We marvel that Jesus walked on water. And yet, we often overlook the fact that Peter also walked on water. Both men accomplished this miracle the same way – by faith! In this episode, Pastor Bill teaches about water-walking faith.
Pastor Bill Pevlor, shares the Wednesday evening message at Visible Church on April 22, 2020.
Visible Church (https://www.visiblechurchgb.com/) is a non-denominational, Christian church in the Green Bay, WI area where Pevlor serves as Associate Pastor.
In this episode of the Victorious Faith Vlog, Pastor Bill attempts to provide a biblically based, working definition of “faith.”
In this episode of the Victorious Faith Vlog, Pastor Bill emphasizes the importance of faith. Feel free to post your comments and questions below.
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[This is the fourth article in this series on Forgiveness. Be sure to read, Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3.]
My previous posts have dealt with the issue of forgiveness. I had planned to move on to another topic, however, a letter from an interested reader raised a common question worthy of a response. The writer wanted to know my thoughts on how “repentance” figured into the process of forgiveness.
The actual questions concerning repentance and forgiveness posed by the letter writer were a bit complicated, but boiled down to its simplest form it might be stated like this: “If we have been offended by a person who is not sorry about their actions, who has not apologized, and who may even be continuing their offensive behavior are we really obligated to forgive them? Wouldn’t we be encouraging ungodly and offensive behavior?”
At first glance it seems reasonable to link our obligation to forgive with the offending person’s obligation to accept responsibility for their actions and to seek our forgiveness with a heartfelt apology and genuine sorrow and repentance. After all, we certainly feel a lot more forgiving when a sincere apology is offered first.
I’m reminded of the apostle Peter’s question to Jesus in Matthew 18:21…“Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times?” If you will allow me to take some liberty here to read between the lines, I believe what Peter was implying was “If someone is inconsiderate enough to offend me beyond seven times, they can’t truly be serious about living in harmony with me, so why should I have to forgive them?” Jesus’ response in the next verse, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.” indicates our forgiveness is not tied to the offending parties behavior.
Remember, the overriding principal concerning forgiveness is found in Matthew 6, verses 14 and 15…“For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. “But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” I didn’t notice, here or elsewhere in scripture, a “good behavior” clause. (i.e…you should forgive them only if they behave properly.)
Forgiveness is an issue of the heart; your heart, not the offender’s. Unforgiveness is the root cause of much anger, bitterness, resentment, anxiety, hatred and strife. It becomes a roadblock to healthy relationships; including a relationship with the Lord. The ill effects of unforgiveness take their toll even when the offending party is unaware of any offense they may have committed. It’s the person who forgives who benefits most. It’s important that we do our part and keep our hearts pure, even if the offender doesn’t do their part. As my mama used to say, “Two wrongs don’t make a right.”
The letter writer presented another interesting thought. They wrote “My understanding is that God has a forgiving heart and desires to forgive us all, but are we truly forgiven before we recognize our need for forgiveness and turn to God and ask Him to forgive us?” This question actually helps makes my point. Yes, God desires to forgive us and responded toward all of us with love, making forgiveness possible. He did this, not in response to our good behavior (we weren’t repentant and asking for forgiveness) but in spite of our bad behavior. Romans 5:8 says, “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” To receive the full benefit of God’s actions requires that we accept the gift with a repentant heart. Yet, whether we do or not, God has done His part. If we want to follow God’s example we will not reserve our forgiveness as a reward for our offender’s good behavior.
It’s important to note that forgiveness also has some relationship to the issues of “justice” and “restoration.” Forgiveness does not necessarily eliminate the need for justice, nor does it automatically require restoration of the relationship to what it was before the offense. Though an intriguing part of the forgiveness equation, to fully explore how justice and restoration come into play will have to wait for another time.
[This is the third article in this series on Forgiveness. Be sure to read, Part 1, Part 2, and Part 4.]
For the last couple of posts, this blog has focused on the topic of forgiveness. Understanding forgiveness from God’s perspective is so important I’ve decided to give you more food for thought on the subject.
From time to time all of us have a seemingly good reason to hold a grudge; that’s part of life. If you are going to live on this planet, you will be hurt by other people. You cannot escape it. Even if you left this planet, you would probably have your feelings hurt when your friends neglected to call or write.
