FORGIVENESS
1. Path of Forgiveness
2. Guilt -vs-Conviction
3. Sorrow and Repentance
4. Forgiveness and Restoration
THE PATH OF FORGIVENESS
Read all of Psalm 51. This was written by David after the incident with Bathsheba. (David had an affair with Bathsheba, then when she became pregnant, had her husband killed so nobody would find out, and married Bathsheba) David was convicted by God and yielded.
"Why do you look at the speck in your brother's eye but do not consider the plank in your own eye? Matthew 7:3
"The servant who knew his master's will and did not prepare himself or do according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes. But he who did not know, yet committed things deserving of stripes shall be beaten with few. For everyone to whom much has been given, from him much will be required; and to whom much has been committed, of him they ask the more." Luke 12:47-48
There is sin that is a speck then there is the sin that is a plank. There is the judgment of many stripes and the judgment of few stripes. The more you know of God, the more you will need to commit to Him. James 4:17
1. When did you first realize that abortion was a sin? What did this mean to you?
2. If you felt guilty, how did you relieve your guilt?
3. Who is the one Jesus promises to send? What will He do? John 16:7-8
4. What does the Bible say you are to do about sin? 1 John 1:9 and Luke 13:2-5
5. What are the wages of sin? But what can we have instead? Romans 6:23
Abortion is a devasting sin. You may feel like you deserve many stripes but all sin is dealt with in the same manner. From the sin of lying to the sin of abortion, God has given us one solution. We are to repent (change our minds), confess (with our mouth), and believe that Jesus will take away our sin.
GUILT VS CONVICTION
The sinful heart is ----
1. Separation from God
2. Spiritual darkness
3. No feelings of love
4. Never feeling right with God
You may feel this way even though you have asked God to forgive you. You may be caught in the trap of worldly sorrow!
"For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted, but the sorrow of the world produces death." II Corinthians 7:10
Sorrow of God Sorrow of the World
Seeing sin as God sees sin Seeing sin as failure
Let's the Holy Spirit convict Sorry for the results
Willing to change Seeks to escape
Seeing sin as failure to love Thinking only of self
Willing to wait on God Wanting a fast answer
Being filled with the sorrow of the world means that you do not turn to God for grace but try and fix your life your way. In a sense, we act more like Judas, the one who betrayed Christ, rather than Peter, the one who denied Christ. When Judas realized that he had betrayed innocent blood, he attempted to apply his own remedy by returning the thirty pieces of silver paid to him by the Chief Priest and Elders. This would not remedy his betrayal, nor reverse the consequences of his action. He sought escape by suicide. Judas had worldly sorrow. Peter, on the other had, horrified by his denial, abandoned himself to the purifying power of Divine Love and received pardon and forgiveness, allowing him to go on and serve God. He received God's mercy and grace. Both men had sorrow over what they had done. One shed tears of repentance, the other shed tears of despair. With worldly sorrow, there will always be guilt lurking in the inner man.
1. With whom do you identify with? Judas or Peter.
2. Have you had repentance or despair over your abortion(s)?
SORROW AND REPENTANCE
God has not promised you a problem free life but He has promised to take you through those hard times. He has also promised to bring good out of all things if you let Him. (Rom.
"The time is fulfilled and the
"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." 1 John 1:9
Jesus, the gentle physician, does not demand we be perfect before coming to Him. In fact, Jesus bids us to accept ourselves as sinners, with all our weaknesses and imperfections, while placing our trust in His infinite mercy and compassion. As you examine your sin of abortion(s) you must see yourself in the light of God's love. You will not regret making this decision.
1. Review the characteristics of godly sorrow and worldly sorrow. Which sorrow have you had?
2. What are the three steps to godly sorrow? (Mark 1:15, I John 1:9)
1.__________________ 2._____________ 3.__________
3. What happens in Heaven when one sinner repents? Luke 15:7
4. What will you have when you obey 1 John 1:9?
Read Psalm 51
This is David's confession to God after he committed adultery and murder. Below write your own confession to God.
