Forgiveness

When we talked about persecution, we talked about forgiveness. It generated some interesting discussion in Message+, so I figured we would do a follow-up. What does it truly mean to forgive as Christians? So, let’s unpack what it is, what it isn't, and how it shapes our lives as followers of Jesus.

I’ve been really challenged the past two years on my own journey: what does it look like to forgive people who hurt me so badly? Is it a decision, a feeling? Do others need to repent first? Should life go on as if everything is okay? Does reconciliation mean we become besties? Lots of question.

So, I am working on understanding biblical forgiveness, and I invite you to work on it with me. Think of this as workshopping how to understand forgiveness.

What is forgiveness? At its core, forgiveness is a participation in what Jesus did for us. Paul wrote,“Forgive as the Lord forgave you.”(Colossians 3:13) I really loved Harrison’s explanation of how the Bible puts such great imagery around the use of aphiēmi (af-ee-ay-mee).

• Matthew 6:12 KJV: “And aphiēmi (discharge) us our debts, as we aphiēmi our debtors.”

• Matthew 4:20 KJV: “And they straightaway aphiēmi (cast away) their nets, and followed him.”

• Matthew 8:15 KJV: “And he touched her hand, and the fever aphiēmi (let her go): and she arose, and ministered unto them.”

Forgiveness is release someone of a debt, letting them go, casting away our need to see justice unfold on our terms. Forgiveness means that we hand the debt owed to us over to God rather than insisting that we collect it ourselves.  We release our burdens of hurt and sorrow to the care of a righteous judge, trusting that the plan God has for dealing with those who have hurt us is better than ours.[1]

Forgiveness Comes from the Forgiven. As Paul writes in Colossians 1:13-14, Jesus,

"…has rescued us from the dominion of darkness... in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins."

We've been forgiven an enormous debt (Ephesians 1:7-8). As C.S. Lewis wisely noted,

“To be a Christian means to forgive the inexcusable, because God has forgiven the inexcusable in you.”– C.S. Lewis

How can we, who have received such mercy, withhold it? "Forgive as the Lord forgave you." (Colossians 3:13)

Forgiveness Is Mandatory.

Peter once asked Jesus if forgiveness was to be offered seven times (Matthew 18). The rabbis at the time taught that forgiving someone more than three times was unnecessary. Peter was suggesting more than double the mandated maximum. They would have been stunned by Jesus’ lavish answer of 70x7 (which was a very Jewish way of saying there is no end). They were used to a law that had limits, not a grace that did not.

Jesus followed that up with the Parable of the Unforgiving Servant. God has forgiven us an enormous debt; how ungrateful must we be if we don’t do the same for others?  

But the mandatory nature of forgiveness isn’t just for the one who needs to be forgiven. It’s for the one forgiving. Think of it this way.

• God’s forgiveness is always given — that’s grace.

• Our forgiveness of others is how we live into that grace — that’s transformation.

• If we refuse to forgive, we block the flow of that grace in ourselves, not because God retracts it, but because forgiveness is the language of the Kingdom, and we’ve refused to speak it.

If I may note the wisdom of this on a practical level: we will probably assume God and others forgive us in the same way we forgive others. If we forgive partially and reluctantly and keep score somewhere, that’s probably how we view the forgiveness of God and others. This is the advice of a loving Father: forgive as God forgives. Forgive fully and freely. It will help us understand the nature of God’s forgiveness.

Forgiveness Requires Honesty. We must acknowledge the sin's impact on individuals, relationships, and communities. If someone says, “I’m sorry,” we don’t have to just say, “That’s okay. It was nothing.” It wasn't okay (though it might be eventually); it wasn’t nothing. 

Sin leaves marks; ignoring them hinders true restoration. Be honest about the offense's depth so the offender understands the preciousness of forgiveness in light of the depth of the damage.

Forgiveness is NOT saying,“It’s okay.” The sin of harming Abba’s dear children is NOT okay. Abuse and oppression are never acceptable. Forgiveness must not minimize injustice or the damage it does.

Forgiveness is NOT saying,“I'm okay.” Healing can take years. Genuine forgiveness does not ask anyone to skip any stage of the grieving and healing process.

Forgiveness is NOT saying, “You're okay.” The offender is not simply off the hook. Repentance includes facing consequences, which may include incarceration, rehabilitation, restitution and restoration.

Forgiveness is NOT saying, “We're okay.” Forgiveness may include but does not require the victim of injustice to re-enter a relationship with the offender. That may not be possible or even safe. One can forgive and be healed without ever [regaining the relationship they once had] with the offender.” (Brad Jersak)

The chorus of a popular song goes, “I’m not okay - [it's not okay, right now] -but it’s all going to be alright.” This is gospel hope. Even when it is hard to envision full recovery and genuine restoration in a world full of things that are not okay, we know there is a day when all things will be made new (Revelation 21:5), and Jesus will reconcile all things to himself (Colossians 1:20).

Forgiveness Is Patiently Anticipatory.

The Parable of the Two Sons (or the Prodigal Son) in Luke 15 reminds us that it is God who will wake people up in the midst of their sin. We may be the instrument God uses, but… we may not be. And I can almost guarantee that people who sin against us often (usually?) won’t respond with our sense of timing.

We can be so quick to want people to repent NOW and thoroughly. But… do we do this all the time? Or did it take some time to really see and understand our sin? How long did people faithfully invest in us before, like the Prodigal Son, we “came to your senses” by the grace of God and repented?

When I was coaching, there was a parent who really didn’t like me. He would write me weekly letters several pages long chronicling all the ways I failed. He would glare at me all the time. He disinvited me from his son’s wedding. Then Braden decided that this man was the coolest guy in the room during basketball games, and would climb to the top of the bleachers to sit with him game after game (Braden was probably 3 or 4). One night after a game this man was waiting for me. I braced myself. All he said was, “You and I have had our differences, but you must be doing something right as a father.” That was the most repentance I was going to get. Of course I forgive you. It took a while, but we got there. We’ve been good ever since.

