robwilkerson.net: forgiveness

Pursuing the Simplicity of the Gospel: Conclusion

Monday, July 09, 2012

Conclusion

My friend, Arthur Atsma, is a magician. He is simply incredible. I am amazed at all the tricks and slight-of-hand that he does. Usually I am "wowed" with my jaw dropping, wondering how he does it.

One day I was in a workshop he was doing for teenagers. I have two teenagers who were there, so I figured they needed an adult to tag along. Secretly, of course, I had the heart of a teenager and wanted to learn how to do some of the tricks he would teach them how to do.

As we sat through the workshop he explained, point by point, how he performed one of the tricks he did in an earlier session that was open to the public. As he walked us through it one step at a time I got to the end and was simply amazed that the trick was so...well...simple! I felt like a massively complex equation just got solved...and that I could do it too in front of my friends!

This is something of an illustration on what happens to people when they discover how simple the gospel is. Religion makes a relationship with God complex, and this is what most people are familiar with when it comes to thoughts of God and sin. But forgiveness is no magic! Yet when it is explained in all its biblical simplicity, I've seen people - christians and unbelievers alike - respond with stunning amazement that something so huge could be so simple!

And it IS simple! You're a sinner. God searched for you and found you. God forgave you. And God rejoices over recovering you.

So this brings me to two questions in closing then, both of which are about how you keep the gospel simple, both in your own mind and then in how you portray it to others.

First, do you meditate on this everyday? I gave you an outline or structure in the previous post so you'd have something to pray over and think through and rejoice inevery single day of your life. K.I.S.S. was a good acrostic my dad taught me when I was younger: Keep It Simple Son!

We often lose the joy of oursalvation because we lose the simplicity of our salvation. We learn all the segrand and glorious truths about salvation and the doctrines of grace and justification, reconciliation, sanctification, glorification, election, redemption,and all these other "tions". But in spending too much time on these truths the gospel goes from simple to being complex, and our minds wander, thinking about things that are too difficult for us sometimes.

This leads us to get confused, putting pieces together that probably don't go together. And in our attempt to try to solve the theological puzzles of history we lose sight of the simplicity of the very thing we're studying. We were lost but God found us! We were sinners and God forgave us!

Second, if you meditate on this everyday, I guarantee you that you'll experience a more simplistic approach to evangelism in your local church. You'll probably find yourself hanging out with a different kind of sinner...those who know they're sinners, and not those who are self righteous...those who know they're sick, and not those who think they are well.

And when you do find yourself hanging out with prostitutes, notorious sinners, scumbags, and prodigal sons, you will also find yourself communicating to them a simple message: You're lost, God is searching for you and He's found you because I'm here talking to you now, and He's forgiven you, and He's rejoicing that He's recovered you.

I have great respect for Evangelism Explosion, Christian Witness Training, The Way of the Master, the Romans Road and other "plans of salvation." But if you've worked your way through this series then you've seen for yourself how much more simple it really is right here in Luke 15. It's about the forgiveness of sins, plain and simple.

Sure there may be other things you need to discuss to clear the forest, so to speak, and help the sinner see who they really are. But target first those who know they are sinners, not those with whom you've got to argue til you're blue in the face.

Seek and save the lost, and not the self-righteous and you're work of evangelism in your local churches will be much more effective and fruitful.

About the Author: Rob is a entrepreneur in Statesboro, GA, where he envisions and pursues missional-shaped business for the kingdom. He and his wife Sherri have been married for 18 years and together have three sons and a daughter. Rob believes the mission of the gospel is summed up in four simple phrases: know God, obey Jesus, make disciples, and plant churches. This is the pursuit of his life, as well as the point of his blog.

complexity

Pursuing the Simplicity of the Gospel: Part 6

Sunday, July 08, 2012

The Structure of the Simple Gospel of Forgiveness of Sins

In Luke 15 we find three stories Jesus shares. Like any good teacher He tells three different stories to teach the same truth. And like any good teacher, He does this because He wants to emphasize the truth in all three stories so that nobody can miss it. That means it's really, really important. In other words, missing the point of all three stories would make us pretty lame-brained.

This brings me to an outline of sorts that I think will be helpful in structuring our understanding of the simplicity of the gospel in the message of forgiveness of sins. Let's read through the remainder of Luke 15 and then I'll unfold that structure.

