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00:00:01 The cities of refuge 00:00:04 —that was a merciful provision of God. 00:00:07 But we might link it to something 00:00:10 that could involve all of us, 00:00:13 and that is the common expression 00:00:17 “Forgive and forget.” 00:00:19 I’m sure you’ve heard it, and maybe you have tried to apply it. 00:00:25 But maybe at the outset, ask yourself, 00:00:28 ‘Were the cities of refuge 00:00:30 a provision to forgive and forget?’ 00:00:34 Well, if you were there and some men were chopping a tree 00:00:39 and the ax head flew off 00:00:41 and bonked your uncle, killing him, 00:00:44 do you think you’d be in position to say: 00:00:47 “Oh, well, it was an accident. You didn’t mean it. 00:00:50 You feel sorry, so why don’t we just forgive and forget?” 00:00:54 No, that wasn’t possible 00:00:56 because the sanctity of life and blood 00:01:00 were involved in that case. 00:01:03 But do they suggest (the cities of refuge) 00:01:07 that God, though merciful, 00:01:09 does not forgive or forget? 00:01:14 Well, if you open to the fourth chapter of Ephesians, 00:01:18 there is a verse there that makes it clear what the answer is. 00:01:23 That is, Ephesians 4:32: 00:01:28 “But become kind to one another, 00:01:32 “tenderly compassionate, freely forgiving one another 00:01:37 “just as God also by Christ 00:01:40 freely forgave you.” 00:01:43 So, certainly, we wouldn’t disagree 00:01:45 that God is able to forgive. 00:01:49 As to forgetting, in Jeremiah chapter 31, 00:01:52 the comment (with regard to the new covenant) said: 00:01:56 “I will forgive their error, 00:01:59 and I will no longer remember their sin.” 00:02:05 So does God forgive and forget? 00:02:10 Think of the account of David. 00:02:14 We know of his grievous sin. 00:02:17 Still, afterward, 00:02:19 God said to Solomon (with regard to David) 00:02:23 that ‘David walked, with integrity of heart with uprightness, 00:02:28 by doing according to all that I commanded.’ 00:02:32 So, clearly, God had forgiven David. 00:02:37 But how about forgetting? 00:02:40 Did God forget David’s sins? 00:02:44 We know about them because they’re recorded in the Bible. 00:02:48 We don’t forget them, and certainly by God recording them in the Bible, 00:02:52 it shows that he doesn’t forget them in the strictest sense of the word. 00:02:57 But with regard to David’s serious sins, 00:03:01 God was able to forget in the sense of putting behind Him 00:03:06 David’s sins and not remembering them 00:03:11 in the sense of calling them back 00:03:14 to punish David time and time again. 00:03:18 He—that is, God— put David’s sins behind Him. 00:03:24 Well, what about us and the encouragement 00:03:26 to forgive and forget? 00:03:30 We know that there are times, as mentioned earlier today, 00:03:34 when individuals may rub us the wrong way 00:03:37 or say something hurtful about us; 00:03:40 maybe it’s like a stab of a sword. 00:03:43 They may do something thoughtless; 00:03:46 they may even betray a confidence 00:03:49 and hurt us in that way. 00:03:52 So, what’s our reaction going to be? get angry? 00:03:56 say something harsh in return? 00:03:58 maybe simply avoid the brother or sister thereafter? 00:04:04 Well, we mentioned Ephesians 4:32, 00:04:07 read it, and it said: 00:04:09 “Freely forgiving one another 00:04:12 “just as God 00:04:14 also by Christ freely forgave you.” 00:04:19 So, clearly, if we want to imitate God, 00:04:24 then that involves being willing to forgive, 00:04:29 and that means 00:04:31 putting the individual’s trespasses 00:04:34 behind us. 00:04:37 Realistically, though, how can we go about that? 00:04:42 We might think of some physical wounds to illustrate the point. 00:04:47 Some wounds are small and light 00:04:50 and others more serious or deeper, 00:04:53 and they don’t all require the same reaction. 