FORGIVENESS

We are going to talk today about one of the most important parts of our salvation. In fact today's topic is actually a required condition for salvation.

1^st John 2:6 "He that says he abides in Him, ought himself also so to walk, even as He walked."

We could sure take that verse and apply it to so many different facets of the Christian way of life. But we are just going to delve into one aspect of how Messiah lived and if we are going to claim to be abiding in Him we also should be living the same way.

So if we are going to claim that we are abiding in Messiah, if we are claiming that we are living a Christ like life, we had better then show forth a way of life that was represented by the way the Yahshua Himself lived before ascending back into the heavens. It is the Lord's desire today to show forth a portion of His character. In fact this is one of the strongest character traits of our Elohim God. But it is His desire that you and I show forth this same character trait in our daily lives. We need to bear in mind that we are being recreated in His spiritual image.

Originally man was made in the physical image of a spiritual God, but now we are being born again unto the spiritual image of the Lord our Elohim God. That spiritual image has characteristic traits of godliness and holiness and a whole host of other righteous virtues that we as Christians are to be walking in.

Luke 23:34 "Then said Yahshua, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do."

This message from Yahweh is going to deal with forgiveness. While our Messiah was being tortured to death upon that pagan cross, enduring the shame and the cruel pains of the crucifixion and with the weight of the totality of the sins of all of mankind bearing down upon Him, He had only one thing upon His mind.

Forgiveness! It could be said then that forgiveness is most assuredly one of the greatest traits of the Lord's character. Since forgiving mankind was one of the very last thoughts to enter the mind of the Messiah and to leave His lips, we know then that the true God is a forgiving God, and brethren we should not neglect in praising Him for being so. For without the forgiveness of sins we would have no hope and are as sure as dead, for the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Messiah Yahshua our Lord.

The Lord would have you and I to see a couple of things in this next verse that are a great portion of the theme of today's Sabbath message.

Romans 6:23 "For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of Elohim is eternal life through Yahshua Messiah our Lord."

Brethren everyone of us have sinned. And from the first time that sin was found within us, the death penalty was declared upon us, but the gift of God which supersedes and nullifies that death penalty is eternal life through Messiah. And so the grace period was applied to our debt owed. Now the gift is not merely eternal life, but rather eternal life through Yahshua Messiah our Lord.

In other words, mankind does not have it within his power to grant to himself eternal life. But Messiah has the power. Therefore the gift of God of eternal life, is still contingent then upon what we are going to do with this God man, known by most as Jesus, who’s real name is Yahshua.

What are we going to do with Him brethren? What are we going to do with Him world? What are we going to do with Him mankind? Well, we can only receive Him or we can reject Him. Cannot have it both ways, we cannot be for and against Him at the same time. But if we receive Him, then the gift of eternal life is applied, but only through Yahshua our Lord as the scripture says, and we have just read it with our own eyes and have heard it spoken with our own ears. But this thing is a gift. What two things can we do with a gift? We can either joyfully receive it or we can willfully reject it.

Once again, the gift of God is not merely eternal life, but rather the gift is eternal life through Messiah our Lord. Eternal life and Christ are not two sides of a coin, but they are the same side of the coin. They are one and the same. The flip side of the coin is death. Eternal life is the embodiment of Christ. Eternal life is Christ, Christ is eternal life. Christ said in John 14:6 that He is the way, the truth and the life. Christ = Life. Life = Christ. Messiah is Life!

John 11:20-26 "Then Martha, as soon as she heard that Yahshua was coming, went and met him: but Mary sat still in the house. Then said Martha unto Yahshua, Lord, if You had been here, my brother had not died. But I know, that even now, whatsoever You wilt ask of God, God will give it You. Yahshua said unto her, Your brother shall rise again. Martha said unto him, I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day. Yahshua said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believes in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever lives and believe in me shall never die. Do you believe this?"