Parable of the Lost Sheep

4 "If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them gets lost, what will he do? Won't he leave the ninety-nine others in the wilderness and go to search for the one that is lost until he finds it? 5 And when he has found it, he will joyfully carry it home on his shoulders. 6 When he arrives, he will call together his friends and neighbors, saying, 'Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.' 7 In the same way, there is more joy in heaven ove rone lost sinner who repents and returns to God than over ninety-nine others who are righteous and haven't strayed away!

Parable of the Lost Coin

8 "Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Won't she light a lamp and sweep the entire house and search carefully until she finds it? 9 And when she finds it, she will call in her friends and neighbors and say,'Rejoice with me because I have found my lost coin.' 10 In the same way,there is joy in the presence of God's angels when even one sinner repents."

Parable of the Lost Son

11 To illustrate the point further, Jesus told them this story: "A man had two sons. 12 The younger son told his father, 'I want my share of your estatenow before you die.' So his father agreed to divide his wealth between his sons. 13 "A few days later this younger son packed all his belongings and moved to a distant land, and there he wasted all his money in wild living. 14 About the time his money ran out, a great famine swept over the land,and he began to starve. 15 He persuaded a local farmer to hire him, and the man sent him into his fields to feed the pigs. 16 The young man became so hungry that even the pods he was feeding the pigs looked good to him. But no one gave him anything.

17 "When he finally came to his senses, he said to himself, 'At home even the hired servants have food enough to spare, and here I am dying of hunger 18 I will go home to my father and say, "Father, I have sinned against both heaven and you, 19 and I am no longer worthy of being called your son. Please take me on as a hired servant."' 20 "So he returned home to his father. And while he was still a long way off, his father saw him coming. Filled with love and compassion, he ran to his son,embraced him, and kissed him. 21 His son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against both heaven and you, and I am no longer worthy of being called your son.'

22 "But his father said to the servants, 'Quick! Bring the finest robe in the house and put it on him. Get a ring for his finger andsandals for his feet. 23 And kill the calf we have been fattening. We must celebrate with a feast, 24 for this son of mine was dead and has now returned to life. He was lost, but now he is found.' So the party began.

25 "Meanwhile, the older son was in the fields working. When he returned home, he heard music and dancing in the house, 26 and he asked one of the servants what was going on. 27 'Your brother is back,' he was told, 'and your father has killed the fattened calf. We are celebrating becauseof his safe return.' 28 "The older brother was angry and wouldn't go in. His father came out and begged him, 29 but he replied, 'All these years I've slaved for you and never once refused to do a single thing you told me to.And in all that time you never gave me even one young goat for a feast with my friends. 30 Yet when this son of yours comes back after squandering your money on prostitutes, you celebrate by killing the fattened calf!

31 "His father said to him, 'Look, dear son, you have always stayed by me, and everything I have is yours. 32 We had to celebrate this happy day. For your brother was dead and has come back to life! He was lost, but now he is found!'"

In these three stories I see a structure to the simplicity of the gospel of forgiveness of sins that looks like this:

1. Know You're Lost
2. See God's Search
3. Hear God Forgive
4. See God Rejoice

Let's look briefly at each one so you get the gist of it.

1. Know You're Lost

A sheep was lost, a coin was lost, and a son was lost. Jesus told three stories using three different items to illustrate the same truth to the self-righteous because of their attitude towards other despicable, scum sinners.

The reason the gospel is simple and must be kept simple is because it's about a simple problem, a simple condition. If you don't know Jesus then you're wandering around, looking for the next opportunity in life that might really make things happen for you...that next big break.

And you believe it's going to come from something the world has to offer you, usually in the form of money, sex and/or power or control. That means you're lost. You don't know where you
should be going.

2. See God's Search

The beauty of all three stories is that despite the condition and situation of each lost item, God is portrayed as the One who takes an interest in that which was lost, and pursues it until He recovers it. In the first story, God is the shepherd who recovers that one lost sheep. "If you had one hundred sheep, and one of them strayed away and was lost inthe wilderness, wouldn't you leave the ninety-nine others to go and search for the lost one until you found it ?"

In the second story, God is the woman who recovers that one lost coin. "Won't she light a lamp and look in every corner of the house and sweep every nook and cranny until she finds it?"

And in the third story, God is the father who recovers his lost son. Except in this story, interestingly, God is not portrayed as searching like He is in the first two stories. And I think that is because it presents the other side of God as the faithful and patient and omniscient and providential One who has orchestrated the whole rebellion of the son so that he would come back home to dad.

