Copyright 2016 Jodi Denning. For an electronic copy of this workbook, contact Jodi Denning at

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2 This workbook was prepared by Jodi Denning for the participants of the Restoring Our Hearts women s conference sponsored by Bethel Bible Fellowship, Las Cruces, NM April 30 May 1, 2016 Copyright 2016 Jodi Denning For an electronic copy of this workbook, contact Jodi Denning at Jodi@tjdenning.com This workbook may be freely shared, reproduced and distributed without modification, in its original form. For any other use of this material, please contact Jodi Denning at Jodi@tjdenning.com. I am so very grateful to my husband Terry for his unending love, prayer and encouragement. None of this would be possible without him, and I thank God for Terry s loving support and patience. I d like to extend special thanks to Sharon G., Barbara H., Sheila K., Wendy T., Mary P., and the many others who have dedicated their time, talents and enthusiasm to make this event possible. You are deeply appreciated. I am also profoundly grateful for the support of my home church, Bethel Bible Fellowship in Las Cruces, NM. It is a wonderful blessing to be surrounded by saints who love God deeply, hold His Word in high regard, and dedicate their lives to faithfully serve our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. NOTE: Underlines and highlights in quoted Bible verses in this workbook reflect the author s added emphasis. SCRIPTURE COPYRIGHT NOTICES Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE (R) [NASB] unless otherwise noted. Copyright (C) 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. [NIV] Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. Scripture taken from the NEW LIVING TRANSLATION [NLT] Copyright 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale Charitable Trust. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked HCSB are been taken from the HOLMAN CHRISTIAN STANDARD BIBLE Copyright 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Holman Christian Standard Bible, Holman CSB, and HCSB are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.

3 6:00pm 6:30pm Worship Session 1 HOW I ENDED UP IN JAIL Discussion 9:00am 9:30am Worship 12:00pm Lunch 1:15pm 4:45pm 5:45pm 8:15pm Session 2 GETTING PAST GUILT Discussion Session 3 CONVICTION VS. CONDEMNATION Discussion Dinner Session 4 FORGIVENESS TO US AND THROUGH US Discussion Worship 12:45pm Lunch 1:30pm 2:00pm 4:00pm Worship Session 5 WALK WORTHY Discussion Session 6 LIVE IT OUT Worship

4 HOW I ENDED UP IN JAIL Session 1 ~ Page 1 Jodi s jail testimony will be available in written form at RestoringOurHearts.com after the conference. For testimonies, stories and poetry from some of Jodi s girls, you can go to her blog: TheIncarceratedGospel.wordpress.com

5 HOW I ENDED UP IN JAIL Session 1 ~ Page 2 DISCUSSION QUESTIONS: Has God ever called you to serve Him outside of your box? - Was it a struggle to trust God and serve Him outside your comfort zone? - What fears did you experience? - What did you learn when you stepped out in obedience? Have you ever considered the parallels between addiction and worship? - Do you find it easy to put your hope in something that doesn t have the power to save you? - Do you have any unworthy objects of addiction you are worshipping? Do you find yourself praying I want to get out soon instead of asking God to teach you what He desires for you to learn? What things do you think you would you miss the most if you were locked in jail? - How does that impact your gratitude?

6 GETTING PAST GUILT Session 2 ~ Page 1 Romans 8:35-39 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written: "For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered." 37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. [NIV]? Does this truth rule over every circumstance, every situation, and every aspect of your life?? Does your life demonstrate your belief in this truth, or do you have times, or even seasons, of doubt, uncertainty and unbelief? Lord, I believe; help my unbelief. Mark 9:24 WE ALL NEED A SOLUTION FOR GUILT Guilt is a REALITY in EVERYONE S life, because we ALL have sinned.? Do you allow your past sins and failures to define you?? Does regret over confessed sin flood your mind at times, leaving behind feelings of guilt, remorse and shame?? Do you confess the same sins over and over and over?? Do you have a hard time forgiving yourself for the mistakes you ve made (your past sins)?? Do thoughts of DISgrace take root in your mind and heart?? How do we get from DISgrace back into God s grace? THE WORLD S SOLUTIONS GUILT, SHAME and REGRET are powerful tools in the hands of our enemy. Everyone is on a search to find an effective way to deal with feelings of guilt. EXCUSES, EXCUSES Adam and Eve responded to guilt in what may be the most common way find SOMEONE or SOMETHING TO BLAME! Adam blamed Eve, and he also BLAMED GOD ( the woman YOU gave me - Genesis 3). Eve blamed the serpent. NO ONE took RESPONSIBILITY for their actions. NO ONE acknowledged their SIN before God. As a result, no one asked for FORGIVENESS for their SIN. We are greatly DECEIVED if we believe finding someone or something else to BLAME will allow us to AVOID RESPONSIBILITY for our sin.

7 GETTING PAST GUILT Session 2 ~ Page 2 Is it any surprise that our culture EMBRACES this approach?! Blame your parents, your genes, your environment, your education Blame your circumstances, or others who have hurt or victimized you Blame television, media, celebrities, social media, video games This approach simply tries to EXCUSE or RATIONALIZE the sin, but does NOTHING to deal with the sin itself. There is NO MOTIVATION to SEEK GOD or REPENT, so nothing is RESOLVED. The guilt, shame, and regret remain, creating DESPAIR. JUST FORGIVE YOURSELF Another common idea in our culture is that we need to learn to FORGIVE OURSELVES. We may TRY to forgive ourselves, but it leaves us feeling EMPTY. We don t FEEL FORGIVEN, so we think we must not be doing it right. We may feel there is MORE we need to do to work ourselves out of DISgrace and back into God s grace. Or even worse, maybe God s forgiveness DOESN T APPLY TO US, and we begin to wonder if we are BEYOND THE REACH of God s grace. The guilt, shame, regret and despair begin to develop deep roots in our hearts and HOPELESSNESS may begin to overtake us.? Have you struggled with not being able to forgive yourself? FORGIVING YOURSELF IS NOT BIBLICAL! The world has many other ways to attempt to deal with the problem of guilt but NONE OF THEM WORK! The only TRUE answer to the problem of guilt is found in God s Word. The Bible NEVER mentions the concept of forgiving yourself.? Are you surprised? WHAT IS GUILT? THE LEGAL ASPECT OF GUILT GUILT: to have valid cause, reason or grounds to appear before a judge for judgment; to be a debtor to the law, deserving of punishment Guilt is a LEGAL term that represents a LEGAL STANDING (position) before God. Guilt has nothing to do with getting caught. Guilt is a legal, positional FACT that has nothing to do with our FEELINGS or our EMOTIONS. GUILTY: to be held in, ensnared or bound up in a legal position of guilt In Biblical terms, to be GUILTY is to be RESPONSIBLE for committing a SIN against God which results in a legal standing of GUILT before Him. Our LEGAL POSITION of GUILT before God makes us worthy and deserving of His PUNISHMENT. THE EMOTIONAL ASPECT OF GUILT - CONSCIENCE? Why did God create us to experience the emotion of guilt?

8 GETTING PAST GUILT Session 2 ~ Page 3 God designed us to experience the EMOTION of guilt when we sin against Him so that we would be AWARE of our POSITION of guilt. A properly functioning conscience testifies to the TRUTH about our standing before a Holy God. This is a PROFOUND BLESSING. IF our conscience is working correctly, our EMOTION of guilt confirms our POSITION of guilt but that can be a BIG if! Our feelings and emotions do not always ACCURATELY reflect the facts. You can FEEL GUILTY when you are NOT guilty and you can NOT FEEL GUILTY when you ARE GUILTY. To work properly, our conscience must be RIGHTLY ALIGNED with GOD S TRUTH. It should be no surprise that the enemy will do ALL HE CAN to confuse, damage and even destroy our conscience. Television, media and celebrities PROMOTE sin. Our government LEGALIZES SIN, in an attempt to make it seem acceptable. Our culture EMBRACES sin and demands we ACCEPT it. Science and psychology mix LIES in with the truth and proclaim it as fact. Look in any science book from years ago and compare it to today. What science claims to be facts CHANGES OVER TIME, but our God is UNCHANGING! The enemy has been very effective with his DECEPTIONS. Hosea 4:6a My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. When we don t KNOW and UNDERSTAND God s Truth, we are EASY TARGETS for the enemy. OUR PHYSICAL EXAMPLE - LEPROSY God often gives us physical examples of spiritual truth. We have nerves in our body to WARN US of physical DANGER. In a sense, our nerves are like a physical conscience. Our nerves use PAIN to signal our brain of physical danger. The pain MOTIVATES us to SEEK A SOLUTION to avoid further damage. The lasting MEMORY of the pain (and sometimes the scars) reminds us to NEVER DO THAT AGAIN, which helps prevent future harm. God gives us a POWERFUL example of what happens when our physical warning system is damaged. Leprosy is a disease frequently mentioned in the Bible. The Old Testament gives strict instructions to God s people on how they were to deal with people with the disease of leprosy. Lepers were considered unclean, and anything they touched was contaminated and had to be purified. Lepers were prohibited from serving or worshipping in the temple. LEPROSY is a disease that DAMAGES THE NERVES. The nerves no longer function as they should. People with leprosy CANNOT FEEL PAIN. Their warning system designed to protect their body fails. Because of their INSENSITIVITY to PAIN, their skin and flesh is EASILY DAMAGED. Leprosy can spread and eventually DESTROY the entire body.

9 GETTING PAST GUILT Leprosy is viewed by many commentators as an illustration of SIN. Dr. Paul Brand I cannot think of a greater gift that I could give my leprosy patients than pain. When Jesus interacted with lepers, Scripture never states that He HEALED them. Instead, Jesus CLEANSED the lepers. To HEAL is to cure and restore bodily health. To CLEANSE is to purify and make free from filth and defilement. GOD S PURPOSE FOR GUILT Sin puts us in a POSITION of GUILT before God, which creates a DEBT to God and to His justice. Romans 6:23a For the wages of sin is death, We RIGHTLY DESERVE eternal death and eternal separation from God. How GRACIOUS of God to give us a WARNING DEVICE that sets off an ALARM when we sin so we can RECOGNIZE our desperate situation. Our EMOTION of guilt should allow us to see our PROBLEM of guilt so that we can SEEK GOD S SOLUTION for guilt. Romans 6:23b but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. God s PURPOSE for guilt is to DRIVE US INTO HIS ARMS so we can REPENT and RECEIVE His forgiveness.? Do you normally respond to feelings of guilt by running TO God, or do you run FROM Him, to someone or something else? GOD S ORIGINAL (OLD TESTAMENT) SOLUTION TO GUILT There are times in Scripture where guilt is national (for example, all of Israel, or everyone in a specific family), but for this study we are only going to consider personal guilt that is the result of our own sin. THE LEGAL ASPECTS OF GUILT Personal guilt is INDIVIDUAL. We are GUILTY for our own wrong actions and we are RESPONSIBLE before God for those actions. We are NOT GUILTY for the sins of others committed against us. The DEBT we incur because of our GUILT must be PAID IN FULL. God s demand for absolute justice must be SATISFIED. No one else can BE GUILTY in our place. BUT the DEBT we owe CAN be paid by someone else. SUBSTITUTIONARY SACRIFICE The sacrificial system of the Old Testament is a picture of the substitutionary payment of a debt. God decreed that the BLOOD of INNOCENT animals could be shed to cover the sins of the GUILTY people. The animal s blood was SHED as a substitute, IN THE PLACE of the blood of the guilty person. However, this solution was TEMPORARY. It had to be repeated day after day, month after month, year after year. Session 2 ~ Page 4