Now that we’ve established offence is inevitable, how are we going to deal with it? There are two choices. You can harbor and nurture anger, bitterness and resentment or you can forgive. You can hold them accountable for their wrongdoing or release them. (In a previous post I pointed out the literal meaning of the Greek word that is translated as forgiveness in the New Testament is to release someone from punishment for some wrongdoing.)
Because of the inevitability of being offended in this life, there’s a good chance someone in your life has “done you wrong.” Because of their wrongdoing, it’s natural to feel as though they owe you something…they are indebted to you. Maybe they owe you some money. Maybe they “owe” you an apology. Maybe they owe you another chance. Maybe they owe you more respect. Whatever the debt, you are determined to make them pay.
Like the wicked servant in Matthew 18, you have probably even gone so far as to have them thrown into prison. Not a literal prison, but a little prison you have constructed in your own heart. A cruel and dark place where you keep your debtors locked up, until you feel their debt is paid in full. Every once in a while, in your own mind, you take them out of their cell to beat and torture them. You may have people who have been locked up so long you can’t even remember what their offense was.
It is tragic to see a person who refuses to release those who have offended them. They imprison the offending party until they feel the debt is paid in full, but in reality they are the ones who are held in prison by their own anger and bitterness. They are the ones who are tortured most. There is emotional torment for the person who lives a life of unforgiveness. True peace eludes them. There is always a bitter memory; a continual replaying of hurtful words and actions.
According to medical science, an attitude of unforgiveness is hazardous to your health. Aside from the obvious headaches and ulcers, there is also an increase in most other illnesses due to a weakening in the immune system from the stress and fatigue caused by unforgiveness.
Worst of all, are the spiritual consequences. As the wicked servant eventually learned, God will not forgive the person who will not forgive others. His actions evoked the immutable law of Galatians 6:7 – “Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap.” Remember the admonition of our Lord Jesus in Matthew 6, verse 14 and 15: “For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”
Some time ago Billy Graham stated the benefit of forgiving others succinctly when he said: “If His conditions are met, God is bound by His word to forgive any man or woman of any sin because of Christ.”
The first condition to obtaining forgiveness for the sins we’ve committed against God is to receive the free gift of salvation He provided through His Son, Jesus. Another important condition is that we also forgive those who have sinned against us.
Remember the golden rule: “do unto others….”
[This is the second article in this series on Forgiveness. Be sure to read Part 1, Part 3, and Part 4.]
As hard as it may be, forgiving others is critical to receiving the forgiveness we so need and desire from God. Let me remind you again, Jesus said “For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” ” (Matthew 6:14-15).
When questioned about forgiveness by the Apostle Peter, Jesus illustrated the importance and true issue of forgiveness with a parable found in Matthew chapter 18, verse 23 through 35…
“Therefore the kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants.[24] “And when he had begun to settle accounts, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. (In today’s economy, an amount of money equivalent to millions of dollars) But as he was not able to pay, his master commanded that he be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and that payment be made.
“The servant therefore fell down before him, saying, ‘Master, have patience with me, and I will pay you all.’ “Then the master of that servant was moved with compassion, released him, and forgave him the debt.
“But that servant went out and found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii (an amount of money equivalent to a few dollars); and he laid hands on him and took him by the throat, saying, ‘Pay me what you owe!’ “So his fellow servant fell down at his feet and begged him, saying, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you all.’ “And he would not, but went and threw him into prison till he should pay the debt.
“So when his fellow servants saw what had been done, they were very grieved, and came and told their master all that had been done. “Then his master, after he had called him, said to him, ‘You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you begged me. ‘Should you not also have had compassion on your fellow servant, just as I had pity on you?’
“And his master was angry, and delivered him to the torturers until he should pay all that was due to him. “So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses.”
Like the wicked servant, when we receive the free gift of salvation from the Lord through His only Son, Jesus Christ, our debts (the sins we’ve committed) are forgiven. The slate is wiped clean. That’s Good News directly from God’s Word!
Like the wicked servant in the parable, we had millions of offenses (debts we were obligated to pay God for) piled up. When we trust in the salvation offered through Jesus Christ, in one sweep of His forgiving hand God wrote off all of our debts. And still, just like the wicked servant, we often want to require others, who owe us a mere pittance (in comparison to the great debt we owed) to pay us in full and right now!