Dear Father God:
FORGIVENESS AND RESTORATION
God sent His son Jesus to pay the price for our sin. The price He paid was death for the word of God says that the wages of sin is death. Jesus humbled himself, became a man, was tortured and scourged, then nailed on a cross as a criminal and He had done nothing wrong. All this was done just for us.
"Who Himself bore our sin in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness - by whose stripes you were healed. 1 Peter 2:24
1. Do you believe your sin is too big for God to forgive? What does God say in Isaiah 1:18?
2. Does God demand that we earn His forgiveness? Ephesians 1:7 and 2:8.
3. After receiving His forgiveness, what does God promise? Romans 8:1, 2
4. What other promises do we have? Isaiah 43:25
The depth of God's mercy and compassion for us is a mystery beyond our limits of mere human understanding. In our own earth-bound relationships forgiveness is rarely given freely. So often we hear, "I'll forgive you, if..., or "I'll forgive you, when.... We compare God to us and how we usually forgive. But His love is unconditional and His forgiveness is free. It is a gift that we do not deserve and we do nothing to earn it. All He asks of us is that we come to Him, confess and ask His forgiveness.
During the time of Jesus, the Jews felt much like we do today. They also underestimated God's infinite mercy. Jesus responded by telling them three parables.
1. Read: Luke 15:1-7, 15:8-10, and
a. Which parable do you identify with the most? Explain.
b. How did the prodigal son plan to earn his fathers forgiveness?
c. Was this necessary? What was his father's response?
d. What is God's attitude toward repentant sinners?
The shepherd, the woman who lost the coin and the father of the prodigal son, all sought out what had been lost. In the parable of the Prodigal Son, we are told the father saw his son even while he was a long way off, as if the father was searching the horizon everyday to see if his son would return. On that glorious homecoming day, the father rushed out to greet his son. So it is with God. He has been searching the horizon everyday to see if you would come home to Him. Just as the prodigal son's father embraced him, so will your heavenly Father embrace you. God delights in forgiving you. He is eager to forgive you. He has never given up hope that you would return.
Do the following exercises:
1. How has God sought you?
2. Are you ready to be embraced by His love? If not why?
You may desire to receive God's forgiveness and be free from your sin, yet fear that if you get too close God will pour out His wrath on you rather than embrace you with His love. You may be living with the fear that whatever suffering you have encountered has been brought on by God as punishment for your abortion(s). Remember the parable of the prodigal son? Did the father want to pour out wrath upon him? This parable is an example of God's attitude toward us. He is the God of mercy and love.
3. He is the God of ________ and ________. Romans 15:5
He is the God of ____________. Romans 15:13
He is the God of __________. Romans 15:33
When Jesus forgave sinners, He did so without accusation or shame. Read the story of the woman caught in adultery. John 8:3-11
4. If you had been brought to Jesus, what do you think He would have said to you?
5. What do you receive from God when your relationship with Him is restored? Psalm 30: 10-12, Psalm 103:10-12 Psalm 116:8-9
True repentance always yields to a change in our attitudes and behavior as we respond with good deeds and grow daily in our love for God and for others. For example, when we misbehaved as children we would do more than just apologize to our parents and ask for their forgiveness. We also would show our parents how much we loved them by doing something special like picking up our toys without being told or washing the dishes even though it was not our turn. Our parents knew we loved them, but we needed to show them we loved them. So it is in our relationship with God. Our repentance unto Him brings forth fruits of love in us.
6. What fruits did Zaccacus bring forth? Luke 19:1-9
Mary Magdalene and the Apostle Paul are more examples of people whose lives were transformed by the power of God's love and forgiveness. Before meeting Jesus they lived in darkness as slaves to sin. After submitting themselves unto the mercy of God, they became slaves to love, restored as new creations in Christ.
7. Why do the greatest sinners often become the greatest saints? Luke 7:40-48
God loves you, not because you are perfect, but because you are His child, the one He created to be in fellowship with Him. That is why He forgives. The Christian faith demands we acknowledge our sinfulness without despair, accept our complete dependence on God's strength, not our own, and trust always in His mercy.
9. Review question 2 in Pt. 2. Would your answer be different now? (It was: How would God describe you)
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