Breaking The Cycle -- God's Answer In Forgiveness
Sermon
Sermons on the First Readings
Series III, Cycle C
Object:
People often mistake forgiveness for a feeling, but it goes much deeper. Basically it boils down to a choice, an act of free will. A prime example of forgiveness from the scriptures is Joseph.
Joseph, the elder of the two sons of Jacob by Rachel, comes to the pages of the biblical account at age seventeen (Genesis 37). He is first seen tending his father's flocks with his brothers, the sons of Bilhah and the sons of Zilpah, Jacob's other wives. The biblical account does not go into detail about what happened while in the fields, but Joseph comes back from helping tend the sheep with "a bad report" about his brothers.
Jacob loved Joseph and favored him over the others because he was the youngest and was born to Jacob in his old age. Jacob enjoyed spoiling Joseph. After the incident with the "bad report" Jacob infuriates his other sons by giving Joseph a long tunic with sleeves that young people of the richer class wore (Genesis 37:2).
The hatred of Joseph's brothers increased when he related a dream he had that all of the family would bow down to him. The insult wedged the relationship between him and the others to a breaking point.
The Bible tells us that Joseph's brothers had gone to graze their father's flocks near Shechem, and Jacob asked Joseph to go check on them and their exact location. After arriving there, he discovered that they had moved their flocks to greener grass toward Dothan.
Catch the drama of the scene.
So Joseph went after his brothers and found them near Dothan. But they saw him in the distance, and before he reached them, they plotted to kill him. "Here comes that dreamer!" they said to each other. "Come now, let's kill him and throw him into one of these cisterns and say that a ferocious animal devoured him. Then we'll see what comes of his dreams."
-- Genesis 37:17b-20 (NIV)
Reuben, the oldest of Jacob's sons, came back into the circle and discovered what was being said and quickly stopped their murderous plot. He devised a plan to throw Joseph into an empty cistern with plans to return and rescue him. When Joseph arrived at the site he was seized, stripped of his robe, and thrown into the cistern. Reuben had returned to the flock. While he was gone a caravan of Ishmaelites came from Gilead on their way to Egypt. Brother Judah decided that instead of killing him, why not make some money on the side by selling Joseph as a slave. His price? Twenty shekels.
When Reuben returned to the camp, he discovered what had been done and immediately tore his clothes (a sign of being totally distraught). Another plan was devised to lie to Jacob by telling him that his favorite son was dead.
One sin leads to another.
Joseph's life after these events changed forever! He was probably mistreated by the Midianite slave traders. He ended up as a slave, was lied about, and was imprisoned for a minimum of two years before a glimmer of hope shone through, only to be dashed again as a longer stay ensued. After two more years, Joseph's deliverance came. Pharaoh dreamed an unusual dream and needed an interpretation. Finally, someone remembered Joseph could interpret dreams and he was rescued! His meteoric rise came only after years of frustration, pain, and suffering.
After several years and a complicated series of intrigue, Joseph meets his brothers again. He is no longer the same Joseph in physical appearance. The years of hardship took the edge off his arrogance, and God worked on his heart as well. He could have been bitter and hated his brothers, but forgiveness ruled.
Forgiving involves acknowledging your hurt, releasing your thoughts about the violation and giving up the desire to pay the offender back ... forgiving has more to do with your own spiritual and mental health than it does with your spouse's. Forgiving releases your spouse from your wrath, but -- more importantly -- it frees you from the bondage of unforgiveness.1
Forgiveness releases us from the bondage of an unforgiving spirit from anyone a mother, father, sister, brother, son, daughter, colleague, pastor, church member, or anyone else. The principles of forgiveness remain steady.
Today's scripture text reveals some of those basic principles.
God Helps Us Break The Cycle Of An Unforgiving Spirit As We Acknowledge Our Attitude
Dr. Norman Wright states, "If we don't forgive, that means we are carrying resentment and bitterness." Resentment and bitterness mimic a physical cancer that eats away at the healthy body cells and can cause death. Resentment and bitterness can destroy our emotional, psychological, and spiritual life if left unchecked and unhealed.
The New Testament word for bitterness is from the root pic and means "to cut or prick." Literally it is pointed, sharp, or pungent in its action and feelings. Bitterness manifests itself as prejudice, an acrid tongue, exaggerated lies, and revenge.
