October 15, 2017

Model Forgiveness

Pastor: Pastor Marc Wragg Series: The Forgiveness Paradigm Topic: Forgiveness Passage: Luke 23:33–43

Beaten, whipped, and nailed to the instrument of His death, Jesus Christ was brutally executed by the Jews and Romans. As He was both the Son of God and a sinless Man, this was the grossest miscarriage of justice in history. Yet in the midst of this horrific crime, Jesus asked His Father to forgive His murderers. What does this mean? Are all given eternal life, or was Jesus praying that these men would be saved at some future date? No. But if you really want to understand what Jesus did, you need look no further than what He taught. He told His disciples to immediately forgive every offense privately before the Lord, and to earnestly seek the repentance of the transgressor so that forgiveness could be demonstrated publicly in reconciliation. Jesus wasn’t granting His murderers heaven. He was carrying out as the perfect Man what He commanded as God’s Son. This is the pattern we must follow. Forgive all, and pray for the offender so that he may experience in relationship what you have already granted in your heart.

other sermons in this series