Romans 12:9-21
We have a lot of angry people in this world. I mean a lot of them. People angry for this reason or that. People angry because they got up on the wrong side of the bed, their favorite cereal had all been eaten, people angry about something that has been done to them, angry about something that has been done to someone they love or know, or people who are angry because they like to be angry.
The main reason we are angry is because we don’t know how to forgive.
I was scrolling through the TV guide the other day and I saw yet another judge show. People’s Court-type thing, not American Kennel club or American Idol. I’m fascinated with how many judge shows there are that are on TV. I still can’t get over that there is one station that runs almost three hours of “judge shows” right in a row. The show in question this week was called “Eye for an Eye.” It was a judge show about getting even with someone who had done them wrong.
I just want to say that if we truly believe that we are a Christian nation, then a show called “An Eye for an Eye” would not be airing on a Christian network. Aside from running a half hour program running down the Top Ten Gods that are better than Yahweh/Jehovah, you can’t get more un-Christian than a show called “An Eye for an Eye.”
Let’s remember what Jesus says in Matthew 5. He says, “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I say to you, do not resist an evildoer. But if anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other also; and if anyone wants to sue you and take your coat, give your cloak as well; and if anyone forces you to go one mile, go also the second mile. Give to everyone who begs from you, and do not refuse anyone who wants to borrow from you.”[1]
To me, that’s pretty blatant. I’m not the smartest person in the world by far, but it’s pretty cut and dry that Jesus condemns the practice of getting even.
Why would God do this? Why would God first establish 2,000 years of Mosaic Law that was based on this notion of getting even, only to undo it in one fell swoop through Jesus?
It’s about mercy.
Jesus came to help people understand more about God’s love than what they knew in Scripture and the Law. Under those early laws, God had allowed people to take revenge that was equal to the harm that had been done to them. Thus, “an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.” But God does away with that. He says, “No more!”
Why? Well, I’ll ask God when I meet him in heaven. I have no idea, but I’ll venture a guess. Human nature is such that when we are hurt, when we are angry, and we are given an opportunity to exact a revenge that was equal to the harm that was done to us, then we usually don’t stop with an equal and opposite reaction. No, we usually take it a step or two further than we should – call it interest.
I remember in elementary and Jr. High when I or one of my buddies would “accidentally” hit the other, the one who got hit would get to take a swing at the one who punched first. But it never failed that whoever got to hit back would always hit harder than he got hit, so the other would hit him, and so on and so on until someone else had to break it up. There would have never been an end to it, because both of the guys wanted to get in the last hit, and they wanted their punch to hurt the worst. An equal repayment of the hurt was never in their minds.
In many ways that’s where Jewish Law stood after 2,000 years of practice. It had been reduced to nothing much more than a bunch of boys on a playground. The Holy Law had been manipulated so that the repayment of hurt was no longer equal, but selective and oppressive. In addition to that, the Romans were oppressing the Jews and treating them unfairly, so therefore, the ones on power would turn and hurt the ones who were under them. The “punching on the playground” began to cycle out of control.
And that’s really what anger and violence is anyway, isn’t it? A continuation of the cycle of someone wanting to pay back the hurt that had been done to them. It’s in our human nature to want to get even. It’s one thing to say that we forgive, but we still feel hurt, we still feel pain. And, in a very real part, forgiveness isn’t really that fair is it?
We prayed earlier this morning that God “forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.” We’re not talking about our neighbor who parks his car on our freshly mown grass here, we’re talking about the people who have hurt us – just as we have hurt others.
It’s hard to forgive when we are hurting. When the pain is fresh or when it has festered for years, it’s hard for us to not remember someone who has done us wrong.
In Pastoral Counseling, one of the ideas that we talked about is that most people operate using a ledger system. Essentially we keep a list in our heads of all the bad things that have been done, and at any time we are ready to rattle off all those times that someone has done us wrong. I’m sure you know people who are professionals at that. Men, stop thinking about your wives, because you do it too. We all do it, the instant we get into an argument, all of the things that we have kept stored up in our minds come out and the avalanche begins.
But even then, once we get through with our litany of sins against us, we still hold on to them. We may have gotten them out there on the table, but we still hold on to them – ‘cause we know that we’ll have to use them again. So on and on it goes as we remember all of the bad things that happen to us.