00:04:56 But let’s just imagine that we had an envelope 00:05:01 and we used our finger to open the envelope, 00:05:05 and in the process we got a paper cut. 00:05:08 “Ow! Wow, that hurt!” 00:05:10 We wished we had used a letter opener. 00:05:13 We didn’t. We used our finger, and it really hurt. 00:05:18 But isn’t it true that if you’ve done that, 00:05:21 a day or two later 00:05:23 you can’t even remember where the wound is? 00:05:26 I mean, you cut yourself, but you’ve forgotten it. 00:05:31 Some wounds, of course, are more serious or deeper. 00:05:35 Let’s just say that you needed 00:05:38 an emergency appendectomy, 00:05:41 and it wasn’t going to be done laparoscopically 00:05:45 with three small holes 00:05:47 but rather with an open incision. 00:05:51 Now, after that, would it be rational 00:05:54 to stick your finger through the incision 00:05:58 and kind of poke around inside where the appendix had been? 00:06:03 Would poking around in the wound help things? 00:06:08 Or, rather, do we let it go —forget about it? 00:06:12 It might be hurtful to walk for a few days, 00:06:15 but in time, it’s behind you. 00:06:18 And, in fact, now, if you’ve had an appendectomy, 00:06:21 you probably don’t think about it, 00:06:23 and maybe it’s been years since you thought about it. 00:06:25 Oh, granted, there may be a small scar on your abdomen, 00:06:29 but it’s been put behind you. 00:06:34 Can that same concept be applied 00:06:37 to unkind things that have been said about us 00:06:41 by someone who hurt us, perhaps betrayed a trust? 00:06:46 Now what? 00:06:49 Colossians chapter 3, 00:06:52 we might read the whole verse, 00:06:55 verse 13: 00:06:57 “Continue putting up with one another 00:07:00 “and forgiving one another freely 00:07:02 “even if anyone has 00:07:06 “a cause for complaint against another. 00:07:10 “Just as Jehovah freely forgave you, 00:07:14 you must also do the same.” 00:07:17 Now, we want to imitate Jehovah, do we not? 00:07:21 And if God freely forgives, 00:07:25 is that not an incentive for us to try to do the same? 00:07:30 Now, granted, that doesn’t mean 00:07:32 that Jehovah has forgotten the trespass against us. 00:07:38 Can we? Maybe, maybe not. 00:07:42 We do recall what Jesus said in the model prayer, however, 00:07:45 when he said that ‘as we forgive the trespasses of others 00:07:50 so God will accordingly forgive our trespasses.’ 00:07:55 Conversely, if we are disinclined 00:07:59 to forgive the trespasses of others, 00:08:02 what can we expect of God for us? 00:08:07 So, then, what is the essence, 00:08:10 applied personally, 00:08:12 of this encouragement to forgive and forget? 00:08:18 It means to forgive 00:08:20 in the sense of letting go, 00:08:23 not holding on to the anger, 00:08:26 not feeling constant resentment thereafter, 00:08:30 or not even gossiping 00:08:32 about what was done that hurt us. 00:08:36 Maybe it really is quite immaterial. 00:08:39 Maybe it’s simply like a paper cut: 00:08:42 In a couple of days, we don’t even remember where the wound is. 00:08:47 Can we do that with regard to the offense, 00:08:50 or the hurt, personally? 00:08:53 But even with something more serious 00:08:56 —an offense that seems deeper— 00:08:59 can we be like Jehovah 00:09:02 by forgetting in the sense of putting it behind us? 00:09:06 Just as Jehovah didn’t thereafter 00:09:10 punish David time and time again, 00:09:14 can we put the fellow servant’s error, 00:09:18 offense, 00:09:20 perhaps a lack of trust— 00:09:24 Can we put those things behind us 00:09:26 just realizing that he or she is still our brother? 00:09:31 And it’s an imperfect brother just as we’re imperfect, 00:09:35 but put it behind and forgive the trespass 00:09:39 just as Jehovah forgives our trespasses.
