Sunday
09/17/17 Freeville/Homer Avenue UMC’s
Sermon Title: “Forgiveness”
Old Testament
Scripture: Exodus 15:1b-11, 20-21
New Testament
Scripture: Romans 14:1-12
Gospel Lesson:
Matthew 18:21-35
Welcome again my friends, my sisters and brothers in
Christ, on this the Fifteen Sunday after Pentecost.
Last Sunday, in our gospel of Matthew reading, Jesus gave
us a blueprint of how to forgive each other. In this blueprint, Jesus told us
to go to the person who has harmed us or sinned against us, and then try to be
reconciled with them (Mt. 18:15, NRSV). If this didn’t work, Jesus said to then
take one or two other people with us, to then try to reconcile with the person again
(Mt. 18:16, NRSV). If this failed to work, then Jesus said for us to make the
sin or the harm against us, an issue to be put before the whole church.
As I said last Sunday, following the gospel of Jesus Christ,
specifically, the teachings of Jesus Christ in the gospels of Matthew, Mark,
Luke, and John, is not always easy. In fact, I would argue that for many us,
there are days that the gospel can just be plain hard.
The things that Jesus has commanded us to do, and the ways
in which that Jesus has commanded us to live, are as such, that if we truly did
them, if we truly took them seriously, I believe that the world around us would
be transformed.
This is why the mission of the United Methodist Church, is “To
make disciples of Jesus Christ, for the transformation of the world.”
A problem that I see very commonly in our culture though,
are Christians who believe in Jesus, but who maybe don’t take the gospels or the
Christian life very seriously. The famous German theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer,
called this “cheap grace.”
This is the idea that you believe that Jesus Christ died
for your sins, you believe in Jesus, but we do so because we believe that we
will go to heaven one day, as a result of these beliefs. Perhaps we don’t take the
teachings of Jesus Christ in the gospels very seriously, or for some of us,
maybe we believe in Jesus, because it is a “fire insurance policy.” It is as if
we could have this “fire insurance policy” in our safes at home. This means we believe
in Jesus, and we believe that this belief will one day propel us to heaven, and
we will then avoid fire. A “fire insurance policy.”
So there is a big difference between believing in Jesus for
eternal life in heaven, and living the Christian life. I admit, as I said, living
the gospel, the teachings of Jesus Christ, is not always easy.
While last Sunday, as I said, we were given a blueprint
from Jesus about how to reconcile with each other within the church, for sins
and harm committed. This Sunday, Jesus goes even further with how we are to
forgive.
Before getting into the gospel reading from Matthew however,
I want to first just highlight some the basic teachings of Jesus Christ in the
gospels. These are far from being all of the teachings of Jesus Christ, but I
just wanted to give you a few examples. Here they are:
-
In the gospel of Mark 10:44-45, Jesus
says:
“and whoever wishes to be first among you must be slave
of all. For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his
life a ransom for many” (Mk. 10:44-45, NRSV).
-
In the gospel of Mathew
23:12, Jesus says:
“All who exalt themselves will be humbled, and all who humble
themselves will be exalted” (Mt. 23:12, NRSV).
-
In the gospel of Mathew
5:43-44, Jesus says:
“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your
neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those
who persecute you,” (Mt. 5:43-44, NRSV).
-
In the gospel of Mathew
22:37-40, Jesus says:
“He said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all
your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as
yourself.’ On these two commandments
hang all the law and the prophets” (Mt. 22:37-40, NRSV).
-
In the gospel of Mathew
25:35-40, Jesus says:
“for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you
gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked
and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison
and you visited me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when was it
that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to
drink? And when was
it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing?
And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?’ And the
king will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the
least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me’ (Mt. 25:35-40,
NRSV).
-
And one more, In the
gospel of Luke 3:11, Jesus says:
“In reply he said to them, “Whoever has two coats must share
with anyone who has none; and whoever has food must do likewise” (Lk.
3:11, NRSV).
These are but
a few of the many things that Jesus teaches us, so that we know how to best
live the Christian life.
Do I believe that
Jesus died for our sins? I do. Do I believe in what Jesus taught us in the
gospels? I do. I admit though, that it isn’t always easy.
This morning
my sermon title around our gospel of Matthew 18:21-35 reading, is called “Forgiveness.”
I supposed I could have done a series on this topic, for last week and this
week.
Last week,
again, we heard how to forgive, and this week Jesus goes even further.
The gospel
begins this morning with Peter asking Jesus more about forgiveness. Here is
what the gospel says again:
“Then Peter came and said to him, “Lord, if another member of
the church sins against me, how often should I forgive? As many as seven
times?” Jesus said to him, “Not seven times, but, I tell you, seventy-seven times” (Mt. 18:21-21, NRSV).
You might be
thinking, “well seventy-seven times,” that’s not so bad. Except some bible
translations say, seventy times seven times, which is four hundred and ninety
times. So this is how many times we are supposed to forgive each other. Has
anyone here ever forgiven someone seventy-seventy times? How about four hundred
and ninety times? The gospel is hard sometimes, isn’t it?