Though we were shown amazing grace and mercy by the One we offended so greatly, we want to throw the bums who offended us in prison (our emotional prison if not a literal prison) until we are satisfied that they have suffered enough.
Go ahead; demand your rights. Go ahead; get even. Show them they can’t get away with treating you that way. Show no mercy. Make them sorry they ever messed with you. And while you are exacting your pound of flesh, think how God will respond to that type of attitude? Jesus told us God, the Father, will treat us the same way the king treated his wicked servant. Unless we forgive others, He will not forgive us.
Who are you holding in the “debtors prison” of your heart? Are you treating them the way you want God to treat you? Are you willing to throw away God’s eternal mercy in order to gain a moment of earthly satisfaction?
The Bible is clear; God forgives us only if we forgive in kind. A wise man once said “We are most like beasts when we kill. We are most like men when we judge. We are most like God when we forgive.”
Determine to be more like God this week. Begin the process of forgiving others who have trespassed against you.
[This is the fourth article in this series on Forgiveness. Be sure to read, Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4.]
I don’t know you personally, but I do know something about you. I know that dealing with people is one of the greatest challenges in your life. At one time or another, I know you’ve had to deal with people who were mean, cranky, obstinate, overbearing, and downright ornery. You’ve also had to deal with people who were rude, crude, brash, insensitive, and thoughtless. I know, in your life, you’ve had to deal with people who have stolen from you, betrayed you, lied to you, cheated you, blamed you, stabbed you in the back, spread vicious rumors about you and never paid back the money you lent them. (I hate it when that happens!)
These people can be the people you work with or work for. Some of them are (or were) your good friends. Some were strangers, your parents, or your children. You may have been married to them. You may be married to them now. There is no getting away from them; people are everywhere.
Because people can be so rotten, we are continually faced with the issue of forgiveness. When others do us wrong we have a choice to make. We can harbor the hurt feelings, anger, bitterness and resentment in our heart toward them, or we can forgive them. The choice you make will greatly affect your personal well being as well as your relationship with that person. And something else most people don’t realize, it will also affect your relationship with God.
One of the central themes of the entire Bible is “forgiveness.” In the New Testament the word “forgiveness” is translated from the Greek word “aphiemi.” It simply means to release someone from punishment for some wrongdoing. The New Testament alone contains 142 references to this word. Of these, 129 are located in the Gospels. So, you can see that forgiveness was a central theme in the life and ministry of Christ.
When Jesus instructed the disciples how to pray, part of the prayer He prayed dealt with forgiveness. Jesus said, “Forgive us our debts (or trespasses) as we also have forgiven our debtors.” (Matthew 6:12). After giving this prayer example (known as The Lord’s Prayer) He commented about the line concerning forgiveness in Matthew 6, verse 14 and 15: “For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your father will not forgive your sins.”
Now there’s a sobering thought. If I don’t forgive the people who have done me wrong, God will not forgive me for the wrong I have done. That puts a whole new light on holding a grudge, doesn’t it? All of the sudden the philosophy of “don’t get mad, get even” loses a lot of its appeal.
The concept of God expecting you to forgive if you want to be forgiven is, what the Bible calls, a “hard teaching.” It is “hard” because we’ve been raised on the philosophy of revenge; “an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.” We feel it’s our duty and our right to bring judgment and punishment upon those who treat us wrong. Sure, we believe forgiveness is a lovely idea, as long as we’re not the ones who have to forgive.
The Apostle Peter asked Jesus “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?” I’m sure Peter thought he was being generous. After all, after two or three times most people would slam the door on forgiving an offender. Peter was willing to go the extra mile; to be used, abused and mistreated up to seven times. Jesus answered him “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy times seven.” (Mat. 18:21-22).
My lightning-fast calculator tells me seventy times seven is 490! The shear magnitude of the number reveals Jesus’ intent was not to give us a destination where forgiveness ends, but to, instead, clearly imply there is no limit when it comes to our need to forgive others.
That should spark enough thought to take you to Part 2 of this series. In the next installment, we will continue to explore the important biblical subject of forgiveness.
