Jesus preaches radical things about forgiveness, and He demonstrates radical forgiveness in His life, death and resurrection.

Title Slide: Radical Forgiveness (Mark 14:60-16:20) Notes taking page is on pg 30 in Radical booklets. This is our final sermon in our Radical series from the Gospel of Mark. We need to be brief so we can join upstairs for Ps Leong s installation by 11:15. Today s message is on Christ-like Radical Forgiveness Jesus preaches radical things about forgiveness, and He demonstrates radical forgiveness in His life, death and resurrection. Slide: Photo of the Church w photos of the victims On July 17, 2015 yes just over a week ago, there was a mass shooting at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charelston, South Carolina in the US. Nine people were shot dead, including the senior pastor. 1 I have been quite moved by the reactions of the relatives of those who were brutally slaughtered when Dylann Roof opened fire on them in their church during a Bible study. The Washington Post recorded the testimonies of some of the victims as they addressed Dylan Roof by video feed in court. 2 Here s what they said, alongside of what Jesus says about forgiveness: The daughter of 70-year old victim Ethel Lance I forgive you. You took something very precious away from me. I will never get to talk to her ever again. I will never be able to hold her again, but I forgive you, and have mercy on your soul. You hurt me. You hurt a lot of people. If God forgives you, I forgive you. Slide: Luke 23:34 In Luke 23:34, as Jesus is dying on the cross, 34 Jesus said, Father, forgive them, for they don t know what they are doing. The mother of 26-year old victim Tywanza Sanders We welcomed you Wednesday night in our Bible study with welcome arms. You have killed some of the most beautiful people that I know. Every fiber in my body hurts and I ll, I ll never be the same. Tywanza Sanders was my son. But Tywanza Sanders was my hero. May God have mercy on you. 1 See http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/18/us/the- charleston- shooting- what- happened.html?_r=0 or http://edition.cnn.com/2015/06/17/us/charleston- south- carolina- shooting/ 2 Elahe Izadi, The Powerful Words of Forgiveness Delivered to Dylann Roof by Victims Relatives, The Washington Post, 19 June 2015. < http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post- nation/wp/2015/06/19/hate- wont- win- the- powerful- words- delivered- to- dylann- roof- by- victims- relatives/> 1

Slide: Luke 6:27-28 Luke 6:27-28, Jesus says, 27 But to you who are willing to listen, I say, love your enemies! Do good to those who hate you. 28 Bless those who curse you. Pray for those who hurt you. The sister of 49-year-old victim DePayne Middleton Doctor I m a work in progress. And I acknowledge that I am very angry. But one thing that DePayne always enjoined in our family is she taught me that we are the family that love built. We have no room for hating, so we have to forgive. I pray God on your soul. Slide: Luke 6:35-37 Luke 6:35-37 Jesus says, 35 Love your enemies! Do good to them. Lend to them without expecting to be repaid. Then your reward from heaven will be very great, and you will truly be acting as children of the Most High, for he is kind to those who are unthankful and wicked. 36 You must be compassionate, just as your Father is compassionate. 37 Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn others, or it will all come back against you. Forgive others, and you will be forgiven. Slide: The power of forgiveness (God forgives us, so we can forgive others) These testimonies bear witness to the power of forgiveness that is found in Christ Jesus alone. These testimonies have similar themes to what is found throughout the Scriptures, and what is seen in our reading from Mark s Gospel today. Firstly, God forgives us, and so we can forgive others. Only because these relatives know God s forgiveness are they able to forgive Dylan Roof. Radical forgiveness is supernatural and has its source in God alone. Slide: Mark 14:60-62 Notice how in Mark 14:60-61, Jesus has remained silent as accusations and gossip are fired at Him. But then at the end of verse 62, Jesus speaks so forgiveness is not just about remaining silent. God Himself does not remain silent He sends Jesus and He gives us His Word to draw us back to Him. In vs 62 Jesus draws attention to God s power and purposes Jesus can forgive because He trusts God s plans for Him. His identity is in God it is not defined by what others say about Him or do to Him. And He knows that is suffering for a purpose to make a way for others to come back to God. 2

