Church Sermon - September 7, 2008

FORGIVEN AND FORGIVING

Rev. Mark F. Bartels

Old Testament Lesson; Romans 14:5-9
Epistle Lesson; Matthew 18:21-35
Sermon Text; Genesis 50:15-21

Chuck Norris is a 68-year-old martial artist turned actor. Back in the 70's and 80's, he starred in movies that had to do with vengeance, getting even, or were pay-back movies like "Eye for Eye" or "Silent Rage" or "Forced Vengeance." Even though these movies were made a couple of decades ago, for some reason, among the youth culture, he has gained an resurgence of an almost cult status, where he represents someone who is almost an unstoppable force.

As a result, there are massive numbers of internet searches for Chuck Norris. There are Chuck Norris tee-shirts that you can buy. You can buy Chuck Norris posters. There has even been a whole body of jokes developed about Chuck Norris that have to do with his strength, his fierceness, and his power. To the point that, last spring, when Mike Huckabee was running for president, Chuck Norris actually endorsed Mike Huckabee as president. Chuck Norris and Mike Huckabee made a Youtube video together! On this Youtube video, Chuck Norris was endorsing Mike Huckabee. And, Mike Huckabee was telling Chuck Norris jokes. Here is how some of them went.

Mike Huckabee said, "My plan to secure the border...two words...Chuck Norris."

He said, "When Chuck Norris does push ups, he does not actually push himself up, he actually pushes the earth down."

One of my favorites is, "Some people wear Superman pajamas. Superman wears Chuck Norris pajamas."

Here is a tee-shirt, a Chuck Norris tee-shirt that has a bunch of Chuck Norris jokes on it. I like this one! "Chuck Norris does not leave messages. He leaves warnings."

This one says, "When the boogie man goes to sleep every night, he checks his closet for Chuck Norris."

But, it is all about vengeance. It is all about getting even. And the entertainment industry had developed a multibillion industry with movies that have to do with bearing grudges, vengeance, and getting even. And while it may be funny and entertaining in the movies, in real life, bearing a grudge, carrying out vengeance, getting even, and paying back is not funny. And, it is not at all entertaining. I heard a pastor once describe it. He saw somebody leash a Doberman to a park bench. Something frightened this Doberman. You could see the whites of his eyes, and he was baring his teeth. This frightened Doberman took off with such torque that his leash came with him and he actually ripped that park bench out of its moorings in the concrete. As he was dragging this park bench, along behind him, he was running into cars, bashing them, and creating damage wherever he went.

When you have been done a wrong, and you don't let that go, and you don't forgive that, you carry it with you throughout life and create all kinds of collateral damage in your life, and in other people's lives. It is like the unmerciful person in today's parable that Jesus was talking about. He had an unforgiving heart. And, what did he do? He went up to the man who owed him money, and he began to choke the life out of him! To bear a grudge, to be unforgiving, to want to pay back, because someone has done you a wrong is a corrosive thing that eats into your personality and it changes who you are. It makes you into a bitter person. Not only does it hurt you, but it certainly hurts those around you. Just go into somebody's home, where a child is bearing a grudge against a parent because a parent has punished that child. Or, just go into a home where a spouse is bearing a grudge against their spouse because they have been wronged. You can see the intensity, the distress, and the trouble that come from an unforgiving heart that still bears resentment, rage, and bitterness because, "I have been done wrong. I ought to pay you back."

But, that is not the type of people our Lord Jesus wants us to be. Our Lord Jesus wants us to be forgiving people. I want you to consider this. What if God was the type of God that He bore a grudge against you? You know, God could rightly and justly bear a grudge against you, for all of the sins that you have committed against Him. Rightly and justly, God could, if He wanted to, get even with you and pay you back. And, what God could do would make what Chuck Norris can do look like a Sunday School picnic. Our Lord Jesus said,

"Don't fear the one who can destroy your body.

Fear the one who can destroy

both body and soul

in Hell."

If God wanted to reek his vengeance against you, because of your sin…why it would be terrifying! What if God were the type of God who would just dangle His mercy over you, just out of reach? And, you did not know if He would ever give that mercy to you, because He is a God of vengeance and getting even? That would be a terrifying thing for us, wouldn't it?

But, is that the type of God that we have? No! Look at the type of God we have. Look at what He is and who He is. You see that cross lying on the ground, that rough cross. And now, you see them lay our God, with His shredded back that has been whipped, look at them lay Him on that cross. Now, look as they take those spikes, with those pointed ends, and they put those spikes at the very wrists of God, our Savior, Jesus. If there is ever a picture where there should be "silent rage," if there is ever a picture where there should be "forced vengeance," it is here.

Now watch as they lift up those sledges and they drive those stakes into the wrists of our Savior. Imagine the searing pain that goes through Him. And what does our Savior cry out? He cries out,

Look at the God we have. Our God is not a god of payback. He is not a god of vengeance. He is not a god of getting even with you.

Our God, in His mercy, bore our sins on the cross in His body for all people, no matter who you are. The Bible says,

The blood of Christ has forgiven all of your sins. Our God is a forgiving God. Look at what He has done for us. Look at how, through baptism, He distributes that forgiveness to us.

Look at how, through the Lord's Supper, in mercy and goodness delivers that forgiveness to us.

Look at the mercy of God, through the spoken Word. He declares to us that our sins are forgiven. What a merciful God we have! That is the kind of God that we have!

