 |

Home
Church Community
Statement of
Beliefs
Contact Us Search Our Site
Bible
Study Resource
|
 |
 |

Particulars
of Christianity:
312
The Church Ethic
Forgiving
and Forgiveness
Forgiving and Forgiveness
Part 1: Biblical Limitations on Judging
Part 2: The Bible Instructs Us to
Judge
Whether
we are talking about God's forgiveness of us or our forgiveness
of others, forgiveness is of fundamental importance to the
Christian faith. For the Christian both of these aspects of
forgiveness are inherently connected to one another. But in
an age where sin is excused and tolerated it is important
to take a look at biblical protocols to make sure we are following
God's will and not simply following after our culture. This
is especially true in the area of forgiveness and sin. This
study will examine the Bible for practical principles for
how Christians should forgive.
At first glance this may seem like a no-brainer. The modern
church's view seems to be that Christians should always be
quick to forgive anyone and everyone of every sin. But is
this scriptural or are there times when forgiveness is not
called for?
To suggest that there may be times when Christians should
not forgive may seem like a dangerous proposal. Perhaps the
biggest reason for this is due to the many passages in the
New Testament, which inform us that God's forgiveness of us
is dependent upon our forgiveness of others. To be clear,
let's look at the verses, which establish this crucial principle
to see if we can understand what God expects from us and forgiving
others.
Matthew 6:12 And forgive us our debts, as we forgive
our debtors. 13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver
us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and
the glory, for ever. Amen. 14 For if ye forgive men their
trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:
15 But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither
will your Father forgive your trespasses.
Mark 11:25 And when ye stand praying, forgive, if
ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is
in heaven may forgive you your trespasses. 26 But if
ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven
forgive your trespasses.
Luke 6:37 Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn
not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall
be forgiven:
Luke 11:4 And forgive us our sins; for we also forgive
every one that is indebted to us. And lead us not into
temptation; but deliver us from evil.
These four short passages are not the only ones that establish
the principle that God's forgiveness of us depends upon our
forgiveness of others. We will look at the others momentarily.
For now it is important to note that these four passages all
tell us that God will not forgive us if we do not forgive
others. But does this mean we must always forgive everyone
of everything no matter what or is there more to this principle
than that? Specifically, do these passages mean that God expects
us to forgive others even when they are not repentant?
The following passages shed light on this principle and provide
additional information on how it works. Notice, however, that
they are addressing the same idea of reciprocal forgiveness
as set forth in the four passages above.
Colossians 3:13 Forbearing one another, and forgiving
one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even
as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.
Ephesians 4:32 And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted,
forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath
forgiven you.
These two verses from Colossians and Ephesians supply a critical
detail regarding our forgiveness of others and God's forgiveness
of us. Our forgiveness of others is to model God's forgiveness
of us. Or, we are to forgive others just as God has forgiven
and forgives us.
This begs the question though, how does God forgive us? In
order to know what God expects from us in forgiving others
it is essential that we first understand how God forgives
us. Once we understand the process of how God forgives us,
we can then forgive others in like manner as we have been
instructed to do.
So how does God forgive us? What is the process by which God
forgives us? And also, is God's forgiveness unconditional?
Or are there conditions that must be met in order for God
to forgive?
Jesus' parable in Matthew 18 and his instructions in Luke
17 provide the answers to these important questions.
Matthew 18:21 Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord,
how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive
him? till seven times? 22 Jesus saith unto him, I say
not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times
seven. 23 Therefore is the kingdom of heaven likened unto
a certain king, which would take account of his servants.
24 And when he had begun to reckon, one was brought unto him,
which owed him ten thousand talents. 25 But forasmuch as he
had not to pay, his lord commanded him to be sold, and his
wife, and children, and all that he had, and payment to be
made. 26 The servant therefore fell down, and worshipped
him, saying, Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay thee
all. 27 Then the lord of that servant was moved with compassion,
and loosed him, and forgave him the debt. 28 But the same
servant went out, and found one of his fellowservants, which
owed him an hundred pence: and he laid hands on him, and took
him by the throat, saying, Pay me that thou owest. 29 And
his fellowservant fell down at his feet, and besought him,
saying, Have patience with me, and I will pay thee all.