10 GETTING PAST GUILT Session 2 ~ Page 5 Animal sacrifice in the Old Testament was a PARTIAL picture God used to point forward to the coming Messiah. (Heb. 10:4, 14) The coming Messiah would be the INNOCENT, SPOTLESS LAMB OF GOD. Messiah would be the FINAL and ULTIMATE Sacrifice to completely ATONE for sin, not just temporarily COVER it. Messiah would save the people from their sin AND He would FULLY and PERFECTLY SATISFY God s justice. JESUS CHRIST IS THE PROMISED MESSIAH! His work is now COMPLETED (fulfilled) through His death on the cross and His resurrection. He provided the only PERMANENT solution for the problem of sin and guilt. IT IS FINISHED! (John 19:30)? Do you see the incredible love, grace and mercy of God s design allowing a substitute and then providing the Substitute in His Son, Jesus Christ? THE REALITY OF OUR GUILT WE ARE GUILTY We are made in the image of God. Our PURPOSE is to LOVE Him, OBEY Him and GLORIFY Him in all we do. We all REBEL against this purpose, and against God. We allow our PRIDE to RULE our minds and our hearts. We REJECT God and insist on GOING OUR OWN WAY. We live to PLEASE OUR FLESH (our selfish desires) instead of God. We indulge our SELFISHNESS and we DISOBEY God. Proverbs 1:29-31 For they hated knowledge and chose not to fear the LORD. 30 They rejected my advice and paid no attention when I corrected them. 31 Therefore, they must eat the bitter fruit of living their own way, choking on their own schemes. [NLT] Our SIN NATURE causes us to REJECT God s advice, which reflects perfect WISDOM. We IGNORE His correction, and walk in REBELLION against Him. We have all tasted the BITTER FRUIT of going our own way, and CHOKED on the CONSEQUENCES brought about by our own schemes. SIN IS ULTIMATELY AGAINST GOD ALONE Our sin certainly affects other people, but ultimately ALL SIN is AGAINST GOD. Psalm 51:4 Against You, You only, I have sinned and done what is evil in Your sight, so that You are justified when You speak and blameless when You judge. JUSTICE would mean WE pay the debt we owe by spending eternity in hell but we aren t dead, so God is DELAYING His justice. 2 Peter 3:9 The Lord isn t really being slow about His promise, as some people think. No, He is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent. [NLT]

11 GETTING PAST GUILT Session 2 ~ Page 6 His PATIENCE is intended to give us time to REPENT and seek HIS SOLUTION for sin JESUS CHRIST. When we sin, we FEEL guilty because we ARE guilty before a Holy God. Our conscience testifies to the TRUTH, and that is a TREMENDOUS BLESSING from God. GUILT is a burden God never intended for US to carry. God has provided a SOLUTION. If we don t deal with the guilt from our sin HIS WAY, GUILT WILL DESTROY US. THE ROLE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT God has graciously given us a Helper, an Advocate, a Teacher, and a Guide the Holy Spirit. John 16:8 [Jesus] And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment; One role of the Holy Spirit is to CONVICT us of sin. CONVICT: to bring to the point of recognizing and being convinced of wrongdoing; godly sorrow over sin Conviction leads us to ADMIT THE TRUTH of our sin against God and to RECOGNIZE our POSITION of GUILT before Him. John 16:13a [Jesus] But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; The Holy Spirit who CONVICTS also GUIDES us into all truth. He gives us DISCERNMENT when we are being deceived. He helps us REPLACE the LIES of the enemy with the TRUTH of GOD. He GUIDES us to the SOLUTION God has provided for our SIN. God worked through the Holy Spirit, using human authors, to produce His revelation of Himself to us the inspired, God-breathed Word of God. Scripture is His PRIMARY means of communication. It is also the SAFEST means of communication, as opposed to emotions and feelings, which can so easily deceive us. Remember, the Spirit of God never works apart from or contrary to the Word of God. --- Kay Arthur 2 Timothy 3:16-17 All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; 17 so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work. God will use His Word to TEACH, to REBUKE, to CORRECT, and to TRAIN which SHOULD lead to CONVICTION of sin. But we are NOT to get STUCK there! Conviction should lead to REPENTANCE. (Psalm 51 is a wonderful Psalm to pray through for repentance!) Repentance leads to RESTORED FELLOWSHIP with God. When we RIGHTLY respond to God s Word, we will be ADEQUATE (complete, qualified, lacking nothing) and TOTALLY EQUIPPED to serve Him. To function properly, our conscience MUST be INFORMED and TRAINED by God s Word. His Word must dwell in us richly. (Col. 3:16)

12 GETTING PAST GUILT Lord, I believe; help my unbelief. Mark 9:24 THE PURPOSE OF CONVICTION IS REPENTANCE The conviction of the Holy Spirit has a CRITICAL and DIVINE purpose. It is NOT so that we are forced to remain in shame and DISgrace. It is NOT so that we try harder to work ourselves back into God s favor and grace by our own efforts. Romans 2:4 Don t you see how wonderfully kind, tolerant, and patient God is with you? Does this mean nothing to you? Can t you see that His kindness is intended to turn you from your sin? [NLT] The SPIRITUAL PAIN from conviction should MOTIVATE us to REPENT. Repentance is NOT just being sorry we got caught. Repentance is NOT just being sorry about the impacts and consequences of our sin. True REPENTANCE is a CHANGE OF HEART toward God that causes us to TURN AWAY FROM SIN and TURN TOWARD HIM. To claim to repent and continue to HOLD ON TO SIN is NOT true repentance. True repentance is a deep desire to TURN AWAY from our sin and NEVER DO IT AGAIN. (To FORSAKE sin) True repentance is being genuinely sorrowful ABOUT THE SIN ITSELF, understanding that sin OFFENDS and GRIEVES the heart of a Holy God. The PURPOSE of conviction is to TURN US AWAY FROM OUR SIN the sin that ensnares, damages and ultimately destroys our lives. GOD S RESPONSE TO REPENTANCE When we do truly, sincerely repent, God does something extraordinary. 1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Forgiveness alone would be amazing, but He goes BEYOND that and CLEANSES US! He provides a way to deal with our DEBT to Him, AND to overcome the DISgrace and shame of our sin. Our heavenly Father lavishes His MERCY (forgiveness) and GRACE (cleansing) on us. He restores our fellowship with Him NOT because of ANYTHING WE DO, but because of what Jesus Christ HAS DONE FOR US. 2 Corinthians 5:21 He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. We receive the PERFECT RIGHTEOUSNESS of Jesus Christ, which should CONSUME US with GRATITUDE and LOVE for Him. Our past experiences can have a profound impact on our lives. But when Jesus Christ saves us and transforms us into a new creation, His impact is much GREATER than any of our past experiences. Lord, I believe; help my unbelief. Mark 9:24 Session 2 ~ Page 7

13 GETTING PAST GUILT Session 2 ~ Page 8 YOU CAN T FORGIVE YOURSELF? You know that God promises forgiveness of sin but do you ever struggle with accepting His forgiveness? Does it almost seem too easy? We KNOW that Christ s death paid for our sins, but we can have the sense that we should ALSO have to do something. We know that we DESERVE PUNISHMENT for what we did, and we may think we shouldn t be let off the hook. It seems wrong to us for our sin to be dismissed without us suffering personally. So we may try to punish ourselves and atone for our own sin through our good works but the guilt, shame and DISgrace remain and we don t feel forgiven. The world tells us the solution to this struggle is that we must learn to forgive ourselves. AN EXAMPLE MURDERING A CHILD Forgiving yourself is not a Biblical concept and it is also a practical impossibility. An example may help to clarify this concept. Let s say someone deliberately, intentionally murdered your child. Then they look you in the eyes and say to you It s ok I can forgive myself for what I have done. What is your first reaction to that statement? What RIGHT do they think they have to forgive themselves? The statement I can forgive myself is not only horribly offensive, it is ABSOLUTELY MEANINGLESS! But why? WHO CAN OFFER FORGIVENESS?? Who is in a position to forgive the murderer? When someone sins, they stand in a legal position of GUILT because they ARE GUILTY. A guilty person has no LEGAL STANDING to offer forgiveness to themselves for their own offense. This would be like allowing a guilty person to be the JUDGE at their own trial! No GUILTY person can offer forgiveness to themselves, because it is not THEIRS to offer! The RIGHT and AUTHORITY to forgive belong to the INNOCENT parties who were harmed by the sin. An INNOCENT party has the STANDING to offer forgiveness to the guilty person who harmed them. They can CHOOSE to forgive. If the person is a believer, they are COMMANDED to forgive. (Matt. 6:14, Col. 3:13, Eph. 4:32) But even IF the innocent person DOES forgive the evil action against them, they are only forgiving the HARM the guilty person did to them. They are NOT FORGIVING THE SIN of the GUILTY PERSON. We can (and should) forgive others who sin against us, but WE ARE NOT FORGIVING THEIR SIN. Only GOD has the AUTHORITY to forgive anyone s SIN.

14 GETTING PAST GUILT Session 2 ~ Page 9 GOD KNOWS OUR SIN God knows every detail of the depths of the evil of every person s sin. Hebrews 4:13 Nothing in all creation is hidden from God. Everything is naked and exposed before His eyes, and He is the One to whom we are accountable. [NLT] EVEN THOUGH He knows, He is WILLING to forgive us! Hebrews 4:14-16 So then, since we have a great High Priest who has entered heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to what we believe. 15 This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for He faced all of the same testings we do, yet He did not sin. 16 So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive His mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most. [NLT] He ENCOURAGES us to COME BOLDLY and RECEIVE His MERCY and GRACE. We often see mercy and grace used together, but they are very distinct. MERCY is NOT receiving the PUNISHMENT we DO DESERVE for our sin. GRACE is receiving BLESSINGS we DO NOT DESERVE because of our sin. Here are just a FEW of God s promises related to the forgiveness of sin: Isaiah 43:25 "I, even I, am the one who wipes out your transgressions for My own sake, And I will not remember your sins. Notice God forgives us for HIS benefit for HIS SAKE. Jeremiah 31:34b For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more. Hebrews 8:12 "FOR I WILL BE MERCIFUL TO THEIR INIQUITIES, AND I WILL REMEMBER THEIR SINS NO MORE." Hebrews 10:17 AND THEIR SINS AND THEIR LAWLESS DEEDS I WILL REMEMBER NO MORE. God does not FORGET our sin. HE CHOOSES NOT TO REMEMBER OUR SIN. Isaiah 44:22 "I have wiped out your transgressions like a thick cloud And your sins like a heavy mist. Return to Me, for I have redeemed you." Acts 10:43 "Of Him all the prophets bear witness that through His name everyone who believes in Him receives forgiveness of sins." He has WIPED OUT our sin. We are REDEEMED and FORGIVEN if we believe by faith in Jesus Christ.? How many times must God repeat Himself before we TRULY believe His forgiveness and grace? Saying we can t forgive ourselves is making OUR JUDGMENT HIGHER than GOD S JUDGMENT. It is UNBELIEF in God s promises to forgive our sin.? What right do we have to try to hold on to something that God has promised to release? Why would we EVER think it is somehow more honorable to hold on to our guilt?

15 GETTING PAST GUILT Session 2 ~ Page 10 When we refuse to believe and trust God and His promises, we are exposing our UNBELIEF and we are effectively calling GOD a LIAR. Lord, I believe; help my unbelief. Mark 9:24 ONLY GOD CAN FORGIVE SIN ALL sin is ultimately against God alone, because He is the One who has been ultimately wronged. (Psalm 51:4) God ALONE has the RIGHT and the AUTHORITY to forgive sin. Forgiveness for our sin is COMPLETELY in God s hands and TOTALLY at HIS DISCRETION. Forgiveness of sin is GOD S CHOICE to make, NOT OURS. Because of His love for us, He actually DESIRES TO FORGIVE US! Luke 24:47b [Jesus] There is forgiveness of sins for all who repent. [NLT] 1 John 1:7b the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin. Psalm 103:10-12 He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. 11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is His lovingkindness toward those who fear Him. 12 As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us. Ephesians 1:7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace? You may know God s promises of the forgiveness of sin, but do you really BELIEVE them? Our FEELINGS and EMOTIONS are EASY TARGETS for the enemy when we have areas of UNBELIEF. LIE TRUTH God s forgiveness is for other people, but not for me. God s Word says WHOEVER believes in Jesus Christ will not perish, but will have everlasting life. My sins are unforgiveable. You sins are not greater than the mercy and grace of God or beyond His ability to forgive. I don t feel forgiven. If you know Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, God s Word assures us that WE ARE FORGIVEN. John 3:16, 3:36 John 5:24, Romans 6:23 1 John 1:9, Psalm 103:12, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Romans 6:5, Isaiah 1:18, 43:25, Acts 3:19 and many more! I don t feel reconciled with God. Jesus reconciles all things to Himself through the blood of His cross. Colossians 1:20 Our FEELINGS will often REVEAL that we DON T REALLY BELIEVE what we claim to believe! For a follower of Jesus Christ, those feelings are really areas of UNBELIEF that require CONFESSION and REPENTANCE. And finally, we may struggle with feeling UNWORTHY of God s forgiveness. That is ABSOLUTELY TRUE! We are COMPLETELY UNWORTHY of His forgiveness! (Romans 5:8)