Forgiveness Does Not Delete History—It Covers It. You may be thinking that God "will remember [our sins] no more" (Hebrews 8:12; Jeremiah 31:34) and removes them "as far as the east is from the west" (Psalm 103:12).

Every commentary I read noted that this is not literal amnesia.[2] It’s the best human language we have to explain that God does not hold our sins against us when our sins are covered by the blood of Jesus. Paul remembered his sins and wrote about them to churches. If God had forgotten, then Paul remembered something about his history that God did not. If I pray and ask God for ongoing healing for my past (forgiven) sins, God is not confused by my request. He knows why I’m asking. He just does not hold them against me.

Memory was not part of the fall. It’s one of the good gifts God has given us. We are meant to learn from our past successes and failures. It’s part of how we mature. We will never gain necessary wisdom if we forget what it was like to be in chains to sin. 

We will also not appreciate the forgiveness God and others show us if we forget how much we gave them to forgive. We will not be able to encourage others with our testimonies of God’s grace if we can’t remember why God showed us grace in the first place.

Forgiveness Does Not Cancel Accountability or Consequences. After Adam and Eve sinned, God provided a means of forgiveness…but also explained what the fallout was going to look like. God forgave Moses…but Moses did not enter the Promised Land. Paul noted in Galatians 6 that we will harvest what we plant. It’s a principle God has embedded in the world, and God will not be mocked.

• If I steal your wallet, but return the wallet and ask for forgiveness, forgiveness should be granted. But are you going to leave your wallet out again when I am around?  Wisdom would suggest you keep your wallet close, at least until you trust that I am trustworthy.  

• If I share a deep secret you told me in confidence, and I repent and ask you to forgive me, you should extend forgiveness. But you probably shouldn’t tell me a deep secret again until you trust that I am trustworthy.

• If you hurt or offend your spouse or a friend, ask for forgiveness. But don’t become annoyed if they put up some boundaries so they don’t get hurt again.

Charles Stanley wrote,

“Forgiveness is relational; consequences are circumstantial.”

Life is not an etch-o-sketch. We can’t just shake the picture that we’ve drawn and pretend it never happened. We have hurt people. Extending forgiveness is not the same as overlooking the impact of sin. Accountability and protection can go along with forgiveness.

Forgiveness Might Be a Process. It doesn't always happen overnight. We may forgive sincerely, yet feelings resurface, requiring repeated surrender. It's an ongoing choice, leading to healing.

When Joseph first saw his brothers as an adult, he could have forgiven them on the spot. He didn’t.

• He jailed them for three days, demanded they bring their youngest brother, threw Simeon in jail so they would have to come back, and hid their money in their grain sacks (which made for a pretty terrifying find). When they left, he wept.

• When they returned, he wept at seeing his younger brother.

• When they left again, he hid his own cup in the bag of his younger brother.

• When they were ‘caught’ and brought back to Egypt with the assumption they would all be slaves - which Joseph confirmed - Judah told him he was “just like Pharoah.”

• It was only then he revealed himself, and he wept so loudly that servants in other rooms could hear him. (Genesis 41-45)

For Joseph’s brothers to go back and forth – and to eat all their grain from the first trip before they made another trip – I assume this unfolded over months. It sure reads as if Joseph needed some time to sort some things out.

So if forgiveness feels slow or unfinished, don’t despair. Joseph’s tears and hesitation were not signs of failure; they were part of the process. God can handle your struggle. What matters is that you keep turning your heart toward mercy, one honest step at a time. In the end, forgiveness is less about how quickly we reach the destination and more about walking faithfully with the God who heals us along the way.

Forgiveness Is Worth Celebrating. The prodigal's return sparked a feast. We celebrate restoration, not to deny the past, but to revel in the present moment and future hope. The father of the Prodigal Son was overjoyed the son had returned. It was the legalistic brother who said, “How dare you celebrate that boy after what he did to you. ”

This one is hard, especially if you are the one who has been wounded by someone else’s sin. Yet I think our reactions to other situations are instructive here. Don't we love that the Amish community forgave the shooter? Don’t we love the stories of parents who forgive their child’s killer? We applaud, as we should. We aren’t opposed to the principle. It’s just hard when it applies to us. This is the cross we take up; this is cost of discipleship; this is what God commands – and equips us to do.

Conclusion/Summary

Forgiveness happens when we release our offenders to Christ’s judgment, rather than chaining our hearts to them with resentment. This doesn’t mean we bypass human justice systems when necessary. But it means our healing doesn’t depend on human courts getting it right. 

Forgiveness happens when we release our burdens of hurt, grief, anger, loss and sorrow to Abba’s care, rather than stuffing them or fashioning them into weapons. 

Forgiveness happens when we release the debt of the other’s offense into God's hands. Even if they repent sincerely and make restitution, our offenders can never cover the debt of harms done. We must let God bear that burden—ours and theirs. 

Forgiveness happens when we release our healing into God’s hands. No one’s punishment or repentance is sufficient to heal us. Only God can truly do that.

Forgiveness happens when, having let go, we surrender our lives to Christ’s love and care. 

Forgiveness is NOT easy. The Passion—the torture and death, the burden of our sin—cost Christ everything. Forgiveness is not easy for those who’ve been devastated by the hurts and trespasses (violations) of others… 

Forgiveness is the most demanding, excruciating process we’ll ever experience. Forgiveness is cruciformity itself. (Brad Jersak)

Forgiveness may feel like death—it’s cruciform—but it’s the new creation breaking in. Every act of forgiveness is a small resurrection, a sign that the Kingdom of God is alive in us. When we choose to forgive, we're not just releasing the offender; we're unlocking the chains that bind us to pain and resentment. We're stepping into the radiant light of God's love, where healing, restoration, and freedom dwell.

