fasting is forgiveness and healing.

And I want you to notice that because they go very closely together, forgiveness and healing.

And in our scripture, we are given to understand by our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in no uncertain terms that if we do not forgive, we cannot be forgiven by God.

So number 1, and you'll see it in the bulletin, is our need for forgiveness.

And I will be talking next Sabbath about freedom in forgiveness, And then on the 19th of July, I'll be talking about joy in forgiveness.

So I pray that you would pray along with me, and that we in these next few weeks would focus our attention on what God is saying, because so often as Christians, it's easy for us to overlook the most basic principles of our faith.

So I came across this book and I think this was given to me by a church member.

You know how it is when somebody gives you a book, right?

You say thank you and you look at it and probably put it on the shelf and it collects dust for a little while.

Well I actually opened this book up recently and it's entitled, Forgive to Live.

And that caught my attention because you know, I love God's word and I love the power of God's word and I love the concepts that we can overcome our difficulties on this earth just by our focus and on the word of God giving us, if you like, the anchor in the storms of life.

And so, Forgive to Live, How Forgiveness Can Save Your Life by Dr.

Dick Tibbitts was very eye-catching for me.

And I want just to share with you some of his thoughts, and I'll do that briefly as we go throughout the message here.

He is interested in forgiveness as an approach to physical healing.

The concept of people learning how to forgive so that they can improve their health.

And he being a doctor, researched into this, and this is quite an amazing concept.

Forgiveness, the author defines, will free you from past hurts, thus allowing you to have the energy and focus to pursue your dreams.

That sounded quite appealing, wouldn't you say?

And so, if you are being flooded with strong emotions in this realm of forgiveness or being hurt by others.

You are reliving your grievance story and you haven't forgiven.

So this topic of forgiveness is necessary for me and it's necessary for you, friends.

And so the good news is that you can reframe, you can look at your past hurts in a new way, in a way that will be more palatable and more healthy for you.

There are 3 great reasons for us to pursue this topic of forgiveness.

It's important to remember that if you ignore pain, it will not what?

If we ignore pain, it won't go away, number 1.

So in 1 way or another, you're going to have to deal with it.

This topic takes you through that process.

Number 2, for once, this topic is really about you and me and what you and I can actually do in this process of forgiveness so that we can reap the benefits.

When you and I forgive, you and I become the victors.

It's not about getting your offender back, but about releasing yourself from the stronghold of pain and the desire for revenge.

You know how often people can go, or how long sometimes people can go in grieving and in sadness and in resentment and anger, not just for a little while but for many years, Not allowing the blessings of forgiveness to be theirs.

And thirdly, this topic will show us practical ways that we can take to forgive and gain a broader perspective on the way we look at life.

Now Les, this is a true story, Les was shaken as the doctor spoke to him the following words, "'If you don't do something right away, you are going to die.'" As he heard these words, you're going to die, his thoughts raced back to his father who had died at age 47 from a heart disease.

He grimly noted his own blood pressure already measuring an alarming 154 over 102.

Rush, rush, rush and job situations had brought him to this point.

The doctor said to him, would you be willing to take part in a study that teaches participants who suffer from high blood pressure to a new way of managing your disease?

He asked Les and he said, yes, I've got nothing to lose.

And so He entered into a program of treatment of high blood pressure through the medium of forgiveness.

Now some of you may be wondering, well, I've tried forgiveness before and it hasn't worked.

By the way, Les did go in through this program and he lowered his blood pressure to 120 over 80 and his anger scores fell way below the norm and he was able to deal with life and its problems a lot more successfully.

Some may be feeling that I forgive but nothing seems to happen.

Well maybe we may misunderstand what forgiveness is and so it might be good for us to just look briefly at what forgiveness is not.

Have you ever heard of the phrase, we need to forgive and forget?

Now really this is something actually quite irrealistic.

It's not possible or even healthy for us to forget certain things.

