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Sermons

Jesus' Healing Is First Forgiveness

September 24, 2017 Speaker: Mike McDonald Series: Jesus the Ultimate Physician

Topic: Jesus the Ultimate Physician Passage: Luke 5:17–26

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Preaching Text: Luke 5:17-26

This text recounts the amazing healing of a paralytic man who is lowered through a roof to get close to Jesus. Shocking everyone, Jesus first forgives the man’s sins, which generates a question. “Who can forgive sins but God alone?” Jesus can because he is the Son of God. He explains that it is easier to heal the man’s body than forgive his sins. That’s because there is always a cost when sin has been committed. Someone must absorb that cost. Forgiveness is “giving up the right to get even.” That makes forgiving someone a voluntary act of suffering. Jesus’ sacrificial death for our sins is the perfect example of this.

Because Jesus forgives us, we must forgive others.

The paralytic doesn’t explicitly repent, likely because he is still unaware how he has sinned against God. God’s willingness to forgive moves people into repentance. While forgiveness doesn’t require the offender to repent, reconciliation does. The reason Jesus came was to reconcile sinners to God. “Through Christ [God] reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation” (2 Corinthians 5:18). This is a great gift and a hard imposition on us. The Christian is able to forgive others, even enemies, because we have both humility and security. We are humble because the cross shows how grievous our own sins are against God. But we are secure in God’s love so we can absorb the cost of forgiving others.

In seeking reconciliation with an offending person, we must first count the cost in prayer, asking God to give us his love for this person. Then, we should treat the his/her as we would like to be treated:

  • Keep restoration of the relationship in mind (not just “fixing” someone).
  • Humbly own your part in the conflict, however small.
  • Ask the Holy Spirit to soften your heart so truth is bathed in love.      

Taking it home: Discuss why forgiveness is so difficult and why it is so important.

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