For this reason, forgiveness is not just personal—it’s missional. Every time we forgive, we show the world what God is like. In a culture that prizes revenge, forgiveness is a revolution. It’s how light breaks into darkness. It’s how the Church reveals the beauty of Jesus to a watching world.

So may we become a people who forgive—not because it’s easy, but because it’s Christ in us, reconciling the world to himself.

Imagine a world where forgiveness reigns, where the cycle of hurt and anger is broken, and where love and mercy flow freely. That's the world Jesus invites us to live in. This is a foretaste of the world to come, when Christ will reconcile all things to himself.

Every time we forgive, we are aligning ourselves with that future—the day when every wound will be healed, all tears wiped away, and even our enemies made friend through the reconciliation of Jesus.

________________________________________________________________________________

[1] When we hear the phrase “spiritual warfare,” we probably think of a spiritual battle taking place in the unseen world. I would like to suggest that forgiveness one of the greatest acts of spiritual warfare, because unforgiveness is a win for Satan (2 Corinthians 2:11).

[2] “This is evidently spoken after the manner of men, and in accordance with human apprehension. It cannot mean literally that God forgets that people are sinners, but it means that he treats them as if this were forgotten. Their sins are not charged upon them, and they are no more punished than if they had passed entirely out of the recollection.” – Matthew Henry, on Hebrews 8:12

“This is another phrase to express the forgiveness of sins, and distinguishes the new covenant from the old one, or the former dispensation; in which, though there were many typical sacrifices, and a typical removal of sin, yet there was a remembrance of it every year.” Gill’s Exposition Of The Bible, on Hebrews 8:12

“As far as possible; as far as we can imagine. These are the points in our apprehension most distant from each other, and as we can conceive nothing beyond them, so the meaning is, that we cannot imagine our sins could be more effectually removed than they are. “ Barne’s Notes On The Bible

“…and by this means so effectually, and so far, are their transgressions removed, that they shall never be seen any more, nor ever be imputed to them, nor be brought against them to their condemnation; in consequence of which, pardon is applied to them, and so sin is removed from their consciences, as before observed; see Leviticus 16:21.”  - Gill’s Exposition Of The Entire Bible

“He will, in the language of another prophet, “blot out” the sins which yet belong to the indelible and irrevocable past (Isaiah 43:25; Isaiah 44:22).”  Elliot’s Commentary For English Readers, on Jeremiah 31:34 

Pentecost: Leaving A Wicked Generation (Acts 2: 1-41)

When the Day of Pentecost[1] had finally arrived, they were all[2] together in the same place. 

The Day of Pentecost comes 50 days after Passover, so this is 50 days after Jesus’ death.

Suddenly there came from heaven a noise like the sound of a strong, blowing wind,[3] and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. Then tongues, seemingly made of fire, appeared to them, moving apart and coming to rest on each one of them.[4] They were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak in other languages, as the spirit gave them the words to say.

This fulfills the prophecy of John the Baptist that Christ would “baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire” (Luke 3:16). Similar to wind, “fire” in Scripture often indicates God’s presence(Exodus 3:2; 19:18; Isaiah. 4:5).[5]

There were devout Jews from every nation under heaven staying in Jerusalem at that time. When they heard this noise they gathered in a crowd.[6]They were deeply puzzled, because every single one of them could hear them speaking in his or her own native language. They were astonished and amazed.[7]

These are the same groups separated at the Tower of Babel (Genesis 11:1–9). [8]This is one of the most obvious examples of what the folks at the Bible Project like to say: “the Bible tells a unified story.” Genesis 10 and 11 describe the nations moving apart as God scatters them to temper them. Acts 2 describes people moving inward toward Jerusalem, with the Holy Spirit then gathering nations to unify them. At Babel, people had tried to make a name for themselves. Now they are uniting around the name of Jesus.

This also prefigures the image of the life to come in Revelation, when every tribe and nation (Revelation 5:9 and 7:9) gather around the throne in unity. The Holy Spirit of God the Father, gifted by the Son, intends to bring righteous unity to our beautiful human diversity. Whenever tribes and nations live together in harmony, it’s a foretaste of heaven.

“These men who are doing the speaking are all Galileans,[9] aren’t they?” they said. “So how is it that each of us can hear them in our own mother tongues? There are [people from everywhere]. We can hear them speaking about the powerful things God has done—in our own languages!”

Everyone was astonished and perplexed. “What does it all mean?” they were asking each other. 1But some sneered. “They’re full of new wine!” they said. Then Peter got up, with the eleven. He spoke to them in a loud voice.

“People of Judaea!” he began. “All of you staying here in Jerusalem! There’s something you have to know! Listen to what I’m saying! These people aren’t drunk, as you imagine. It’s only nine o’clock in the morning! No, this is what the prophet Joel was talking about[10] when he said,

 In the last days,[11] declares God, I will pour out my spirit on all people. Your sons and your daughters[12] will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams; yes, even on slaves, men and women alike[13], will I pour out my spirit in those days, and they shall prophesy.

 And I will give signs in the heavens above, and portents on earth beneath, blood and fire and clouds of smoke. The sun will be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the day of the Lord comes, the great and glorious day. And then everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

“You people of Israel,” Peter continued, “listen to this. The man Jesus of Nazareth was marked out for you by God through the mighty works, signs and portents which God performed through him right here among you, as you all know.

