Key Bible Passage(s):

Matt.6:14-15; 18:15-35; II Cor.5:19; Eph.4:32

Tier 1:

When we put Matt.6:12 alongside Luke 11:4 we can see that Jesus is using debt as a metaphor to help us understand the nature of sin. When we forgive we are agreeing to pay a moral cost ourselves. Our capacity to forgive is created at the cross, and is rooted in our own experience of forgiveness. To be caught up into the life of God is to be caught up into a life characterized by forgiveness (Matt.6:14-15) as a key aspect of discipleship.

Tier 2:

There is a lot of confusion about what it means to forgive someone. We need to be careful to invest the word with the meaning the Bible gives it, rather than with sentimental or erroneous views of our culture. Forgiveness is not unconditional. Neither does it mean letting someone get away with what they have done to you. It doesn’t mean everything just goes back to the way it was before, nor pretending it didn’t happen. We need to reflect deeply on the Bible’s teaching on forgiveness to know what it is that we are receiving, and what it is that we are called to extend to toehrs, and under what circumstances.

Tier 3:

Perhaps the most contentious misconception about forgiveness is that we have to extend it irrespective of how an offender behaves. Jesus teaches that repentance must be present before forgiveness can be extended. We cannot forgive someone who does not exhibit repentance. This is true for the Lord, and it is true for us. Patterns of sin can take time to break down, and Jesus calls us to bear with one another during this process, knowing that means we will have to forgive one another repeatedly.

We must develop and maintain the capacity to forgive. He who is devoid of the power to forgive is devoid of the power to love.

Martin Luther king Jr.

Group Discussion:

What do you mean when you say: ‘I’m sorry’? Is this an adequate response from a Christian to their sin and its impact?

What do you mean when you say: ‘I forgive you’?

What are we actually asking God to do when we ask Him to forgive us… and what are we committing ourselves to?

If God has forgiven all our sin when we become Christians, why do we need to keep asking Him to forgive us our sin throughout our lives as Christians?

and later in the session:

What does it mean to be ‘forgiven’ by God? …and to forgive others their sin against us?

How would life look different if you knew you lived free of spiritual debt?

How can we cultivate this confidence?

What threatens your confidence that you are forgiven by God?

pray together as a group.

Homework:

Over this half-term we have been working to memorise Matthew 7:7-12. You will have to keep refreshing Matt.5:1-16, and Matt.6:5-15 whilst you do this.

(we’ll memorise the whole of the Sermon on the Mount over the next 3 years)

To Be A Christian: Q&A 193-201

Prepare for praying together through ‘Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one’

Invitation Week:

Each term, we invite someone else on DTP (or a group of people) for a meal. Whoever makes the invitation is responsible for ensuring that the conversation includes reflecting together on the following questions:

what have you found encouraging / exciting about this term so far… and what’s caused problems, or have found difficult, challenging, or a cause anxiety and uncertainty?

how is your pattern of prayer changing as you put this into practice?

have you found this restrictive to your experience of prayer? if so, how? if not, why do you think that is?

what lines of the Lord’s Prayer have you found difficult to pray? can you identify why?