00:00:01 The cities of refuge 00:00:04 —that was a merciful provision of God. 00:00:07 But we might link it to something 00:00:10 that could involve all of us, 00:00:13 and that is the common expression 00:00:17 “Forgive and forget.” 00:00:19 I’m sure you’ve heard it, and maybe you have tried to apply it. 00:00:25 But maybe at the outset, ask yourself, 00:00:28 ‘Were the cities of refuge 00:00:30 a provision to forgive and forget?’ 00:00:34 Well, if you were there and some men were chopping a tree 00:00:39 and the ax head flew off 00:00:41 and bonked your uncle, killing him, 00:00:44 do you think you’d be in position to say: 00:00:47 “Oh, well, it was an accident. You didn’t mean it. 00:00:50 You feel sorry, so why don’t we just forgive and forget?” 00:00:54 No, that wasn’t possible 00:00:56 because the sanctity of life and blood 00:01:00 were involved in that case. 00:01:03 But do they suggest (the cities of refuge) 00:01:07 that God, though merciful, 00:01:09 does not forgive or forget? 00:01:14 Well, if you open to the fourth chapter of Ephesians, 00:01:18 there is a verse there that makes it clear what the answer is. 00:01:23 That is, Ephesians 4:32: 00:01:28 “But become kind to one another, 00:01:32 “tenderly compassionate, freely forgiving one another 00:01:37 “just as God also by Christ 00:01:40 freely forgave you.” 00:01:43 So, certainly, we wouldn’t disagree 00:01:45 that God is able to forgive. 00:01:49 As to forgetting, in Jeremiah chapter 31, 00:01:52 the comment (with regard to the new covenant) said: 00:01:56 “I will forgive their error, 00:01:59 and I will no longer remember their sin.” 00:02:05 So does God forgive and forget? 00:02:10 Think of the account of David. 00:02:14 We know of his grievous sin. 00:02:17 Still, afterward, 00:02:19 God said to Solomon (with regard to David) 00:02:23 that ‘David walked, with integrity of heart with uprightness, 00:02:28 by doing according to all that I commanded.’ 00:02:32 So, clearly, God had forgiven David. 00:02:37 But how about forgetting? 00:02:40 Did God forget David’s sins? 00:02:44 We know about them because they’re recorded in the Bible. 00:02:48 We don’t forget them, and certainly by God recording them in the Bible, 00:02:52 it shows that he doesn’t forget them in the strictest sense of the word. 00:02:57 But with regard to David’s serious sins, 00:03:01 God was able to forget in the sense of putting behind Him 00:03:06 David’s sins and not remembering them 00:03:11 in the sense of calling them back 00:03:14 to punish David time and time again. 00:03:18 He—that is, God— put David’s sins behind Him. 00:03:24 Well, what about us and the encouragement 00:03:26 to forgive and forget? 00:03:30 We know that there are times, as mentioned earlier today, 00:03:34 when individuals may rub us the wrong way 00:03:37 or say something hurtful about us; 00:03:40 maybe it’s like a stab of a sword. 00:03:43 They may do something thoughtless; 00:03:46 they may even betray a confidence 00:03:49 and hurt us in that way. 00:03:52 So, what’s our reaction going to be? get angry? 00:03:56 say something harsh in return? 00:03:58 maybe simply avoid the brother or sister thereafter? 00:04:04 Well, we mentioned Ephesians 4:32, 00:04:07 read it, and it said: 00:04:09 “Freely forgiving one another 00:04:12 “just as God 00:04:14 also by Christ freely forgave you.” 00:04:19 So, clearly, if we want to imitate God, 00:04:24 then that involves being willing to forgive, 00:04:29 and that means 00:04:31 putting the individual’s trespasses 00:04:34 behind us. 00:04:37 Realistically, though, how can we go about that? 00:04:42 We might think of some physical wounds to illustrate the point. 00:04:47 Some wounds are small and light 00:04:50 and others more serious or deeper, 00:04:53 and they don’t all require the same reaction. 