16 GETTING PAST GUILT Session 2 ~ Page 11 He does NOT forgive us because we are WORTHY of His forgiveness! He forgives us because of HIS CHARACTER and because of the SACRIFICE of His Son Jesus Christ on the cross. We should constantly PRAISE and GLORIFY GOD that He DELIGHTS in forgiving UNWORTHY sinners like us! Lord, I believe; help my unbelief. Mark 9:24 KNOWING, BELIEVING AND TRUSTING True freedom comes when we choose to live both KNOWING AND BELIEVING God s truth. It can be a painful struggle to get to the place where we TRULY BELIEVE GOD, but it is NECESSARY that we work through that struggle. Isaiah 38:17 Yes, this anguish was good for me, for You have rescued me from death and forgiven all my sins. [NLT] We must learn to take God at His word, receive His forgiveness, and TRUST Him! We must learn to LET GO of the guilt and shame of past, confessed sin. We must refuse to REVISIT confessed sin in our minds. That only serves to GLORIFY our sin and DISHONOR God s forgiveness. We must follow God s example CHOOSE to REMEMBER IT NO MORE. 1 John 4:16a We have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us.? Do you really BELIEVE the love God has for you? When we allow the TRUTH of His forgiveness to wash over us, it will cover us with His PEACE. Psalm 32:1-5 Oh, what joy for those whose disobedience is forgiven, whose sin is put out of sight! 2 Yes, what joy for those whose record the LORD has cleared of guilt, whose lives are lived in complete honesty! 3 When I refused to confess my sin, my body wasted away, and I groaned all day long. 4 Day and night Your hand of discipline was heavy on me. My strength evaporated like water in the summer heat. 5 Finally, I confessed all my sins to You and stopped trying to hide my guilt. I said to myself, I will confess my rebellion to the LORD. And You forgave me! All my guilt is gone. [NLT] Like David, we should be able to say, ALL MY GUILT IS GONE!? Do you experience JOY every time you think about God s forgiveness? Are you filled with gratitude? Do you praise and worship Him for His incredible forgiveness? We need to learn to CONFESS our sin, REPENT, and RECEIVE the forgiveness God offers through Jesus Christ. Then we must TRUST HIM to bear the burden of our guilt. If it was POSSIBLE for us to forgive ourselves, WE WOULD HAVE NO NEED FOR A SAVIOR, and Jesus death on the cross would have been for nothing!!! TRUE forgiveness from the Lord is much more powerful than any false forgiveness we try to give ourselves!

17 GETTING PAST GUILT Lord, I believe; help my unbelief. Mark 9:24 GOD S JUSTICE WILL BE SATISFIED? Does our forgiveness excuse the guilty person? Let s return to the example of someone murdering your child: Even if YOU forgive the person who murdered your child, the person still stands in a position of GUILT before God. Your forgiveness has NO IMPACT WHATSOEVER on the person s standing before God. There are only TWO POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS to deal with a person s guilt before a Holy God: The person pays for the sin THEMSELVES by spending eternity in hell, separated from God and experiencing His full wrath. OR the person puts their faith in Jesus Christ and His complete payment for sin, and they receive God s TOTAL FORGIVENESS. EITHER WAY, God s justice is FULLY SATISFIED. The sin has been dealt with appropriately and GOD IS GLORIFIED. RECEIVING GOD S FORGIVENESS BY FAITH BEYOND FORGIVENESS Remember - God PROMISES to forgive, but He doesn t STOP there! His forgiveness is a BEGINNING, not an end! 1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.? Why would the Lord link forgiveness with CLEANSING? When we look at our sin, what do we FEEL? Dirty, ashamed, unworthy. Video Washing Away Sin God forgives and He provides the CLEANSING we so desperately desire. Isaiah 1:18 Come now, and let us reason together, Says the LORD, Though your sins are as scarlet, they will be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, they will be like wool. Psalm 51:7 Purify me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. Micah 7:18-19 Who is a God like You, who pardons iniquity and passes over the rebellious act of the remnant of His possession? He does not retain His anger forever, because He delights in unchanging love. 19 He will again have compassion on us; He will tread our iniquities under foot. Yes, You will cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.? Do you FEEL clean, pure, and white as snow? God says you ARE so if your FEELINGS don t line up with God s Word, YOUR FEELINGS NEED TO CHANGE! Session 2 ~ Page 12

18 GETTING PAST GUILT Session 2 ~ Page 13 Romans 15:13 Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.? Are you FILLED with joy, peace and hope?? Do any of us really BELIEVE what God says about His forgiveness of sin? Lord, I believe; help my unbelief. Mark 9:24 FOR GOD S PLEASURE AND GOD S GLORY God s forgiveness almost seems too good to be true. We know we don t DESERVE it. We know we can never PAY IT BACK. We know we can t EARN it or WORK for it. FORGIVENESS is extremely COSTLY to the one who offers it. God was WILLING to pay the price of sacrificing His own Son. Jesus was WILLING to HUMBLE HIMSELF, become a man, and live a sinless life. He VOLUNTARILY LAID DOWN HIS LIFE in obedience to the Father. He SACRIFICED HIMSELF to bear the FULL WEIGHT and pay the FULL PENALTY for OUR SIN.? Does God s forgiveness seem ONE-SIDED, and even UNFAIR? God s forgiveness IS ABSOLUTELY ONE-SIDED and completely UNFAIR!!! JESUS DID IT ALL and HE ALONE IS GLORIFIED by the forgiveness of our sin! What a magnificent display of His divine love. God CHOOSES to pour out His grace, mercy and forgiveness because it PLEASES Him and GLORIFIES Him. Luke 12:32 [Jesus] Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has chosen gladly to give you the kingdom. Ephesians 1:3-6 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love 5 He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved.? Do you believe that it gives God great PLEASURE to pour out His mercy and grace on YOU? Does this motivate you to worship Him, praise Him, and glorify Him?? If you struggle with receiving God s forgiveness, do you realize this is an issue of unbelief? Lord I believe; help my unbelief.

19 GETTING PAST GUILT Session 2 ~ Page 14 RECEIVE HIS FORGIVENESS & GLORIFY HIM If you look at the world, you ll be distressed. If you look within, you ll be depressed. But if you look at Christ, you ll be at rest. --- Corrie ten Boom God has provided the ONLY true solution to guilt, and He offers it freely to ANYONE who believes. You CANNOT forgive yourself, but BY FAITH you CAN receive GOD S FORGIVENESS and CLEANSING. Thinking we can forgive ourselves is a REJECTION of the forgiveness He has provided through the SACRIFICE of His Son Jesus Christ. It is putting our judgment ABOVE God s judgment. The PROMISE of God s forgiveness is throughout the Bible, based on the AUTHORITY of God s Word and the INTEGRITY of His character. God s promise of forgiveness is either TRUE or God is a LIAR. Each of us must CHOOSE what we will believe. Our feelings and actions REVEAL what we truly BELIEVE about God s promises. We must learn to fully receive God s forgiveness by faith, and REST in it. We should live filled with GRATITUDE and THANKFULNESS for His forgiveness and cleansing, made possible by the sacrifice of His Son. Psalm 32:5 I acknowledged my sin to You, And my iniquity I did not hide; I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the LORD"; And You forgave the guilt of my sin.? If He has REMOVED your guilt, why would you ever continue to hold on to it? That is like being released from jail and refusing to leave the cell! We should never be AFRAID to go TO God with our sin we should be VERY AFRAID NOT to go to Him with it! Psalm 32:10-11 Many sorrows shall be to the wicked; but he who trusts in the LORD, mercy shall surround him. 11 Be glad in the LORD and rejoice, you righteous; and shout for joy, all you upright in heart! If you trust Him, HIS unfailing MERCY and LOVE SURROUNDS YOU!? Can there be any greater reason for PRAISE than God s guarantee of forgiveness and cleansing of our sin? May we all BELIEVE His Truth and LIVE IT OUT so that others can see Christ in us and be drawn to Him for eternal life. Lord, I believe; help my unbelief! Mark 9:24 Disobedience leaves us in chains of bondage to sin. The blessings of brokenness lead to conviction and repentance. Obedience requires sacrifice, but also brings the blessing of restoration. Chains or Christ your choice.

20 GETTING PAST GUILT Session 2 ~ Page 15 DISCUSSION QUESTIONS: Have you struggled with guilt that remains even after you have confessed your sins to God? What are some of the world s ways that you ve tried to help relieve the burden of guilt? Do you believe that it pleases God to forgive your sin? Were you aware that forgiving yourself was not Biblical? - Did the example of murdering a child help you understand why you can t forgive yourself for your past sin? Can you think of some promises of God do you know, but have a difficult time believing? What would you say about God s love and forgiveness to someone who committed a serious sin and was struggling with guilt? Did this session reveal any areas of unbelief that are impacting your walk with Christ? How can you apply what you ve learned to your own life?

21 CONVICTION VS. CONDEMNATION Session 3 ~ Page 1 WE ARE NOT SLAVES TO SIN? Do difficult relationships or challenging circumstances tend to expose areas of sin in your life?? Does sin seem powerful, even overwhelming at times?? Does it feel like you will never be able to have victory over sin? Every one of us can go from walking in the Spirit to walking in the flesh in the blink of an eye. We may gain some self-control over sinful WORDS and ACTIONS, but sin can still REMAIN in our THOUGHTS and ATTITUDES. John 8:34 Jesus replied, I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave of sin. [NLT] John 8:36 [Jesus] So if the Son sets you free, you are truly free. [NLT] Sin keeps us in bondage. Jesus Christ FREED us from our SLAVERY TO SIN, and He FREED us from the POWER OF SIN. Romans 6:6-8 We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin. 7 For when we died with Christ we were set free from the power of sin. 8 And since we died with Christ, we know we will also live with Him. [NLT] Romans 6:18 Now you are free from your slavery to sin, and you have become slaves to righteous living. [NLT] Romans 6:22 But now you are free from the power of sin and have become slaves of God. Now you do those things that lead to holiness and result in eternal life. [NLT]? But do you ever FEEL like you are still a slave to sin? Do you sometimes feel like sin still has power over you?? Have you ever noticed that your feelings do not always reflect reality and truth? We ARE TRULY FREE, whether we FEEL free or not! Paul addresses the conflict related to this issue in chapter 7 of Romans. Romans 7:19 For the good that I want, I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not want. Romans 7:24 Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death? PAUL STRUGGLED with this battle and even became DISCOURAGED! Sin can SEEM OVERWHELMING at times. It can feel like it has a CHOKEHOLD on us, but God has provided a SOLUTION. Romans 7:25 Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, on the one hand I myself with my mind am serving the law of God, but on the other, with my flesh the law of sin.

22 CONVICTION VS. CONDEMNATION Session 3 ~ Page 2 Jesus is the ONLY answer to our desperate situation, but Paul acknowledges that our FLESH still struggles with sin so where does that leave us? When you read Scripture, remember that the chapter breaks ARE NOT in the original text of the Bible. Here is the next verse from Paul s pen: Romans 8:1 Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Our BATTLE with sin can leave us feeling DEFEATED and CONDEMNED. Satan can use these EMOTIONS to TEMPT us to DOUBT GOD by targeting us with his accusations and lies.? When our FEELINGS don t line up with God s TRUTH, what needs to change? God has given us a very clear statement of both PROMISE and POSITION in Christ. Those who are IN CHRIST have NO CONDEMNATION. No exceptions! We DESERVE condemnation. We are GIVEN GRACE! God says we are NOT a slave to sin. That is true, or He is a liar. God says that we are NOT condemned. That is true, or He is a liar.? Do you really BELIEVE that you are NEVER under ANY CONDEMNATION from God? Lord I believe; help my unbelief. Mark 9:24 NOT A SLAVE TO SIN A WILLING PARTICIPANT? What are the IMPLICATIONS of NOT being a slave to sin? When we sin, it is because WE CHOOSE TO SIN. Jesus died to save us from the POWER and BONDAGE of sin, but we can still DECIDE to sin anyway. We have the POWER to obey the Holy Spirit, but we can CHOOSE to RESIST the Spirit and OBEY the flesh. We are NOT slaves to sin but we can be WILLING PARTICIPANTS! When we SIN, we are WORSHIPPING! We are worshipping the god of this earth, Satan, and we are bowing down to the idol we are ALL tempted to worship the IDOL of SELF. When we sin, our actions PROCLAIM the sobering reality that we love ourselves and our sin MORE than we love our God. God ALONE DESERVES and DEMANDS our worship. He MUST correct us when we sin because it would be UNLOVING for Him not to DISCIPLINE His children. Hebrews 12:5-6 And have you completely forgotten this word of encouragement that addresses you as a father addresses his son? It says, "My son, do not make light of the Lord's discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, 6 because the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and he chastens everyone he accepts as his son." [NIV]