Chuck Swindoll illustrates this in his book, Seasons of Life. He writes that during his time in the Marine Corps he and his wife rented a studio apartment from a man in south San Francisco named Mr. Slagle. During World War II Mr. Slagle was captured at Wake Island and for years he languished in a prison camp. It was in the prison camp that an enemy soldier struck him with a rifle butt and injured his back, which plagued him the rest of his life.
Swindoll tells that every single time he visited his landlord he would relate story after story of how barbarically he had been mistreated. Using vile language and intense emotion, he spoke of the tortures he endured at the hands of his Japanese captors and his utter hatred for them. His pain and misery were constant reminders of his hatred.
But there was another factor which made his existence even more lamentable. Our landlord became a bitter man. Even though (at that time) he was thirteen years removed from the war ... even though he had been safely released from the concentration camp and was now able to carry on physically ... even though he and his wife owned a lovely dwelling and had a comfortable income, the crippled man was bound by the grip of bitterness. He was still fighting a battle that should have ended years before. In a very real sense, he was still in prison.2
You cannot conceal bitterness because it raises its ugly head often. The root of bitterness bears the fruit of bitter actions. Bitterness imprisons us as we refuse to forgive a friend, relative, or stranger for a sinful, foolish, or sometimes ignorant act. Inner torment will ride alongside us every day of our lives until we forgive. When we decide to disclose the problem to Christ, that is the beginning of forgiveness and healing.
Paul had it right when he wrote,
Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. And be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.
-- Ephesians 4:31-32 (NASB)
God Helps Us Break The Cycle Of An Unforgiving Spirit As We Acknowledge Our Need Of Forgiveness
The Bible states, "Forgive as the Lord forgave you" (Colossians 3:13). As we battle forgiving others we should remember that we are forgiven individuals when we yield our lives to Christ. God sets the standard and mentors us in the process of forgiveness.
* Forgiveness is a debt of sin cancelled. Everything that we have done against him all of our lives is forgiven when we ask for his forgiveness.
* Forgiveness is a journey. The awful gulf of sin that separates us from God has been bridged by the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. We can continually walk across that bridge as necessary. When the mind or emotion resurfaces those feelings, we can go immediately to God and ask him to help us deal with the feelings. The fact that forgiveness has taken place does not necessarily mean that feelings don't resurface. It is a process.
* Forgiveness is also a choice. I choose to forgive as part of my willingness to give it up. Forgiveness is not done without our knowledge. It is not a surprise! It is a choice.
* Forgiveness allows God's love to flow through me to someone else. As a Christian I cannot horde Christ's love, but rather, I must give it away. Even when hurt comes I want to demonstrate God's love. I have to be practical in my response, but I must love.
God Helps Us Break The Cycle Of An Unforgiving Spirit As We Acknowledge Our Need To Move Forward
Joseph could have been harsh and taken his revenge out on his brothers in response to their actions. He chose to move forward instead. Once he reveals himself to them he tells to them to go back and bring his/their father to Egypt where all of them will live in comfort and peace. Joseph does not renege on his promise or on his forgiveness.
So Joseph settled his father and his brothers in Egypt and gave them property in the best part of the land, the district of Rameses, as Pharaoh directed. Joseph also provided his father and his brothers and all his father's household with food, according to the number of their children.
-- Genesis 47:11-12 (NIV)
He certainly doesn't sound like a man who is holding a grudge or hatred in his heart. So how do we continue in the journey of forgiveness? Joseph gives the answer.
Do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you. For two years now there has been famine in the land, and for the next five years there will not be plowing and reaping. But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance. So then, it was not you who sent me here, but God.... Now hurry back to my father and say to him, "This is what your son Joseph says: God has made me lord of all Egypt. Come down to me; don't delay."
-- Genesis 45:5-9 (NIV, emphasis mine)
The answer to the question, "How do we continue in the journey of forgiveness?" is God.
As Chuck Swindoll wrote in his final paragraph about Mr. Slagle.
For your sake, let me urge you to "put away all bitterness" now. There's no reason to stay in POW camp a minute longer. The escape route is clearly marked. It leads to the cross ... where the only one who had a right to be bitter wasn't.3
Amen.
