Before? Yes, before!

TOPIC: Forgiving Others


SCRIPTURE: "For we also once were foolish ourselves, disobedient, deceived, enslaved to various lusts and pleasures, spending our life in malice and envy, hateful, hating one another.
BUT
when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared, He saved us,
NOT
on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness,
BUT
according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior," (Titus 3:3-6)



OBSERVATION: I love the way The Message (by Eugene H. Peterson) puts it. Titus 3:3-6 reads, "It wasn't so long ago that we ourselves were stupid and stubborn, dupes of sin, ordered every which way by our glands, going around with a chip on our shoulder, hated and hating back.
BUT
when God, our kind and loving Savior God, stepped in, He saved us from all that. It was all His doing;
we had
NOTHING
to do with it.
He gave us a good bath, and we came out of it new people, washed inside and out by the Holy Spirit. Our Savior Jesus poured out new life (sounds like a good name for a church) so generously. God's gift has restored our relationship with him and given us back our lives. And there's more life to come - an eternity of life! You can count on this.



As I was reading over this chapter, the thing that grabbed my attention was the fact that
God
Forgave Us

BEFORE

we did anything right.

Verse 5 says, He saved us,
NOT
on the basis of deeds which we have done...
BUT
according to His mercy





APPLICATION: So, how does this apply to me? That's a great question!

Well, here is what the Holy Spirit brought to my attention:

Regarding forgiving others for their actions against us:

#1) People are going to mess up (That's a Fact)

#2.) Their choices are going to affect you in negative ways. Expect It!

#3.) We mess up

#4.) Our choices affect others in negative ways.



#5.) God forgave us and them before...,

Before? YES, BEFORE !
we did anything

Before we could apologize
Before we could say we were wrong
Before we could make it right

God forgave Us and them



#6.) Christian means to be JUST LIKE CHRIST

In every way, including this way.

So

That means:

in light of the fact, that people are going to mess up
&
in light of the fact, that God forgave us before we could do anything
&
in light of the fact, that we are suppose to be just like Christ

That means:

Before someone does something wrong to you

You need to be just like Christ and already be postured to forgive them

So that,

when they do wrong, you will have already made the choice

to be just like Christ

&

Before they are even able to apologize

Before they say, "I am sorry, I was wrong."

Before they do anything to make it right,

You need to give them, the gift of forgiveness.

JUST LIKE JESUS GAVE YOU

PRAYER: Father God, thank you for giving me the gift of forgiveness. Please help me to make the same choice that you did, and continually live a life of forgiving others.