2) A Blessed Rest (Mike Johnson)
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The Power to Forgive<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Tom Edwards<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We are to be a forgiving people. Notice, for example, Paul\u2019s motivation toward this in the following exhortations: \u201cBe kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, JUST AS GOD IN CHRIST ALSO HAS FORGIVEN YOU\u201d (Eph. 4:32, emphasis mine). Similarly, in writing to the Colossians, Paul also urges them to \u201c\u2026put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience; bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; JUST AS THE LORD FORGAVE YOU, SO ALSO SHOULD YOU\u201d (Col. 3:12,13, emphasis mine).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What particular individual has ever sinned against us as much as we have sinned against the Almighty God? If we, therefore, have been forgiven by the Lord, of all our many transgressions and ever have trouble in forgiving anyone, then we should remind ourselves that whatever wrong or wrongs another did toward us does not even come close to the many wrongs we have committed against God \u2014 and, yet, He had forgiven us!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jesus actually gave a parable concerning this in Matthew 18:23-35. It was in response to Peter\u2019s question, \u201cLord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up to seven times?\u201d Jesus answered by using two factors to figuratively indicate \u201calways\u201d as the \u201cproduct\u201d: \u201cI do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven\u201d (vv. 21-22). So even if it were the 491st time, or any number greater than that, we are still to forgive. He then proceeded with the parable of a slave who had owed his king ten thousand talents. Since he was not able to pay, the king was going to have him sold, along with his family and everything he owned. But the slave pleaded, \u201cHave patience with me and I will repay you everything.\u201d On hearing this, the \u201clord of that slave felt compassion and released him and forgave him the debt\u201d (vv. 23-27). How greatly relieved the slave must have felt! \u201cBut that slave went out and found one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii; and he seized him and began to choke him, saying, \u2018Pay back what you owe.\u2019\u201d This fellow slave had also pleaded in the same manner, falling to the ground, and asking that patience be granted for the repayment. But, unlike the compassion and forgiveness shown by the king to the first debtor, the creditor \u201cwas unwilling and threw him in prison until he should pay back what was owed\u201d (vv. 28-31).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
To better understand the above parable, what is the difference between the 10,000 talents and 100 denarii? The denarius was the equivalent of about 16 cents; but for that time, it was what a common laborer would make in a day (cf. Matt. 20:2). Since he could work about 300 days out of the year (earning $48), then 100 denarii would be 1\/3 of a year\u2019s salary ($16). But just one talent is the equivalent of 6,000 denarii. So 10,000 talents equals 60 million denarii! The common laborer would have to work 200,000 years to earn that amount!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Something else that should motivate us toward forgiving others is realizing that if we don\u2019t, then God will not forgive us. Jesus taught this. After giving His model prayer in Matthew 6, He went on to say, \u201cFor if you forgive others of their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions\u201d (vv. 14,15). The previous parable also brings this out: \u201cSo when his fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were deeply grieved and came and reported to their lord all that had happened. Then summoning him, his lord said to him, \u2018You wicked slave, I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. Should you not also have had mercy on your fellow slave, in the same way that I had mercy on you.\u2019 And his lord, moved with anger, handed him over to the torturers until he should repay all that was owed him. My heavenly Father will also do the same to you, if each of you does not forgive his brother from your heart\u201d (Matt. 18:31-35).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Though we are to forgive others, we do not have the power to blot out sin in people\u2019s lives. That requires the atonement that Jesus made on the cross of Calvary, which He made for every sinner of all time, but is received by meeting His conditions \u2013 whether for the sinner who had never been a Christian or the backslidden Christian who needs to be restored.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Only God can truly blot out sin in one\u2019s life because that forgiveness takes place in the mind of God. Sin is not something inherited through DNA. It is not something we are born with. As John writes, \u201c\u2026sin is the transgression of the law\u201d (1 Jn. 3:4, KJV). When we commit sin, God knows \u2014 and He has no trouble in remembering. But for those who will meet His conditions for pardon, the Lord has promised, \u201c\u2026I will remember their sins no more\u201d (Heb. 8:12).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Mark records a time when some scribes overheard Jesus tell a paralytic, \u201cSon, your sins are forgiven\u201d (Mark 2:5); and they accused him of blasphemy \u2013 for, as they said, \u201cwho can forgive sins but God alone?\u201d (v. 7). Unfortunately, they did not believe that Jesus was God. But He was actually proving, by the miracle He performed, that He did have the power to forgive because He truly was and is as much Deity as God the Father. As He states, \u201c`Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, \u201cYour sins are forgiven\u201d; or to say, \u201cGet up, and pick up your pallet and walk\u201d? But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins\u2019 \u2014 He said to the paralytic, \u2018I say to you, get up, pick up your pallet and go home\u2019\u201d (vv. 9-11).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jesus could back up His claims! In John 11, He refers to Himself as being \u201cthe resurrection and the life\u201d; and that \u201che who believes in Me will live even if he dies\u201d (v. 25 ) \u2014 and He proved that the same day by raising Lazarus from the dead, who had been deceased for four days! (vv. 43-45).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And now in Mark 2, Jesus indicates by way of miracle that He is Deity and does have the power to blot out sin from one\u2019s life!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Do you have God\u2019s forgiveness in your life? Out of all the things you might have need of, nothing could ever be greater or more important than to simply have the Lord\u2019s pardon of all your iniquities! If you have never been a Christian, then receiving God\u2019s forgiveness requires hearing the gospel (Rom. 10:17), believing in the deity of Christ (Jn. 8:24), repenting of sin (Luke 13:5), confessing faith in Christ (Rom. 10:9,10; Acts 8:36-38), and being baptized in water for the remission of sins (Mk. 16:16; Acts 2:38; 22:16; Rom. 6:3,4; Gal. 3:26,27; 1 Pet. 3:21). For those who had been Christians, but fell away, there is a need to be restored by repenting and praying for God\u2019s forgiveness (cf. Acts 8:13,18-23; 1 Jn. 1:9). These passages show that having God\u2019s forgiveness is conditional.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Maintaining a right relationship with God is also necessary in order to continue to benefit from the Lord\u2019s atonement at Calvary. John declares, \u201cIf we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin\u201d (1 Jn. 1:6,7). To walk in the light is to live according to the gospel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We close with the comforting and praise-worthy words of the psalmist David:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHow blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, Whose sin is covered! How blessed is the man to whom the LORD does not impute iniquity, And in whose spirit there is no deceit!\u201d (Psa. 32:1,2).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
*****<\/p>\n\n\n\n
(All Scriptures are from the New American Standard Bible, unless otherwise indicated.)