30 And he would not: but went and cast him into prison,
till he should pay the debt. 31 So when his fellowservants
saw what was done, they were very sorry, and came and told
unto their lord all that was done. 32 Then his lord, after
that he had called him, said unto him, O thou wicked servant,
I forgave thee all that debt, because thou desiredst me:
33 Shouldest not thou also have had compassion on thy fellowservant,
even as I had pity on thee? 34 And his lord was wroth,
and delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all
that was due unto him. 35 So likewise shall my heavenly
Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not
every one his brother their trespasses.
In Matthew 18 Jesus is answering a question posed by Peter
regarding his forgiveness of others. Jesus explains with a
parable, a parable which not only demonstrates the principle
established elsewhere that our forgiveness from God is dependent
upon our forgiveness of others, but which also explains how
God forgives us and how we are to likewise forgive others.
In this parable Jesus portrays the sinner as a man in debt
to his master. The servant's debt is forgiven by his master
AFTER he asks for patience and mercy. Moved with compassion
because of the servants pleading the master forgives the servant
of his debt. Likewise, the servant is also owed a debt by
another servant. However, when the second servant pleads for
patience and mercy from the first servant in the same manner
that the first servant had pleaded to his master, the first
servant does NOT forgive the debt of the second servant.
Upon being informed of this the master of the first servant
calls him to account. The master explains that he forgave
the servants debt because the servant asked to be forgiven,
and yet the servant did not also forgive his fellow servant
who also asked to be forgiven. Therefore, the master reinstates
the debt of the first servant and does not forgive him. Jesus
concludes this illustration with the same principle that we
have found in the above passages, explaining that "likewise
shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your
hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses."
In this parable that Jesus uses to explain how God's forgiveness
works we find that ther are two conditions, which are required
in order for forgiveness to be granted. One, which we have
identified already, is that we must ourselves forgive others.
But this condition is first predicated upon an even more fundamental
condition. The fundamental condition for forgiveness is that
the sinner be repentant.
This important prerequisite could not be more explicit in
Jesus' explanation or in the message of the Gospel. Therefore,
the command that we forgive others as God forgives us clearly
implies that we are to forgive those who repent of their sin
as God forgives us when we repent of our sin. This initial
prerequisite is also clearly established in Luke 17.
Luke 17:3 Take heed to yourselves: If thy brother
trespass against thee, rebuke him; and if he repent, forgive
him. 4 And if he trespass against thee seven times
in a day, and seven times in a day turn again to thee, saying,
I repent; thou shalt forgive him.
In Luke 17 Jesus is again speaking of our forgiveness of others.
In this case he clearly establishes that we are not simply
to overlook sin, but to rebuke those who sin against us and
only if they repent are we to forgive them. Indeed, even if
they sin against us seven times a day, as long as they repent
we must forgive them.
Clearly, the repentance of the offender is a conditional,
fundamental prerequisite for the forgiveness of sin. This
is true when God forgives us and when we forgive others. The
obvious message of the New Testament is that only those who
repent of their sin to God are forgiven. If we do not repent
to God, he will not forgive us.
Likewise, the command that we are to forgive others as God
forgives us, therefore, inherently indicates that we forgive
those who are repentant of their sin. Nowhere in the scripture
do we have any indication that we are to forgive others unconditionally
or to overlook sin when there is no repentance. To do so,
would be to deviate from God's model of forgiveness and would
confuse the message of the New Testament. Make no mistake,
God does not and will not forgive unless we are repentant.
Therefore, He will only hold it against it us if we refuse
to forgive those who are repentant. He will not hold it against
us if we do not forgive the unrepentant, since neither does
He forgive the unrepentant.
Now that we have established how forgiveness works, let's
take some time to examine how we should apply this principle.
We have stated that God's forgiveness is conditional upon
our repentance. And this is true, but surely we aren't aware
of each sin we commit. And surely, in our ignorance we do
not repent and ask God for forgiveness for every sin, especially
those we may commit unintentionally. Yet God does forgive
us of sin that we are not aware of and that we may commit
unintentionally. But why?
What God requires is a repentant heart, an attitude of repentance.
And this is what we mean when we say that we are not expected
to forgive those who do not repent. We do not mean that we
should not forgive those who are unaware of their offense
or who sin unintentionally. We mean that we are not expected
and not supposed to forgive those are aware of their sin and
refuse to repent of their sinful behavior. This would include
those who refuse to acknowledge the sinfulness of their behavior.
We are not expected to forgive those who do not have an attitude
of repentance for their sin, but persist in it without remorse.
(Indeed, that is why passages like Luke 17:3 indicate that
we have a responsibility to make ourselves and others aware
of sin, so we can repent and change.)