Just a quick note: Peter says that the “signs and portents” of Joel were the “signs and portents” of Jesus ministry, death and resurrection. The blood, fire, clouds, smoke, darkness, moon turning into blood as part of the glorious day of the Lord. It’s a good reminder that biblical writers use wonderfully creative/apocalyptic language to describe things, and we need to be careful to appreciate the imagery without requiring it to be literal. #biblereadingtip 

 He was handed over in accordance with God’s determined purpose and foreknowledge—and you used people outside the law to nail him up and kill him. But God raised him from the dead! Death had its painful grip on him; but God released him from it, because it wasn’t possible for him to be mastered by it…[14]

My dear family, I can surely speak freely to you about the patriarch David. He died and was buried, and his tomb is here with us to this day.  He was of course a prophet, and he knew that God had sworn an oath to him to set one of his own physical offspring on his throne. He foresaw the Messiah’s resurrection, and spoke about him ‘not being left in Hades,’ and about his flesh ‘not seeing corruption.’

 This is the Jesus we’re talking about! God raised him from the dead, and all of us here are witnesses to the fact! Now he’s been exalted to God’s right hand; and what you see and hear is the result of the fact that he is pouring out the holy spirit,[15] which had been promised, and which he has received from the father…

“So the whole house of Israel must know this for a fact: God has made him Lord and Messiah—this Jesus, the one you crucified.” When they heard this, the people in the crowd were cut to the heart.

“Brothers,” they said to Peter and the other apostles, “what shall we do?” “Turn back!” replied Peter. “Be baptized—every single one of you—in the name of Jesus the Messiah, so that your sins can be forgiven, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

The promise is for you and for your children, and for everyone who is far away, as many as the Lord our God will call.” He carried on explaining things to them with many other words. “Let God rescue you,” he was urging them, “from this wicked generation!”

Those who welcomed his word were baptized. About three thousand people were added to the community that day.

I am going to get two, maybe three sermons out of this. Here’s Part One.

* * * * *

I mentioned last week that the call to repentance and invitation into life in Christ in the speeches in Acts often focused on the difference it would make right now. This is a great example. What will happen when people repent? God will rescue them from a wicked generation. The implication is that he will turn them into a righteous generation.

 This is not the only time we see this language in the Bible, so we have hyperlinks; we have context to know what Peter’s audience thought of when he said this.[16] As far as I can tell, here is the first mention in the OT.

“They (Israelites) are corrupt and not his children…. A perverse generation that is unfaithful… to their shame they are a wicked and perverse generation… (Deuteronomy 32: 5)

 Since we first find the language of a warped and crooked generations in the Old Testament, let’s start there.

I mentioned last week we will see two kinds of calls to repentance in Acts: national and individual. God called the physical, geographical nation of His people to be holy, set apart from the wicked and perverse people around them. They often were not. They would often embrace idolatry, and terrible practices always followed.

As the prophets speak in the Old Testament, we see patterns emerge of the sins God addresses when they show up in not just Israel but in the nations around them. I don’t believe that God holds people responsible for what they don’t know, so the fact that He held all the nations responsible to foundational moral standards tells me that God has put something in all people so that everyone knows foundational moral standards. Here’s what characterized wicked generations.

Idolatry[17]

Specifically, the “detestable practices” linked with it. The worship of idols is called out as foolish, but it’s the practices that follow that are the real problem.

Religious Hypocrisy[18]

This was specific to the Israelites. They were observing ceremonial law while ignoring justice, mercy, and righteousness. (Jesus called out the Pharisees on this.[19]) In the OT, the priests were taking bribes and getting rich from their ministry.

Oppression of the Poor and Vulnerable[20]

Exploiting the poor, widows, orphans, and foreigners (Tim Keller’s Quarter of the Vulnerable); charging excessive interest; confiscating property.

Violence and Bloodshed[21]

A society marked by violence, murder, and warfare. This was Ninevah’s specific sin for which Jonah was sent. Violence against women and children stands out (see Amos 1)

Greed and Materialism[22]

Land grabbing, luxury at others' expense, unchecked consumption, and the economic injustice that follows greed. This wasn’t saying wealth was bad; it was the means by which it was gotten. When others get hurt by those getting rich, it’s not good.

Pride and Arrogance[23]

National arrogance; assuming invincibility; claiming god-like power like Pharoah did. If Israel started to believe they had god-like power, they had forgotten their God.

Injustice in Legal Systems[24]

Courts favoring the wealthy; weighted scales; bribery (which favors the wealthy yet again); corrupt judges; the silencing of truth-tellers.

Sexual Immorality Linked to Idolatry[25]

Ritual prostitution (which even the Israelites participated in at times, which meant they were worshiping idols); adultery, incest and assault.

Breaking Covenants and Agreements[26]

Wicked nations did not keep their word. They betrayed treaties and alliances and committed political treachery. Amos called this breaking the Treaty of Brotherhood which everyone seemed to understand.[27]We could add entering into bad treaties as well: Israel began to make alliances with their pagan neighbors to win battles rather than relying on God.

Trusting in Military or Economic Strength Instead of God[28]

This one was also particular to Israel. God’s admonished Israel that their kings should not gather chariots (a conquering army), gold (wealth) or wives (political alliances that brought in idolatry).[29]That was the way of Egypt, not God’s people. God’s people were not to trust in violence, wealthy, or other gods.

So as far as nations go, there were definitely things that characterized a wicked generation. If you are thinking, “But not every individual in that nation supported what was happening,” I hear you. It’s the same tension we feel when we hear people talk about “systemic injustice” and we think, “But I don’t do that and I’m in the system!” So let’s talk about that 

In the Ancient Near East, virtually all nations had a collectivist culture. This included Israel. People saw themselves primarily as part of a group. Identity, responsibility, and honor/shame were shared communally just as much as individually. The idea was that everyone was to some degree culpable, because it was happening on their watch. Three quick examples:

• Achan’s sin (Joshua 7) brings guilt on all Israel. Somebody – anybody - should have stopped him.

• Daniel confesses his people’s sins, saying “we have sinned,” even though he personally was righteous. (Daniel 9)

• Peter said to his Jewish audience in Acts 1, “You crucified Jesus” when they personally had nothing to do with the actual crucifixion of Jesus. It happened on their watch.

