NKJV 14 For if you forgive men their trespasses your heavenly Father will also forgive you 15 But if you do not forgive men their trespasses neither will your Father forgive your trespasses ID: 477271
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Slide1
Matthew 6:14-15 (NKJV)
14
“For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.
15
But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.Slide2
Sermon On The Mount:Anatomy of Forgiveness
Matthew 6:14-15Slide3
Anatomy of ForgivenessWe continue our ongoing study of the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7)
Last week we looked at the model prayer that Jesus gave
We saw some important elements that made up this prayer, giving us some truth as to what we should pray forSlide4
Anatomy of Forgiveness
Hopefully the last two weeks have given us some greater insight on prayer
If nothing else, it puts prayer into the forefront of our minds, exactly where it should be
Jesus moves on from
prayer
to a topic that was covered
within
His prayerSlide5
Anatomy of ForgivenessHere we see one thought that Jesus wishes to expound upon
This must have either been an
important
thought for Jesus to expound on it, or it was something they
struggled
with
Let us heed the truth and wisdom in verses 14-15…Slide6
Anatomy of Forgiveness1. Focus
Let us notice together where Christ puts the focus here within these 2 verses
The focus here is what Jesus begins both verses with…
The focus is on
YOU
forgiving men of their trespassesSlide7
Anatomy of Forgiveness
1. Focus
We tend to focus on whether
God
is forgiving
us
, or if we are
getting
forgiveness from other people
God is not focused on His forgiveness of us, because that is never in question if we take care of our partSlide8
Anatomy of Forgiveness
1. Focus
This places the focus squarely on our
duty
towards others (Matt. 22:39)
At the end of the day, God has already done His part, and we cannot control the
actions
of
others
That only leaves us looking
inward
at ourselves!Slide9
Anatomy of Forgiveness2. Condition
Notice how Jesus uses the word IF here in these verses
“
For IF you forgive men…But IF you do not forgive men…
”
This word
“
if
”
is used because there is a promise God makes that is
conditionalSlide10
Anatomy of Forgiveness2. Condition
God
’
s promises are almost always, without exception, conditional
God promised to bless and protect Israel if they
followed
His word (Josh. 1:5-9)
That
’
s why it
’
s silly for anyone today to say that God
’
s
salvation
promise isn
’
t conditionalSlide11
Anatomy of Forgiveness2. Condition
“
If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness
”
(I Jn. 1:9)
Certainly here we see another one of those conditional promises
We must be willing to do our part firstSlide12
Anatomy of Forgiveness2. Condition
We see that we stand in
need
of God
’
s forgiveness
The wonderful part is that God offers us His forgiveness…
IF we simply are
willing
to forgive others of their sins against us (which takes
humility
)Slide13
Anatomy of Forgiveness3. Action
Let
’
s concentrate now on the action required here, that of forgiveness
To forgive means to
omit
, let go,
keep
no longer (in regards to one
’
s sin)
The fact is that people will
sin
(Rom. 3:23;
I Jn. 1:8)Slide14
Anatomy of Forgiveness3. Action
Our forgiveness of others has no bearing on God
’
s forgiveness of that person
However, it does have
bearing
on God
’
s forgiveness of us
Our forgiveness of others does not mean that their sins are wiped clean in regards to GodSlide15
Anatomy of Forgiveness
3. Action
Note the forgiveness that Jesus requested on the
cross
(
Lk
. 23:34)
However, we know from Acts 2 that they still needed forgiveness of these sins (2:36-38)
There is a need for others to recognize their sin and ask for forgiveness (Matt. 18:15ff)Slide16
Anatomy of Forgiveness3. Action
We still need to be willing to forgive others no matter what (let go, keep no longer)
“
Forgiving one another
”
(Eph. 4:32) shows an
attitude
of forgiveness
This goes along with what Jesus taught in Matthew 18:21-35