Lazarus had died. This family of Lazarus and Martha and Mary were close friends of Jesus and the disciples. Martha met the Lord and in her disheartened tone told him that if He had only been there, Lazarus would not have died. She believed that Christ could have healed her brother of whatever it was that he subsequently died of. But Yahshua calmly told Martha that Lazarus would rise again. He will live again. Martha answered the Lord by saying that she knew that yes her brother would rise in the resurrection. She knew that her brother would sleep in the grave awaiting the day in which the graves would be opened and the dead would live again.

But it didn't dawn on her who Messiah really was. Christ had just told her that Lazarus would rise again. Yahshua was speaking about what would take place in just a few minutes, not way down through the ages to the great resurrection of the dead. Yahshua told Martha that He was the resurrection and the life. In other words, Christ was saying, Martha, look at me, I am the resurrection, I am the life. Not just that Christ can raise people from the dead. Not just that Christ can make a person live again. But that He is life. He is the resurrection. Hey Martha, wake up! Lazarus doesn't have to wait till the end of the age. The resurrection and the life is standing right in front of you!

And you can read the story again on your own some time, but right after His talk with Martha, He raised His dear friend Lazarus from the dead. Lazarus did rise again. But what the Lord wanted us to see in this was that He is the resurrection. He is the life. And life is a gift, but only given through Christ.

But have you ever noticed that the terms "forgiveness," or "forgiving," or "forgive," or "forgave," all have something in common? You will find that each of these terms have, as a part of their makeup, the little word "give," or "gave," placed within. What is it that is given? It is a gift. To be forgiven is to receive the gift of eternal life through Yahshua our Lord.

Remember once again, the gift given is not just eternal life, but the gift given is eternal life through Christ, for we have seen today from the Word of God, that Christ is the resurrection, He is the life.

Well let's just bring this thought together through one of the most quoted verses of scriptures.

John 3:15,16 "...Whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life. For Yahweh so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life."

Whoever believes in Christ can attain eternal life. The term "believe," means to trust in and to commit to. This does not just mean that we believe that Christ exists and died for our sins. There are scriptures that show that even the demons believe, yet we know that they are not going to be given eternal life.

No, we must trust in Christ to be our savior. My bible tells me that perfect love casts out fear. Brethren we are to trust Christ and have perfect assurance of our salvation. But we are as well to trust in the Word of God, believe what the Word says and then commit ourselves to living it daily! If we are going to say we abide in Christ, we had better walk as He walked.

Brethren, our Lord walked a life of forgiveness. He Himself is the gift of life. John 3:16 openly states that because of the love of God for the world, He gave! He gave! Can we say it together? He gave!

To give is an act of offering a gift. God gave Christ to the world so that whoever trusts and commits their lives to Him, would not perish but have everlasting life! To be faithful unto Him.

How is this possible, it is by forgiveness! The giving of life. Christ made the great trade off. His life for ours! The gift was life, His life, the life of the Messiah. The life of a God, and that is what it took, no other way. No other sacrifice could have paid the price. No other sacrifice could be worth the amount of wages that sin had accrued throughout time and even into our future.

No, it took the death of a God to settle the delinquencies of mankind. The debt was too great and so great that all of creation, all of the universe, all of planet earth and all of it's inhabitants from Adam to the last child to be born one day, could not cover the obligation owed, other than death itself.

But the life of Christ was of greater value than the whole of creation. Therefore Christ gave up His life through death, that through His death, we might have life. Let's take another look at the character of forgiveness that manifested itself in Yahshua. The Lord would have us see in this next scripture just how easy it is for Him to forgive. He is willing and able at all times to show forth His great mercies.

Matthew 9:1-7 "And he entered into a ship, and passed over, and came into his own city. And, behold, they brought to him a man sick of the palsy, lying on a bed: and Yahshua seeing their faith said unto the sick of the palsy; Son, be of good cheer; your sins be forgiven you. And, behold, certain of the scribes said within themselves, This man blasphemes. And Yahshua knowing their thoughts said, Wherefore think you evil in your hearts? For whether is easier, to say, Your sins be forgiven you; or to say, Arise, and walk? But that you may know that the Son of man has power on earth to forgive sins, (then said he to the sick of the palsy,) Arise, take up your bed, and go unto your

house. And he arose, and departed to his house."