23 CONVICTION VS. CONDEMNATION Session 3 ~ Page 3 The encouragement is that God s discipline is PROOF of His love for us, and proof that we are HIS children. It is important to remember that He never disciplines us in ANGER, but only in LOVE. Hebrews 12:10b-11 God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness. 11 No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. [NIV] God s discipline is CRITICAL for our spiritual growth and maturity. It brings BLESSINGS of righteousness and peace. It TRAINS US to WALK WORTHY of our calling and our position in Christ. WHAT IS CONVICTION? CONVICTION: a judicial term that means to be CONVINCED of the truth of a charge against you; the act of compelling a person to acknowledge his error; the process of being convinced by one s own conscience of sin CONVICTION comes through the Holy Spirit who lives in every believer. He GUIDES us into God s TRUTH. He helps us RECOGNIZE when we are DECEIVED. He WARNS us of SIN and SPIRITUAL DANGER. He SHOWS us areas of UNBELIEF. He CONVINCES US of our SIN. He LEADS us to REPENTANCE. The conviction that comes through the Holy Spirit is SPECIFIC (not generalities): Conviction can be about specific things we should STOP DOING. You shouldn t have allowed yourself to be drawn into gossip. You shouldn t have responded in anger to that person who annoyed you. You shouldn t spend so much time on social media. It can also be about specific things that we SHOULD BE DOING. You should change the subject when someone tries to draw you into gossip. You should be more patient and kind with that annoying person. You should be spending more time in prayer and in God s Word. Conviction will be focused on our thoughts, attitudes, words and actions. These are things that WE HAVE CONTROL OVER and can CHOOSE TO CHANGE. The PURPOSE of conviction is to CORRECT our actions that are ungodly. Conviction should produce a CHANGE in our THINKING that naturally leads to a CHANGE in our BEHAVIOR. Conviction will NEVER leave us HELPLESS or HOPELESS. There is always a clear SOLUTION in response to conviction. Conviction is intended to put our FOCUS on the SOLUTION, not the SIN. Conviction is a LOVING TOOL God uses to DISCIPLINE us. God uses CONVICTION to TRAIN us in His ways, and help us develop spiritual maturity. The ultimate objective of conviction is to make us MORE LIKE CHRIST.

24 CONVICTION VS. CONDEMNATION Session 3 ~ Page 4 Conviction should motivate us to RUN TO GOD, REPENT, and RECEIVE His forgiveness. Through His strength we make the necessary CHANGES in our THOUGHTS, WORDS and ACTIONS. Hebrews 4:16 Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.? Do you truly believe you can run BOLDLY and with CONFIDENCE to our Father s throne of grace to find His help in your time of need?? Do you truly believe you WILL receive His loving mercy and grace? Psalm 86:15 But You, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness and truth.? Do you believe your Father is compassionate, merciful, and slow to get angry with you?? Do you believe that even though your love for Him may fail, His love for you will NEVER, NEVER FALTER and NEVER FAIL? Lord I believe; help my unbelief. Mark 9:24 CONVICTION IS PROOF OF GOD S LOVE FOR YOU? Do you think God is reluctant to offer His forgiveness when you sin? Psalm 86:5 For You, Lord, are good, and ready to forgive, And abundant in lovingkindness to all who call upon You. Ephesians 1:7-8a In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace 8 which He lavished on us. Ephesians 2:4-6 But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6 and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, God does NOT desire to forgive us because of anything WE do! God s desire to forgive is an outflow of HIS CHARACTER, and a display of the extravagant riches of His LOVE, GRACE and MERCY. Conviction flows from the goodness of our Lord so that we may receive His FORGIVENESS, His CLEANSING and His BLESSINGS. Ephesians 3:16-19 that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God. The love of Jesus Christ SURPASSES KNOWLEDGE and yet Paul is praying that we are ABLE TO COMPREHEND the magnitude of His love. Conviction is intended to MOTIVATE us to REPENT and RUN TO OUR FATHER: (2 Cor. 7:10) SO THAT He can pour out His mercy and grace SO THAT He can wash our wounds with His forgiveness

25 CONVICTION VS. CONDEMNATION Session 3 ~ Page 5 SO THAT He can cleanse us and heal us SO THAT He can restore our fellowship with our Father SO THAT we can experience His love, His peace and His joy SO THAT we can PRAISE Him, WORSHIP Him, and GLORIFY His Holy name BECAUSE of our Father s love for us, He has sent His Holy Spirit to live within us to BLESS US with CONVICTION when we are in spiritual danger.? Do you view conviction as a precious gift from a loving Father? Lord I believe; help my unbelief. Mark 9:24 SATAN S DECEPTIONS It is no surprise that for every TRUTH of God, Satan has corresponding deceptions and lies. His tactics never change. He comes to steal, kill and destroy. (John 10:10) It is his desire that we live in SORROW, DESPAIR and HOPELESSNESS. Satan will try to twist healthy, BENEFICIAL feelings of conviction in an attempt to CONFUSE us with lies. He wants us to BELIEVE that our position of guilt will separate us from God FOREVER, and that our SIN is beyond God s ability to FORGIVE. He wants us to BELIEVE there is NO SOLUTION that we are UNREDEEMABLE, beyond the reach of God s grace and mercy. He will try to make us FEEL LIKE damaged goods shamed, unloved, unworthy, without hope. He will tempt us to BELIEVE that the finished work of Jesus Christ isn t really ENOUGH to save us, and we must somehow work our own way back into God s favor through OUR OWN EFFORTS. When it comes to Satan s attacks any old lie will do! He just has to get your eyes off of the truth. Our position of guilt is because of the wrong things WE HAVE DONE. Satan will do all he can to TEMPT us to believe our position of guilt defines WHO WE ARE. SINNER SAVE YOURSELF Satan can t take away our FORGIVENESS, but he can TEMPT us to BELIEVE that we aren t TRULY FORGIVEN. Satan can t make us UNCLEAN, but he can TEMPT us to BELIEVE WE ARE UNCLEAN. Those lies are EFFECTIVE, because what we BELIEVE determines HOW WE LIVE. When we BELIEVE Satan s lies, we will try to CARRY THE BURDEN of our guilt and shame ourselves and WE WILL FAIL. We are NOT qualified to be a savior, and we are unable to save ourselves! If we COULD overcome our burden of guilt on our own, WE WOULD HAVE NO NEED FOR A SAVIOR!

26 CONVICTION VS. CONDEMNATION Session 3 ~ Page 6 SINNER NUMB YOUR MIND As we begin to RECOGNIZE THE TRUTH that we can t carry the burden of sin and guilt ourselves, the deception changes. The enemy will TEMPT us to NUMB OUR MINDS instead of turning to God in repentance. We will begin to look for SOMETHING (food, work, relationships, family, ministry, mindless distractions, drugs, alcohol, ) instead of looking to SOMEONE Jesus Christ. None of those things relieve our guilt, and the BURDEN grows HEAVIER. Guilt produces physical, mental, emotional and spiritual WARNING SIGNS that should MOTIVATE us to seek His SOLUTION for our guilt forgiveness through His Son Jesus Christ. WHO WILL YOU SERVE? John 14:6 Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me. Jesus is the ONLY way, the ONLY truth, and the ONLY life. NOTHING we try to do for ourselves will EVER provide true and lasting RELIEF from our feelings of guilt. That is a TREMENDOUS BLESSING because NOTHING ELSE can fill the RIGHTFUL place of God in our lives. We will only find PEACE when we learn to REST in the FINISHED WORK of Christ. Satan can NEVER steal our salvation, but he can TRY to steal our joy, our peace, and our security. That damages us, our testimony and our effectiveness for our Lord. Comparing the names and titles of the Holy Spirit and those of Satan paints a vivid picture: HOLY SPIRIT DOVE ADVOCATE HELPER INTERCESSOR COMFORTER SPIRIT OF LIFE SPIRIT OF TRUTH AUTHOR OF SCRIPTURE SPIRIT OF WISDOM POWER OF THE HIGHEST DEPOSIT/SEAL/EARNEST SATAN serpent, dragon enemy adversary accuser, slanderer destroyer, murderer ruler of darkness deceiver, counterfeiter father of lies tempter prince of this world thief We are CREATED and DESIGNED by God to WORSHIP. We ALL will worship something or someone. Do we worship a FALSE GOD that DECEIVES, DISAPPOINTS, ENSLAVES and DESTROYS or the ONE TRUE GOD, Jesus Christ, who gives us ETERNAL LIFE?

27 CONVICTION VS. CONDEMNATION Session 3 ~ Page 7 WHAT IS CONDEMNATION? CONDEMNATION CONDEMNATION: a judicial term that means to know something against; to pronounce judgment; to pass sentence upon Biblically, people are CONDEMNED when God JUDGES them, finds them GUILTY, and declares them WORTHY OF PUNISHMENT and DESERVING of HIS FULL WRATH. Jesus described God s judgment and condemnation this way: Luke 12:5 [Jesus] But I ll tell you whom to fear. Fear God, who has the power to kill you and then throw you into hell. Yes, He s the One to fear. [NLT] What a sobering reminder of God s total POWER over His creation. ONLY GOD has the AUTHORITY to CONDEMN anyone to hell. SATAN WILL TRY TO CONDEMN Remember Satan s objective to do anything he can to try to separate us from God s redeeming love. Satan has NO STANDING or AUTHORITY to CONDEMN believers, but that does not stop him from TRYING! He will attack with CONDEMNING ACCUSATIONS, in hopes that we will be DECEIVED and BELIEVE we are under God s condemnation. If he can successfully TEMPT us to FEEL CONDEMNED, he will then TEMPT us to HIDE and DISTANCE OURSELVES from our Lord. The enemy s ACCUSATIONS follow some common patterns: Targeting WHO WE ARE (our character, our personality, our weaknesses): You are worthless. You can t do this, you aren t strong enough. God could never use someone like you. What you do is insignificant. You aren t worthy of God s love. Targeting THINGS WE CANNOT CHANGE (about our past, about circumstances, etc.): God would never accept someone who has done the things you have done. Do you really think God can forgive you for. If people knew the things you ve done, they would never accept you. Targeting THE FUTURE by introducing FEAR and DOUBT: You will never overcome this sin in your life. You will never be able to understand God s Word, much less live it out. What if,,... If we believe his condemning accusations, we will experience REGRET, SHAME, FEAR and DISCOURAGEMENT. These emotions do NOT bring any REPENTANCE or any RESOLVE to turn away from sin. Satan wants us to be STUCK in DEFEAT, focusing on our PAST FAILURES. Focusing on the PAST will keep us from PRESSING FORWARD and doing the things God has called us to do.

28 CONVICTION VS. CONDEMNATION Session 3 ~ Page 8 Philippians 3:13-14 Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. The enemy s ACCUSATIONS are intended to keep our focus on the PROBLEM instead of the SOLUTION. The enemy will also TEMPT us to put our HOPE in our own performance instead of in the finished work of Jesus Christ. Titus 3:4-7 But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared, 5 He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, 6 whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 so that being justified by His grace we would be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life. Lord I believe; help my unbelief. Mark 9:24 JESUS CAME TO SAVE Jesus came the first time as SAVIOR, offering SALVATION and ETERNAL LIFE NOT to CONDEMN. John 3:17-18 [Jesus] For God did not send His Son into the world that He might condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. 18 Anyone who believes in Him is not condemned, but anyone who does not believe is already condemned, because he has not believed in the name of the One and Only Son of God. [HCSB] John 5:24 [Jesus] I assure you: Anyone who hears My word and believes Him who sent Me has eternal life and will not come under judgment but has passed from death to life. [HCSB] Notice the verb tenses used in this passage. HAS eternal life (PRESENT TENSE) HAS PASSED out of death into life (PAST TENSE) DOES NOT COME INTO JUDGMENT! (PRESENT & FUTURE!) EVERYONE who believes in Jesus will NEVER be under God s judgment or condemnation! That is what we have been SAVED FROM! Romans 5:9 And since we have been made right in God s sight by the blood of Christ, He will certainly save us from God s condemnation. [NLT] Romans 8:1-2 There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death. God guarantees there is NO CONDEMNATION for believers because there is NO ONE else with the AUTHORITY to bring condemnation to a child of God who is ACCEPTED in Christ! ETERNAL LIFE and CONDEMNATION are MUTUALLY EXCLUSIVE! You can only have one or the other!? Who do you LISTEN TO? Who do you TRUST? Your ADVOCATE or your ACCUSER?

