Forgiving the Unrepentant
A few weeks ago, I preached from Matthew 18 about Jesus’ parable of the unforgiving servant, and a few of you have had some good follow-up questions since then. As we’ve probably all experienced, forgiving people who’ve wronged us can be really hard. Small slights may be easy to forgive, but sometimes the wounds we receive never fully heal, and then forgiveness can be incredibly difficult. That’s true even if the person who hurt us recognizes his sin, repents of it, and asks us for forgiveness. So, what do we do if the person who sins against us doesn’t repent and ask for forgiveness? What if he won’t admit his wrongdoing? Do we still have to forgive in situations like that? Does God?
These aren’t simple questions to answer—at least not for me. Nonetheless, this morning I’m going to try to address those questions because some of you have asked them. As we consider what God’s Word has to say about these things, let’s remember that our default posture and attitude toward one another has to be based in love. We cannot be like God if we do not love one another from the heart.
Digging Deeper:
- What does it mean to forgive?
- Is it necessary to repent in order to receive forgiveness? Explain.
- What’s the difference between forgiveness and reconciliation?
- Can you think of a time you forgave someone who didn’t ask for it or deserve it? Why did you forgive? How did you forgive? How did that experience impact your faith?
One Comment
Gregory A Blecich
Thank you so much for this teaching Pastor. Especially since it is born out of your own personal experiences. I can directly and immediately identify with the entirety of it. Because these,are,all things God has taught me as well over the decades.