Also we might consider those who persist in sin as surely
all of us continue to do in some way. Should we forgive those
who persist in sinning over and over? The answer is yes, if
they are repentant just as God forgives us for our persistent
sins if we are repentant.
In Jesus' example of the person who sins against his brother
seven times a day (Luke 17:3-4), Jesus instructs us to continue
to forgive others of their sin as long as they continue to
repent. The idea that Jesus is expressing is that no matter
how many times someone sins against us, even if it's the same
type of sin over and over, as long as they are truly repentant,
we must forgive them. And of course, this is what we see in
God's forgiveness of us, since none of us are perfect.
One final comment, however, on this last statement. It is
clear from scripture that sincerity is the key to true repentance.
We do not have a license to sin as long as we repent afterwards.
The expectation from God's point of view is that true repentance
inherently requires that we intend to change our ways. The
very definition of the Greek words used in the New Testament
for "repentance" imply the intention to change.
3340 metanoeo {met-an-o-eh'-o}
from 3326 and 3539; TDNT - 4:975,636; v
AV - repent 34; 34
1) to change one's mind, i.e. to repent
2) to change one's mind for better, heartily to
amend with abhorrence of one's past sins
The conclusion that we must draw from the New Testament's
instructions on forgiveness is that in order to be forgiven
of our sin by both God and man we must be sincerely repentant.
Likewise, just as God forgives those who are repentant and
not those who are unrepentant, God expects us to forgive the
repentant, but does not expect us to forgive the unrepentant.
The following is a summary of the scriptural principles regarding
forgiveness.
What is the Divine Model of Forgiveness? (How does God
forgive us?)
1. God requires a repentant heart (including repentant behavior)
Matthew 3:8, Mark 1:15, Luke 3:8, Luke 13:3,5, Acts:2:38,
Acs 3:19, Acts 8:22, Acts 11:18, Acts 17:30, Acts 20:21, Acts
26:20, Romans 1:32, 2 Corinthians 12:21, Hebrews 6:1, 1 John
1:9.
2. Likewise, God requires us to forgive IF/WHEN the other
party repents Luke 17:3, 4.
3. How to approach the "offending party" (Matthew 18:15-18)
a. (if they don't repent on their own) go privately, just
one on one, us and them
b. (if they still don't repent) take two or three others back
with you
c. (if they still don't repent) bring them before the whole
church
d. (if they still don't repent) excommunication.
4. If we know of another's sin, we ought to petition God for
their forgiveness, unless the sin they commit is the unpardonable
one (1 John 5:14-18) (presumably, if they do not repent, we
are to pray they would come to repentance).
What if the other party does not repent?
1. Should we forgive the unrepentant?
a. YES, if they ask for repentance and yet sin again
and again. (Matthew 18:21- 22, Luke 17:3, 4).
b. If they do not ever acknowledge their sin, their need to
repent, or never even ask for forgiveness? NO. (Luke
17:3, 4, Matthew 18:15-18).
2. We should not remain angry, because that gives the devil
a foothold. (Ephesians 4:26, 31-32, Hebrews 12:14-16 - "root
of bitterness (4088)").
3. We should simply "mark" (or take note of) them in some
circumstances (Romans 16:17, 1 Corinthians 5:11, 2 Thessalonians
3:14, 2 John: 9-11).
4. In some circumstances, church leadership should exercise
excommunication (Matthew 18:15-18,1 Corinthians 5:1-13, 1
Timothy 1:20, 2 Thessalonians 3:14).
5. The goal of excommunication is the repentance of the excommunicated.
If the excommunicated repent, they should be forgiven and
welcomed back so that the devil will not gain an advantage
over us. (2 Corinthians 12:7,10-11) How does the devil gain
an advantage in such circumstances?
a. If the church (as a group or as individuals) fails to forgive
those WHO REPENT AND SEEK FORGIVENESS, then we endanger ourselves
that God might not forgive our sins (Matthew 6:14-15, Mark
11:25-26).
b. The excommunicated person remains in danger of the devil,
particularly endangering their belief and their right doctrine
if they remain excommunicated (1 Timothy 1:20) - for the church
was INTENDED as a form of protection for our faith and doctrine
(and our behavior through accountability).
6. *We are always to speak the truth in LOVE, to build up
and not to tear down. (Ephesians 4:2, 14-20, James 5:19-20)
|
 |
|
 |

|
 |