29 CONVICTION VS. CONDEMNATION Session 3 ~ Page 9 Lord I believe; help my unbelief. Mark 9:24 THE UN-CONDEMNED GUILTY ADULTEROUS WOMAN The religious leaders brought a woman caught in adultery to Jesus. They made ACCUSATIONS against her. Valid accusations. They wanted Jesus to CONDEMN her according to the law, and that is what she DESERVED. Jesus wrote something in the sand and we don t know what He wrote. Whatever He wrote in the sand made it CLEAR that those accusing her had NO STANDING to condemn her, SO THEY ALL LEFT! John 8:10-11 Straightening up, Jesus said to her, "Woman, where are they? Did no one condemn you?" 11 She said, "No one, Lord." And Jesus said, "I do not condemn you, either. Go. From now on sin no more." In the presence of Jesus Christ, there is NO ONE who can CONDEMN one of His children! The only person still standing there with the woman was Jesus. She never denied that she WAS GUILTY. Because He was God, Jesus DID have the AUTHORITY to condemn her but He DID NOT CONDEMN HER. Instead of condemning her as the law commanded, Jesus chose to cover her sin with His GRACE.? But shouldn t there be some kind of punishment since the woman was guilty of adultery? Shouldn t there be some consequences for her sin? Doesn t this seem UNFAIR? God s grace is TOTALLY UNDESERVED and it is TOTALLY UNFAIR! Grace is always based on the heart and character of the GIVER of grace, not the RECEIVER. God LOVES us and ACCEPTS us, and THEN He begins cleaning us up! LOVE = OBEDIENCE OBEDIENCE = LOVE Jesus forgave the women, and THEN He asked her to LIVE OUT her love for Him through OBEDIENCE to Him ( sin no more ). John 14:15 [Jesus] If you love Me, you will keep My commandments. After Peter denied Jesus three times, He restored Peter by asking a very simple question three times: Do you love Me? (John 21) Three times, Peter answered that he loved Jesus. Each time, Jesus instructed Peter to SHOW HIS LOVE by OBEYING His commands. Tend My lambs, shepherd My sheep, tend My sheep After that, there were NO MORE QUESTIONS!!! All that remained was for Peter to demonstrate his love by his obedience. Our LOVE for Jesus is displayed through our OBEDIENCE to Him. Lord, I believe. Help my unbelief. Mark 9:24

30 CONVICTION VS. CONDEMNATION Session 3 ~ Page 10 POSITION, PRACTICE AND PROCESS WHO DARES ACCUSE GOD S CHILDREN? Romans 8:33-34 Who dares accuse us whom God has chosen for His own? No one for God Himself has given us right standing with Himself. 34 Who then will condemn us? No one for Christ Jesus died for us and was raised to life for us, and He is sitting in the place of honor at God's right hand, pleading for us. [NLT] God Himself JUSTIFIES those who are in Christ. Justification means we are declared righteous before God. Justification is the OPPOSITE of condemnation. Every individual person is either JUSTIFIED (in Christ), or they are CONDEMNED (without Christ). Those God has JUSTIFIED have received His gift of eternal life and can NEVER BE CONDEMNED. Their position before God is unchangeable. For a person currently in a position of condemnation, God offers HOPE. A CONDEMNED person can humble herself before God, CONFESS her sin, REPENT, and be JUSTIFIED THROUGH FAITH in Jesus Christ. JUSTIFICATION (POSITION) VS. SANCTIFICATION (PROCESS) JUSTIFICATION (being declared righteous before God) describes our finished, sealed POSITION in Christ, bought and paid for by the blood of Christ. It does NOT depend on US. A justified sinner stands before God and is declared righteous based on the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross. Jesus took OUR sins upon Himself. Our sins were JUDGED there on the cross, and will never be charged to our account. When we accepted Jesus Christ as our Savior, HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS was placed upon us. God no longer sees us as guilty sinners. He only sees us CLOTHED in the PERFECT RIGHTEOUSNESS of His Son Jesus Christ. Believers are RIGHTEOUS before God FOR NO OTHER REASON than that Christ, our Savior, is righteous before the Father. Justification is the work of Jesus Christ FOR US, doing what we could NEVER do for ourselves providing atonement for our sin. Justification is the PERMANENT, ETERNALLY SEALED POSITION before God for every believer. The parable of the workers in Matthew 20 helps us understand that every believer is on equal footing (equally justified) before our Lord. SANCTIFICATION is the ongoing PROCESS of becoming more like Christ, learning to LIVE OUT the truth of our justified POSITION in Him. Our sanctification is the ONGOING WORK of the Holy Spirit that molds us into the image of Jesus Christ. (Rom. 8:29-30, Eph. 2:10) We have been SET APART unto God, for holy living. (1 Pet. 1:15-16) Sanctification results in increased SPIRITUAL MATURITY. It helps us to GROW in our LOVE for our Lord.

31 CONVICTION VS. CONDEMNATION Session 3 ~ Page 11 It helps us to learn to WALK IN OBEDIENCE to Him. It results in the increasing Christ-likeness of our PRACTICE (our daily walk with Him). It is important that we understand the differences between our justified POSITION in Christ and the ongoing PROCESS of our sanctification in Christ. If we CONFUSE these two concepts, we will very likely struggle with feelings of condemnation. JUSTIFICATION Occurs ONCE at salvation and is fully COMPLETE PERMANENT LEGAL STANDING before God An exclusive WORK OF GOD (we contribute nothing) Has already been FULLY ACCOMPLISHED in this life IDENTICAL for every believer (all believers are equally justified before God) SANCTIFICATION Ongoing, continuous PROCESS INTERNAL CONDITION of spiritual maturity A WORK OF GOD that involves the COOPERATION OF OUR WILL NOT fully completed or perfected in this life (we will never be sinless this side of eternity) Will be greater in some believers than others in this life NO CONDEMNATION NO CONSEQUENCES? God promises NO CONDEMNATION to those in Christ, but He does NOT promise NO CONSEQUENCES when we sin. However, the consequences of sin do NOT represent God s punishment. God s punishment for sin is ETERNAL DEATH. (Rom. 6:23) Consequences CAN represent God s DISCIPLINE, but remember that His discipline always flows from His LOVE for us. The CONSEQUENCES of our sin have absolutely NO IMPACT on God s FORGIVENESS of our sin. He may CHOOSE to allow some of the consequences of our sin to remain to accomplish His purpose in our lives. That is His sovereign right. But He has PROMISED that He will use it for our good, and for His glory. (Romans 8:28) WORK OUT YOUR SALVATION Paul understood that it is CRITICAL that all believers develop a mature understanding of God s truth. Maturity doesn t just happen because the pages of the calendar turn. To gain maturity, we have to be willing to INVEST SOME EFFORT. Paul used many metaphors to help us understand that following Jesus Christ requires some EFFORT on our part. RUN to obtain the prize. (1 Cor. 9:24) FIGHT the good fight. (1 Tim. 6:12) Don t just BEAT THE AIR. (2 Cor. 9:26) Prepare for spiritual BATTLE. (Eph. 6:10-17) Wage the good WARFARE. (2 Tim. 1:18)

32 CONVICTION VS. CONDEMNATION Session 3 ~ Page 12 These represent a CALL TO ACTION that requires PREPARATION, DILIGENCE, STRENGTH, SELF-DISCIPLINE and PERSEVERANCE. Philippians 2:12b-13 work out your salvation with fear and trembling; 13 for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure. He is NOT saying to work FOR our salvation, or work IN our salvation. He is encouraging us to exercise the reality of our salvation. To LIVE IT OUT in our daily lives To demonstrate the REALITY that Jesus Christ LIVES IN US To demonstrate the JOY and PEACE only Christ can give To demonstrate a LOVE FOR OTHERS that is ABNORMAL, because it is only possible IN and THROUGH Jesus Christ Toward the end of his life, Paul wrote this to Timothy: 2 Timothy 4:7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith; Paul WORKED OUT his salvation. He was all in, holding nothing back. Paul FINISHED WELL because he KNEW, UNDERSTOOD, BELIEVED and TRUSTED the truth of God. You can t KNOW God s truth without READING & STUDYING HIS WORD. You can t UNDERSTAND truth you don t KNOW. You can t BELIEVE truth you don t UNDERSTAND. You can t TRUST truth you don t BELIEVE. Growing in our KNOWLEDGE and UNDERSTANDING of God s Word strengthens our BELIEF and TRUST in Him. LET YOUR PRACTICE MATCH YOUR POSITION! Our DAILY LIVING (our practice) should ACCURATELY reflect our sealed POSITION in Christ. When it does not, it is because of the PRESENCE OF SIN in our lives. God doesn t want us WALLOWING in our sin and guilt as if there was no SOLUTION. That does NOT glorify God IT GLORIFIES SIN! It demonstrates that we BELIEVE our SIN is BIGGER than God s GRACE which is UNBELIEF in the promises of God s forgiveness! If we think that being declared righteous before God (justification) is in ANY WAY up to us, we WILL struggle with feelings of self-condemnation. If we think that OUR OWN WORKS justify us before God, there are two possible outcomes. SELF-RIGHTEOUSNESS and LEGALISM will take over and steal our joy. GUILT, SHAME and REGRET will keep us living in DISCOURAGEMENT and DEFEAT. Jesus did ALL THE WORK necessary for our salvation and HIS WORK IS FINISHED! There is NOTHING we can possibly add to what He accomplished on the cross! All He asks of us is to truly believe in His finished work on the cross, and that we LOVE HIM which means we will obey Him (John 14:15).

33 CONVICTION VS. CONDEMNATION Session 3 ~ Page 13 If my salvation DEPENDS ON ME, I could NEVER have assurance. But if I understand that my salvation depends SOLELY on what Christ has done, I can have ABSOLUTE ASSURANCE. Romans 3:22 We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are. [NLT]? Do we have to work up our own faith, and work to grow our faith? Ephesians 2:8-9 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. Even our FAITH is a gift from God! Ephesians 1:3 Blessed by the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ BE CONFORMED God s PURPOSE for every believer is that we are CONFORMED to the image of His Son. Romans 8:29 For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; CONFORMED: to fashion or shape one thing like another Romans 8:30 and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified. There are no you s in that passage ONLY HE S! There are NO COMMANDS there either! Sanctification is the PROCESS of GOD S WORK IN us, but it does require the cooperation of our will. We PARTICIPATE by living in WILLING OBEDIENCE, which demonstrates our love for Him. We RESIST by living in DISOBEDIENCE, quenching the work of the Holy Spirit and walking in the flesh which will result in His loving discipline. Romans 8:31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us? There is NO ADVERSARY that can OVERCOME, OVERRULE or OVERPOWER the majestic sovereignty of our God. NOT EVEN US our failures, our shame, our guilt, or our sin! The cross of Christ is VICTORIOUS over sin. ALL sin. No exceptions! God s GRACE is BIGGER than OUR SIN! We shouldn t ever DENY our sin, but we shouldn t GET STUCK dwelling on it either. He has provided the perfect SOLUTION for sin His Son, Jesus Christ. God gets ALL the glory for the work HE IS DOING in our life.? Do you believe that God s mercy and grace is BIGGER than your SIN (ALL of your sin!)?

34 CONVICTION VS. CONDEMNATION Session 3 ~ Page 14 Lord I believe; help my unbelief. Mark 9:24 NOTHING CAN SEPARATE US Romans 8:35 Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? Romans 8:37-39 But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord..? Is this truth firmly planted in your mind and heart? Are you CONVINCED? Notice we are NOT more than conquerors because WE love HIM. We are more than conquerors THROUGH HIM WHO LOVED US. Our victory is based on HIM, not on US! What a RELIEF!!! We can t EARN it, WORK to attain it, BUY it, or STEAL it. There is NOTHING we can do to DESERVE it that is why it is called GRACE!? But what about feelings of self-condemnation? 1 John 3:18-21 Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth. 19 We will know by this that we are of the truth, and will assure our heart before Him 20 in whatever our heart condemns us; for God is greater than our heart and knows all things. 21 Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God; 1 John 3:21 Dear friends, if we don t feel guilty, we can come to God with bold confidence. [NLT] In Christ, there is NO ONE who can condemn not even our own heart. We can be CONFIDENT in our relationship with our Lord when we WALK IN OBEDIENCE to Him. So if your own heart condemns you, you may need to REMIND YOUR HEART that GOD IS GREATER!!! If you still aren t confident, it might be worthwhile to take a look at your obedience! God s Truth is that there is NO CONDEMNATION for those who are in Christ.? If we absolutely believed this truth, wouldn t it change the way we live? Lord I believe; help my unbelief. Mark 9:24 PRACTICAL STRATEGIES We should ask God for the WISDOM to DISCERN between CONVICTION and CONDEMNATION. PAST, CONFESSED SINS TURN IT TO PRAISE? Do you ever confess the same sin(s) over and over?