 We have been raised in a very individualistic culture, so this probably feels  unfair to us. But this is the biblical moral ecosystem. The prophets in the Old Testament would call for a national repentance, not just an individual one. Repentance, then, was everyone being committed to the opposite of all the things that got them in trouble.

• Worship of Yahweh

• Religious integrity; actually living within the covenant agreement.

• Protection of the vulnerable

• Peace instead of violence and bloodshed

• Generosity over greed and exploitation

• ·National humility over arrogance

• A just legal system that did not show favoritism

• Sexual purity; honoring, not using, those around them

• Keeping treaties and agreements; being people of their word

• Trusting in God to protect and provide.

Fast forward. In the New Testament, Peter tells us, the church:

“But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you.” (1 Peter 2:9)

We, the church, are now a spiritual nation situated globally in the midst of all the physical nations in which we live. I’m going to try to modernize the previous list and apply it to the spiritual nation of church – our church, the church in America, and the church globally.

This isn’t a scolding or a scathing rebuke to any of you. This is like when I take my vehicle to the mechanic before a trip and ask him to run that diagnostic to see how my vehicle is doing. Think of this as a diagnostic check for the church: the American church, our church, ourselves.

What does it look like for us to be royal priesthood that proclaims the praises of God?

True Worship over idolatry. Tim Keller used to describe an idol as the things that “when they shake, we shake.” We might not have idols on our shelves, but we may entertain them in our hearts. Are we trusting in anything over God? Is there anything in our lives that when it starts to crumble, we start to crumble? Or do we trust that God is Good, that God loves and cares for us, and that God will provide? Can we rest in Jesus even in the midst of the worst trials? #trueworshipiswitness

Integrity over hypocrisy. Do we live guided by the covenant we have entered into with God? Do people around us know that the church practices what we preach? If we insist that God calls us to love others as Jesus loved us, are we displaying that love? If we call for generosity, are we generous? If we insist that a Christian sexual ethic is good for the culture, how are we doing in that area? If we want God’s Old Testament laws on classroom walls, are we modeling obedience in our own lives of not just those commandments, but of all the commands God gives to us that help us walk in righteous integrity? 

I just saw two stories yesterday where religious leaders of organizations promoting the implementation of Christian values in culture were arrested for the exploitation of children. The prophets would have something to say about that. Demanding a standard we don’t keep is hypocritical; modeling a standard others find compelling and life-giving is world-changing. The early church showed that. #integrityiswitness

Care for the vulnerable.  Are society’s “least of these” on the church’s radar? Are we looking out for them, starting in our family, then our church, then spreading into our community and nation? What practical things (within our means and opportunity) are we doing to ensure their well-being? We have a benevolence fund that can always use a boost; there are numerous non-profits in town that provide crucial services. There are global Christian organizations that care the vulnerable. It might be a personal gift to someone you know. #careiswitness

Meekness (“harnessed power”) over bullying. Is the church using power – whatever that looks like - to protect and not harm? Do people consistently get hurt by the church, or do they feel emotionally and relationally safe? (I don’t mean sheltered from hard and necessary truths; I mean that we aren’t putting stumbling blocks in their way through our words, attitudes, and actions). Does the church – and all of us in it – provide a welcoming presence that offers a compelling oasis to people desperate for safety and belonging? #meeknessiswitness

Contentment over greed[30]. Do those around us need to worry that money matters so much to us that it will be prioritized over people, or will they learn that followers of Jesus see wealth as a tool God gives us to further the Kingdom? Do we ever trample on others when we see the opportunity to make some money? Do we begrudgingly give as little as we can because it’s ridiculous that God thinks our money is His, or do we joyfully tithe/ share our resources as much as we can because generosity is really rewarding? Last week, a friend told me he hoped a business venture would yield a ton of money because, “I have so many places I want to support.” #contentmentiswitness[31]

Humility vs. pride. I think the modern application for the church might have to do with proudly declaring how good we are and how terrible the culture is. Meanwhile, scandal after scandal unfolds in the American church. It’s a discouraging news feed, and it’s crushing to our witness.

It turns out that sin crouches at everyone’s door, and we must “take heed, lest we fall.”[32] There is so much opportunity for humility and repentance. When there is sin in the institution of the church, it needs to be called out for the sake of those getting hurt and as a witness to the world.[33] We need to own it without excuses, repent, and learn from it to move into deeper righteousness and maturity is the way to go.  #humilityiswitness

Sexual Integrity. The world is full of exploitation, objectification and dehumanization. Is the church from top to bottom fighting against it and modeling a better way? Are we building a righteous view not just of sex but of people that is honoring of their imago dei? Are we building a community in which everyone knows they will not be exploited are used or ogled or lusted after, but will be loved with honor and integrity? #honoriswitness

A commitment to justice/righteousness (being right with God and others). It’s not just cultures that grant privilege to a few; the church can do that too. The letters in the New Testament make clear that was a problem right out of the gates. We tend to admire and prioritize some over others for all kinds of reasons. Do we ignore some who walk into our doors because we don’t think they are as important as others, or is everyone equally valued in our church community? God did not intend for there to be hierarchy of value in the Kingdom of God. Often, a huge way people experience the love of Jesus is through the love of the followers of Jesus. #justiceiswitness

Peter wrote that we are a holy nation to “proclaim the praises of Him who called you.” May our lives and communities we create sing His praises even louder than our voices.

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[1] The Greek word pentekoste means “fiftieth”

[2] The 120 assembled in the upper room (1:15)?