In other words, God has planned out the events of this man's life so that he will come back home. So God is sort of in the son's search, if you will, for happiness, not finding it, of course, until he comes back home.

3. Hear God Forgive

Here is the simplicity of the gospel. We see it more in the third story than we do in the first two, although there is a feature in the first story that shows it to us in a very interesting way In the story of the lost sheep we see God's forgiveness portrayed this way in verse 5:

"And then you would joyfully carry it home on your shoulders."

There's your God right there! There's His simple message of good news! He pursues you until He finds you and then He joyfully carries you home on His shoulders. He is not reluctant that He found you. He is not out of breath and impatient when He finds you. He is not like the mother who loses their child in the mall, feels terrified, then finds the child only to cry, hug, and spank allat one time.

He's JOYFUL! He doesn't spank or beat you all the way home. He CARRIES you all the way home, on His shoulders, wrapped around his neck where your face is close to His, where your ear is close to His mouth so that you can hear the whispers of His love for you as He carries you home.

In the story of the lost coin we can see just a glimpse of God's forgiveness in the way the woman views the coins. In the Greek the silver coin was actually a drachma, which was a full-day's pay in that day and time. If you work for $10 an hour right now and you work ten days at eight hours a day, and you get paid daily, it would be like losing $80 of your $800. That's a tenth of what you worked so hard to earn!

You wouldn't think or respond, "well, it's just $80. I can work another day and earn that back." NO! You worked hard for that $80, that full day's wage, so you're going to look high and low until you find it. And that's because that money, like YOU, dear friend, is valuable, as verse 8 describes.

You may be a notorious, despicable, scummy sinner. But God also says YOU are valuable! And why are you valuable? Because God forgives you. He has searched for you, found you, cleansed you, made you pure again...forgiven you. You are precious in His sight because you belong to Him. This is portrayed the clearest in the story of the son who comes home humbly acknowledging his stupidity and foolishness. He knows he's been an idiot so he's just happy to come home and work as an employee on dad's farm. But dad will have NONE of that! Jesus says,

"But his father said to the servants,

'Quick! Bring the finest robe in the house, and put it on him.

Get a ring for his finger, and sandals for his feet.

And kill the calf we have been fattening in the pen."

THAT is a picture of forgiveness! Again, this is not reluctant God sighing and huffing as He inches out a little mercy and grace to you one little dose at a time, waiting to see if with each inch of it yourespond like you ought to before He gives you any more. NO! This is God overwhelming you with ALL of His mercy and grace and blessing. THAT'S forgiveness.

4. See God Rejoice

Finally, in all three stories this is my favorite part. God REJOICES! He is portrayed as a happy God! Not some old scruffy, stiff man with a frown on His face and a cane he's holding waiting for the first opportunity to rap you on the shins! In the first story here's how Jesus portrays the Father, in verses 6-7:

"When you arrived, you would call together your

friends and neighbors to rejoice with you because your lost sheep was found.

In the same way, heaven will be happier over one sinner

who returns to God than over ninety-nine others

who are righteous and haven't strayed away!"

And in the second story Jesus describes the Father this way, in verses 9-10:

"And when she finds it, she will call in her friends and neighbors

to rejoicewith her because she has found her lost coin.

In the same way, there is joy in the presence

of God's angels when even one sinner repents."

And in the third story, Jesus portrays the Father this way, in verses 24 and 32:

" 'For this son of mine was dead and has now returned to me.

He was lost, but now he is found.' So the party began..

'We had to celebrate this happy day.

For your brother was dead and has come back to life!

He was lost, but now he is found!' "

Do you see this! God is a rejoicing God! God is a happy God! Heaven is a happy place! The angels love to rejoice when sinners repent!

This is a joyous occasion!

This is not just one huge universal sigh of relief that you finally came to your senses and got right with God.

NO! This is the universe rejoicing that God has found you (when you should have been looking for Him but weren't) and that you've repented and turned to Him!

In the next post, I'll make some concluding remarks on this series.

complexity

Pursuing the Simplicity of the Gospel: Part 5

Saturday, July 07, 2012

The Shape of the Simplicity of the Gospel (Luke 15)

If someone were to ask you what the forgiveness of sins means, you'd probably be able to give them a simple answer. Most of would respond that forgiveness is letting go of the hurt someone else has caused you. And that's very much true. The heart of forgiveness is making a decision not to let the bitterness and resentment from someone else's offense cause you pain anymore.