35 CONVICTION VS. CONDEMNATION Session 3 ~ Page 15 When a PAST SIN you have confessed to God and repented from comes to mind, TURN IT INTO PRAISE. A confessed, repented sin has been COMPLETELY DEALT WITH, so PRAISE GOD for His incredible FORGIVENESS. If we struggle with replaying a past sin over and over in your mind, we should REPENT. We are putting our focus on the SIN instead of on Christ. Believe God s promise that He will remember your sins no more, and learn to DO THE SAME! TRUST His forgiveness He is trustworthy. God s FORGIVENESS does so much more than just wipe the slate clean. His forgiveness sets us on a new, and much better, course for the future. It means that our FAILURES do not get to have the last word! If we struggle with CONDEMNING THOUGHTS, find a way turn it to PRAISE. You are UNWORTHY. Yes, I am absolutely unworthy of the love, grace and mercy God has poured out on me! I praise God that He is SO merciful, SO gracious, SO loving when I am so undeserving and unworthy! You committed the sin of I DID commit that sin, and Jesus PAID FOR IT with His own blood and I AM FORGIVEN! I am so thankful that God s grace is BIGGER than my sin and my feelings of guilt. I choose to live in His TRUTH and in His FORGIVENESS. I am a forgiven child of God, LOVED by my heavenly Father now and for eternity. NO ONE can snatch me from His hand. When we learn to turn our feelings of CONDEMNATION into reasons to PRAISE and GLORIFY God, and we will have VICTORY! We may have to do it 100 times today, and 99 times tomorrow but eventually GRACE WILL WIN! ONGOING SIN ASK FOR HELP For ONGOING sin, we must learn to use the resources God provides to help us overcome it. We can ask God to BLESS US with CONVICTION the moment the thought of committing the sin enters our mind. When He convicts, REPENT, and praise Him for His FAITHFULNESS. We can ASK GOD to help us develop STRATEGIES to avoid the temptation to commit the sin. We can PRAY for strength to overcome temptation when it does strike. We can seek out WISE COUNSEL, and ask other believers to help us be ACCOUNTABLE and COVER US WITH PRAYER. We can PRAISE GOD for whatever steps of PROGRESS we see in our life, no matter how small. SEEK THE BLESSING OF CONVICTION We shouldn t be AFRAID of conviction. We should EMBRACE IT! Think about the life a LACK OF CONVICTION results in: Deceived by the enemy Living in disobedience to God with un-confessed sin and its consequences Deserving of God s discipline An ineffective witness for Christ A life that does NOT glorify God

36 CONVICTION VS. CONDEMNATION Session 3 ~ Page 16 Repentance will not come without the Holy Spirit s conviction of sin. John 15:10-11 [Jesus] If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Father's commandments and abide in His love. 11 These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full. Our REPENTANCE and OBEDIENCE allows us to ABIDE IN HIS LOVE, and have the fullness of the JOY OF CHRIST in us! We should PRAY FOR CONVICTION, asking God to guide us into COMPLETE REPENTANCE. We should THANK GOD for the Holy Spirit s conviction that leads us to REPENTANCE, HEALING and HOLINESS. Conviction is an INVITATION TO CHANGE to be more like Christ. Lord I believe; help my unbelief. Mark 9:24 Disobedience leaves us in chains of bondage to sin. The blessings of brokenness lead to conviction and repentance. Obedience requires sacrifice, but also brings the blessing of restoration. Chains or Christ your choice. DISCUSSION QUESTIONS: Were you aware that conviction is intended to make you run TO God? - Does that change your understanding of the purpose of conviction? Do you view conviction as a blessing? Does the thought of praying and asking God to bless you with conviction scare you? Why? Does it help to understand that conviction will always be about things we have control over and can choose to change? Can you identify any ways you have fallen for Satan s deceptions about God s forgiveness? What are some practical ways we can distinguish between conviction and the enemy s condemning accusations? - Can you think of examples from your own walk with the Lord? When your feelings don t line up with the truth of God s Word, what steps can you take to correct it? Why do you think Jesus made such a strong connection between our love for Him and our obedience to Him? Do you believe that God s grace and mercy is more powerful than your sin?

37 CONVICTION VS. CONDEMNATION Session 3 ~ Page 17 How do you think praising God over past, confessed sin might be a help in overcoming feelings of guilt? Can you think of a time when your feelings revealed that you didn t really believe what you thought you believed? Did this session reveal any areas of unbelief that are impacting your walk with Christ? How can you apply what you ve learned to your own life?

38 FORGIVENESS TO US AND THROUGH US Session 4 ~ Page 1 DEALING WITH HURT AND PAIN Proverbs 4:23 Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life. [NLT] We think of the HEART as the center of our emotions. In Scripture, the HEART refers to our WHOLE INNER BEING our mind (intellect), our will, AND our emotions. We are commanded to guard our heart, but we also have to deal with the reality of living in a fallen world with other fallen people. We all experience hurt and pain. It is inevitable. Jesus commands us to FORGIVE OTHERS when they hurt us, which is actually one way that we can GUARD OUR HEART. But even after we have forgiven someone who hurt us, we may still have lingering painful emotions. We WILL face the temptation to hold onto our pain instead of releasing it to the Lord. When we allow ourselves to DWELL on our hurt and pain, it can become a familiar companion. We may even begin to feed it, coddle it, and take it out and pet it which only keeps the pain ALIVE and encourages it to GROW. When we nurture our hurt and pain, it can mature into RESENTMENT, ANGER, UNFORGIVENESS, and even HATRED which is SIN.? Are you convinced you will happier to continue dealing with your emotional pain your way?? Has holding onto anger and bitterness EVER helped you in any way? Hebrews 12:15b Watch out that no poisonous root of bitterness grows up to trouble you, corrupting many. [NLT] This is a serious WARNING. Bitterness is a POISONOUS ROOT. It is a SPIRITUAL CANCER that will not just cause TROUBLE for us, it will also CORRUPT others. When watered, the SEED of UNFORGIVENESS can grow into a TREE of BITTERNESS. Bitterness DAMAGES everything and everyone it touches, and will eventually DESTROY us and all of our relationships. We have ALL struggled with the SIN of bitterness toward someone who hurt us. We need to understand that bitterness and godliness are OPPOSITES! Every thought, word and action is a step toward BITTERNESS, or a step toward GODLINESS.? What kind of old woman do you want to be? Bitter, or godly? You WILL be one or the other.

39 FORGIVENESS TO US AND THROUGH US Session 4 ~ Page 2 JOSEPH S EXAMPLE OF FORGIVENESS Joseph understood the importance of forgiveness, and LIVED IT OUT. Joseph remained FAITHFUL through tremendous ups and downs in his circumstances. He had MANY opportunities to become bitter, but we never see any indication of BITTERNESS in him, and he didn t have Romans 8:28 to lean on like we do! Joseph clearly UNDERSTOOD and BELIEVED that God works everything together for good for those who love Him. Joseph s statement to his brothers at the end of his story reveals his heart, and his spiritual maturity. Genesis 50:19-20a Joseph said to them, "Do not be afraid, for am I in God s place? 20 As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good Joseph did NOT get to see God s purpose for decades, but he clearly understood that God DID have a purpose and He was in control. A big challenge we face in understanding Joseph s story is accepting GOD S DEFINITION of good. We tend to define good as that which is comfortable, pleasant, easy, enjoyable and satisfying right here and right now! Our Father s view of GOOD is very different than ours, and He is leading us toward HIS GOOD. Developing a deeper dependence on Him Deepening our love of Him and intimate fellowship with Him Growing in spiritual maturity and wisdom Walking in ever-increasing obedience to Him Glorifying Him in everything we do Becoming conformed to the image of His Son, Jesus Christ Every circumstance passes through God s hands before it touches us, but just like Joseph, the evil in this fallen world WILL impact our lives. God s promise in Romans 8:28 does NOT mean that all things are good. It means NO CIRCUMSTANCE or SITUATION is beyond the ability of our loving Father to work it out for HIS GOOD PURPOSE.? When the hard, painful circumstances camp on your doorstep, do you live out your belief, or are areas of unbelief exposed? Is God truly and completely sovereign over His creation? Is God is always at work to refine us and make us more like Christ? Is God is REALLY GOOD? Does He desire what is best for us? Will He really work all things together for good? Can we really TRUST Him, even when we can t SEE how He will work our situation for good? It is CRITICAL that we learn to deal with PAIN according to God s Word. In every difficult circumstance and in every trial, we must learn to ask ourselves these important questions: What is God trying to TEACH me? How is God trying to help me GROW spiritually? How might God use this situation to CONFORM me to the image of His Son?

40 FORGIVENESS TO US AND THROUGH US Session 4 ~ Page 3 We must learn to ACTIVELY and INTENTIONALLY look to see HOW God may be working things together for our good. How we deal with pain and difficulty often reveals our TRUE VIEW of God, and it can also expose areas of unbelief.? Is your hurt bigger than your God, or is your God bigger than your hurt? Lord I believe; help my unbelief. Mark 9:24 WHAT IS FORGIVENESS? FORGIVENESS: To release, to liberate, to set free, to pardon, to declare not guilty Forgiveness acknowledges that the person who harmed you owes you a DEBT. When you forgive someone who hurt you, you are VOLUNTARILY CHOOSING to RELEASE THEIR DEBT. You are CHOOSING to ABSORB THE COST of the debt they owe you. Forgiveness is the UNDESERVED cancelling and releasing of a debt. THE THREE DIRECTIONS OF FORGIVENESS There are three directions for forgiveness: Our need for forgiveness FROM GOD Our need to FORGIVE OTHERS who have wronged us Our need to SEEK FORGIVENESS FROM OTHERS we have wronged (which we are not going to address in this study) GOD S FORGIVENESS TO US WE DESPERATELY NEED GOD S FORGIVENESS We have ALL sinned. (Romans 3:23) Every one of us has spit in the face of God, rejected His authority in our life, and rebelled against Him as our Creator and our Lord. We DESERVE eternal death and separation from God. (Rom. 6:23) We desperately NEED God s FORGIVENESS through Jesus Christ. Because God is HOLY and JUST, He cannot forgive by simply looking the other way. To excuse sin would violate His character. EVERY sin must be FULLY PUNISHED to satisfy God s perfect justice. The DEBT we owe because of our sin MUST BE PAID. God is a God of justice, but He is also a God of love. It is NOT His DESIRE that we spend eternity separated from Him in hell. (2 Peter 3:9) So God Himself WILLINGLY provided a SACRIFICE for us. Jesus Christ WILLINGLY sacrificed His life and died on the cross to PURCHASE our forgiveness and PAY OUR DEBT. Forgiveness is NEVER FREE. The price for our forgiveness cost Jesus HIS LIFE. He demonstrates His profound, SACRIFICIAL LOVE by choosing to PAY THE DEBT WE OWE.