So break the cycle. You have the power to put an end to the cycle of hurt and pain that exists in your own life. You’re tired of hurting, tired of being angry, tired of other people being angry at you? Why don’t you tear up the list? Get rid of it. Put to rest those things that we’re holding on to that we’re waiting to use against someone at any time.
Why? Why should we do this? Why should we be the ones who have to give up our quest for vengeance and blood thirst? Why not the other guy? Because Jesus did it first for us.
Of the many things that Jesus came to do, the most important of his works was to show us that God’s love was so genuine for us that no matter who we are or what we had done – we are forgiven. In the name of Jesus Christ, you are forgiven!
Jesus came to break the cycle. That’s the first reason that we forgive. It’s not fair, I know. But if you want a fair religion, try Buddhism or Hinduism, theirs is a theology based on getting even through karma and reincarnation. But the Christian faith isn’t easy. It’s hard. But it’s the best way to break that chain that can go on and on.
We forgive because God has forgiven us first. We forgive because God has forgiven us before we have forgiven ourselves. We forgive because we have been told.
A Sunday School teacher had just concluded her lesson and wanted to make sure she had made her point. She said, “Can anyone tell me what you must do before you can obtain forgiveness of sin?” There was a short pause and then, from the back of the room, a small boy spoke up. “Sin,” he said.
Before I close, I want to make sure that you know I’m not talking about the abuse of the idea of forgiveness. I’m sure Laura will touch on that when she shares with us about domestic violence. But what I am talking about is making those first steps toward finding wholeness in God and in yourself.
I will leave you with this verse from Romans 12:19. Paul is giving a number of commands and instructions on living and at the end he says, “Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God’s anger, for it is written: ‘It is mine to avenge; I will repay,’ says God. Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”
“In the final analysis, forgiveness is an act of faith. It is the belief that God can take care of the fairness problems. It is not fair just to pretend that something doesn’t happen. It did happen. It still hurts. It still stings. Forgiveness is not fair, but forgiveness is a way of taking that burden from us and giving it to God who is fair. “I will avenge,” says the Lord. You forgive. It breaks the cycle of relationships. It breaks the stranglehold on you and on me and it is what God did for us in his Son Jesus on the cross.”[2]
[1] Matthew 5:38-42 NRSVThe main reason we are angry is because we don’t know how to forgive.
I was scrolling through the TV guide the other day and I saw yet another judge show. People’s Court-type thing, not American Kennel club or American Idol. I’m fascinated with how many judge shows there are that are on TV. I still can’t get over that there is one station that runs almost three hours of “judge shows” right in a row. The show in question this week was called “Eye for an Eye.” It was a judge show about getting even with someone who had done them wrong.
I just want to say that if we truly believe that we are a Christian nation, then a show called “An Eye for an Eye” would not be airing on a Christian network. Aside from running a half hour program running down the Top Ten Gods that are better than Yahweh/Jehovah, you can’t get more un-Christian than a show called “An Eye for an Eye.”
Let’s remember what Jesus says in Matthew 5. He says, “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I say to you, do not resist an evildoer. But if anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other also; and if anyone wants to sue you and take your coat, give your cloak as well; and if anyone forces you to go one mile, go also the second mile. Give to everyone who begs from you, and do not refuse anyone who wants to borrow from you.”[1]
To me, that’s pretty blatant. I’m not the smartest person in the world by far, but it’s pretty cut and dry that Jesus condemns the practice of getting even.
Why would God do this? Why would God first establish 2,000 years of Mosaic Law that was based on this notion of getting even, only to undo it in one fell swoop through Jesus?
It’s about mercy.
Jesus came to help people understand more about God’s love than what they knew in Scripture and the Law. Under those early laws, God had allowed people to take revenge that was equal to the harm that had been done to them. Thus, “an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.” But God does away with that. He says, “No more!”
Why? Well, I’ll ask God when I meet him in heaven. I have no idea, but I’ll venture a guess. Human nature is such that when we are hurt, when we are angry, and we are given an opportunity to exact a revenge that was equal to the harm that was done to us, then we usually don’t stop with an equal and opposite reaction. No, we usually take it a step or two further than we should – call it interest.