00:04:56 But let’s just imagine that we had an envelope 00:05:01 and we used our finger to open the envelope, 00:05:05 and in the process we got a paper cut. 00:05:08 “Ow! Wow, that hurt!” 00:05:10 We wished we had used a letter opener. 00:05:13 We didn’t. We used our finger, and it really hurt. 00:05:18 But isn’t it true that if you’ve done that, 00:05:21 a day or two later 00:05:23 you can’t even remember where the wound is? 00:05:26 I mean, you cut yourself, but you’ve forgotten it. 00:05:31 Some wounds, of course, are more serious or deeper. 00:05:35 Let’s just say that you needed 00:05:38 an emergency appendectomy, 00:05:41 and it wasn’t going to be done laparoscopically 00:05:45 with three small holes 00:05:47 but rather with an open incision. 00:05:51 Now, after that, would it be rational 00:05:54 to stick your finger through the incision 00:05:58 and kind of poke around inside where the appendix had been? 00:06:03 Would poking around in the wound help things? 00:06:08 Or, rather, do we let it go —forget about it? 00:06:12 It might be hurtful to walk for a few days, 00:06:15 but in time, it’s behind you. 00:06:18 And, in fact, now, if you’ve had an appendectomy, 00:06:21 you probably don’t think about it, 00:06:23 and maybe it’s been years since you thought about it. 00:06:25 Oh, granted, there may be a small scar on your abdomen, 00:06:29 but it’s been put behind you. 00:06:34 Can that same concept be applied 00:06:37 to unkind things that have been said about us 00:06:41 by someone who hurt us, perhaps betrayed a trust? 00:06:46 Now what? 00:06:49 Colossians chapter 3, 00:06:52 we might read the whole verse, 00:06:55 verse 13: 00:06:57 “Continue putting up with one another 00:07:00 “and forgiving one another freely 00:07:02 “even if anyone has 00:07:06 “a cause for complaint against another. 00:07:10 “Just as Jehovah freely forgave you, 00:07:14 you must also do the same.” 00:07:17 Now, we want to imitate Jehovah, do we not? 00:07:21 And if God freely forgives, 00:07:25 is that not an incentive for us to try to do the same? 00:07:30 Now, granted, that doesn’t mean 00:07:32 that Jehovah has forgotten the trespass against us. 00:07:38 Can we? Maybe, maybe not. 00:07:42 We do recall what Jesus said in the model prayer, however, 00:07:45 when he said that ‘as we forgive the trespasses of others 00:07:50 so God will accordingly forgive our trespasses.’ 00:07:55 Conversely, if we are disinclined 00:07:59 to forgive the trespasses of others, 00:08:02 what can we expect of God for us? 00:08:07 So, then, what is the essence, 00:08:10 applied personally, 00:08:12 of this encouragement to forgive and forget? 00:08:18 It means to forgive 00:08:20 in the sense of letting go, 00:08:23 not holding on to the anger, 00:08:26 not feeling constant resentment thereafter, 00:08:30 or not even gossiping 00:08:32 about what was done that hurt us. 00:08:36 Maybe it really is quite immaterial. 00:08:39 Maybe it’s simply like a paper cut: 00:08:42 In a couple of days, we don’t even remember where the wound is. 00:08:47 Can we do that with regard to the offense, 00:08:50 or the hurt, personally? 00:08:53 But even with something more serious 00:08:56 —an offense that seems deeper— 00:08:59 can we be like Jehovah 00:09:02 by forgetting in the sense of putting it behind us? 00:09:06 Just as Jehovah didn’t thereafter 00:09:10 punish David time and time again, 00:09:14 can we put the fellow servant’s error, 00:09:18 offense, 00:09:20 perhaps a lack of trust— 00:09:24 Can we put those things behind us 00:09:26 just realizing that he or she is still our brother? 00:09:31 And it’s an imperfect brother just as we’re imperfect, 00:09:35 but put it behind and forgive the trespass 00:09:39 just as Jehovah forgives our trespasses.
