Lesson Outline for May 22, 2025
Is Unforgiveness a Sin?
- Is there some act done against us or someone else that is unforgivable to you?
- Is forgiveness emotional or a transaction?
- Unforgiveness brings – self-justification for pity, offense, heaviness and bondage
- Secular – Many self-help books on forgiveness – pain management, not healing.
- What does unforgiveness lead to? Bitterness
The Bible describes bitterness as a bitter gall, a bitter hatred. Job, Hosea and Proverbs directly associate bitterness to a cobra’s poison or hemlock…, DEADLY
Hebrew and Greek Terms / Definitions
- Forgive = #H5375 “nasa” to carry, to take, bear, to take away, to cause one to bear iniquity; as a substitution for another / G#863 “apheimi” to let go, give up a debt, release from guilt or penalty, lay aside, omit.
- Trespass = H#6588 “pesa” – rebellion, revolt, transgression) / G#3900 “paraptoma” – deviation from truth and uprightness, sin
- Debt = H#5378 – “nasha” – one who gives for usury (illegal action of lending at an extravagant rate), demand payment / G#3784 “opheilo” – to owe a debt, under an obligation, failed in your duty; or a moral debt,
- Debtor = H#2326 “hob” debt, to be guilty / “G#3781 “opheiletēs” one who owes a penalty to God, and others
- Sin = H#2398 “hata” miss the mark, incur guilt, forfeit / G#266 “hamartia” – lawlessness, violate divine law, to miss the mark
Text in green is author’s notations.
Sermon on the Mount
Matt 6:12-15 ESV – “12 and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. 14 For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, 15 but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”
Not at the Sermon on the Mount
Luke 11:1-4 ESV – “1 Now Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when He finished, one of His disciples said to Him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.” 2 And He said to them, “When you pray, say: “Father, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. 3 Give us each day our daily bread, 4 and forgive us our sins, for we ourselves forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation.“
- This is a different time and place than the Sermon on the Mount
- Jesus reiterated the need for us to forgive because it is critical to our spiritual, emotional (soul) and physical health
- God has spiritual laws that apply to all mankind
- Satan and his forces know God’s spiritual laws
After the Triumphal Entry and Cleansing the Temple
Mark 11:25 NIV – “And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.“
- “IF” and “SO THAT” – Why do we overlook these conditions?
- What does conditional mean?
- Look at the context – heaven, spiritual, Father’s Kingdom across all the verses
- Our confession and forgiveness moves heavenly transactions – trespasses and debts are canceled off of heavenly ledgers, dockets, books and tablets
Matt 18:21 – 35 – Parable of the Unforgiving Servant
- Peter is asking about forgiveness while on earth. Jesus’ response? Perpetuity
- Jewish rabbis advised forgive 3 times.
- Kingdom of heaven / spiritual – 9 specific association to “kingdom of heaven” or heaven
- Two choices, forgiveness…, or, what we see happening daily – offended, gossip, drama, impatience, retaliation, “stuffing” – we see the manifestations of the spiritual battle
- A king had servants, and he began to settle his debts with the servants. A servant is called in who owes a great sum – (talent= 20 yrs wages as a avg worker/laborer= 200K yrs wages) A LOT – he couldn’t pay
- What’s yours and my sin account look like?
- Debts / sins effect family – he, his wife and children and all he had were to be sold
- We see the difference in “sorry” and “godly sorrow”
- Mercy and grace
- Unforgiveness brings anger, rage, physical violence, “unsound mind”
- Sent to the jailers/tormentors – Remember v23 – “the kingdom of heaven may be compared…”
Col 3:9, 10, 13 ESV – “ 9 Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices 10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its Creator…, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.”
- G#5483 “charizomai” pardon, grant forgiveness (forgiving)
- Put on your new self – it’s a daily continual choice; and, only done through our relationship with, and in Jesus Christ- sanctification process renewing our soul. And Eph 4:24 “new self”
- Pardon – who gets a pardon? A pardon must be accepted – not deserved!
- What happens if you commit another crime?
- Unforgiveness allows legal access / legal right by our enemy Satan and his forces!
Matt 5:25-26 – Jesus reiterates – before we come to the alter with an offering, a gift, we need to reconcile with our brother. — “Come to terms quickly with your accuser (legal term for Satan/adversary), while you are going with him to court, lest your accuser (Satan / enemy) hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard to be put in prison…, you will never get out until you paid the last penny.”
- Unforgiveness is a sin and comes with a fine, tax, penalty – Satan is always ready to remind God of your offense
- Unforgiveness allows the enemy access to us
Eph 4:26-27 NIV – 26 ” ‘In your anger do not sin’: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, 27 and do not give the devil a foothold.”
- Cain sinned in his anger and bitterness toward his brother; he blamed Abel for his (Cain’s) sin
- Cain gave the devil a foothold
- Jonah was bitter towards the Ninevites, and angry with God for the Ninevites repentance and God’s mercy toward them
Louis Zamperini – January 26, 1917 – July 2, 2014
- Poor and bullied as a young kid because of his ethnicity and social status
- Dad taught him to box/fight and Louis liked getting revenge on those bullying him
- Became a track runner in high school, and later went to 1936 Olympics’ for the 5K; in 1938 set record for the mile while attending University of Southern CA
- Joined Army Air Corps in 1940. Crashed in the Pacific in May 1943 on a SAR mission, taken POW 47 days later until 1945 – endured unthinkable atrocities and violence – “Bird” Watanabe terrorized Louis during his time as a POW
- 1945 to 1949 – post repatriation Louis is still a “prisoner” in his mind – extreme torment, PTSD, constant nightmares, severe marital problems, hatred, alcoholism, etc
- 1949 went to a Billy Graham Crusade and surrendered to Jesus Christ – later was an evangelist & Started “Victory Boys Camp” 1952 – 2014 – help troubled youth, used physical and Christian – spiritual challenges, athletics, wilderness survival, etc
- Forgave – his captors; 1950 visited a prison in Japan to evangelize to the Japanese guards who held him as a POW
- 1998 at 81 he went Nagano, Japan; torch carrier for Winter Olympics and to evangelize to the “Bird”
Last Thoughts – Forgiveness is a requirement; a legal transaction Jesus Christ does the rest
- Forgiveness allows us physical and SPIRITUAL VICTORIES. Unforgiveness permits and promotes BONDAGE
- We have the BEST LAWYER, Jesus Christ when we enter the LORD’s Court.
- We don’t plead NOT GUILTY, we are guilty. God already knows our sin
- We ask for forgiveness – So, we must FORGIVE – there’s a condition “if” & “so that”
- We conquer – By the Blood of the Lamb, and the word of our TESTIMONY.
- We are baptized into Christ, and put on Christ (Col 3); and, the armor of God (Eph 6)
- Don’t wear YOUR OLD SELF Jesus provided us new robes, clean robes and a turban, just like the high priest Joshua (Zech 3:1-5)
- The accuser is shut down, NOT by our INNOCENCE, but by the Blood of Jesus declared over us. The debt has been paid.
- This week ask Holy Spirit to reveal where there is unforgiveness & repent of it
- Cry out to God – Search me Oh God, know my heart; try me, know my thoughts; Reveal any grievous way in me – confess it, and forgive others
- Break the PATTERN of unforgiveness, anger, resentment, and bitterness.
- As Holy Spirit reveals the situation and person. Confess, ask for forgiveness, repent and WALK in greater FREEDOM to Serve Him, to fulfill your assignment.
If you are having trouble with forgiveness for yourself, for others, or are bound by shame, guilt, anger or bitterness contact us via our contact information for prayer and ministry