While that is part and parcel of forgiveness, how would you answer the question as to how forgiveness actually works? How is it that we are able to be forgiven by God? The church as a whole throughout church history has typically made this complex. The Catholic Church, for example, has been the greatest offender in this regard. In this theological vein there is one opinion which says that the sacraments, confession, mass, etc. are all pathways to receive God's forgiveness. Jesus shed His blood to forgive us, but God mediates that forgiveness through human participation in human events.

On the other hand, some hold the opinion that God already grants forgiveness of sins to us all through Christ. But human participation in human events are necessary to maintain and/or enjoy forgiveness of sins. Both opinions however, make our participation in man-made events inseparable from the forgiveness of our sins. Both opinions would firmly hold to a belief that forgiveness must be mediated by humans.

This can quickly trend in a dangerous direction, and in fact, it has. Making forgiveness complex is in fact antithetical to the gospel of Jesus. HE alone is the mediator between God and man, and no one else. In fact, nothing else. Anyone or anything that keeps a person connected to his or her sins because of anything else other than simply asking for it is complex legalism, since it attempts to convince a person that a relationship with God is based on something other than Jesus Christ's death.

A rediscovery of several key features in Luke 15 will provide a model or shape to the simple gospel. This is no doubt THE key text on the mission of Jesus Christ. And I love the way Luke introduces this chapter.

1 Tax collectors and other notorious sinners often came to listen to Jesus teach. 2. This made the Pharisees and teachers of religious law complain that he was associating with such despicable people—even eating with them! 3 So Jesus told them this story..."

Immediately, Luke begins this chapter by introducing us to basically the town mafia. If you've read the series on Pursuing the Humility of the Gospel, you'll recall what we discovered about the tax collectors, or the publicani as they were called back then. Luke adds to them a group called "notorious sinners," which means famous outcasts. What is more, Luke even adds the adjective "despicable" to describe them.

This was a gang of really nasty people, publicly, socially, spiritually, religiously. Back in chapter 5 of Luke, in verses 29-30, we read of the apostle Matthew, who before was a tax collector. He threw a party at his house and invited his colleagues in crime. And there Luke includes the Pharisee's description of those folks as "scum"!

Don't miss two important truths that come to mind in Luke's introduction to this chapter.

First, notice that the simplicity of the gospel of forgiveness is based on the simple condition of mankind: they are all sinners, all of them notorious to God. All of them are despicable scum. This includes the Pharisees and religous leaders of the day. But the difference, as we discovered in the story of the Publican and the Pharisee, is that the tax collectors knew they were sinners. They didn't put on any false pretenses about who they were. They knew they were bad folks, outcasts of society, and they didn't pretend to be all religious and pious like the Pharisees.

Second, notice that Luke makes a special point in his gospel to let us know that Jesus purposefully hung out with these kinds of people. In Luke 5:31-32, right after the story about the party Matthew threw at his house, Jesus makes the statement,

"Healthy people don't need a doctor - sick people do.

I have come to call sinners to turn from their sins,

not to spend time with those who think theyare already good enough."

This is such a key statement for us as a local church. Too often, I'm afraid,I've spent my time attempting to evangelize those who think they are already good enough, instead of those who
know they are scum. These people were Jesus' targets, and they are to be ours as well as in our local churches.

The primary reason is that the simple gospel of forgiveness of sins is best understood by those who know their sins are many, like the prostitute we read about earlier. Those who know they are sinners, know how much they've been forgiven of, and as a result love Jesus much more than those who don't really know how much they've been forgiven of.

In other words, the church of Jesus Christ is made up of those who really love King Jesus as He ought to be loved, because these kinds of people know what ought to have happened to them, and they feel it in a way other self-righteous people do not. The church of Jesus Christ stands to be a brighter light to the nations when we pursue the kinds of people Jesus pursued with the kind of simple gospel message Jesus preached to them.

In the next post, we will work through an outline of sorts that will be helpful in structuring our understanding of the simplicity of the gospel in the message of forgiveness of sins.

