HEBREWS
Lesson 37Hebrews 12:14-15
1.A. We are to follow peace with all men [Heb. 12:14], apart from that we will not see God. The word see is optanomai and means to gaze with wide open eyes as something remarkable. How could being at peace with our fellow man cause such an effect? [See Mt. 5:8] ______
Hebrews 12:14 (KJV) Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord:
Matthew 5:8 (KJV) blessedare the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
B. Revelation 22:3-4? ______
Revelation 22:3-4 (KJV) And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him: 4 and they shall see his face; and his name shall be in their foreheads.
C. 1 John 3:2? ______
1 John 3:2 (KJV) Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.
D. Ephesians 5:5? ______
Ephesians 5:5 (KJV) for this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.
2. A. According to Heb. 12:15, what are we to pursue, look diligently to, exercise, take special care, pay close attention to. ______
Hebrews 12:15 (KJV) Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled;
B. Place this verse in context. What came before, and what comes after? ______
Hebrews 12:14-16 (KJV) 14 Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord: 15 Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled;16 Lest there be any fornicator, or profane person, as Esau, who for one morsel of meat sold his birthright.
C. Is the immediate context of it our salvation or the condition of our hearts? ______
D. Would it appear that grace has an effect upon our hearts? Y N
E. Does it appear that we can call upon grace to aid us in our heart choices? Y N
F. One of my favorite definitions of grace is: “God’s divine influence upon the human heart”. Most scholars define grace as “God’s unmerited favor”. Is it an unmerited favor to have God work on our heart? Y N
G. We tend to think of grace as something God just pours out on us, but by considering grace as an influence, what is it to influence? ______
3.A. Is grace something only God has and gives, OR is grace something He gives in order for us to in turn be gracious to others? ______
B. Was/is it grace that enables us to receive forgiveness of sin, plus all the other exchanges [syllabus36]? Y N
C. If all the exchanges are in place, will we be peaceable persons to all men? Y N
D. Would failure to appropriate these exchanges be a failure [or falling] from grace? Y N
4.A. It would appear [context] that the first spiral down of [falling from grace] is a root of Bitterness. How would a root of Bitterness lead to hostility toward another? ______
[See syllabus 8] pathway of sin
B. Bitterness is a principality which means it is an unclean spirit that carries with it a lot of more violent unclean spirits that feed Bitterness and in turn Bitterness keeps feeding the lesser spirits to more violence. Examine and discuss the following. [Scriptural reference Ephesians 4:31-32] SEE NEXT PAGE FOR PART B
Ephesians 4:31-32 (KJV) Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamor, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: 32 And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.
What was the offense? Lemon picked prematurely
Who suffered the brunt of Lemon’s offense?
Was the Lemon justified in his anger?
Do you think he was picked with malicious
intent?
Did the lemon forgive the one who picked him?
How do you know?
How would unforgiveness lead to Resentment?
If I choose not to forgive will bitterness stay
in place?
Resentment leads to what?
Do you find this to be true?
“Get even”. Does “pay back” mentality fester?
What happens when something festers?
O.K. so I’m angry. How does Unforgiveness and
Bitterness keep my anger in place?
Will undealt anger/wrath eventually turn to
hatred?
How can hatred turn to violence?
How can violence turn to murder?
5.If Unforgiveness is the element that keeps Bitterness in place, what is the key to ousting Bitterness? ______
6.If I forgive, will I remain bitter? What will happen to resentment, retaliation, anger, hatred and violence and murder? ______
HEBREWS
Syllabus 37
HOW TO FORGIVE
* Ephesians 4:31-32 (Revised Standard) “Put away from you all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and wrangling, and slander, together with all malice, and be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ has forgiven you”.
Bitterness—pikria- animosity, anger, harshness
Wrath—thymos—fierceness, boiling indignation of the feelings
Anger—orgē—wrath, anger, vengeance, indignation. Abiding and settled habit of mind.
Wrangling—kraugē—clamor, outcry, cry out, shout. Noisy arguing and quarreling. High language of scorn and scolding, yelling tones, loud and boisterous, recrimination, fierce and impetuous, invective (vehement denunciation), censure, abuse, insulting, “driven into”, attacked.
Slander—blasphēmia—railing abusive speech hurtful to the reputation of others.
Malice—kakia— “bad”, wickedness, depravity, malignity. Bad-heartedness—the root of all vices.
Put away! Get rid of! This is a command. To get rid of means we don’t have it any more. It is gone. Done. When we put away or get rid of we need to replace with or adopt a new way of acting and reacting. So, if we put away bitterness, what do we put on? Kindness. Tenderheartedness. Forgiveness.