Some people believe that if you have not been able to forget, then it's because you haven't forgiven.

And I would suggest, with the help of this author, that that's not the case.

The fact is, when something is important to you, you will remember it.

Forgiveness does not wipe away your memory, nor is it a delete key for reality.

The test of genuine forgiveness is not whether you remember the event in question, but how you remember it.

Forgiveness is not necessarily forgetting.

Forgiveness does not imply that the act that you have suffered is okay.

To forgive does not mean we're saying, it's alright, here's my back, keep on striking me, keep on using me as a doormat.

Forgiveness does not imply that things are okay.

Forgiving does not always mean that there is going to be reconciliation between you and the person that is involved.

But you can forgive and be freed from the burdens of unforgiveness.

So let us look at a few definitions of what forgiveness is.

And I would like to share a few with you.

Forgiveness is the feeling of peace that emerges as you take your hurt less personally.

And take responsibility for how you feel and become a hero instead of a victim in the story you tell.

Forgiveness means that even though you are wounded, you choose to hurt, you choose to hurt and suffer less.

Another definition of forgiveness, forgiveness is giving up my right to hurt you for hurting me.

Another definition, our friends are those who know their own faults well enough to forgive ours.

Another 1 by Oscar Wilde, always forgive your enemies, nothing annoys them so much." And then 1 by George Herbert says, he who cannot forgive others breaks down the bridge over which he himself must travel 1 day.

And you know another 1, an unknown author says forgiveness can also be considered as a selfish act because of all the benefits received by the 1 who forgives.

But here's a definition that I'd like us to focus on.

Forgiveness is the process of reframing one's anger and hurt from the past with the goal of recovering one's peace in the present and revitalizing one's purpose and hopes for the future.

Have you ever wondered why in situations between individuals and people that there is such a high level of emotion.

And this high level of emotion is something that actually seems to inhibit your ability to function.

Have you ever heard of somebody saying, I can't bear the sight of this person.

I can't bear the individual to even see them because it sets my emotions going.

Friends, these things are keeping people, thousands, yes millions, chained.

And we need to learn the power of forgiveness, and that we need to forgive.

You know that forgiving can actually increase your health?

2- Our Freedom in Forgiveness

It's good to see you on this day after Independence Day.

And as you probably might expect, I might have something to say about Independence Day.

You know, it's amazing that sometimes we are prone to forget our history.

That can be a very dangerous thing, you know why?

Because we're liable to repeat it if we don't know it.

And that's why history is very important.

And so, it was nice to have a day off, It was nice to have a day off.

It was nice to have a special day of celebration.

And you know the whole problem with America and independence was the British, right?

And that pesky king, George III, George William Frederick III, George III.

It's interesting that John Adams had some things to say about independence from the British.

And I'd just like to share with you a little bit here.

It says, while danger was gathering round New York, and its inhabitants were in mute suspense and fearful anticipations, The General Congress at Philadelphia was discussing with closed doors what John Adams pronounced the greatest question ever debated in America, and as great as ever was or will be debated among men.

The result was a resolution passed unanimously on the 2nd of July, and these united colonies are and of right ought to be free and independent states." The 2nd of July, adds the same Patriot statesman, will be the most memorable epoch in the history of America.

I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival.

It ought to be commemorated as the day of deliverance by solemn acts of devotion to Almighty God.

It ought to be solemnized with pomp, parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, fireworks, illuminations from 1 end of this continent to the other from this time forevermore.

The glorious event has indeed given rise to the annual, an annual jubilee, but not on the day designated by Adams.

The 4th of July is the day of national rejoicing.

For on that day, the Declaration of Independence, That solemn and sublime document was adopted.

I picked it up from the US National Archives and Records Administration.

Now, it would be interesting if I were to ask how many of you have the Declaration of Independence memorized?

Now, I won't ask you because why should I ask you something that I haven't done?

But I know that we know that first sentence, don't we?