Slide: Mark 15:37-38 (photo of temple curtain) In Mark 15:37-38 At the moment Jesus dies there is an earthquake and the temple curtain is torn into two from top to bottom. This curtain was made of finely woven linen and embroidered, it was carefully secured to separate the Most Holy Place in the Temple where only the chosen priests could go at specific times of the year (Exod 26:31-33; 2 Chr 3:14) the timing of this tear is incredible, and what it symboloises is that there is now a way open to God through Jesus Christ. And anyone who trusts in Jesus can approach our Holy God and receive the blessing of His presence and His involvement in their lives. It is only because of God s forgiveness that we can approach God and ask Him to help us forgive others. And because we are confident in God s forgiveness, we also can forgive. Slide: Forgiveness is a requirement of believers (photo of debt collection) Secondly, forgiveness is a requirement of believers. There is a story that Jesus shares in Matthew 18:23-35 about someone who owed a lot of money to a king. The king ordered the man to sell everything, and the man begged for mercy, so the king had compassion on him and forgave his debt. Then the man went to a friend who owed him a small amount of money and he cornered his friend, grabbed him round the throat and demanded payment. His friend begged for mercy, but the man had him thrown in jail. When the king found out, he took back his mercy and threw the man in prison. And Jesus says this is what God will do to us if we refuse to sincerely forgive others. Slide: Mark 11:25 Jesus says also that if we don t forgive others, then God will not forgive us (Matt 6:14-15; Mark 11:25). So forgiveness is not optional for us God requires us to forgive others. God requires us to forgive because it is in our best interests to do so. Of course forgiveness isn t easy, but God never promises us an easy life. Slide: Mark 14:40; 14:65; 14:72; 15:15 Look how He was treated when He comes to earth Mark 14:40, Jesus is falsely accused; Mark 14:65, Jesus is shamed and beaten up; Mark 14:72 Jesus best friend denies even knowing Him; Mark 15:15 Jesus is tortured and crucified. But all this happens for us God allows this because it is in our best interest to see sin for what it is and to turn from sin and trust in God and accept His ways and purposes for us. Slide: Forgiveness frees us (picture of not forgiving ) 3

Forgiveness frees us from the terrible effects of sin from others sin against us but also from the sin that grows in us when we refuse to forgive someone. Think about what not forgiving looks like for a moment. Excluding others or cutting them off. Not talking to others or ignoring them. Or just pretending to be nice but seething inside. Being angry and grumpy in our hearts about them. Hoping something bad happens to them. Becoming resentful at the hurt they ve caused or determined to make them pay for it or see them punished. Not forgiving is really bad for us. The bitterness caused by lack of forgiveness can eat us up inside, can cause us not to trust anyone, and this leads us away from God. Forgiveness is not optional. God asks us to forgive, and as believers we must trust and obey Him. Slide: Our forgiveness must reflect God s forgiveness (I m sorry photo) Thirdly, our forgiveness must reflect God s forgiveness. When my nephews are fighting, their parents will tell them say I m sorry and inevitably this is followed with a say it like you mean it. Because forgiveness is not just about saying particular words. Forgiveness has to reflect something a change of heart, a promise to get along, for example. And as Christians, our forgiveness must reflect God s forgiveness. What is God s forgiveness like? Slide: Mark 14:66-72 (shortened) In Mark 14:66-72, Peter denies knowing Jesus an incredible act of disloyalty. By the way remember that Mark is Peter s student and is recording Peter s testimony about Jesus. So it is significant that Peter does not hide his mistake from Mark. To reflect God s forgiveness requires the truth to be told. Slide: Mark 16:7 But notice that when Jesus is risen, the angel says in Mark 16:7 go and tell his disciples, including Peter, that they will see Jesus again. That is how Jesus forgives. Slide: Mark 16:10-11, 15 And in Mark 16 the disciples are still afraid and, verses 10-11, full of sorrow and unbelief. But Jesus doesn t let suffering, sorrow, despair and lack of faith be the end of the story. Verse 15, He appears to His disciples, reassures them, and gives them the purpose of spreading the Good News and welcoming others to come to know God. 4

Slide: Mark 15:37-39 Even when Jesus died, Mark 15:37-39 there is something in how Jesus died that caused the Roman soldier who had seen and caused countless deaths to recognize verse 39 that Jesus is the Son of God. The Roman soldier s story could have ended at the cross but Jesus opens the soldier s eyes to see and understand who He is. Forgiving as Jesus did means unconditionally, with God s greater purposes in mind, and with a trust in God to end the story in a way that restores justice and brings Him honour. Slide: Death is not the end of the story (picture of Resurrection) Death does not defeat God, and we see this in Mark 16 as Jesus is risen from the dead. Jesus death is not the end of His story. And death is not the end of our story either. Because if Jesus is raised from the dead, then He clearly has demonstrated that everything He says can be trusted. He is who He says He is He is God. Jesus promises eternal life to all who are loyal to Him and seek to love and honour Him. Death becomes the way that we transfer into the place where we see God face to face. Death becomes the doorway to eternal life with God. So we no longer need to fear death because death is not the end of our story. God writes us a new ending. Slide: Mark 1:1 The reactions of the Charleston church show the relevance of what Mark has been teaching us these last few weeks Mark 1:1 This is the Good News about Jesus, the Messiah, the Son of God. This kind of radical forgiveness is what Jesus life, death and resurrection make possible for those willing to trust and believe in Him. Slide: God s sacrificial forgiveness (quote bolded below) In Christianity Today, writer Michael Wear says, Because of God s sacrificial act of forgiveness, we can have confidence in our Saviour, Jesus, who advocates for us in the heavens. The ultimate goal is not to achieve justice on this world, though we pursue that with all of our souls, but to be faithful to God. We believe, ultimately, that faithfulness is justice. We serve a God who will make evil scatter with light, who is the answer to every skeptic s questions, and who is renewing all things. The Charleston family members could forgive because they believe that fateful night was not the end of their loved ones stories. 3 When we think of how much God does to forgive us, when we see how Christ has enabled the Charelston Church families to forgive the man who murdered their loved ones, then certainly, by God s grace and with His help, we can forgive whoever has offended or sinned against us! 3 Michael Wear, Stop Explaining Away Black Christian Forgiveness, Christianity Today, 24 June 2015. <http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2015/june- web- only/stop- explaining- away- black- christian- forgiveness.html> 5