_____________________
1. Couples' Devotional Bible (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 2000), p. 782.
2. Charles Swindoll, Season of Life (Portland: Multnomah, 1983), p. 166.
3. Ibid, p. 167.
Joseph, the elder of the two sons of Jacob by Rachel, comes to the pages of the biblical account at age seventeen (Genesis 37). He is first seen tending his father's flocks with his brothers, the sons of Bilhah and the sons of Zilpah, Jacob's other wives. The biblical account does not go into detail about what happened while in the fields, but Joseph comes back from helping tend the sheep with "a bad report" about his brothers.
Jacob loved Joseph and favored him over the others because he was the youngest and was born to Jacob in his old age. Jacob enjoyed spoiling Joseph. After the incident with the "bad report" Jacob infuriates his other sons by giving Joseph a long tunic with sleeves that young people of the richer class wore (Genesis 37:2).
The hatred of Joseph's brothers increased when he related a dream he had that all of the family would bow down to him. The insult wedged the relationship between him and the others to a breaking point.
The Bible tells us that Joseph's brothers had gone to graze their father's flocks near Shechem, and Jacob asked Joseph to go check on them and their exact location. After arriving there, he discovered that they had moved their flocks to greener grass toward Dothan.
Catch the drama of the scene.
So Joseph went after his brothers and found them near Dothan. But they saw him in the distance, and before he reached them, they plotted to kill him. "Here comes that dreamer!" they said to each other. "Come now, let's kill him and throw him into one of these cisterns and say that a ferocious animal devoured him. Then we'll see what comes of his dreams."
-- Genesis 37:17b-20 (NIV)
Reuben, the oldest of Jacob's sons, came back into the circle and discovered what was being said and quickly stopped their murderous plot. He devised a plan to throw Joseph into an empty cistern with plans to return and rescue him. When Joseph arrived at the site he was seized, stripped of his robe, and thrown into the cistern. Reuben had returned to the flock. While he was gone a caravan of Ishmaelites came from Gilead on their way to Egypt. Brother Judah decided that instead of killing him, why not make some money on the side by selling Joseph as a slave. His price? Twenty shekels.
When Reuben returned to the camp, he discovered what had been done and immediately tore his clothes (a sign of being totally distraught). Another plan was devised to lie to Jacob by telling him that his favorite son was dead.
One sin leads to another.
Joseph's life after these events changed forever! He was probably mistreated by the Midianite slave traders. He ended up as a slave, was lied about, and was imprisoned for a minimum of two years before a glimmer of hope shone through, only to be dashed again as a longer stay ensued. After two more years, Joseph's deliverance came. Pharaoh dreamed an unusual dream and needed an interpretation. Finally, someone remembered Joseph could interpret dreams and he was rescued! His meteoric rise came only after years of frustration, pain, and suffering.
After several years and a complicated series of intrigue, Joseph meets his brothers again. He is no longer the same Joseph in physical appearance. The years of hardship took the edge off his arrogance, and God worked on his heart as well. He could have been bitter and hated his brothers, but forgiveness ruled.
Forgiving involves acknowledging your hurt, releasing your thoughts about the violation and giving up the desire to pay the offender back ... forgiving has more to do with your own spiritual and mental health than it does with your spouse's. Forgiving releases your spouse from your wrath, but -- more importantly -- it frees you from the bondage of unforgiveness.1
Forgiveness releases us from the bondage of an unforgiving spirit from anyone a mother, father, sister, brother, son, daughter, colleague, pastor, church member, or anyone else. The principles of forgiveness remain steady.
Today's scripture text reveals some of those basic principles.
God Helps Us Break The Cycle Of An Unforgiving Spirit As We Acknowledge Our Attitude
Dr. Norman Wright states, "If we don't forgive, that means we are carrying resentment and bitterness." Resentment and bitterness mimic a physical cancer that eats away at the healthy body cells and can cause death. Resentment and bitterness can destroy our emotional, psychological, and spiritual life if left unchecked and unhealed.
The New Testament word for bitterness is from the root pic and means "to cut or prick." Literally it is pointed, sharp, or pungent in its action and feelings. Bitterness manifests itself as prejudice, an acrid tongue, exaggerated lies, and revenge.