You know Christ our Lord uses psychology so often on the scribes and Pharisees and the religious leaders of His day. The faith of this sick individual brought the power of God into action. Christ saw their faith beyond the need for a physical healing. The greater need was for a spiritual healing, and before healing this man of this illness, He first forgave him of his sins.

Now the religious leaders spoke evil of Christ within themselves, but Christ being God in the flesh, knew what they were thinking and rebuked them for it. Messiah asked a simple question. What is easier, to say that sins be forgiven or to arise and walk? Christ showed them which was easier by doing the harder one. In other words, if He could perform the harder thing, then it was obvious that He could perform the easier thing. The harder thing was to command this man with the palsy to rise up and walk. Therefore it was an easy thing then to forgive him of his sins.

So to prove to these religious leaders that He had the power to forgive sins, He performed the harder miracle of healing the man with the palsy and he rose up and walked to his home. Brethren, it is easy for the Lord to forgive. It is easier for Him to forgive than it is for Him to heal an individual.

The entire chapter of Luke 15 deals with forgiveness and salvation and repentance. In this chapter we get glimpses into the heart of our God and how much He loves mankind and desires that all would one day come to repentance. He is more than willing to forgive. I can say that I’m glad of heart knowing that I was at one time lost, but now I have been found? Can you say the same?

Luke 15:1-10 "Then drew near unto him all the publicans and sinners for to hear him. And the Pharisees and scribes murmured, saying, This man receives sinners, and eats with them. And he spoke this parable unto them, saying, What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, does not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it? And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying unto them, Rejoice with me; for I have found my sheep which was lost. I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repents, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance. Either what woman having ten pieces of silver, if she lose one piece, does not light a candle, and sweep the house, and seek diligently till she find it? And when she has found it, she calls her friends and her neighbors together, saying, Rejoice with me; for I have found the piece which I had lost. Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repents."

Now this entire chapter came about due to the scribes and Pharisees murmuring against Yahshua for spending time with sinners and eating with them. But they didn't understand that Christ came to seek and to save those who are lost. So He spoke these parables to them, and they knew that he spoke a truth to them. They knew that if they had a hundred sheep and lost one, they would leave the 99 and go out looking for the one that was lost.

They knew that if they found the one that was lost that they would carry it and come rejoicing to their friends that they had found their lost sheep. The same went for the parable of the lost silver coin. In each instance though Christ was showing how much the Lord loves mankind and that when He calls out for one of His sheep that has went astray, and they repent and turn back to Him, that He and all of the heavenly angels rejoice with joy over a single sinner who repents.

God is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. He is so long-suffering toward us, if not He would have destroyed us long ago. But His mercy endures forever, and He is always ready for our return if we have fallen from the right way, that He might forgive.

Let's continue with Luke 15:11-32 "And he said, A certain man had two sons: And the younger of them said to his father, Father, give me the portion of goods that falls to me. And he divided unto them his living. And not many days after the younger son gathered all together, and took his journey into a far country, and there wasted his substance with riotous living. And when he had spent all, there arose a mighty famine in that land; and he began to be in want. And he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country; and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. And he would gladly have filled his belly with the husks that the swine did eat: and no man gave unto him. And when he came to himself, he said, How many hired servants of my father's have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger! I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before you, And am no more worthy to be called your son: make me as one of your hired servants. And he arose, and came to his father. But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him. And the son said unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in your sight, and am no more worthy to be called your son. But the father said to his servants, Bring forth the best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet: And bring hither the fatted calf, and kill it; and let us eat, and be merry: For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. And they began to be merry. Now his elder son was in the field: and as he came and drew nigh to the house, he heard music and dancing. And he called one of the servants, and asked what these things meant. And he said unto him, Your brother is come; and your father has killed the fatted calf, because he has received him safe and sound. And he was angry, and would not go in: therefore came his father out, and entreated him. And he answering said to his father, Lo, these many years do I serve you, neither transgressed I at any time your commandment: and yet you never gave me a kid, that I might make merry with my friends: But as soon as this your son was come, which has devoured your living with harlots, you have killed for him the fatted calf. And he said unto him, Son, you are ever with me, and all that I have is yours. It was meet that we should make merry, and be glad: for this your brother was dead, and is alive again; and was lost, and is found."