41 FORGIVENESS TO US AND THROUGH US Session 4 ~ Page 4 We should never lose our AMAZEMENT at the incredible beauty of the amazing Gospel of Jesus Christ! The truth of the Gospel will put EVERYTHING ELSE in your life back into a PROPER PERSPECTIVE. TO SIN OR NOT TO SIN? Lord I believe; help my unbelief. Mark 9:24 Jesus Christ SAVED US from the PUNISHMENT for sin, and He SET US FREE from the POWER of sin. (Romans 6:6-7, 6:11-14, 6:18, 6:22) We are no longer SLAVES to sin. We are FREE from sin s bondage. BUT we can still CHOOSE TO SIN by OBEYING the FLESH and DISOBEYING the Spirit. Every time we sin, we must recognize that we have been given the POWER and the ABILITY to make the choice NOT TO SIN. When we CHOOSE to sin, our actions declare that we LOVE OUR SIN more than we love our Lord.? Is God BLESSING you with conviction? HOW DO WE EXPRESS OUR LOVE FOR JESUS? Romans 8:38-39 I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. NOTHING can separate us from God s love, and NOTHING falls outside that promise! NOT EVEN OUR SIN AGAINST HIM!? Do you believe the profound truth that there is absolutely NOTHING you can do to make God love you more, and absolutely NOTHING you can do to make Him love you less? The more we understand what God HAS DONE FOR US, the more our LOVE FOR HIM should grow! John 14:15 [Jesus] If you love Me, you will keep My commandments. The expression of LOVE He desires is our OBEDIENCE! John 14:21 [Jesus] He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will disclose Myself to him.? Do you want to experience a closer walk with Jesus? Obey Him! John 15:10 If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father's commandments and abide in His love.? Do you want to abide in His love? Obey Him! We express our love for Jesus Christ through our OBEDIENCE to Him. Our DISOBEDIENCE expresses our LACK of love for Him, and demonstrates a lack of TRUST in Him. Lord I believe; help my unbelief. Mark 9:24

42 FORGIVENESS TO US AND THROUGH US Session 4 ~ Page 5 GOD S FORGIVENESS THROUGH US We will not begin to understand how to forgive others until we EXPERIENCE God s forgiveness of OUR SIN. OUR need for God s forgiveness is CONSTANT, and our need for forgiveness from others is pretty constant too! So we SHOULD be VERY WILLING to forgive others when they mess up, shouldn t we? We are not supposed to be a storage tank for God s forgivingness, just hoarding it for ourselves. We are supposed to be a CONDIUT! God s desire is for the forgiveness we have received FROM Him to flow THROUGH us TO others. But that certainly doesn t COME NATURALLY to us, does it? FORGIVENESS DISPLAYS GOD S GRACE We all tend to MINIMIZE our sin, and MAGNIFY the wrongs of others against us. We are all TEMPTED to deal with our own hurt by hurting others. We may call it JUSTICE, but what we usually desire goes beyond justice into revenge. CORRIE TEN BOOM LIVING OUT FORGIVENESS Corrie Ten Boom was a Christian woman living with her family in the Netherlands during World War II, when more than six million Jewish people were rounded up into concentration camps and murdered. Her family willingly risked their lives by hiding more than 800 Jewish people in the Ten Boom home until they could escape. Corrie and her sister, Betsy, were eventually caught and arrested by the Nazis and put in Ravensbruck concentration camp. They were treated horribly, living in conditions worse than we can possibly imagine. The guards were ruthless, harsh and endlessly cruel. Betsy died in Ravensbruck. Corrie was eventually released. Corrie wrote a book entitled The Hiding Place, and began speaking in churches about how Jesus sustained her through that horrific ordeal. Forgiveness was at the heart of her message. In her book, she writes, Those who were able to forgive were best able to rebuild their lives. Many years after the war, Corrie was speaking at a church in Germany. Afterwards a German man came up and began speaking to her. He was one of the guards from Ravensbruck! She tells of that encounter in this video: The man asked for Corrie s forgiveness, and she confessed that she COULD NOT forgive the guard on her own power. Forgiveness is SO UNNATURAL and SO DIFFICULT that we are UNABLE to do it in our own strength.

43 FORGIVENESS TO US AND THROUGH US But Corrie understood that withholding her forgiveness from the guard would have been DISOBEDIENCE to God s command. That would have damaged her fellowship with Christ and her testimony. Here are a few wonderful quotes from Corrie Ten Boom: Forgiveness is an act of the will, and the will can function regardless of the temperature of the heart. Forgiveness is the key that unlocks the door of resentment and the handcuffs of hatred. To forgive is to set a prisoner free, and discover the prisoner was you. There is no pit so deep that God s love is not deeper still. You never so touch the ocean of God s love as much as when you forgive. When we forgive someone, we look more like Jesus than at any other moment in our life. Nothing is more FOREIGN to human nature than forgiving others, but few things DEMONSTRATE GOD S POWER in a life as beautifully as forgiveness. Lord I believe; help my unbelief. Mark 9:24 FORGIVENESS IS NOT OPTIONAL As a follower of Jesus Christ, forgiveness of others is NOT OPTIONAL. It is clearly COMMANDED in God s Word. Colossians 3:13 Make allowance for each other s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you MUST forgive others. [NLT] We LOVE the idea of God s forgiveness offered TO us, but we tend to hesitate to EXTEND FORGIVENESS to others who have hurt us. Notice there are NO EXCEPTIONS in that verse we must forgive AS WE HAVE BEEN FORGIVEN. Jesus Christ died for us and made forgiveness possible for us while we were still His ENEMY. (Romans 5:8) Our forgiveness of others should LOOK LIKE THAT! We should all be more concerned about OUR OWN SIN AGAINST GOD than we are about the WRONGS OF OTHERS when they sin against us. The forgiveness WE need FROM God is much GREATER than the forgiveness we would ever be required to EXTEND to anyone else. We should forgive the inexcusable in others, because God has forgiven the inexcusable in you. --- C.S. Lewis God knows that unforgiveness and bitterness will DESTROY us. His command to forgive is for our GOOD and helps to guard our hearts. FORGIVENESS IS GIVEN TO UNDESERVING PEOPLE Jesus gives us some very difficult teachings on forgiveness. Matthew 5:38-40 [Jesus] You have heard the law that says the punishment must match the injury: An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth. 39 But I say, do not resist an evil person! If someone slaps you on the right check, offer the other cheek also. 40 If you are sued in court and your shirt is taken from you, give your coat, too. Session 4 ~ Page 6

44 FORGIVENESS TO US AND THROUGH US Session 4 ~ Page 7 Matthew 5:41-45 If a solider demands that you carry his coat for a mile, carry it for two miles. 42 Give to those who ask, and don t turn away from those who want to borrow. 43 You have heard the law that says, Love you neighbor and hate your enemy. 44 But I say, love your enemies! [Bless those who curse you. Do good to those who hate you.] Pray for those who persecute you! 45 In that way, you will be acting as true children of your Father in heaven. [NLT] This kind of behavior would STAND OUT so much that people couldn t possibly miss it. Forgiveness is a powerful testimony to those who don t know our Lord. Matthew 5:45b-48 [Jesus] For He gives His sunlight to both the evil and the good, and He sends rain on the just and the unjust alike. 46 If you love only those who love you, what reward is there for that? Even corrupt tax collectors do that much. 47 If you are kind only to your friends, how are you different from anyone else? Even pagans do that. 48 But you are to be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect. [NLT] We might be able to work up the ability to forgive someone we love deeply, but forgiving our ENEMIES and people who DO EVIL to us? If we are honest, our response should be I can t possibly do that! The people He is telling us to forgive don t DESERVE our FORGIVENESS which is EXACTLY THE POINT Jesus was making. How quickly we forget We do not DESERVE God s forgiveness! He ends the passage with be PERFECT, even as your Father in heaven is PERFECT. We are clearly NOT CAPABLE OF THIS on our own! We MUST have the help of the Holy Spirit, and we must LEARN to walk COMPLETELY in the Spirit, without ANY INFLUENCE from the flesh. If we are willing to RECEIVE God s forgiveness for OUR sins, He commands us to forgive other EQUALLY UNDESERVING people when they hurt us. Lord I believe; help my unbelief. Mark 9:24 THE MODEL PRAYER ME FIRST! The very next chapter of Matthew contains the model prayer Jesus gave the disciples. The first mention of forgiveness is our request for God s forgiveness of OUR sins. Matthew 6:12a [Jesus] and forgive us our debts, ALL sin damages our fellowship with God and distances us from Him, so we need to CONFESS our sins to Him and ASK FOR His forgiveness. We also need to understand that un-confessed sin can also block our prayers. God can never bless disobedience. Psalm 66:18 If I had not confessed the sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened. NLT So our first step is to continually ask God for His forgiveness of OUR sin. THE MODEL PRAYER WATCH ME! The rest of verse 12 is the part that should take our breath away.

45 FORGIVENESS TO US AND THROUGH US Session 4 ~ Page 8 Matthew 6:12 [Jesus] and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. If I am UNFORGIVING toward others, I am PRAYING that God will be UNFORGIVING of MY SINS!!! Jesus associates His forgiveness directly to our willingness to forgive other people people who have sinned against us, who have hurt us, and even those who are our ENEMIES. He didn t want us to miss this, so He RESTATED it two verses later. Matthew 6:14-15 [Jesus] For if you forgive others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions. We must carefully interpret this passage, because Scripture clearly teaches we can t EARN our salvation or God s forgiveness. (Eph. 2:8-9) This is not about forgiving SO THAT YOU WILL BE FORGIVEN. It is about forgiving BECAUSE YOU HAVE ALREADY BEEN forgiven. FORGIVENESS IS ONGOING I would imagine the disciples were STRUGGLING with what Jesus was teaching them about forgiveness. Jewish rabbis taught that you had to forgive someone up to three times, and even that standard would not be easy! But according to their teaching, after three times you were off the hook! Jesus was CLEARLY taking forgiveness to a MUCH HIGHER STANDARD. Peter worked up the courage to ask Jesus to CLARIFY what He was teaching about forgiveness. He apparently had to think about it for a while, because his question appears 12 chapters later! Matthew 18:21 Then Peter came and said to Him, Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up to seven times? Peter WANTED to be obedient. He wanted to be SURE he understood the Lord s STANDARD for forgiveness. By suggesting seven times, Peter was going well past what the religious leaders taught. He was probably expecting a big PAT ON THE BACK from Jesus for setting such a high standard. Matthew 18:22 Jesus said to him, I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven. Jesus used a figure of speech to make His point. Get LOST in the PRACTICE of forgiveness. Do not HOLD GRUDGES. Keep on forgiving and do not keep count. Develop the HABIT of forgiveness. Guard your heart by NOT allowing BITTERNESS to poison it. Forgiveness is an ONGOING PROCESS, and we should develop a LIFESTYLE of forgiveness. Lord I believe; help my unbelief. Mark 9:24

46 FORGIVENESS TO US AND THROUGH US Session 4 ~ Page 9 UNFORGIVENESS CAN BRING GOD S DISCIPLINE Jesus knew the disciples were having a hard time with this difficult teaching, so He followed with a parable to illustrate His point. Matt. 18:23-24 [Jesus] For this reason the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his slaves. 24 When he had begun to settle them, one who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him. A talent was the largest denomination in the currency. Ten thousand in the common language of that day signified a number beyond measure. Matt.18:25-26 [Jesus] But since he did not have the means to repay, his lord commanded him to be sold, along with his wife and children and all that he had, and repayment to be made. 26 So the slave fell to the ground and prostrated himself before him, saying, 'Have patience with me and I will repay you everything.' The slave s response is RIDICULOUS. A key point of the parable is that the debt is SO LARGE that would be IMPOSSIBLE for the slave to EVER pay it back. Matt.18:27-35 [Jesus] And the lord of that slave felt compassion and released him and forgave him the debt. 28 But that slave went out and found one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii [about 3 months wages]; and he seized him and began to choke him, saying, 'Pay back what you owe.' 29 So his fellow slave fell to the ground and began to plead with him, saying, 'Have patience with me and I will repay you.' 30 But he was unwilling and went and threw him in prison until he should pay back what was owed. 31 So when his fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were deeply grieved and came and reported to their lord all that had happened. 32 Then summoning him, his lord *said to him, 'You wicked slave, I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. 33 'Should you not also have had mercy on your fellow slave, in the same way that I had mercy on you?' 34 And his lord, moved with anger, handed him over to the torturers until he should repay all that was owed him. 35 My heavenly Father will also do the same to you, if each of you does not forgive his brother from your heart. The wicked slave received the King s forgiveness for a debt he NEVER could have repaid. He should have learned a lesson from the king s compassion and mercy. The slave should have been filled with THANKFULNESS and GRATITUDE. He should have been WILLING to forgive his fellow slave who owed him a MUCH SMALLER DEBT. The parable also clarifies that we DO NOT EARN our forgiveness from God BY forgiving others. The king forgave the wicked slave FIRST, solely because of the king s compassion and willingness to display his grace and mercy. The slave s forgiveness was completely UNDESERVED and UNEARNED, and was given before he had the opportunity to forgive his fellow slave. The slave s ACTIONS showed that his HEART had not been changed by the compassion the king showed him. The slave DID NOT appreciate the MAGNITUDE of the forgiveness the king had shown him. His lack of forgiveness was VERY offensive to the king.