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal and that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

It carries on that to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.

In other words, it's government for the people, by the people.

That whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it and to institute new government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form as to them shall seem most likely to affect their safety and happiness." I could go on.

But you know why the Declaration of Independence was necessary?

Because the British thought that they could have control over everything that was going on over here in the United States.

And so 13 states declared their independence.

But the reason for that declaration of independence was in fact an assertive demonstration of anger.

Let me suggest to you that every conflict on this planet is derived and has its root in faulty thinking.

Now for us to say that we must understand what true thinking is and correct thinking is.

Do you know the Bible text in Isaiah 55, What does it say about our thoughts and our thinking?

It says, our thoughts, God speaks and says that your thoughts are not my thoughts, and your ways are not my ways.

And as high as my thoughts are above your thoughts, and my ways, says God, above your ways, they are as high as the heaven above the earth.

And so, friends, we need to have our thinking elevated.

And I can tell by the response that that is what we need just this morning.

Friends, the Declaration of independence and faulty thinking have a lot to do with forgiveness.

Wow, it's got so much room, I can set up my drink dispenser here too.

You know, forgiveness, I think, is 1 of the most powerful forgotten Christian virtues.

You see, forgiveness defies human thinking.

Forgiveness is a divine attribute, and it is in fact what brings us salvation.

And so I have felt impressed looking around me and inside of me to preach this series on forgiveness which has to do with the correcting of our faulty thinking.

And so, last Sabbath, by way of summary, in fact, Let me pray before I bring in the summary.

But I thought you'd be encouraged by that declaration, the reading of the declaration of the unanimous declaration of the 13 states of America of independence.

And it was a very powerful example of assertive aggression or anger.

There are faulty ways to be angry, and this is an assertive way that laid things out, that gave the boundaries, and said that we in fact have freedom that is based upon correct thinking, that is based then upon the word of God and His forgiveness of all mankind.

And this country, we mustn't forget, was built upon Christian principles that are brought into the Declaration of Independence and indeed the Constitution.

So let us bow our heads as we go into our time together this morning.

Father in heaven, as we talk about this vital and fundamental topic, I pray Lord that you may speak through me, that you may hide me behind the cross of Jesus, that his merits, his sacrifice, may be effective for me and for each 1 of us here.

Dear Lord, raise our thinking above the mire, the quagmire, the mud of our human reasoning that is so tainted by our sinfulness.

Lord, lift us up, lift us up to have the attributes of our heavenly Father that would even forgive His enemies.

Lord, help us to understand the healing power of forgiveness.

Please hear us because without forgiveness we are lost.

And Father, we need to share the joy and the experience of freedom that there is in the forgiveness that God has to give to every human being.

Father in heaven, may this be our experience we ask in Jesus' name.

So last Sabbath we looked at our need to forgive.

We actually concluded that it's vital, not just for salvation, but for our health.

We spoke about how high blood pressure can be lowered and I shared with you my recent experience with this book that was given to me kindly by a good friend of mine.

If you want to live you have to understand and learn this basic principle of Christianity.

Dick Tibbets, and I would encourage you, an Adventist author, he's done seminars on forgiveness.

And it's amazing that we should actually need seminars on this basic topic.

It just shows us how quickly our thinking falls back into faultiness again.

And we lock ourselves into a situation where we refuse, kind of in a blind, insane way sometimes, to forgive and to free ourselves from the self-destruction that we engage in.

And so we looked at that and we saw that the lack of forgiveness in an individual's life, especially a Christian who should know better, is actually the major hindrance in going forward.

It's a hindrance in the present enjoyment of life.

It's a hindrance in our own functioning, in our own ability to memorize things and to have a clear functioning of the body.

You better believe it if you do not forgive.

If you are trapped with anger and don't let go of past hurts, you are enslaved.

And you are under the influence of the enemy and the spirit of the enemy rather than the spirit of God according to the Word of God.