[3] Wind is an image for the Holy Spirit’s presence in Ezekiel 37:9, 13 and John 3:8.(ESV Reformation Study Bible)

[4] “Also significant is Luke's statement that these tokens of the Spirit's presence "separated and came to rest on each of them." This seems to suggest that, though under the old covenant the divine presence rested on Israel as a corporate entity and upon many of its leaders for special purposes, under the new covenant, as established by Jesus and inaugurated at Pentecost, the Spirit now rests upon each believer individually.” (Expositor’s Bible Commentary)

[5] ESV Global Study Bible

[6] Fun Fact: The crowd’s presence indicates that the setting is the temple grounds. This was the only Jewish space in Jerusalem that could accommodate this many people. (ESV Global Study Bible)

[7] “According to Jewish tradition, God spoke in 70 languages (voices/qolot)…The Book of Jubilees reinforces this by claiming there were 70 Gentile nations.” (NIV Cultural Backgrounds Study Bible) “These ideas provide an interpretive backdrop for Pentecost (see Ac 2, which contains many parallels to the Sinai revelation. For the early Christian, God’s original intent to speak to all nations expanded in the book of Acts.” (NIV First Century Study Bible)

[8] See “Babel Reversed: Acts 2:9–12, redemptivehistorytheology.com

[9] “Galileans had difficulty pronouncing gutturals and had the habit of swallowing syllables when speaking; so they were looked down upon by the people of Jerusalem as being provincial (cf. Mk 14:70).” (Expositor’s Bible Commentary)

[10] The quotation is from the Greek Old Testament text of Joel 2:28–32.

[11] Apparently, the “last days” start at Pentecost 

[12] “The women in the upper room participated in the gift of the Spirit at Pentecost, further confirming Joel’s prophecy.” (ESV Global Study Bible)

[13] Last week, we talked about how the early church filled up with Empire outcasts!

“[14] Peter then quotes Psalms 16:8–11. I’m skipping it for the sake of time this morning. It’s the passage about God the Father not leaving Jesus in Sheol/Hades.

[15] “In the OT, only God could pour out God’s Spirit; Peter thus identifies Jesus as divine — God who pours out the Spirit in Joel 2:28 – 29.” (NIV Cultural Backgrounds Study Bible)

[16] We see something similar in other New Testament passages. Paul wrote, “Do everything without grumbling or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation. Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky as you hold firmly to the word of life.” (Philippians 2) Jesus rebuked the Pharisees who keep demanding more miracles and signs: “A wicked and adulterous generation asks for a sign!” (Matthew 12)

[17] Isaiah 44, Jeremiah 10, Ezekiel 6, Amos 5:26, Hosea 4

[18] Isaiah 1, Amos 5, Micah 3 and 6, Ezekiel 22

[19] Matthew 23

[20] Amos 5; 3; 2:6–7, Isaiah 10:1–2, Ezekiel 16; 22:29, Zechariah 7:10, Psalm 12

[21] Micah 3:10, Hosea 4:2, Nahum 3:1; Ezekiel 22, Amos 1

[22] Isaiah 5:8, Amos 3, Micah 2

[23] Obadiah 1, Isaiah 14 (Babylon), Ezekiel 28 (Tyre)

[24] Amos 5, Isaiah 5, Micah 3

[25] Hosea 4, Isaiah 57, Ezekiel 22 and 23

[26] Ezekiel 17, Isaiah 33

[27] Amos 1

[28] Isaiah 31, Hosea 10,

[29] Deuteronomy 17

[30] Philippians 4:11-13

[31] On a personal note, this is why you will not hear us demand that you give/tithe to the church. We invite you to be generous as God moves you, as our announcement note  We need to pay the bills, but we would like to use funds God has inspired you to give joyfully.

[32] 1 Corinthians 10:12

[33] Historically, think of many churches that supported slavery, as well as the Doctrine of Discovery, (endorsed by both Catholic and Protestant institutions) which justified killing native Americans and taking their land because the native land was Canaan, and the conquerors were the new Israel. Currently, think of the child abuse/cover up scandal in the Catholic church, and the more recent sex abuse/cover-up scandal in the Southern Baptist Convention.

Harmony #44: The Yeast of the Pharisees (Mark 8:13-21; Matthew 16:5-12)

Then Jesus left them, got back into the boat, and went to the other side. Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread, except for one loaf they had with them in the boat. And Jesus ordered them, “Watch out! Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and Herod/Sadducees!” So they began to discuss this among themselves, saying, “Is it because we brought no bread.” When Jesus learned of this, he said, “You who have such little faith! Why are you arguing among yourselves about having no bread? Do you still not see or understand?

Have your hearts been hardened? Though you have eyes, don’t you see? And though you have ears, can’t you hear? Don’t you remember? “When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of pieces did you pick up?” They replied, “Twelve.” When I broke the seven loaves for the four thousand, how many baskets full of pieces did you pick up?” They replied, “Seven.”  

Then he said to them, “Do you still not understand? How could you not understand that I was not speaking to you about bread? But beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees!” Then they understood that he had not told them to be on guard against the yeast in bread, but against the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees. 

“They they understood.” Ah hah! I love the disciples. They are so ordinary. Peter: “Guys, we forgot the bread. Again.” John: “It’s fine. I have some crumbs in my pocket he can multiply.” Andrew: “I was responsible for bread last time. This is on Thomas.” James: “I wonder if we should have brought unleavened bread if it's a yeast issue.”

Thank you, gospel writers, for giving us all permission to be ordinary. If this is where the bar is for following Jesus, I can clear it, and so can you. And if Jesus can put up with those kind of disciples, so can we.

Now, to the yeast.

* * * * *

Pharisees and Sadducees emerged when the Jews left their exile in Babylon. The Essenes and Zealots popped up later, but the Pharisees and Sadducees were the two main parties. Think Republicans and Democrats, but there is still the Libertarian Party, the Green Party, etc. There were key differences.

• Pharisees dominated the synagogue (spiritual community center), Sadducees the temple (rituals of worship).

• Pharisees acknowledged all the books we know as the Old Testament; the Sadducees highly favored the books of Moses (the Law) and basically ignored the prophets.