I remember in elementary and Jr. High when I or one of my buddies would “accidentally” hit the other, the one who got hit would get to take a swing at the one who punched first. But it never failed that whoever got to hit back would always hit harder than he got hit, so the other would hit him, and so on and so on until someone else had to break it up. There would have never been an end to it, because both of the guys wanted to get in the last hit, and they wanted their punch to hurt the worst. An equal repayment of the hurt was never in their minds.
In many ways that’s where Jewish Law stood after 2,000 years of practice. It had been reduced to nothing much more than a bunch of boys on a playground. The Holy Law had been manipulated so that the repayment of hurt was no longer equal, but selective and oppressive. In addition to that, the Romans were oppressing the Jews and treating them unfairly, so therefore, the ones on power would turn and hurt the ones who were under them. The “punching on the playground” began to cycle out of control.
And that’s really what anger and violence is anyway, isn’t it? A continuation of the cycle of someone wanting to pay back the hurt that had been done to them. It’s in our human nature to want to get even. It’s one thing to say that we forgive, but we still feel hurt, we still feel pain. And, in a very real part, forgiveness isn’t really that fair is it?
We prayed earlier this morning that God “forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.” We’re not talking about our neighbor who parks his car on our freshly mown grass here, we’re talking about the people who have hurt us – just as we have hurt others.
It’s hard to forgive when we are hurting. When the pain is fresh or when it has festered for years, it’s hard for us to not remember someone who has done us wrong.
In Pastoral Counseling, one of the ideas that we talked about is that most people operate using a ledger system. Essentially we keep a list in our heads of all the bad things that have been done, and at any time we are ready to rattle off all those times that someone has done us wrong. I’m sure you know people who are professionals at that. Men, stop thinking about your wives, because you do it too. We all do it, the instant we get into an argument, all of the things that we have kept stored up in our minds come out and the avalanche begins.
But even then, once we get through with our litany of sins against us, we still hold on to them. We may have gotten them out there on the table, but we still hold on to them – ‘cause we know that we’ll have to use them again. So on and on it goes as we remember all of the bad things that happen to us.
So break the cycle. You have the power to put an end to the cycle of hurt and pain that exists in your own life. You’re tired of hurting, tired of being angry, tired of other people being angry at you? Why don’t you tear up the list? Get rid of it. Put to rest those things that we’re holding on to that we’re waiting to use against someone at any time.
Why? Why should we do this? Why should we be the ones who have to give up our quest for vengeance and blood thirst? Why not the other guy? Because Jesus did it first for us.
Of the many things that Jesus came to do, the most important of his works was to show us that God’s love was so genuine for us that no matter who we are or what we had done – we are forgiven. In the name of Jesus Christ, you are forgiven!
Jesus came to break the cycle. That’s the first reason that we forgive. It’s not fair, I know. But if you want a fair religion, try Buddhism or Hinduism, theirs is a theology based on getting even through karma and reincarnation. But the Christian faith isn’t easy. It’s hard. But it’s the best way to break that chain that can go on and on.
We forgive because God has forgiven us first. We forgive because God has forgiven us before we have forgiven ourselves. We forgive because we have been told.
A Sunday School teacher had just concluded her lesson and wanted to make sure she had made her point. She said, “Can anyone tell me what you must do before you can obtain forgiveness of sin?” There was a short pause and then, from the back of the room, a small boy spoke up. “Sin,” he said.
Before I close, I want to make sure that you know I’m not talking about the abuse of the idea of forgiveness. I’m sure Laura will touch on that when she shares with us about domestic violence. But what I am talking about is making those first steps toward finding wholeness in God and in yourself.
I will leave you with this verse from Romans 12:19. Paul is giving a number of commands and instructions on living and at the end he says, “Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God’s anger, for it is written: ‘It is mine to avenge; I will repay,’ says God. Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”
“In the final analysis, forgiveness is an act of faith. It is the belief that God can take care of the fairness problems. It is not fair just to pretend that something doesn’t happen. It did happen. It still hurts. It still stings. Forgiveness is not fair, but forgiveness is a way of taking that burden from us and giving it to God who is fair. “I will avenge,” says the Lord. You forgive. It breaks the cycle of relationships. It breaks the stranglehold on you and on me and it is what God did for us in his Son Jesus on the cross.”[2]
[2] Phillip Yancey. “Forgiveness: It just ain’t fair” http://www.csec.org/csec/sermon/yancey_3622.htm
0 comments:
Post a Comment