We see that in the book of Ephesians that we look at that chapter 4, we see that Paul writes and his thought is the unity of the body of the church, and it is the unity through the Spirit, the Holy Spirit, and that we should not be grieving the Holy Spirit by our unforgiving nature.

Everybody was holding on to these hot rocks.

And those rocks were hot, but they would hold on.

They would hold on to those rocks so that they could throw at somebody else.

People were throwing rocks at each other.

3- Our Joy in Forgiveness

I hope you're blessed and relaxed and happy in the Lord.

It's a great privilege to be at this nice pulpit.

See, I like my papers to be spread out so that I can see.

And you know, did anybody ever tell you that I get nervous?

I don't know what it is, but you probably think I'm good at this, but it's hard every time, so I need God's blessing and God's grace.

But what I do love to do is to share the wonderful things that God teaches me, and lately He's been teaching me about forgiveness and the healing power of forgiveness.

And so for past 2 sermons, I've been kind of springboarding off of this book, but off of this very biblical principle of forgiveness.

And so I entitled the series, The Power of God's Forgiveness.

And really, it's only God who knows how to forgive.

But we looked at this book because it's Dr.

Dick Tibbets has written it and entitled it Forgive to Live, How Forgiveness Can Save Your Life, and how forgiveness can be healing.

And there are various types of forgiveness that we looked into.

There's relational forgiveness where 2 individuals look for reconciliation.

And then there's spiritual forgiveness where an individual looks for forgiveness to God for their sins.

And then there's this personal forgiveness, which is the individual often by themselves will make a choice, a decision to forgive and to look at the situation that caused them anger or bitterness in a different light, in a powerful light where the individual, the person becomes a victor and not the victim.

Where an individual becomes better and not bitter.

And we looked last week at the power of freedom in forgiveness.

And I don't want to spend the time to summarize the sermon.

And you know, some powerful, powerful biblical truths.

And it's strange because the more I'm looking at this aspect of forgiveness, you know, as a topic, really that's Christianity.

That salvation is God's forgiveness to us and us being so grateful to the Lord and us as servants, we forgive those who trespass against us because we have had a debt that we could never pay back, forgiven by God, but at great cost.

So I'd like to invite you to bow with me as we pray for this third, it will be the last in this series on the power of God's forgiveness, but it's entitled Joy in Forgiveness.

So first we looked at our need to forgive.

It's not really an option because we pray in the Lord's Prayer, forgive us our trespasses to God as we forgive those that trespass against us.

So we must have a forgiving nature, and that needs to come from God.

And then our freedom in forgiveness, so that we're not locked for years, people with resentments and bitterness against others, and now the joy.

So let us bow our heads as we look at this very, very powerful truth.

Father in heaven, We come to you weak, sinful, with hardened hearts, seeking, Lord, for you to break away the hardness of our heart and to give us a heart of flesh, that, Lord, you may be able to use this sinner who I am to speak words of encouragement, words of faith, and words of power, and words of forgiveness.

Please touch my mind, give me the thoughts, let your people be fed.

And Lord, may we be inspired by your great attribute of forgiveness when it's not fair even.

And we pray that we may understand and experience more of the joy and the fullness of life that you want us to have in Jesus' name, amen.

We looked at a number of definitions of forgiveness and 1 of them was that to forgive means that we look at the past in a new light so that we can be energized in our present experience to be able to achieve the goals that we have in our life.

In other words, forgiveness, when we engage in this gift, this divine gift, it is healing for us and it is peace and power from God.

And so we looked at it almost as a strategy to keep us healthy, because we looked at how high blood pressure and other illnesses are provoked by an unforgiving spirit.

And it's amazing that title, Forgive to Live, and he did research and he did case studies, and there was no other factor that could be allowed to come into this study.

If anybody did any exercise or anything unusual, they were discounted from the study.

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The Power of God's Forgiveness

1- Our Need to Forgive

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