• Pharisees acknowledged an oral tradition passed down by the rabbis; Sadducees rejected the oral tradition.[1]

• The Pharisees believed in the supernatural; the Sadducees didn’t.

• Pharisees were the party of the people; the Sadducees of the elite.

• The Pharisees kept Rome away; the Sadducees collaborated.

The “yeast of the Pharisees” and the “yeast of Herod/Sadducees” is different.  In fact, they are so different they are each going to get our focus for a week. This week, let’s look at the Pharisees.

When Jesus called out the Pharisees, their hypocrisy was a common theme.[2] Here’s just a sample:

“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.” (Matt. 23:23-24)

 “Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites; as it is written: “‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are merely human rules.’” (Mark 7:6-7)

Notice that Jesus wasn’t calling out the yeast of Plato, or Simon the Sorcerer. I think he expected people to see that for what it was. Magic is bad. Rome’s Pax Romana (peace by the sword) is not a Kingdom value any more than the very immoral culture surrounding Roman temple worship. He’s calling out the ones who are supposed to be safeguarding truth and righteousness who had become “the blind leading the blind.” (Matthew 15:14)

These are the kinds of verses that keep me up at night.

Since people are the same everywhere, Jesus would call out the same thing in some of us that he called out in them. So, here we are J

I went online to see what people were saying about modern-day Pharisees. And let me tell you – people have a LOT to say about Pharisees. I was a little worried that if I come up with the list on my own, you might be thinking, “That felt really personal!” and wonder if I was crafting my sermon around you!  Heads up: I hope it feels as personal to you as it did to me.  So, let me welcome you to my holy discomfort.

 1. Pharisees Are All Talk And No Action

Jesus said the following concerning the Pharisees:

“So do and observe whatever they tell you, but not the works they do. For they preach, but do not practice. They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on people’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to move them with their finger” (Matt 23:3-4).

We know how this works.

• The environmentalists who flies a private plane everywhere and leave a huge carbon footprint with their mansions.

• The free speech advocate who practices “cancel culture” with those who disagree.

• The person with the co-exist bumper sticker who attacks those who disagree with them on particular issues.

• The politician who campaigns on family values while having a year’s long affair or getting kicked out of a theater for public make-out session with someone not their spouse.[3]

• The new face of the fight against the sexual exploitation of children who is revealed to have sexually exploited the women who helped him do undercover stings.[4]

The Pharisees talked a good game, but they were not the real deal. They were all talk. This creates such cynicism and distrust in those around them. If they can’t or don’t live up to their own words, why should we? Either they are lying or they don’t care enough for it to change their lives. 

Being all talk and no actions is why…

2. Pharisees Major in the Minors

For the Pharisees, everything was a big deal except the things that really matter. They tithed herbs meticulously while ignoring justice and mercy. It’s so much easier to look good in minor things than it is in major things. Shockingly, the major things are harder J If we look at that too much, we might have to address weakness, flaws, and even sinful failure. And that will not be okay to a Pharisee.

I’m not quite sure what our modern equivalents are to tithing mint. All I know is that Pharisees make light things weighty and weighty things light. It’s like a football team spending all its time nailing down the color scheme on the uniform while neglecting working out.  

• You’ve spent years finding a version of the Bible and put it on a hill on which you will die while your family lives with your toxic attitude.

• You start every day reading Our Daily Bread before going to work and mistreating your employees.

• You never swear, so your constant gossip is PG.

• You tithe 10% while the love of money overpowers the kind of generosity you could be showing with what God has given you.

It’s not that the minors are bad. But Majoring on the Minors lets you keep a tally of how good you are doing while avoiding the rottenness in your heart. It makes it easy to do the following…

3. Pharisees Care More About Looking Good Than Being Good

They do all their deeds to be seen by others. For they make their phylacteries broad (they carry more Scripture with them!) and their fringes long (they really remember the law!) and they love the place of honor at feasts and the best seats in the synagogues and greetings in the marketplaces and being called rabbi by others. (Matt 23:5-8).

 I’ve been in many different churches, and these phylacteries and fringes seem to creep in everywhere.

• The size of a head covering.

• The wornness and amount of highlighting in your Bible.

• How you dressed on a Sunday to honor God.

• How much of the Bible you had memorized.

• How expressively you worshipped.

• What gift of the Holy Spirit you appeared to have.

• How impressively you could pray.

It’s not that the things on the list are bad things. It’s that you could look good in all these areas and not be a good person. Your Bible can be falling apart from use, you can dress to the 9s, you can the entirety Scripture committed to memory, you can dance without fear, you can speak with the tongue of men and of angels, you can pray as people think a mighty river has rolled into the room, but… if you don’t have love, if you neglect justice, mercy and faithfulness, it’s just empty show.  

Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and the plate, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. You blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and the plate, that the outside also may be clean. Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  For you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people’s bones and all uncleanness. So you also outwardly appear righteous to others, but within you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness. (Matt 23:25-28)

Jesus is talking about integrity: the integration of our exterior and interior lives; the alignment of our heart and hands. We should be what we do. Since what looks good is so important to a Pharisee…

4. Pharisees convince themselves they don’t have any “serious” sin to repent of.

“The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector’.” (Luke 18:11)[5]

Pharisees have a reputation and status to maintain. Acknowledging sin issues would involve vulnerability and weakness, neither of which a Pharisee can afford to have. Repentance is for broken, unhealthy people, not for them. If they have to put on a facade of repentance to look good to others, they usually talk about things in the past, but never in the present. All their struggles are apparently behind them.

Once Pharisees have convinced themselves that they are not part of sick who need the Great Physician, they will be full of disdain and lack empathy for those around us who are struggling.“What is their problem? Why can’t they be as spiritually mature as I am?”