Now read between the lines, see the spiritual intent of the Lord's words. This entire parable has to do with one of His people who has gone astray and has went out into a sinful lifestyle. In verse 13, we have the departure, but the intent to leave God for the world was already upon his mind when He asked for his early share of the inheritance in verse 12.

But nevertheless, he went back out into the world, leaving the father behind. But in verse 14 it became obvious that the world had little to offer. Sin can be so enticing for a time, but eventually we hunger and thirst for righteousness. But pride so often keeps us from returning to God. So often we have to get to the very bottom of the pit of despair before we can come to our senses.

In this story, this young man got to where he was living with the swine and the food they were eating was better than anything that he was getting. He had hit rock bottom. And when you hit the bottom there is only one way to look and that is up!

When one of God's people goes astray, there are times in which God will allow them to wallow in their pig pen of worldliness to the point of being famished spiritually and sometimes physically before they can come to themselves and turn back to God.

And so the story goes on to say that he eventually realized his spiritual condition and returned to the Father and admitted that he had sinned. This is the baby steps toward repentance. Just like a drug addict or an alcoholic, they must first admit that they have a problem before they can begin to overcome it.

The sinner must first admit that they are a sinner and are in need of God. In verse 20, I get this impression that the Father had been awaiting the return of His wayward child, long before he came into sight. Our God is always wooing and calling for His people to come back to Him. Looking for the lost sheep who has gone astray.

But our stubbornness so often stands in the way, and the Lord will have to step to the side and allow us to get so mired down in the affairs of the world to where we eventually realize that we cannot make it on our own and must have God in our life and we are in need of a Savior, for our sins are too great a burden to bear without Him.

And so in this parable, the son came home to the Father with a repentant heart and the Father rejoiced that his child who was lost was now come back to him. But the elder son who had remained with the Father was out in the field and heard the merry making and the music and the dancing and didn't know what was going on.

He came to be angry and jealous over the fact that he had been faithful to the Father all those years and yet had not received such a reception as the young brother who had wasted his life and his inheritance. He told the Father that He had served Him and never once broke the commandments and never once had he been thrown such a party. And now the younger son had returned who had wasted his living with harlots, which we know to be spiritually the false churches of the world.

But the Father told the faithful son that he was ever with Him and everything that He has is as good as his, but that it was a right thing to do to be joyful and happy, since one of His children has come to their senses and has repented and returned to the Father.

You see, the Father had been waiting. He is always waiting for those who have left His ways to return. And He is ready to forgive. And it brings great joy in the heart of God and of the Angels when He can show forth His forgiveness to those who are presently lost and yet return to walking in His ways. Brethren, that is the character of our God. He is a forgiving God, it is part of His nature.

So what is our part to play in these matters? Remember, if we are claiming to be abiding in Christ, if we are claiming to be Christians, we had better walk as He walked. We had better be forgiving just as He is forgiving. That is a part of His character and it should now be a part of our character. If the Spirit of God is dwelling within us, then we should become a person who is long-suffering and full of mercy and forgiveness toward others, even to the point of loving our enemies.

Matthew 6:12-15 "And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For Yours is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen. For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses."

Here we have a very clear statement from Jesus that if we forgive those who have sinned against us or against God, then God will also forgive us of sinning against Him. But if we will not forgive others, then God is simply not obligated to forgive you and I. Therefore, forgiveness then becomes a requirement for our very salvation. In order that you and I be forgiven, we must also then forgive others.