Authority

Pursuing the Simplicity of the Gospel: Part 2

Wednesday, July 04, 2012

The Second Text:
Luke 7:36-50

Forgiveness of Sins is the Simplest Foundation for Worship

Technology has created an environment for first-world citizens which complicates things. We are so overtly exposed to that which was built or produced bigger and better than whatever came before, that we have become desensitized. This makes it hard for us to become excited.

Entertainment is by far the worst culprit in this problem. Special effects have to be bigger and "badder" than previous movies. Story lines have to be more complicated and "smart." The effort to outdo whatever came before means that we in turn become harder and harder to satisfy when it comes to entertainment. This makes parenting especially difficult, and if you're a parent you can attest to this. Trying to watch great movies with my kids that were produced when I was a kid becomes a joke as they all grow bored with the less-than-special effects available during those times. My kids make fun of various features throughout so that enjoying the movie is virtually impossible.

Shift the focus over into the local church and the problem is no less different. Music and programs are the two areas where this problem is most noticeable. The music has to be bigger and better than it was last year. Children's ministry programs have to be bigger and better than last year, and especially bigger and better than the church down the street. Sermons are not exempt, because they too are revised every year it seems, to keep an ever-increasingly unsatisfied consumer satisfied enough to keep coming back. All of this together has the unfortunate and destructive effect of obscuring genuine worship of God. Simplicity flies out the window, unless of course simplicity happens to be the next trend in church life.

This background in my culture makes me immensely grateful for the simplicity of the gospel in the forgiveness of sins. Jesus tells us that His forgiveness of sins is the simplest foundation for our worship (Luke 7:36-50). If we turn to the story of the prostitute who encountered Jesus in Luke 7:36-50, we see a scenario unfolded by Luke quite similar to our first text, but this time with some other features added. Once again, here is the story as told by the New Living Translation.

36 One of the Pharisees asked Jesus to have dinner with him, so Jesus went to his home and sat down to eat. 37 When a certain immoral woman from that city heard he was eating there, she brought a beautiful alabaster jar filled with expensive perfume. 38 Then she knelt behind him at his feet,weeping. Her tears fell on his feet, and she wiped them off with her hair.T hen she kept kissing his feet and putting perfume on them. 39 When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, "If this man were a prophet, he would know what kind of woman is touching him. She's a sinner!" 40 Then Jesus answered his thoughts. "Simon," he said to the Pharisee, "I have something to say to you." "Go ahead, Teacher," Simon replied. 41 Then Jesus told him this story: "A man loaned money to two people—500 pieces of silver* to one and 50 pieces to the other. 42 But neither of them could repay him, so he kindly forgave them both, canceling their debts. Who do you suppose loved him more after that?" 43 Simon answered, "I suppose the one for whom he canceled the larger debt." "That's right," Jesus said. 44 Then he turned to the woman and said to Simon, "Look at this woman kneeling here. When I entered your home, you didn't offer me water to wash the dust from my feet, but she has washed them with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45 You didn't greet me with a kiss, but from the time I first came in, she has not stopped kissing my feet. 46 You neglected the courtesy of olive oil to anoint my head, but she has anointed my feet with rare perfume. 47 "I tell you, her sins—and they are many—have been forgiven, so she has shown me much love. But a person who is forgiven little shows only little love." 48 Then Jesus said to the woman, "Your sins are forgiven." 49 The men at the table said among themselves, "Who is this man, that he goes around forgiving sins?" 50 And Jesus said to the woman, "Your faith has saved you; go in peace."

There's so much I'd love to camp out on in this text! It's an incredible story chock full of so much helpful stuff when it comes to forgiveness. But notice again the argument here over Jesus' authority to forgive sins. In the first story about the paralyzed man, He demonstrates His authority in healing. In this second story Jesus demonstrates His authority to heal in a story. And the point of the story was made simple by Jesus: the person who knows how great a debt they owe to God loves Jesus more. As Jesus explained,

"I tell you, her sins - and they are many -

have been forgiven, so she has shown me much love.

But a person who is forgiven little, shows only little love."

The simplest foundation for loving Jesus and worshiping Him, like this prostitute did, is the forgiveness of sins. Jesus explains that the fact that she was worshiping Him the way she was was evidence that her sins were already forgiven. And your degree of love toward Jesus and your depth of worship to God will be built upon the simple foundation of forgiveness of sins. The thicker that foundation, meaning the deeper you become aware of your unworthiness, the wider your love will be built, and the higher your worship will be built.