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A Blessed Rest<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Mike Johnson<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Revelation 14:13 says, \u201cAnd I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The word \u201cblessed\u201d means \u201chappy.\u201d There is an obvious sense in which death brings sorrow, but for those who \u201cdie in the Lord\u201d it can be regarded as a happy occasion. Heaven is a place of joy, rest, and peace and we will experience this for eternity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
How do our \u201cworks\u201d follow us? Consider two senses. First, if we live a faithful Christian life, the effects of that will be felt here upon this earth even after we are gone. \u201cGood\u201d will continue to be done by those whom we have influenced in righteousness upon this earth. In Hebrews 11, Abel is mentioned as one though dead continued to speak. Also, Peter spoke of his approaching death in the first chapter of 2 Peter. After pointing out he would soon die he said, \u201cMoreover I will be careful to ensure that you always have a reminder of these things after my decease.\u201d Our life on earth has an impact upon others after we die and our works do follow us. Another way to look at this passage is that the consequences of our works follow us into the next life as we will be judged on the bases of what we have done upon this earth. II Corinthians 5:10 says, \u201cFor we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.\u201d Also, in Romans 2:6, we are told God will render to every man \u201caccording to his deeds.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In conclusion, it is important to consider that this blessed rest spoken of in Revelation 14:13 is only for those \u201cwho die in the Lord\u201d and those who have \u201clabored\u201d for Him as the text indicates. Those who \u201cdie in the Lord\u201d will be saved eternally. What is your situation? Are you \u201cin the Lord?\u201d Are you laboring for the Lord? If so, your death can be a happy occasion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2014 via The Elon Challenger, <\/em>June 2017 1) Hear the gospel<\/strong>, for that is how faith comes (Rom. 10:17; John 20:30,31). Tebeau Street \u201cGo therefore and make disciples of all the nations\u2026teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age\u201d (Matthew 28:19-20, NASB).\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2013 Contents: 1) The Power to Forgive (Tom Edwards)2) A Blessed Rest (Mike Johnson)\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2013 -1- The Power to Forgive Tom Edwards We […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-608","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","post-preview"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thomastedwards.com\/wordpress\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/608","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thomastedwards.com\/wordpress\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thomastedwards.com\/wordpress\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thomastedwards.com\/wordpress\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thomastedwards.com\/wordpress\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=608"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/thomastedwards.com\/wordpress\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/608\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":609,"href":"https:\/\/thomastedwards.com\/wordpress\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/608\/revisions\/609"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thomastedwards.com\/wordpress\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=608"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thomastedwards.com\/wordpress\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=608"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thomastedwards.com\/wordpress\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=608"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2013<\/p>\n\n\n\nThe Steps That Lead to Eternal Salvation<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
2) Believe in the deity of Christ <\/strong>(John 8:24; John 3:18).
3) Repent of sins<\/strong> (Luke 13:5; Acts 17:30).
4) Confess faith in Christ<\/strong> (Rom. 10:9,10; Acts 8:36-38).
5) Be baptized in water<\/strong> for the remission of sins (Mark 16:16; Acts 2:38; 22:16; Rom. 6:3,4; Gal. 3:26,27; 1 Pet. 3:21).
6) Continue in the faith<\/strong>, living for the Lord; for, if not, salvation can be lost (Heb. 10:36-39; Rev. 2:10; 2 Pet. 2:20-22).
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CHURCH OF CHRIST
1402 Tebeau Street, Waycross, GA\u00a0 31501
Sunday <\/strong>services: 9:00 a.m. (Bible class); 10 a.m. & 5 p.m. (worship)
Wednesday: <\/strong>7 p.m. (Bible class)
evangelist\/editor:<\/strong> Tom Edwards (912) 281-9917
Tom@ThomasTEdwards.com
http:\/\/thomastedwards.com\/go<\/a> (Older version of Gospel Observer website without pictures, but back to March 1990)
http:\/\/tebeaustreetchurchofchrist.org\/<\/a>
http:\/\/ThomasTEdwards.com\/audioser.html<\/a> (audio sermons)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"