| You are here: Home >> Salvation, Sin and Judgment >> Salvation |
[Note: These worksheets are intended to be used with the outline about forgiveness.]
To the OUTLINE about Forgiveness
Note that the focus of these questions is on our forgiveness of another person. The same questions could just as easily be asked about God's forgiveness of us.
Does FORGIVENESS mean... (Yes or No)
_____________ 1. You understand why the person did what he did. _____________ 2. You have forgotten that the person sinned against you. _____________ 3. You choose to ignore his sins, or avoid dealing with them. _____________ 4. You choose to tolerate his sins, because you see other things that are good in his life. _____________ 5. You let him get away with his sins.
What is forgiveness?
Can a person be forgiven, if he is unwilling to turn from his sins?
If we forgive someone, does that mean he doesn't have to pay the consequences of his sins?
Can you be saved, and yet be unwilling to forgive people who sin against you?
Dennis Hinks © 2004
What do these words mean? (Match the words with the definitions.)
|
|
Think About It...
Can we be forgiven, if we are unwilling to have these attitudes and actions in our lives?
Dennis Hinks © 2004
You may wish to think through the answers without writing them down. If you wish to write something down, you should either destroy it after you have decided how you are going to
respond, or make sure you take the paper with you, when you leave.
Think about some of the people who have seriously wronged you. What did they do?
How did you respond (when it happened)? Was it the way Jesus would have responded? Or
was it the way the devil would have responded? (If it was the second type of
response, you have sinned against them. This is a second issue that you will need to deal with, but it is not our present focus.)
Have you forgiven them? You will need to take into consideration what
"forgiveness" is - which we have examined in previous parts of this study. (It
doesn't mean pretending the sin didn't occur, or that it doesn't hurt, etc!) In
some instances, if those who sinned against you are unwilling to receive forgiveness (which would require them to admit
that they did wrong), you
may have to just focus on your willingness to forgive them. (God knows your heart attitude.)
If you are willing to forgive them, is there anything you are going to have to do? If so, what? (There may be
things you have to do or say. Or if you have sinned against them - perhaps in response to what they did - you
may have to acknowledge your sin to them and ask them to forgive you.)
Take into consideration: (1) the verses you looked at, as part of this study and (2) your response to those who
sinned against you. Based on both of these, what does Jesus say about his forgiveness of your sins?
When you find it difficult to forgive others, remember this:
"My sins against God
are BIG; their sins against me are LITTLE."
Dennis Hinks © 2004
INTRODUCTION (Goes with PART 1)
"Forgiveness - What Is It?"
The answer for all the questions is "NO" - though in some instances the description may be a part of forgiveness.
It is not necessary to reach the "final" answers to all the questions right now. You may prefer to discuss the questions and leave them "open-ended," with the intention of looking for the answers during the series of lessons that follow.
A comment about "forgetting" sins: God, from the perspective of his sovereignty, cannot forget anything. He is all-knowing. But from the perspective of the way he interacts with us (on the human level), it is as though our sins never existed. Once forgiven, he will never bring up the issue again.
Conditions for forgiveness
For those who have been sinned against: There must be a willingness to forgive, regardless of how the other person responds. God says we must be willing to forgive!
For those who have committed the sin: Before genuine forgiveness can be received, there must be: (1) a willingness to acknowledge the sin; (2) a willingness repent of it; and (3) an intention to not repeat the offense. Yet though these things are required, they do not cause the forgiveness! (Forgiveness must be freely offered by the one who is forgiving.)
Note that the intention to not repeat an offense is not a guarantee that it will never happen again. But the person doesn't want it to happen again, and will at least try to not do it again. He won't be planning to repeat the offense!
Forgiveness doesn't mean a denial of justice. Someone has to pay for the wrongs committed. For example, Jesus had to pay for the sins committed against God, in order for us to be forgiven.
PART 1
What can/cannot be forgiven?
"Blasphemy of the Spirit" is a frequently misunderstood concept. This is why I have included extended comments about it.
Hidden sins are serious enough that we need forgiveness for them! We must be ready to repent, any time we become aware of one.
PART 2
The examples found in Scripture are given to teach us how to live (or how not to live, if given as a bad example). They aren't merely "suggestions" that we can ignore, if we desire.
PART 3
Our responsibility vs. God's role in salvation: People tend to "polarize" to extremes, emphasizing the one and neglecting the other. Both are important; they are like parallel concepts. They are like boundaries that keep us from wandering off the "straight and narrow," into the realm of half-truths and error.
Concepts (Goes with PART 3)
The "multiple choice" quiz is intended to be a help for learning the various concepts related to forgiveness. Some of the concepts may be easy to understand, but some tend to be misunderstood by most people. The answers to the questions:
1b, 2f, 3a, 4c, 5d, 6e
Note that some may be confused about the differences between repentance and conversion. Repentance focuses on the idea of "changing"; conversion focuses on "turning around."
Stress the fact that these requirements are not optional.
PART 4 / Worksheet
The worksheet provides an opportunity for people to focus on application of what was learned in Part 4. If anything is written down on paper, encourage them to not leave the paper laying around. They may need to deal with some sin in their lives, but there is no need to advertise it, by leaving the paper where others can read it!
PART 5
The concept of being BLESSED: Blessedness is a condition of the heart that transcends circumstances. It is more than mere happiness or pleasant conditions. A look through Scripture will reveal that a righteous person is blessed, even when life gets rough.
The idea of "forgiving oneself": Sometimes people continue to "live in the past," when God has offered to give them a new beginning. There is no legitimate reason for a person to dwell on past sins, and to be unwilling to move past those things, in Christ.
Dennis Hinks © 2005
050204