Session I The Spirituality of Forgiveness
Greetings
Open with Lord’s Prayer.
Note that forgiveness is the only human action in this prayer—forgiveness is a central element in the Christian faith.
Here’s a quote from Karl Barth, one of the greatest theologians of the 20th century.
“Is there not in the Christian faith yet something other than forgiveness of sins? It should be noticed that the Apostles’ Creed, speaking of Christian life in the present time, mentions only the forgiveness of sins…The forgiveness of sins is the basis, the sum, the criterion, of all that may be called Christian life or faith.”
(Karl Barth, 1960, The Faith of the Church: A Commentary on the Apostles’ Creed according to Calvin’s Cathecism)
In fact, forgiveness and compassion are universal values across all religions.
Where there is forgiveness, there is God Sikhism
The most beautiful thing a person can do is to forgive a wrong Judaism
Never is hate diminished by hatred; it is only diminished by love…This is an eternal law. Buddhism
Recompense injury with kindness Taoism
Forgive your servant seventy times a day Islam
“Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy times seven.” Christianity
Is Forgiveness a Universal Value?
“So whatever thou wish that one would do to you, do so to them….”Christianity
- Eightfold path of right views Buddhism Right View, Right Intention,Right Speech,Right Action, Right Livelihood, Right Effort, Right Mindfulness, Right Concentration
The eight steps of the path also support the three essential factors of Buddhist training — ethical conduct (sila), mental discipline (samadhi), and wisdom (prajna).
Buddhism.about.com
No one of you is a believer until he desires for his brother that which he desires for himself Islam
“Do not unto others what you do not wish that others do unto you” Judaism
Rabbi Hillel
“As one sows, so shall one reap” Hinduism
What does the Bible have to say about forgiveness?
In the Old Testament, sins committed against other people are also sins against God.
In the New Testament, sin is more than a series of acts, but a power influencing those acts against which human effort is futile. Hope for overcoming sin and its effects is based on the faith that God takes the initiative.
Forgiveness starts with God. In both the Old and New Testaments, the emphasis is on the forgiveness of God. In the New Testament, it becomes clear that human forgiveness becomes possible because God has forgiven and it is essential because our lives as God’s people must reflect God’s character. God’s forgiveness enables our forgiveness.
Col. 3:13 Bear with one another and if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each other; just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you must also forgive.
For the Christian, forgiveness is a non-negotiable. Jesus insisted on it “If you forgive others their transgressions, your heavenly Father will forgive you. But if you do not forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your transgressions” (Matthew 6:14-15). Jesus forgave unconditionally from the cross, “Father forgive them they know not what they do” (Luke 23:24). We are called to be like Christ and forgive generously and sincerely.
We are in the Year C, when we read the Gospel according to Luke, and in Luke, forgiveness is important.
This gospel mentions forgiveness both at the beginning and the end.
Zechariah (1:77)—“to give knowledge of salvation to his people by the forgiveness of sins”
Jesus’ commission to the disciples “repentance and forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem” (24:47)
In Acts, forgiveness is offered in Jesus’ name not just for the Jews, but for all nations.
Let’s look at the following scriptures.
(The following notes from The Bible on Forgiveness by Donald E. Gowan, Pickwick Publications, Eugene Oregon, 2010)
Mercy of God and Human Mercy (Luke 6:35-38)
Jesus connects forgiveness and healing (Mark 2:1-12)
This story appears near the beginning of all three of the synoptic gospels, introducing almost at the beginning of Jesus’ ministry the question of his relationship to divine forgiveness. In Jesus, somehow the very power of God was present on earth. The evangelists tell us what they want us to know, and they focus only on that. Their primary aim was to explain who Jesus was, and certain traditions about Jesus and forgiveness helped them to do that.
Luke 7:36-50
For Luke, what was important was evidence, in the traditions passed on to him, that Jesus forgave sins, meaning that in him the power of God was personally present on earth. This time, Jesus does not make the claim himself, but he dismisses the woman with a blessing containing words that are important for Luke: “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.” (vs 50)
Peace points to the new life that is open to her. The state of forgiveness is now called salvation, a term used of rescue from physical distress in the Old Testament, but no used of rescue from sin. The human contribution to the receipt of divine forgiveness is now called “faith.” Recall that Jesus was led to pronounce forgiveness over the paralytic “when he saw their faith.” Nothing has been said of repentance in either story, and it is not easy to see repentance as a part of what is meant by faith. It is not the repentance is unimportant for Luke. That, in these stories he has added a new element, which becomes more obvious in Acts. A personal relationship with Jesus Christ-faith-brings about a personal relationship with God the Father that transcends everything in one’s life that has damaged that relationship in the past.”
“Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.”
Lack of forgiveness leads to spiritual destruction: Parable of the Unforgiving Servant
Matthew 18:21-35
Give each student a 10” deflated balloon. Ask them to make a list of all the people who have hurt them in some way and with whom they are angry. For each person on his or her list blow a breath of air into the balloon. The more anger they feel, the more air they blow into the balloon. Pinch off the balloon opening after each breath. What can we learn from the balloons? What will happen to us if we don’t let go of the anger?
Forgiveness is good for your body, mind and spirit. You probably know that intuitively. There is plenty of research to prove that forgiveness helps heal the body and works in the brain to counteract the negative effects of anger.
This week and for the next four weeks, we are going to be working on how to develop the art of forgiveness. Remember I said earlier that when it comes to forgiveness, God takes the initiative, and when we are able to forgive someone that is a gift of grace from God, but there are things we can do to open ourselves to receive the grace to receive the ability to forgive someone who has hurt us.
To prepare for next week, let’s take the following quiz.
I. True – False Quiz
A) When you are trying to forgive you have to give up being angry. False
B) To forgive is to forget. False
C) To forgive means letting the person back into your life and hitting the reset button. False
D) Forgiveness is putting up with some behavior that is hurtful to you. False
E) You should wait until the person who hurt you apologizes before you forgive? False
F) Forgiveness says, “that’s okay,” when the person gives a reason for why they hurt you. False
G) Forgiveness means confronting the person with your anger and telling them how their behavior hurt you. False
H) Forgiveness is deciding to not get even with the person who hurt you. True
I) Forgiveness is accepting the person, warts and all. False
J) It is good to tell the story of what happened to you, over and over to vent your anger. False
K) Forgiveness is letting go of hard feelings and thoughts of revenge. True
L) Forgiveness is a one-time event; I forgive and move on. False
II. Quiz Review: Forgiveness Is Not
A) Condoning
B) Bypassing Justice
C) Forgetting
D) Giving In
E) Reconciliation
III. What Forgiveness Is
A) A decision to let go of resentment and thoughts of revenge. We cancel the emotional debt the other person owes us to free our self from destructive feelings. Religious people decide to accept God’s grace of forgiveness and extend it to others.
IV. Forgiveness is Difficult
A) Sign that forgiveness has happened is we feel differently. We can pray for the person rather than plan on how to get back at the person.
Were you surprised by the answers to the Quiz? Why or why not?
Reflect on the definition of forgiveness. What implication does this definition have for you and your relationships?
Next week—Why we don’t forgive. What are the major stumbling blocks we face when we find that we are having trouble forgiving someone?