Highlands Fellowship
Join us for this series we look through the Lord's Prayer and learn how we can stay connected to Jesus in 2017 to have the best year ever!
CONNECTION POINTS - Week 6
FORGIVENESS
February 11-12, 2017
Two of the greatest barriers in your life that keep you from experiencing genuine peace of mind are guilt and resentment.
“Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.”
“Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”
“Give us this day our daily bread…”
“Forgive us our debt…”
PRAYER OF RELEASE
“Forgive us our sins, just as we have forgiven those who have sinned against us.” -Matthew 6:12 (NLT)
3 REASONS WHY I MUST RELEASE THOSE WHO’VE HURT ME
1-BECAUSE GOD FORGIVES ME.
"The servant's master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go.” -Matthew 18:27 (NIV)
“Yes, all have sinned… yet now God declares us not guilty of offending him if we trust in Jesus Christ who in his kindness freely takes away our sins." -Romans 3: 23-24 (TLB)
“But the servant went out and found a man who owed him a hundred denari and he grabbed him by the throat and harshly demanded ‘You must pay me back right now!’ And the man pleaded just as the servant had with the king, ‘I promise to pay you back. Just give me some time.’ But the unforgiving servant refused and he had the man thrown in jail.” -Matthew 18:28-30 (pp)
2- BECAUSE RESENTMENT IS SELF-TORTURE.
"You contemptible and wicked servant. I forgave and released you and I canceled your great debt. ‘Shouldn't you have shown mercy and release to your debtor just as I did with you? In wrath the king sent him to the jailors to be tortured in the torture chamber.” -Matthew 18:33-34 (NIV)
3- BECAUSE I NEED FORGIVENESS EVERY DAY.
“This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart.” -Matthew 18:35 (NIV)
HOW DO I RELEASE MY HURT?
1- I LEAVE IT TO GOD.
“...Never avenge yourselves. Leave that to God, for he has said that he will repay those who deserve it…” -Romans 12:19 (LB)
2- I HEAL IT WITH GRACE.
“Be careful that none of you fails to respond to the grace which God gives, for if he does there can very easily spring up in him a bitter spirit which is not only bad in itself but can also poison the lives of many others.” -Hebrews 12:15 (PH)
3- I NEED TO NAIL IT TO THE CROSS.
“We know that our old life died with Christ on the cross so that our sinful selves would have no power over us and we would not be slaves to sin.” -Romans 6:6 (NCV)