Now we need to understand though that we must never think of ourselves to highly. We must not boast in our salvation, but rather to give thanks always for God calling us out of the darkness of this world and into the light of His Word. We must never forget just how great the forgiveness of the Lord is in our lives, and that we have a continual need for His mercy.

Brethren, we have been forgiven much, let's don't go about without gratitude in our hearts over the fact that Christ is our Savior and without Him we are nothing, without Him we are dead in our sins and without any hope. Without Him we just simply have no life.

Luke 7:36-50 "And one of the Pharisees desired him that he would eat with him. And he went into the Pharisee's house, and sat down to meat. And, behold, a woman in the city, which was a sinner, when she knew that Yahshua sat at meat in the Pharisee's house, brought an alabaster box of ointment, And stood at his feet behind him weeping, and began to wash his feet with tears, and did wipe them with the hairs of her head, and kissed his feet, and anointed them with the ointment. Now when the Pharisee which had bidden him saw it, he spoke within himself, saying, This man, if he were a prophet, would have known who and what manner of woman this is that touches him: for she is a sinner. And Yahshua answering said unto him, Simon, I have somewhat to say unto you. And he said, Master, say on. There was a certain creditor which had two debtors: the one owed five hundred pence, and the other fifty. And when they had nothing to pay, he frankly forgave them both. Tell me therefore, which of them will love him most? Simon answered and said, I suppose that he, to whom he forgave most. And he said unto him, You have rightly judged. And he turned to the woman, and said unto Simon, See you this woman? I entered into your house, you gave me no water for my feet: but she has washed my feet with tears, and wiped them with the hairs of her head. You gave me no kiss: but this woman since the time I came in has not ceased to kiss my feet. My head with oil you did not anoint: but this woman has anointed my feet with ointment. Wherefore I say unto you, Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much: but to whom little is forgiven, the same loves little. And he said unto her, Your sins are forgiven. And they that sat at meat with him began to say within themselves, Who is this that forgives sins also. And he said to the woman, Your faith has saved you; go in peace."

Brethren we have got to be very careful that we don't ever get to the point that we are a picture of Simon in this story. So puffed up with pride and unconcern for others that he wouldn't even allow a sinner to touch him. It is easy to become forgetful of just how forgiven we have been. Some have lost their first love and are in need of repentance. It is so refreshing to see a new born babe in Christ who really doesn't know much of anything concerning the ways of God yet.

But they are in spiritual love with Christ! Their forgiveness means something to them. They are contrite in spirit and their heart aches with pain over the realization that God loves them so much and yet they are not worthy to be forgiven. They know they are not worthy of such great mercy. They understand the depths of grace in their lives. Oh, knowledge is so imperative to have, but knowledge cannot save a man from his sin. Only Yahshua Messiah Himself can do it.

Church it is easy to become a Simon the Pharisee. To lose our first love. To just kind of settle in with the passing of time, to eventually becoming hard and ridged, not pliable and not moved by the Spirit as we once were.

The Apostle Paul warned the Church to not quench the Holy Spirit. But I fear that quite often that is just what many have done. The woman in this story, knew the depths of forgiveness that had been granted unto her. She desired one thing and one thing only, and that was to serve and worship and to admire and to love and to be thankful and to express her sincere gratitude for the mercy of God that had been bestowed upon her, a sinner in need of salvation, unworthy as she was, and yet accepted by Christ. She knew that she had been forgiven much. She knew it! Do we know it? Do we show it? Not unto each other or to those of the world. Not to show it to be seen of men. But do we show our gratitude unto the Lord our God? Then again, we must not neglect forgiving others.

I would suppose that if we can get a grip on the great weight of sin that has been lifted from us through the forgiveness of Christ, we can then be better able to understand our need to forgive others.