Jesus, as
Jesus often did, then explains himself more, by telling a story, or a parable.
Jesus then says again:
“For this reason the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a
king who wished to settle accounts with his slaves. When he began the
reckoning, one who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him; and, as he could not pay, his lord ordered him to be
sold, together with his wife and children and all his possessions, and payment
to be made. So the slave fell on his knees before him, saying, ‘Have patience
with me, and I will pay you everything.’ And out of pity for him, the lord of
that slave released him and forgave him the debt. But that same slave, as he
went out, came upon one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii; and seizing him by the throat, he said,
‘Pay what you owe.’ Then his fellow slave fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have
patience with me, and I will pay you.’ But he refused; then he went and threw
him into prison until he would pay the debt. When his fellow slaves saw what
had happened, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their
lord all that had taken place. Then his lord summoned him and said to him, ‘You
wicked slave! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. Should
you not have had mercy on your fellow slave, as I had mercy on you?’ And in
anger his lord handed him over to be tortured until he would pay his entire
debt” (Mt. 18:23-34, NRSV).
The teachings
of Jesus Christ in the gospels, to me, are a blueprint for human behavior and
morality. How we are supposed to live, and how we are supposed to treat each
other.
In this parable
from Jesus that I just read, Jesus is telling us that if someone forgives us,
in this case a debt, who are we to do the opposite.
For example,
supposed you knew a family with many children, and it was dead of winter, and
you owned a fuel oil company. This family has a large bill owed to your
company, and knowing that they will go without heat, you forgive the debt, so
that they can get more fuel oil, to heat their home. That family then turns
around and sues someone who owes them a $1,000 dollars. You see how this works?
Where my
oldest brother lives in southern Wisconsin, there is a pastor there that he
knows. This pastor contracted a very serious illness that effects his long-term
brain function, and perhaps even his speech. This pastor’s church fired him
after he got sick, and my brother has been doing all kinds of good things for
him. This is how Jesus taught us to live.
The gospel of
Matthew reading ends this morning with this, in reference to what forgiven
slave had then done to another slave who owed him money:
“So my heavenly Father will also do to every one of you, if
you do not forgive your brother or sister from your heart”
(Mt. 18:35, NRSV).
Jesus tells us
this morning, we need to forgive, we need to be generous, we need to be loving,
and presently in this case, we need to try to help the hurricane victims. Do we
do this just because it’s a nice thing to do? Perhaps, but even bigger than
this, we do this, because our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, said in the gospels
this is how you are live and to treat each other.
I told a story
about forgiveness last week, that I borrowed from Rev. Bob McCune. Jesus goes
even further this week with the idea of forgiveness, so I picked a story of
forgiveness that if you haven’t heard, might stretch you spiritually.
Now this story is 11-years old, and what I am about to read
is part of an NPR article, entitled, “Amish Forgive School Shooter, Struggle with Grief.” For
those that remember this 11-year old story, a shooter went into an Amish School
House, and shot 10 girls, killing five of them. Here is the story as NPR
reports it:
“It's been a week for quiet
reflection in the Amish communities around Nickel Mines, Pa., which one year
ago experienced tragedy.”
“It was in the tiny community that a
man stormed into a one-room schoolhouse and shot 10 young girls, killing five.
He then killed himself. That old school has since been demolished. The new
school was closed on the one-year anniversary and families met privately in
prayer.”
“Since the tragedy, people around
the world have been inspired by the way the Amish expressed forgiveness toward
the killer and his family. But while their acts of forgiveness were inspiring,
they also caused a misperception that the Amish had quickly gotten over the
tragedy.”
Forgiving the Killer
“Charles
Roberts wasn't Amish, but Amish families knew him as the milk truck driver who
made deliveries. Last month, it was announced that the Amish community had
donated money to the killer's widow and her three young children.”
“It
was one more gesture of forgiveness, gestures that began soon after the
shooting.”
“Donald
Kraybill, is a sociologist at nearby Elizabethtown College and co-author
of Amish Grace: How Forgiveness Transcended Tragedy.”
"I
think the most powerful demonstration of the depth of Amish forgiveness was
when members of the Amish community went to the killer's burial service at the
cemetery," Kraybill says. "Several families, Amish families who had
buried their own daughters just the day before were in attendance and they
hugged the widow, and hugged other members of the killer's family."
Last
week, I told you a story that Rev. Bob McCune told about forgiving a bully, and
giving him a Boy Scout knife. Yet this story of forgiveness, goes, I would
argue, even deeper. Jesus tell us this morning to forgiven seventy-seven times,
or in some bible translations, four hundred and ninety times.
If
we are being honest, my sisters and brothers, how many of us could forgive the
way these Amish families did? The gospel is hard sometimes isn’t it? Yet, I
believe that the gospel of Jesus Christ is the hope of the world. May we this
day, this week, and always do our best to love, heal, and forgive. May we immerse
ourselves in the scriptures, in the gospels, and with the help of the Holy Spirit
become more like Jesus each and every day. Amen.
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