47 FORGIVENESS TO US AND THROUGH US Session 4 ~ Page 10 We should NEVER lose sight of how much God has forgiven us. BECAUSE we have been forgiven, we should WILLINGLY be forgiving toward others. Our LACK of forgiveness is very offensive to OUR KING, and may give Him reason to discipline us. Do you see WE are the wicked slave in the parable! We should examine the FAIRNESS of the forgiveness in this parable. The forgiveness the king offered was given FREELY and GRACIOUSLY to the slave. It cost the slave NOTHING, but that does NOT mean the forgiveness was WITHOUT COST. It cost the king an ENORMOUS sum of money to forgive the slave s debt and allow him to walk away free. The king WILLINGLY chose to forgive the DEBT owed to him, AT GREAT PERSONAL SACRIFICE.? Does it seem INCREDIBLY UNFAIR for the king to have to absorb such a high cost for the sake of his slave? Forgiveness is ABSOLUTELY UNFAIR. That is a critical reality about forgiveness that we must understand. 2 Corinthians 5:21 For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. Jesus DIED so that we could be FORGIVEN of our SIN. He paid a TERRIBLE PRICE for people who have rebellious and stubborn hearts toward Him, just like the wicked slave. Was it FAIR when our sins were given to Him to bear? What could possibly be MORE UNFAIR than the perfectly innocent, sinless Son of God, having sins He never committed laid upon Him to bear the wrath of God that WE deserve to pay the price for us so that WE could be set free, made clean and whole, and given the precious gift of eternal life even though we have been rebellious to Him? That is the MOST UNFAIR act in the history of all of God s creation. And what does He ASK OF US in return? Romans 12:1 Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. Forgiveness is a SACRIFICE - giving up something COSTLY and that is an act of TRUE WORSHIP!? What are we really sacrificing when we choose to forgive? One thing we must sacrifice is our desire to hold on to our hurt and pain. But more importantly, we must sacrifice our desire to stand in the place of God and pronounce judgment over the sins of others (our PRIDE).

48 FORGIVENESS TO US AND THROUGH US Session 4 ~ Page 11 TESTING OUR FORGIVENESS There are some very PRACTICAL ways God gives us to test our forgiveness of others. Luke 6:28 [Jesus] bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.. Romans 12:14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 1 Peter 3:8-9 To sum up, all of you be harmonious, sympathetic, brotherly, kindhearted, and humble in spirit; 9 not returning evil for evil or insult for insult, but giving a blessing instead; for you were called for the very purpose that you might inherit a blessing. If we can t ask our Lord for BLESSINGS for someone who offended us, we probably have not really forgiven them. It may take a long time and a lot of prayer to get to the point where you can pray blessings on your enemies. It is a PROCESS, not a single event! Lord I believe; help my unbelief. Mark 9:24 MATTHEW WEST STORY AND SONG FORGIVENESS Video the story behind the song Forgiveness Part 1: Part 2: Song: I refuse to allow someone else s wrong choice that affects my life to determine who I become. I am a child of God. I have victory through Jesus Christ, my Lord and my Savior. Renee Napier MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT FORGIVENESS It is critical that we understand God s truth about what forgiveness IS, as well as WHAT IT IS NOT. If we fall for the DECEPTIONS of the enemy about forgiveness, we will be tempted to DISOBEY God s command to forgive. DECEPTION: FORGIVENESS EXCUSES THEIR SIN When we forgive, we are forgiving the person s DEBT TO US, but we are NOT forgiving their DEBT TO GOD. Our forgiveness does NOT eliminate their RESPONSIBILITY for their sin. We do not have the RIGHT or the AUTHORITY to forgive ANYONE S sin. Only GOD can forgive sin. 1 Peter 2:22-23 He never sinned, nor ever deceived anyone. 23 He did not retaliate when He was insulted, nor threaten revenge when He suffered. He left His case in the hands of God, who always judges fairly. [NLT] Jesus left the judgment of the people who sinned against Him to God the Father, and He TRUSTED that God would judge them with HIS PERFECT JUSTICE.

49 FORGIVENESS TO US AND THROUGH US Session 4 ~ Page 12 We also have His incredible example as He was dying on the cross. Luke 23:34a But Jesus was saying, Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing. Jesus prayed and asked God to FORGIVE HIS ENEMIES who tortured and murdered Him. He PLEADED for the Father s FORGIVENESS for them, and that is OUR EXAMPLE of how WE are to live. GOD WILL JUDGE ALL SIN NO EXCEPTIONS We have God s ABSOLUTE ASSURANCE that He WILL JUDGE ALL sin. Psalm 7:11 God is a righteous judge, and a God who has indignation every day. Job 24:12 Truly, God will not do wrong. The Almighty will not twist justice. [NLT] Hebrews 4:13 Nothing in all creation is hidden from God. Everything is naked and exposed before His eyes, and He is the One to whom we are all accountable. [NLT] Psalm 11:4-7 But the LORD is in His holy Temple; the LORD still rules from heaven. He watches everyone closely, examining every person on earth. 5 The LORD examines both the righteous and the wicked. He hates those who love violence. 6 He will rain down blazing coals and burning sulfur on the wicked, punishing them with scorching winds. 7 For the righteous LORD loves justice. The virtuous will see His face. [NLT] Every DEBT to God s holy justice WILL BE PAID IN FULL and His JUSTICE will be satisfied. NO EXCEPTIONS! There are only two payment plans for the debt of sin: For those who DO NOT know Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, they will pay their debt THEMSELVES. They will spend eternity FOREVER SEPARATED from the God they rejected, in absolute, unending torment. For those who DO know Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, He has ALREADY paid their debt IN FULL by His death on the cross. They will spend eternity in the presence of the God they love, worshipping Him forever and experiencing His blessing. But EITHER WAY, the debt WILL BE PAID IN FULL for every sin ever committed. Forgiveness releases the OFFENSE and the OFFENDER into the hands of a holy and just God. We are SACRIFICING our hurt and pain, and CHOOSING to TRUST GOD to deal rightly with it. We are laying down the right we THINK we have to judge the sin of others, and putting judgment in the hands of God where it belongs. We are TRUSTING GOD to administer HIS PERFECT JUSTICE in His way, and in His time. Our forgiveness of others is a display of the GRACE OF GOD to everyone who sees it, but it has NO IMPACT on God s judgment of the person s sin. TRUTH: Forgiving someone does not EXCUSE or CONDONE their sin in any way. Forgiveness is a display of TRUST in God, an act of SACRIFICE to God, and an act of WORSHIP of God.

50 FORGIVENESS TO US AND THROUGH US Session 4 ~ Page 13 DECEPTION: TO FORGIVE MINIMIZES THE HURT Jesus Christ suffered and died on the cross to purchase our forgiveness. When He extends His forgiveness to us, it doesn t MINIMIZE the hurt and pain He experienced at all. In fact, just the opposite. His forgiveness of our sin MAGNIFIES HIS LOVE FOR US! Forgiveness is a beautiful display of the LOVE of the person who extends forgiveness. God NEVER asks us to pretend that what the other person did wasn t painful or hurtful. Forgiving someone DOES NOT mean that the pain they caused isn t significant. TRUTH: Forgiving someone does NOT minimize the hurt and pain they caused when they sinned against us. Refusing to forgive allows them to continue hurting us. Forgiveness means the love of God IN us is MORE POWERFUL than the evil done by others against us. DECEPTION: I CAN T FORGIVE UNTIL I FEEL LIKE FORGIVING The WORLD encourages us to be true to your heart and follow your heart. God s Word tells us our hearts are NOT TO BE TRUSTED because they are DESPERATELY WICKED and DECEITFUL. (Jeremiah 17:9) Because of our sin nature, we will NEVER feel like forgiving a wrong done against us. Corrie Ten Boom would NEVER have felt like forgiving the guard who inflicted so much pain on her and her sister in the concentration camp. Renee Napier would NEVER have felt like forgiving Erik, the drunk driver who killed her daughter. TRUTH: Our FEELINGS never overrule God s COMMANDS. God s Word is clear when we DO NOT FORGIVE OTHERS, we are SINNING AGAINST HIM. When our FEELINGS don t line up with GOD S TRUTH, we have a very critical CHOICE to make: We can CHOOSE to let our FEELINGS dictate our actions. OR we can CHOOSE to let GOD S TRUTH dictate our actions. We must learn to make a DELIBERATE COMMITMENT to follow God s truth, and NOT let our FEELINGS guide our behavior. We must learn to choose OBEDIENCE over EMOTIONS.? Have you noticed that your emotions are not always reliable or trustworthy?? How many times have your emotions led you into sin? Forgiveness is an act of our WILL. It is a DELIBERATE CHOICE to be OBEDIENT to God.

51 FORGIVENESS TO US AND THROUGH US Session 4 ~ Page 14 DECEPTION: WE SHOULD ONLY FORGIVE IF THEY ASK FOR FORGIVENESS? Are we expected to forgive people who never confess that their actions were wrong, never show sorrow over the pain they caused, never repent, and never asks for our forgiveness? When Jesus said we are to forgive seventy times seven, do you think He assumed the offender would ask for forgiveness each time?! Not likely! Matthew 5:44-45a [Jesus] But I say, love your enemies! Bless those who curse you. Do good to those who hate you. Pray for those who persecute you! 45 In that way, you will be acting as true children of your Father in heaven. [NLT] We are ABSOLUTELY expected to forgive even our enemies! It is NOT very likely that our ENEMIES will be ASKING for our forgiveness! TRUTH: God s command to forgive is not DEPENDENT on the actions of the other person. Waiting to forgive until the other person ASKS for our forgiveness gives THEM the CONTROL over the situation, and gives them TREMENDOUS POWER OVER US. It would also mean that OUR OBEDIENCE to God would be DEPENDENT on the actions of someone else. We would be IMPRISONED in unforgiveness until the other person chose to act and they might NEVER choose to act! We CAN CHOOSE to forgive and have FREEDOM in Jesus Christ no matter WHAT the other person chooses to do. We can release the other person into the hands of God, knowing He WILL judge their sin. We may have the twisted idea that by not forgiving someone we are punishing them, when the truth is we are only HARMING OURSELVES. If we REFUSE to forgive, WE continue to live as the VICTIM. Forgiveness sets US free, but it does NOT set the other person free. The other person is COMPLETELY ACCOUNTABLE TO GOD, whether we forgive them or not. Romans 2:6 He will judge everyone according to what they have done. [NLT] God ALONE has the AUTHORITY to JUDGE the SINS of others and NO ONE will escape His judgment. Our responsibility is to TRUST GOD and OBEY HIM. When we CHOOSE to follow God s command to forgive, the PAST no longer has control over our FUTURE. John 8:36 [Jesus] So if the Son sets you free, you are truly free. [NLT] TRUST GOD - FORGIVE Colossians 2:13-14 You were dead because of your sins and because your sinful nature was not yet cut away. Then God made you alive with Christ, for He forgave all our sins. 14 He cancelled the record of the charges against us and took it away by nailing it to the cross. [NLT]

52 FORGIVENESS TO US AND THROUGH US Session 4 ~ Page 15 Jesus forgave us by nailing our sins to the cross. That is EXACTLY what we have to learn to do! God WARNS US against letting BITTERNESS take root and grow in our lives. Unforgiveness is FERTILIZER FOR BITTERNESS, and it is a SIN. God s COMMAND to forgive is for HIS GLORY and FOR OUR GOOD. Forgiveness is such a STRUGGLE because it is a SPIRITUAL BATTLE. When you struggle, remember to ask yourself this question: Is my HURT bigger than my God, or is my God bigger than my HURT? Choosing to forgive is an act of SACRIFICIAL LOVE, an act of OBEDIENCE to God, an act of WORSHIP, and a magnificent display of TRUST in God. Philippians 4:13 I can do all things through Him who strengthens me. Lord I believe; help my unbelief. Mark 9:24 THE CHURCH BELL There are many versions of this illustration, without a clear indication of the original author. Have you ever seen an old style church bell, up in a tower? There is a long rope connected to the bell. To ring the bell, a church worker would go pull on that rope to get the bell swinging back and forth. If it is a large bell, it takes a lot of effort to get it started, and a lot of effort to keep it going. When the person lets go of the rope, the bell has momentum and it keeps ringing. But the moment the person lets go of the rope, the bell begins to slow down. The clangs get further and further apart, until the bell finally quits swinging and comes to rest. This is a picture of how forgiveness works. When we forgive, we take our hand off the rope. But if we ve been tugging on it for a long time, having the bell of our anger and bitterness clang loudly, we shouldn t be surprised if it keeps clanging for a while after we have let go of the rope. The angry, harsh thoughts may keep coming for a while. But the force our pulling of the rope is no longer ringing the bell. The clangs are just the noise of the bell slowing down. They will come less and less, and eventually stop altogether. As long as we don t set the bell in motion again by pulling on the rope Lord, I believe; help my unbelief. Mark 9:24 Disobedience leaves us in chains of bondage to sin. The blessings of brokenness lead to conviction and repentance. Obedience requires sacrifice, but also brings the blessing of restoration. Chains or Christ your choice.