Chuck Swindoll illustrates this in his book, Seasons of Life. He writes that during his time in the Marine Corps he and his wife rented a studio apartment from a man in south San Francisco named Mr. Slagle. During World War II Mr. Slagle was captured at Wake Island and for years he languished in a prison camp. It was in the prison camp that an enemy soldier struck him with a rifle butt and injured his back, which plagued him the rest of his life.
Swindoll tells that every single time he visited his landlord he would relate story after story of how barbarically he had been mistreated. Using vile language and intense emotion, he spoke of the tortures he endured at the hands of his Japanese captors and his utter hatred for them. His pain and misery were constant reminders of his hatred.
But there was another factor which made his existence even more lamentable. Our landlord became a bitter man. Even though (at that time) he was thirteen years removed from the war ... even though he had been safely released from the concentration camp and was now able to carry on physically ... even though he and his wife owned a lovely dwelling and had a comfortable income, the crippled man was bound by the grip of bitterness. He was still fighting a battle that should have ended years before. In a very real sense, he was still in prison.2
You cannot conceal bitterness because it raises its ugly head often. The root of bitterness bears the fruit of bitter actions. Bitterness imprisons us as we refuse to forgive a friend, relative, or stranger for a sinful, foolish, or sometimes ignorant act. Inner torment will ride alongside us every day of our lives until we forgive. When we decide to disclose the problem to Christ, that is the beginning of forgiveness and healing.
Paul had it right when he wrote,
Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. And be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.
-- Ephesians 4:31-32 (NASB)
God Helps Us Break The Cycle Of An Unforgiving Spirit As We Acknowledge Our Need Of Forgiveness
The Bible states, "Forgive as the Lord forgave you" (Colossians 3:13). As we battle forgiving others we should remember that we are forgiven individuals when we yield our lives to Christ. God sets the standard and mentors us in the process of forgiveness.
* Forgiveness is a debt of sin cancelled. Everything that we have done against him all of our lives is forgiven when we ask for his forgiveness.
* Forgiveness is a journey. The awful gulf of sin that separates us from God has been bridged by the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. We can continually walk across that bridge as necessary. When the mind or emotion resurfaces those feelings, we can go immediately to God and ask him to help us deal with the feelings. The fact that forgiveness has taken place does not necessarily mean that feelings don't resurface. It is a process.
* Forgiveness is also a choice. I choose to forgive as part of my willingness to give it up. Forgiveness is not done without our knowledge. It is not a surprise! It is a choice.
* Forgiveness allows God's love to flow through me to someone else. As a Christian I cannot horde Christ's love, but rather, I must give it away. Even when hurt comes I want to demonstrate God's love. I have to be practical in my response, but I must love.
God Helps Us Break The Cycle Of An Unforgiving Spirit As We Acknowledge Our Need To Move Forward
Joseph could have been harsh and taken his revenge out on his brothers in response to their actions. He chose to move forward instead. Once he reveals himself to them he tells to them to go back and bring his/their father to Egypt where all of them will live in comfort and peace. Joseph does not renege on his promise or on his forgiveness.
So Joseph settled his father and his brothers in Egypt and gave them property in the best part of the land, the district of Rameses, as Pharaoh directed. Joseph also provided his father and his brothers and all his father's household with food, according to the number of their children.
-- Genesis 47:11-12 (NIV)
He certainly doesn't sound like a man who is holding a grudge or hatred in his heart. So how do we continue in the journey of forgiveness? Joseph gives the answer.
Do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you. For two years now there has been famine in the land, and for the next five years there will not be plowing and reaping. But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance. So then, it was not you who sent me here, but God.... Now hurry back to my father and say to him, "This is what your son Joseph says: God has made me lord of all Egypt. Come down to me; don't delay."
-- Genesis 45:5-9 (NIV, emphasis mine)
The answer to the question, "How do we continue in the journey of forgiveness?" is God.
As Chuck Swindoll wrote in his final paragraph about Mr. Slagle.
For your sake, let me urge you to "put away all bitterness" now. There's no reason to stay in POW camp a minute longer. The escape route is clearly marked. It leads to the cross ... where the only one who had a right to be bitter wasn't.3
Amen.
_____________________
1. Couples' Devotional Bible (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 2000), p. 782.
2. Charles Swindoll, Season of Life (Portland: Multnomah, 1983), p. 166.
3. Ibid, p. 167.