But until we truly grasp the greatness of our forgiveness, I'm not so sure that we would ever be able to honestly forgive others. We may say that we forgive, but ever so often the same situation would arise and suddenly find ourselves right in the midst of a heated contention and over something that we had previously spoke words of forgiveness for. So often grudges and quarrels or arguments or disputes and disagreements can and do create walls between people and sometimes last until their deaths.

I know of one family in my home town who were feuding over something many years ago. The dispute became so great that one part of the family actually changed the spelling of their last names so as not to be associated with the rest of the family.

Brethren, these things may be so among those of the world, but such things should not be named among the Church. And yet in almost every Church of God, there is some situation in the which tension and discord is having it's way in some way shape or form.

Ephesians 4:32 "And be you kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake has forgiven you."

Just as God has forgiven you and I, we to are to forgive one another and to be kind and tenderhearted. There is just no room among God's Church for anything otherwise. So then the question might be asked just how often or just how much should we forgive one another. I mean surely one would think that there is some limit to how much we can put up with forgiving someone.

The Apostle Peter, as one of Christ's disciples came to the Lord with just such a question. Let's look in at how the Lord answered Peter's question and then realize that we must apply the answer to our forgiveness of others as well.

Matthew 18:21-35 "Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times? Jesus said unto him, I say not unto you, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven. Therefore is the kingdom of heaven likened unto a certain king, which would take account of his servants. And when he had begun to reckon, one was brought unto him, which owed him ten thousand talents. But for as much as he had not to pay, his lord commanded him to be sold, and his wife, and children, and all that he had, and payment to be made. The servant therefore fell down, and worshipped him, saying, Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay you all. Then the lord of that servant was moved with compassion, and loosed him, and forgave him the debt. But the same servant went out, and found one of his fellow-servants, which owed him an hundred pence: and he laid hands on him, and took him by the throat, saying, Pay me that you owe. And his fellow-servant fell down at his feet, and besought him, saying, Have patience with me, and I will pay you all. And he would not: but went and cast him into prison, till he should pay the debt. So when his fellow-servants saw what was done, they were very sorry, and came and told unto their lord all that was done. Then his lord, after that he had called him, said unto him, O you wicked servant, I forgave you all that debt, because you desired me: Should not you also have had compassion on your fellow-servant, even as I had pity on you? And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due unto him. So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if you from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses."

So the Lord essentially told Peter to forgive always, never stop. Then He gave us the parable of the debtors. If you will study this parable, it becomes obvious that the Lord in this parable is a type of the Lord our God and the first debtor is you and I. Because we asked for mercy, although not worthy of receiving it, the Lord was more than willing to wipe our slate clean. All our debts were erased. Our sins or lawless lifestyles were blotted out and thrown into the depths of the sea. As far as the East is from the West. We were forgiven. But now since we were forgiven, we also are to forgive others.

But in this parable, the one who was forgiven, the one who was shown mercy, went out and was unforgiving and unmerciful to others. He was not tenderhearted and kind and compassionate to others, but instead did not show forth his gratitude for being forgiven by forgiving those who were indebted unto him.

Throughout the year but especially at Passover is a specific time of the year in which we are to examine ourselves. We are to allow the Spirit of God to search out all leavening in our lives. That we might be spiritually unleavened in the sight of God. Leavening is as hypocrisy, it is as ungodliness, it is as sin. It is as unforgiveness. It must be eradicated and replaced with the sincere Truth of God's Word. It must be replaced with gentleness and kindness and long-suffering and mercy. It must be replaced with the character of Christ.

Let us from this day and from this day forward, make it a primary goal in our lives to learn to forgive. Learn to have mercy. God is watching to see if we would be fit rulers in His kingdom. If we cannot show mercy and forgiveness now while in these puny powerless bodies, what kind of a tyrant would we be if we had our immortal bodies. Our God will not have another Lucifer. No He is seeking those who will trust in Him, those who will commit their lives unto Him, those who will walk as He walked.

Brethren, He is seeking those who like Him, are willing to forgive.

The Old Paths Restoration Ministry

PO Box 247

Marengo, IN 47140

Http://www.theoldpaths.net