We were created to live by the voice of our Creator. Initially, it was from God that we received our identity. God created Adam in His (God’s own) image. Our thoughts and attitudes were meant to represent the thoughts and attitudes of God. Then man listened to another voice. The voice of Satan, and Satan gave him another identity. Satan’s identity.
Heb. 1:1-2 (RSV)1Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, 2but in these last dayshe has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world.
The prophets had a message, and the message became flesh. The WORD (Jesus) speaks of God’s love. He is the voice reinstating our God given identity when He bore our sin on the cross. He brought us back to our original state—our rightful identity—the image of God. Through rebirth. We now (again) have ears to hear how the image of God is to act and behave. We are to go into the world, however our world begins with our own family and extends to everyone with whom we come in contact; no matter what the circumstance. We are forgiven, and our new life is to forgive. It is a command; and should become our new way of life.
Matthew 6:12 (KJV) and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
Luke 6:37 (KJV) 37Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven:
Our own forgiveness from God is contingent upon our forgiveness of others. In other words, our forgive-ness vertically (from God), is proportionate to our forgiveness horizontally (with each other).
How far reaching is this? Psalms 103:12 (KJV) As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.
How far reaching should our forgiveness be of others?
HOWEVER, when we came to Christ we brought along with us some unfinished business. We have been delivered from darkness - but we’ve brought our “darkness thinking” with us. Darkness thinking comes in many forms. In fact, all mindsets not directly from God are a form of darkness. The root of Bitterness (for example). Many of us feel we have the right to feel bitter. We have been victims of abuse (physical, emotional, sexual, and verbal). We suppress our anger, and the anger distorts our whole lives.
Eph. 4:31-32 (Amp) 31Let all bitterness and indignation and wrath (passion, rage, bad temper) and resentment (anger, animosity) and quarreling (brawling, clamor, contention) and slander (evil-speaking, abusive or blasphemous language) be banished from you, with all malice (spite, ill will, or baseness of any kind). 32And become useful and helpful and kind to one another, tenderhearted (compassionate, understanding, loving-hearted), forgiving one another [readily and freely], as God in Christ forgave you.
Bitterness is part of the darkness thinking that we are to “Put Away!” It means: Do it! Don’t think about it, don’t pray about it—DO IT. Decisive—once and for all. Do it NOW. (Take it from experience we can allow it to take years. Sometimes a lifetime.) Bitterness is the root that carries along with it, wrath, anger, quarreling, slander, and all malice.
The Living Bible states it… “Stop being mean, bad tempered,angry,quarreling,harsh words, and dislike of others. I don’t know about you, but when I feel wronged, betrayed, suffer from divorce wounds, abused, I have felt these things. Bitterness becomes a poison. It is time to close the book on it. Bitterness is a state of being more than something you do. It is a sense of brooding. Brooding over a wrong done to you. Like a hen brooding over her egg—determined to get this thing done! You have been hurt and you are going to hatch it—develop it—get even!
Brooding is like replaying a movie in our head. Feeling it again, the sadness of it, the pain of it, the terror of it. We keep returning to the hurt only to experience the hurt all over again. In our minds, we are paying back the person who hurt us. But you are the one being hurt all over again. The abuser is not even aware! By re-inflicting the pain upon yourself you join with the abuser. You become your own abuser! Instead of getting even you are the one being harmed. It will keep eating at you like a cancer until you put it away!
Why do we cling to a hurt? Somehow, we think we can get even. An eye for an eye mentality. It is the same old lie (from the garden). “You shall be as god”. If I am like god, then it becomes my responsibility to get even. “I’ll hurt you like you hurt me”. “I’ll get even. I’ll lock you out of my life”. “I’ll lock you out of other people’s lives as well, the world will know you for the fiend you are!”
Bitterness is the root of murder. It begins in the head. We say we are Christians and we don’t think that way. Well, given exceptional conditions—you do not know how you will think and/or act.
THERE HAS TO BE A BETTER METHOD OF HANDLING HURTS.
If you have never learned how to “put away” the bitterness from the past you are probably still reacting to hurtful situations in the same way as you always have. The definition of insanity is: “doing the same thing the same way and expecting a different answer”.
In our hearts, we know that we are to forgive, but we really can’t. Guilt adds to the mix. We have to choose to act differently! GOD SAYS WE ARE TO FORGIVE. But, we can’t forgive anyone unless we admit that we have been hurt. It is what we do with the hurt that counts.
We need to get a proper understanding of what forgiveness is (and what it is not).
Forgiveness is NOT: Letting the abuser win. NOT admitting the other person is correct. NOT absolving someone for their sin.
Forgiveness is NOT: Saying they are not guilty. NOT understating the offense. NOT being a doormat.