This is why…

5. If someone tries to correct Pharisees or point out flaws, they get angry and offended.Pharisees see any rebuke as a personal attack and circle the wagons. Pharisees will always have an excuse. It’s never their fault. They were pushed into some corner, or somebody pushed their buttons. They lack the self-awareness to see themselves as others see them; even if they did, they lack the humility to take it seriously. They will always turn the interrogation spotlight on others and never let the light that others shine on them do the work it’s meant to do. This is why…

6. A Pharisee’s friends primarily look, act and think alike.

Pharisees are exclusive. This makes sense, since everyone else is far less righteous and much more sick. These less righteous people might even be openly repenting – in front of others, mind you - and asking God to search their hearts.  Pharisees are really uncomfortable when they are around people who practice true honesty or humility, because who knows where that might lead?

If there are conversations about sin and its impact in the world and the importance of the transformation that happens on the other side of repentance, it’s always going to be about others who are ruining the church or our culture.

If Pharisees have a small group that does a book study, and they have to choose between one in which ‘judgment begins in the house of God’ vs. one in which looks to call down fiery judgment on the Samaritans around us, it will always be about the Samaritans.

The danger is always “out there” in another group. It’s never in their circle, and certainly not in them. Because they need their circles to be homogenous and safe…

7. Pharisees believe church outsiders should conform to a certain lifestyle before they are accepted as “Christian.” They can’t be “part of the group,” unless they meet your criterion: “Stop the drinking and smoking, don’t wear that Deadpool t-shirt to church (#trueevent), and those sleeve tats are making me nervous.” Pharisees insist that people follow their way of doing things. Fellowship with a Pharisee will always be on a Pharisee’s terms.  Maybe another way of saying it is this: You might be a Pharisee if you can’t accept those God accepts, on God’s terms.

So what’s the cure?[6]

Honesty

Practice self-evaluation.

1. “Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves.” (2 Corinthians 13:5)

2. 1 Corinthians 11 tells us to examine ourselves before we share communion: “If we would judge ourselves, we would not be judged by God.” (27-32)

Embrace trustworthy feedback. "To learn, you must love discipline; it is stupid to hate correction." (Proverbs 12:1)

See ourselves as God sees us: image bearers in need of a Savior.

1. “And have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator.” (Colossians 3:10)

2. “Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven.” (1 Corinthians 15:49)

Live Transparent Lives. Without a willingness to be transparent, we cannot bear each other's burdens (Galatians 6:2); comfort one another (2 Corinthians 1:4-7); encourage each other (1 Thessalonians 5:11); forgive one another (Ephesians 4:32); care for one another (1 Corinthians 12:25); nor weep or rejoice with each other (Romans 12:15).[7]

Humility

Charles Spurgeon once said,

“If any man thinks ill of you, do not be angry with him; for you are worse than he thinks you to be. If he charges you falsely on some point, yet be satisfied, for if he knew you better he might change the accusation, and you would be no gainer by the correction. If you have your moral portrait painted, and it is ugly, be satisfied; for it only needs a few darker touches, and it would be still nearer the truth.”

This doesn’t mean we beat ourselves up constantly. Self-loathing is not a fruit of the Spirit. This doesn’t mean we should think more lowly of ourselves than we should, but we shouldn’t think more highly of ourselves than we should. We could simultaneously be worse than other people know, and more glorious than they realize. Humility simply means we are to do an honest assessment of both.

Repent.

“Bear fruit in keeping with repentance.” (Luke 3:8)

“Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first.” (Revelation 2:5)

“Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent.” (Revelation 3:19)

Repentance involves turning around, going the opposite direction. It’s not just words; it’s a heart change demonstrated by a life change.

Ask forgiveness.

“If you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.” (Matthew 5:23-24)

Aaron Lewis and Willie Nelson have a song called “Sinner.” One of the verses goes like this: My eyes are open; now I can see all of the damage brought on by me.” That’s why we ask forgiveness. We have done damage. We want others to know that we see what we have done and how it has landed on them, and we want to make it right if we can. In asking forgiveness, we validate the dignity and value of those we have wronged. They are not just something to damaged and forgotten – they are imago dei, and one does not vandalize that which bears the image of God. Our brothers and sisters in Christ are temples of the Holy Spirit, and one does not simply vandalize a temple and act as if nothing is wrong.

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[1] Interestingly, this makes the Sadducees theologically conservative (safeguarding the foundation and being very skeptical of anything new) and the Pharisees theologically progressive in their time.

[2] Because the Pharisees were so highly respected, Jesus labeling them “whitewashed tombs” (Matt. 23:27-28) would have gotten people’s attention.

[3] True stories breaking this past week L

[4] The man whose story was told in Sound of Freedom left O.U.R. under the cloud of 7 women accusing him of sexual exploitation while on undercover operations. His former organization has released this statement. "Tim Ballard resigned from O.U.R. on June 22, 2023… O.U.R. is dedicated to combatting sexual abuse, and does not tolerate sexual harassment or discrimination by anyone in its organization.”

[5] E. Stanley Jones notes, “The measure of my spirit of criticism is the measure of my distance from Christ.”

[6] I got the lists of the problems and the cures from these websites: https://godtv.com/6-signs-modern-day-pharisee/, also https://firstcenturyfaithtoday.com/pharisees-5-signs/, as well as https://www.crosswalk.com/faith/spiritual-life/warning-signs-of-a-pharisaical-heart.html, and https://billmuehlenberg.com/2020/02/15/6-signs-that-you-might-be-a-pharisee/, oh and https://www.christianpost.com/news/5-signs-you-are-becoming-a-pharisee.html. Oh, and don’t forget https://outreachmagazine.com/features/22092-modern-day-pharisee.html

[7] Thanks for that handy list, smallgroups.com. https://www.smallgroups.com/articles/2010/benefits-of-transparency.html#:~:text=Without%20a%20willingness%20to%20be,(Romans%2012%3A15)