Forgiveness of sins is the engine with which you love King Jesus. How big is your engine? Do you have a motorcyle engine? Or do you have a freight train engine?

In the next post, we will discover the third text (Luke 11:1-4), and see that the forgiveness of sins is the simplest foundation for our prayer life.

forgiveness

Repentance 101: What is REAL Repentance?

Friday, July 15, 2011

church in the boro

Scandalous Grace, Part Four: Understanding the ABC's of Living in Grace

Sunday, June 27, 2010

documents

The Gospel in Living Color: An Exposition of Paul's Letter to Philemon

Thursday, December 31, 2009

boxing

Handling Other People with the Gospel of Jesus - Part Two

Thursday, September 10, 2009

Too many Christian relationships enter the boxing ring. And it's usually over something petty, like a misunderstanding, a misperception...or just a plain ole' mistake. I don't know why many Christians, particularly in America, are so touchy and sensitive. I don't know why I, specifically, used to be this way. Perhaps it's pride...whispering in the ear of my heart...

"pssst...hey Rob, what do you think he meant by that? What was he really trying to say? Sounded to me like he was implying that you........."

You know how it goes. You've been there too, haven't you? And what happens next? That's right...we put on the Holy Spirit boxing gloves and get ready to "thow down," as they say here in the hood.

Our church plant got started this way, with well-meaning Christians disagreeing over normal stuff. But their disagreements went too far to the point where they were in serious conflict with one another. Each person seemed to have on a pair of Christian boxing gloves, going at it with each other...everyone professing to be motivated by the glory of God.

While meeting together with this small group two years ago, we blew through the breakfast and lunch buffet of the local Shoney's discussing how the gospel drives our relationships. I shared with the group that day what was a rather startling yet obvious teaching: gospel-driven Christians wear the gloves of forgiveness and forbearance. Forgiveness is like a work-glove, and forbearance like a velvet-glove. And that brings me to the second means of how to handle other people with the gospel of Jesus in this post.

2. Use the Two Gloves of Forgiveness and Forbearance

As I just stated, the gospel glove of forgiveness is like a work-glove. It is rough and tough. It is caloused. It can handle anything, take anything, receive anything. Forgiveness is that leather palm that covers the heart protecting it from resentment, bitterness, and malice. When the Christian is wearing this, he can handle even the most prickly and barbed person around. Paul ended the fourth chapter of Ephesians this way.

31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior. 32 Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.

The other glove is a velvet glove. It is the gospel glove of forbearance. It is tender and soft with those who are different from us...those we normally reserve adjectives like "strange" and "wierd" for. But they're just different...from us. Normally it's things like personality conflicts that get in the way in these cases. Other people just rub us the wrong way. And with these folks, we must handle them gently, humbly, and patiently. Here's the way Paul began this same chapter.

1 Therefore I, a prisoner for serving the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of your calling, for you have been called by God. 2 Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other's faults because of your love. 3 Make every effort to keep yourselves united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace.

Someone might easily mistake that the gloves ought to be reversed...that the gospel glove of forbearance is like the work-glove, and forgiveness like the velvet glove. Though that is normally how we see it, that's not the way of the cross.

Forbearance is not rough and tough, simply "putting up" with somebody cause we have to. And forgiveness is not smooth and soft because that would deny the intense pains and hurts we cause each other in our relationships.

No, the Christian must forbear patiently with gentleness, and forgive each other with diligent hard work. That's the real work of Christian unity. And that's why Paul began the statement in Eph. 4:3 with the Greek word, spoudazo, which means "to spare no effort, to hold nothing back." Unity is something every Christian must give their all to...all their heart, soul, mind, and strength. And that unity is obtained and maintained by forgiving each others' sins, and by forbearing with each others' differences.

forgiveness

Reflections of Gospel-Driven Repentance: Processing the Sin

Thursday, February 21, 2008

One of the most difficult parts of the repentance process is the discovery. The discovery process is all about asking wise, discerning, key questions to figure out where the fallen brother or sister's heart is. The focus here is finding out if they are properly processing what they've done.

Some immediately retort that this doesn't matter. For example, I was told this past week that what matters is that God has forgiven them, if they are a believer (and sometimes, even if they are not). One of the friends to whom I referred in my first post on this subject cursed at me Tuesday night, asking, "What the hell good is forgiveness from God if nobody wants to treat you like you've been forgiven?!" This from a friend who solicited prostitutes for two years, ran up credit cards, and demands from his wife that she submit to his authority as head of the household after this came out some three weeks ago. Do you think he has processed his sin properly?