Forgiveness from scripture is more than will power or self-help.
FORGIVENESS IS RELEASING THEM TO THE ONLY GOD WHOSE BUSINESS IT IS TO PUNISH SOMEONE.
Romans 12:19 (NASB) Never take your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, "Vengeance is Mine, I will repay," says the Lord.
FORGIVENESS IS ACCOMPLISHED ONLY THROUGH THE POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT.
Colossians 1:11 (KJV) 11 Strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness;
Strengthened: dynamo—to enable: - strengthen (Power of The Holy Spirit related to the ability to do.) All might: dynamis—force (literal or figurative); specially miraculous power (strength to do the impossible) Power upon Power—so you CAN forgive! According to his glorious power. Not by any human means, but by the power of God. There is a manifestation of power in the spirit with which Christians are enabled to bear up under tests, which shows that it is not of human origin. It is the power which God gives them in the day of trial. This power is "glorious," or, as it is in the Greek, it is the "power of his glory." It is manifestly the power of the great and glorious God, and it tends to promote his glory, and to show forth his praise.
With patience so you can forgive, forgive, and keep on forgiving.
Forgiveness is not easy, but forgiveness is the greatest act of faith.
Luke 11:3-4 "If another follower sins, warn him, and if he is sorry and stops sinning, forgive him. 4 If he sins against you seven times in one day and says that he is sorry each time, forgive him."
The disciple’s response: Luke 11:5 The apostles said to the Lord, "Give us more faith!" (Context is forgiveness)
Faith? What does faith have to do with forgiveness?
And Jesus’ reply? Luke 11:6 The Lord said, "If your faith were the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, 'Dig yourself up and plant yourself in the sea,' and it would obey you.
[If ye had faith as a grain of mustard seed] Stating again the limitlessness of faith. Mountains and trees can be moved (Mt. 17:20; Lk. 17:6), "all things" can be done (Mt. 21:22), and "all things are possible" if one has faith (Mt. 17:20; Mk. 9:23; 11:22-24; Jn. 14:12-15; 15:7,16).
All things are possible if you have faith—even the ability to forgive an abuser.
FORGIVENESS—WHAT IS IT? Forgiveness is saying:
“I release the person into the hands of God.”
“I have no vendetta against you”. Judgment belongs to The Lord.
“Only God can absolve you of sin”.
To forgive is to send away, to release.
To forgive is to decide that I will not judge you anymore. You are out of my hand and in God’s.
God is the Just Judge. Only God knows that person’s heart.
I am off the hook and now I am in a position to pray for that person.
When we have been hurt, we want to get even. We feel someone needs to pay for the injustice done me. We adopt a victim mentality. My rights have been violated. The truth of the matter is—Someone has already paid for the injustice done to me.
Jesus atoned for the sins of the world on that cross—that includes the sins of our abuser.
Jesus said we are to forgive as we have been forgiven. (When unmerited)
Stephen when he was being stoned to death cried out: ‘Lord lay not this charge against them”.
He didn’t deny that they were guilty.
He asked that the charges against them would not to be laid to their account. To whose account then?
We go to a restaurant and realize we forgot our wallet, no credit cards, no cash! A kindly gentleman aware of our plight picks up our tab and puts it on his own account. The debt is paid. The restaurant owner is satisfied.
Someone has hurt us. They owe us a debt. A kindly gentlemen steps in and pays the price for their sin. The debt has been paid. Forgiving is our “amen”. It is saying: “I agree with you—the sin of the ‘enemy’ was laid on Jesus” The debt was paid. By Jesus.
Stephen released those men to God the Righteous Judge; and Stephen went to be with The Lord with a clean heart and a right spirit. When we don’t forgive we short circuit love. When we short circuit love, we quench The Holy Spirit. For it is love that covers the multitude of sins. If our denying forgiveness to someone had the power to lock them in their sin, then they would never have the opportunity to repent. If we had the power to lock someone who hurt us in their sin, then we would have power that belongs only to God. God did not entrust this power to us—we could not be trusted. Why? Because we’d withhold it! If God had entrusted this power to mankind, then those whom we have offended would have the ability to lock us in our sin, and we could never be saved. God has reserved this power for Himself. He is the only One who knows the whole.
NO, unforgiveness does not lock them in their sin. Unforgiveness locks us in. (Our sin of unforgiveness). That is why God commands us to forgive—because he loves us, and unforgiveness is deadly! We forgive and leave the judgment to HIM. That is where the faith comes in. Do we trust that He will? Do we trust that he will right all wrongs? Is He trustworthy? If we still think we need justice. We walk in unbelief. And without faith it is impossible to please God.God would not ask us to do something we were unable to do.