There was a church father from the Middle Ages who once said this about the forgiveness of sins, about the mercies of God. He said the mercies of God, the forgiveness of sins, (that is the Gospel), is an assimilating power. I like that.

And, he went on to explain what he meant. He said, "When the Gospel comes into the heart of a person, when the forgiveness of sins, through Christ, comes into the heart of a person, it has such power that it automatically changes that person's heart so that person wants to be forgiving, as Christ is forgiving."

Another church father described it this way. He said that it's like a mountaintop where the snow is melting. That water is rushing down the sides of the mountain. It is like the forgiveness of sin that flows, the mercy of God that flows from Christ, our Savior, through His blood on the cross. It flows down the mountainside to this dry lake bed, (which is us, in need of the forgiveness of sins), being refreshed by the forgiveness of sins. And that mercy of God flows into our hearts, through Christ, through His Word, and Sacraments. And, it fills us with the forgiveness of sins. But, when that lake becomes full, that water needs to go some place else. It just naturally needs to find itself going some place else. And so it is with the forgiveness of sins. When our hearts are filled with the forgiveness of sins, through Christ, they just naturally want to overflow and forgive those who have sinned against us.

Our Lord Jesus taught us to pray,

In today’s parable, Jesus told about the unmerciful servant. The parable shows us that if you profess a faith in the forgiveness of sins that Christ has won for you, but you, yourself, are not forgiving, then you truly do not have any genuine faith in the forgiveness of sins, at all. How can we not, how can we not, when we know the mercies of God in our own life, and the great pile of sins, the body of sins that our Savior has forgiven against us, how can we not forgive those who sin against us? Look at Stephen, when he was being stoned, and rocks were hitting his head and his body. What a great injustice was being done to him! And yet, knowing he had been forgiven by his Savior, look at what flowed from his mouth. He said,

"Lord, do not hold this sin against them!"

Those are the words of forgiveness.

Look at Joseph, in today's text. His brothers had done him a terrible wrong and sold him into slavery. When they came to him, they were terrified that Joseph would now get even with them, because their father was dead. What did Joseph say? He had a forgiving heart. He said, "Am I in the place of God?" Should I do something different than God would do to you? God forgives and I forgive.

Our Savior forgives us, and that causes us to have forgiving hearts against those who sin against us.

There is another powerful teaching in today's scripture reading regarding forgiveness. Carrying a grudge is all about getting even. It is all about pay back. It is all about the fact, "You hurt me. You did me wrong. You brought pain, suffering, and trouble into my life. Now, I am going to get you back. I am going pay you back. I am going to get even." But, in today's scripture reading, it just turns things radically upside down for Christians. Here is what a Christian knows. A Christian understands this. "Not only are my sins forgiven in Christ, but I have this awesome promise from God." And the awesome promise from God is this.

What does that mean? That means that although God could have stopped Joseph's brothers from selling him into slavery, God did not stop that. Although God could have stopped Joseph from being falsely accused by Potiphar's wife and suffering many years in prison, God did not stop that. But, what God did do was, while he permitted people to do evil things to Joseph, He intended it for his good. Joseph said to his brothers, "You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good." What Joseph was saying is, "No matter what wicked, evil thing you could do to me, God will use it for my good." In the case of Joseph, eventually, it enabled Joseph to save the lives of his very brothers who had sought his death, and so, preserve the line of the Messiah who was to come – our Savior!

I had a wrestling coach who used to say this. "Why spend time getting even, when you can get ahead?"

Christians, we don't have anything to get even for. When somebody does me wrong, there is nothing for me to get even for, because the Lord will take that and He will work it out for my good. I am going to get ahead. He will work it out for my good. If you do me wrong, I know that God promises that will work out for my good. It may make me more humble. It may strengthen me in my faith. It may make me better able to serve others. But, what an awesome ability Christians have to forgive, because Christ forgave us. And no matter what wrong you do to me, I know the Lord is going to work that out for my good. So, I have no reason to get even with you.

Then, forgiveness is a state of the heart, where a Christian says, "I know my Savior has forgiven me, therefore, I want to be forgiving."

Along with that go actions. In this case, Joseph, who forgave his brothers, did what they didn't deserve and he said, "I will provide for you and your children." Forgiving people, who have been forgiven in Christ, determine in their hearts, they make the choice for Christ's sake to say, "I will not hold your sins against you. I will treat you the way you do not deserve. I will be kind and I will bless you."

You know, it is true that God certainly grants earthly blessings to His people, as well. You will find that often the people who are very forgiving, the people who are very compassionate, the people who are very kind, often have very happy lives. They have happy relationships at home. They have happy relationships at work.

I want to close with this thought. If you drive down highway 12 to Sauk Prairie, you could go to the Wollersheim Winery where they have these beautiful grapevines growing on a hillside. And, if you would ask them if you could cut one of those grapevines, and they did give you permission, you could bring it back here and then take it to a laboratory to do some testing. You would discover that the same fluid that runs through the vine, also runs through the branches, through the little stems, and all of the way to the grapes. Christ is the vine. And from Christ flows the free and full forgiveness of sins. You are the branch who has been grafted in. That forgiveness of sins is in you, by the power of the Holy Spirit. That flows out of us and produces fruits, the beautiful fruits of forgiving others. Our Lord Jesus loves to go into His vineyard. He loves to walk through His vineyard, the Holy Christian Church. He loves to see the fruits, the luscious fruits of faith that are produced in His people, forgiving people!

Amen.

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