The words "the forgiveness of sins" in
the Apostles' Creed are so important for Christian believers to
understand and live out that they cannot reflect the authenticity of
their faith, and that of the Church, without it, said Pastor Matt
Chandler of The Village Church in Texas, who is teaching his
congregation the meaning and relevance of the statement of faith through
a series of sermons.
As humans, we love others to get punished, and also love to watch them get punished, said Chandler in his message, "The Forgiveness of Sins."
"We live in a world where outrage is all the rage… We live in a punishment-obsessed world," he said, and added, "But for the people of God, this should not be so."
The Apostle's Creed is so designed that we first look at the doctrine and then its application in our lives, Chandler explained, and then said the forgiveness of sins is about the latter.
It has two points. One, that "God forgives." And two, that "the communion of saints becomes the platform on which the forgiveness of God is made visible to the world around us."
After Aaron built a golden calf in the absence of Moses and for the Israelites to worship, and when the people began to drink alcohol and possibly indulge in sexual acts, God could have destroyed them, but He didn't, the pastor told the congregation.
He read out Exodus 34:5-9, "Then the Lord came down in the cloud and stood there with him and proclaimed his name, the Lord. And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, 'The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation.' Moses bowed to the ground at once and worshipped. 'Lord,' he said, 'if I have found favour in your eyes, then let the Lord go with us. Although this is a stiff-necked people, forgive our wickedness and our sin, and take us as your inheritance.'"
The pastor then asked the congregation to ask themselves if they really believe that God is compassionate, gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.
As humans, we love others to get punished, and also love to watch them get punished, said Chandler in his message, "The Forgiveness of Sins."
"We live in a world where outrage is all the rage… We live in a punishment-obsessed world," he said, and added, "But for the people of God, this should not be so."
The Apostle's Creed is so designed that we first look at the doctrine and then its application in our lives, Chandler explained, and then said the forgiveness of sins is about the latter.
It has two points. One, that "God forgives." And two, that "the communion of saints becomes the platform on which the forgiveness of God is made visible to the world around us."
After Aaron built a golden calf in the absence of Moses and for the Israelites to worship, and when the people began to drink alcohol and possibly indulge in sexual acts, God could have destroyed them, but He didn't, the pastor told the congregation.
He read out Exodus 34:5-9, "Then the Lord came down in the cloud and stood there with him and proclaimed his name, the Lord. And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, 'The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation.' Moses bowed to the ground at once and worshipped. 'Lord,' he said, 'if I have found favour in your eyes, then let the Lord go with us. Although this is a stiff-necked people, forgive our wickedness and our sin, and take us as your inheritance.'"
The pastor then asked the congregation to ask themselves if they really believe that God is compassionate, gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.
Forgiveness is the ultimate expression of the Godhead in all He is," Chandler said, and defined
forgiveness as "releasing someone from their wrongs fully, freely and forever."
"What does God forgive us of?" he asked, and then answered through verse 7 in the passage: wickedness or iniquity, rebellion or transgression, and sin.
Iniquity is a premeditated choice that carries with it some continuing disregard for repentance, Pastor Chandler explained. We don't stumble into a murder or adultery; we commit these things because of our premeditated choice wherein we refuse to listen to our conscience or the Holy Spirit.
"God forgives this. You haven't gone too far," he said, explaining that it's a lie when we think we've gone too deep into a sin and cannot turn away from it. It's not too late, and God's forgiveness if available right now, he stressed.
Transgression, he explained, is a presumptuous sin, an arrogant sin. You decide in the moment you'd do it, it's when you give yourself to your appetites. You know it's a sin, but you don't care.
God forgives this, too, Chandler said. You've not gone too far; it's not too late, he repeated.
forgiveness as "releasing someone from their wrongs fully, freely and forever."
"What does God forgive us of?" he asked, and then answered through verse 7 in the passage: wickedness or iniquity, rebellion or transgression, and sin.
Iniquity is a premeditated choice that carries with it some continuing disregard for repentance, Pastor Chandler explained. We don't stumble into a murder or adultery; we commit these things because of our premeditated choice wherein we refuse to listen to our conscience or the Holy Spirit.
"God forgives this. You haven't gone too far," he said, explaining that it's a lie when we think we've gone too deep into a sin and cannot turn away from it. It's not too late, and God's forgiveness if available right now, he stressed.
Transgression, he explained, is a presumptuous sin, an arrogant sin. You decide in the moment you'd do it, it's when you give yourself to your appetites. You know it's a sin, but you don't care.
God forgives this, too, Chandler said. You've not gone too far; it's not too late, he repeated.
Sin, in its
basic meaning, is to miss the mark. It's failing to do something that
you know is right. Iniquity and transgression could sit under the
umbrella of sin, he explained.
God
forgives this, too, Chandler added. There's no sin in your life that God
cannot forgive or does not desire to forgive. "You haven't gone too
far; He already sees and knows; it's paid for. Take the offer of
forgiveness because God is serious about sin."
He added: "God hates sin with a kind of wrath that's hard to get our heads around." Because God loves us so much, He hates sin so much, because sin harms us so much, he explained.
Though our children do not have to give account for our sins, they are affected by our sins, the pastor warned. "Sin carries with it collateral damage. When you sin against God, you also sin against others."
Forgiveness of sins is equally about community, not just about you and the Lord, Chandler stressed. There are communal ramifications of sin. "People of God are never so authentic as when they confess their sins to one another, and they forgive one another. It's a stage on which God's forgiveness is seen and marveled at."
He went on to state, "The real church forgives. The people of God forgive because they've been forgiven."
Forgiving others is a command, and not forgiving amounts to an attempt to play a just God, which we are not, he said.
Some wounds can be so deep that forgiveness could seem impossible, Pastor Chandler admitted, and said that God would eventually strengthen those who are experiencing that, and free them from that state.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer called forgives "a breakthrough to community," Chandler told the congregation, and quoted him, "In a very real way, forgiveness is not just about absolving guilt, but is also a reminder of what communion with God and with one another can and should be."
The megachurch pastor concluded the sermon by saying that God is like the God in the parable of the prodigal son in the Gospel of Luke in the New Testament.
Read more at http://www.christianpost.com/news/megachurch-pastor-matt-chandler-forgiveness-apostles-creed-149996/#huYisfhljZpaXJei.99
He added: "God hates sin with a kind of wrath that's hard to get our heads around." Because God loves us so much, He hates sin so much, because sin harms us so much, he explained.
Though our children do not have to give account for our sins, they are affected by our sins, the pastor warned. "Sin carries with it collateral damage. When you sin against God, you also sin against others."
Forgiveness of sins is equally about community, not just about you and the Lord, Chandler stressed. There are communal ramifications of sin. "People of God are never so authentic as when they confess their sins to one another, and they forgive one another. It's a stage on which God's forgiveness is seen and marveled at."
He went on to state, "The real church forgives. The people of God forgive because they've been forgiven."
Forgiving others is a command, and not forgiving amounts to an attempt to play a just God, which we are not, he said.
Some wounds can be so deep that forgiveness could seem impossible, Pastor Chandler admitted, and said that God would eventually strengthen those who are experiencing that, and free them from that state.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer called forgives "a breakthrough to community," Chandler told the congregation, and quoted him, "In a very real way, forgiveness is not just about absolving guilt, but is also a reminder of what communion with God and with one another can and should be."
The megachurch pastor concluded the sermon by saying that God is like the God in the parable of the prodigal son in the Gospel of Luke in the New Testament.
Read more at http://www.christianpost.com/news/megachurch-pastor-matt-chandler-forgiveness-apostles-creed-149996/#huYisfhljZpaXJei.99
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