Slide: Radical Forgiveness (bolded points below) We are God s children loved by Him, forgiven and set free to do the good things He s planned for us. We can forgive others because God has forgiven us. Forgiveness is not optional for us, it is something God asks and requires of us for our own well-being and so that nothing keeps us from Him. As we forgive, we seek to forgive as God forgives, to reflect His forgiveness to others. We forgive to show others God s mercy, to open the way for others to see and know God. Forgiveness is part of the Good News of the Gospel of Christ that is to be shared with all people. May Christ-like radical forgiveness be known in our church, in our lives, and throughout the world as we go and make Christ known to everyone. Slide: Making it Real Take a couple of minutes to share with those around you and discuss one of these questions. What might forgiveness look like in your own life? What is something you will remember from the Radical series? (Leader to pray and we then all join the upstairs main hall by 11:15 for Ps Leong s installation) Recommended Resources on Christian Forgiveness Lewis B. Smedes, Keys to Forgiving, Christianity Today, 3 Dec 2001. <http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2001/december3/42.73.html> Dawson McAllister, How to Forgive, The Hope Line, 2015. <http://www.thehopeline.com/how-to-forgive/> Tom Ouweleen, How to Forgive Those Who Never Apologize, Scruffy Church, 25 Sep 2014. <http://scruffychurch.com/2014/09/how-to-forgive-those-who-never-apologize/> Christine A. Scheller, How Far Should Forgiveness Go?, Christianity Today, 22 Oct 2010. <http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2010/october/28.40.html?start=1> Rick Warren, How to Forgive Someone Who Has Hurt You, CP Church and Ministry, 3 Sept 2009. <http://www.christianpost.com/news/how-to-forgive-someone-who-has-hurt-you- 40681/> Timothy Keller, Serving Each Other Through Forgiveness and Reconciliation, Thriving Pastor, 2005. <http://www.thrivingpastor.com/serving-each-other-through-forgiveness-andreconciliation/> 6

Everett Worthington, Forgiveness Intervention Manuals Available for Download, VCU Department of Psychology, 3 Feb 2014. <http://www.people.vcu.edu/~eworth/> Forgiving Others < http://www.allaboutgod.com/forgiving-others.htm> Bible Studies on Christian Forgiveness Kerri Wyatt Kent, The Power of Forgiveness Christianity Today Small Groups, 2015. <http://www.smallgroups.com/meeting-builder/bible-study-extras/power-offorgiveness.html?paging=off> 1 John 1: Fellowship and Forgiveness, InterVarsity Press Daily Bible Study, 2015. <http://www.ivpress.com/bible/study.php?study=460> Story Bible Study 6: The Lost Son, Intervasrsity International Student Ministry, 29 Jan 2002. <http://ism.intervarsity.org/bible-study/story-6-lost-son> The Center for Christian Ethics, Study Guides for Forgiveness, Christian Reflection, 2001. <http://practicingourfaith.org/pdf/forgivenessguides.pdf> Richard J. Krejcir, The Importance of Forgiveness, Church Leadership, 2003. <http://www.churchleadership.org/apps/articles/default.asp?articleid=45954&columnid=4543 > Forgiveness Bible Verses <http://www.biblestudytools.com/topical-verses/forgivenessbible-verses/> Inspiring stories about forgiveness - Juan Castillo, 25 Unbelievable and Inspiring Acts of Forgiveness, List 25, 23 April 2014. <http://list25.com/25- unbelievable- inspiring- acts- forgiveness/> - Olga Khazan, The Forgiveness Boost, The Atlantic, 28 Jan 2015. <http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2015/01/the-forgiveness-boost/384796/> - Elahe Izadi, The Powerful Words of Forgiveness Delivered to Dylann Roof by Victims Relatives, The Washington Post, 19 June 2015. < http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post- nation/wp/2015/06/19/hate- wont- win- the- powerful- words- delivered- to- dylann- roof- by- victims- relatives/> - Michael Wear, Stop Explaining Away Black Christian Forgiveness, Christianity Today, 24 June 2015. <http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2015/june- web- only/stop- explaining- away- black- christian- forgiveness.html> 7