Forgiveness is a tricky thing sometimes. We definitely and desperately want the fallen brother or sister to understand forgiveness. Without it they may as well commit suicide, because living with guilt in fallen world is already difficult enough as it is without the conclusion that God might not have forgiven the sin or else will not forgive the sin. The promise of Scripture, however, is that the person to whom God does not count sin is a happy person indeed (Psalm 32:2)!

On the flip side, however, is the fact that a person who is continuing in a sinful attitude about their sin evidences in the least that it is worth asking the question as to whether or not the Spirit of God is living inside them. For the Holy Spirit is that very person of God residing in a person who ultimately overcomes their pride and clouded thinking about sin, by loosening the power of that sin, and bringing them to the light of the truth. He is the one who helps them properly discover and process their sin in light of God's thoughts, expressed only in the Bible.

There is a place for both in the repentance and restoration process, then. Telling them that those whose sins are forgiven are truly happy people is the right first step. But if after a few days or weeks they are not very happy, it is right to ask why. Maybe they are not appropriating forgiveness properly. But then again, maybe they are not properly processing what they've done in light of what God says about it. After all, a proper processing leads to a proper appreciation for and appropriation of God's forgiveness.

Here are some helpful questions I use to discern how a person is discovering and processing their sin.

1. What all did you really do?

Helping a person see everything they did when they sinned is helpful in getting to see what God sees in their sin. The Ten Commandments are very useful here. When I get sinfully angry, for example, I put myself before God, I set myself up as an idol, I profane God's name in the way I act, I murder with my hateful attitude, I bear false witness by saying I have a right to get angry, and I covet my convenience more than I do God's vision of the conflict. And all that is just for starters. Getting the person to see what God sees is crucial in the discovery process. They need a vision for just how deep the roots of that sin extends into their hearts so that they will sense the kind of desperation they need from God to kill it and the kind of joy they have in God for already setting them free from it.

2. What are the consequences of what you've done? Count and consider the ripples.

This is also a huge help, since most men who sin sexually do not understand, as much as they can or should, the ripple effect their sin has caused themselves and so many others. Humility is generally displayed in those who understand that all the bad things that happen after their sin is exposed are generally a result of that sin. Pride is usually displayed in those who try to analyze, critize, and condemn certain ripples as being "not fair" or undeserved, as if they can pick and choose which ripples will emanate from the boulder they just threw in the lake of their family's life.

3. How much time are spending reflecting on all that you've done? Are you comfortable with the pace of the discovery, repentance, and restoration process?

The temptation when a sin of greater magnitude has been exposed or confessed is to get over it too quickly. The pains of consequences can be so great and massive that the normal self-preservation mode can kick in and stimulate us to make the process of repentance and restoration as fast and painless as possible. Pride is manifested in impatience with the process. Humility is generally accepting and welcoming of whatever can help recover true fellowship with God and others.

The fact is, gospel-driven repentance and restoration is a process. But the fact about process is that no one can really define what that should look like. What can and should happen, however, is a defining of what that process cannot look like. It cannot look like impatience and angst with the process. People are complex and it takes lots and lots of time to process the hurt and heal from it.

Impatience with this process is about as fruitless as standing in the mirror and trying to make your hair grow. And it cannot look like frustration over why people aren't responding the way you think they should. Putting yourself in their shoes for a moment and considering what they are feeling (something that wasn't given much consideration when the sin was being committed) is the way to accurately get a hold of this process.

In the end, pursuing gospel-driven repentance takes time. It cannot be impatient, and it cannot be arrogant in its use of God's precious forgiveness. It cost Him His precious Son's life. And the process will cost us some precious time.

Back to Series Listing

Pursuing the Simplicity of the Gospel: Conclusion

Pursuing the Simplicity of the Gospel: Part 6

Pursuing the Simplicity of the Gospel: Part 5

Pursuing the Simplicity of the Gospel: Part 2

Repentance 101: What is REAL Repentance?

Scandalous Grace, Part Four: Understanding the ABC's of Living in Grace

The Gospel in Living Color: An Exposition of Paul's Letter to Philemon

Handling Other People with the Gospel of Jesus - Part Two

Reflections of Gospel-Driven Repentance: Processing the Sin

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