The Testaments of Faith Podcast

The Testaments of Faith Podcast -Forgive us our debts

• Ray Bradshaw • Episode 28

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We are called to forgive. Jesus asked God to forgive them for they know not what they do. If he can forgive those persecuting Him, then we have no excuse what so ever. Staying angry and not forgiving someone or group is only eating at you inside. God Bless you!

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SPEAKER_00

Welcome to the Testament Faith Podcast. I'm your host, Ray Bradshaw. With me today is John Paul Murphy from The World of Faith Church in Keensville, North Carolina, and John Quinn from The World of Faith Church in Keensville, North Carolina. And tonight's topic is going to be about forgiveness. Forgive us of our debts and why we should forgive others. First verse I have tonight to start out with is Daniel 9 9. To the Lord our God belong mercy and forgiveness, though we have rebelled against him. And when you look back in the Old Testament, when you read the Old Testament, you'll see that God had commands and directions for everybody, and they always went away from him. I mean we can see that all the way from Janet starting with Adam and Eve. But he was always he o he had the grace to forgive 'em. And that's one reason I want to talk about it, is because there are a lot of us in today's world, I mean, they just absolutely will not forgive somebody for something. They just hold that much grudge and hate in their heart. Yeah. I mean, it's it's terrible. Absolutely. I mean I see it on Facebook all the time.

SPEAKER_02

It's like I mean, if you go to church very much you'll see it in there, people, you know, that held grudges against people. Um you know. And the one thing as a born-again believer, you know, you got that scripture I know, that if how can God forgive us if we can't forgive somebody ourselves? That's right. And people don't get that. You know, they're like, um, well, it is what it is, I don't care. They get so caught up in their own selfish pride. You know, I've been done wrong a bunch. Everybody has, but you have to be willing to forgive just as your father has forgiven you. And, you know, if you're gonna hold account everything that they've done, how would you feel if God held account everything you've done? You know, you've got to let go of things because the only person that's making it sick is you. They're going about this is what my granddaddy used to say, and he was a preacher for many years. He says, the only person dealing with the pain of the unforgiveness is you. You're letting the ulcers grow in you. Right. They're ulcers, he said, are eating you alive and tearing you up, and they're walking around fine. They don't know anything's wrong. Don't care. Don't care, and you're just living in it. Up at night. You up at night, you're dealing with the problems. Sleeping like a baby. Because you're letting unforgiveness in your heart and pretty much poisoning you. And it does. And people that have unforgiveness, if you'll notice them, they live a miserable life. They're always complaining. They don't ever have any joy. But if you'll get around some people, you mean me, I forgive everybody. Yeah. You can do me wrong in a minute and I'm five minutes, I'm cool with you. Like, whatever, dude. I'm not gonna hold it against you and keep on because you know, I'm easy to get on with because I know Christ forgave me and I had a lot of dirty junk. I had a whole bunch of dirty junk. And he gave me up and said, you know what? I forgive it all. And then here's another part that I'm gonna hit you on. You gotta be willing to forgive yourself. Oh, ain't I? Yeah, definitely. You've got to create, create, treat what you've done in your past just as God treats it. Like it's been washed away. Don't keep on dwelling in the past of my old self. It says you die, when you become new in Christ, old things are passed away, and behold, all things are new. You need to take that scripture literally that everything that I did in my past has been wiped away. I'm no longer that same person. I've been made new in Christ Jesus. So that's a big thing.

SPEAKER_01

It also says that God, you were talking about treat it like God treats it. It says that he cast our sins as far as the east is from the west, never to remember them again. The devil, I said this yesterday in church, the devil's a past devil. He wants to remind you of your past constantly. And that's where that comes from in you, you remembering it because he remembers it. He brings it to your memory. And he the worst thing he can allow you to do one is get a relationship with God. Two is forgive yourself. Because if he can hold you in bondage to what you used to be, Paul said, he said, I have wronged no man and I have defrauded no man, but yet he was the one that was holding the coat when they were stoning Stephen. But he said, I'm not that same person though. I'm not that same person.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, all his past has been forgiven.

SPEAKER_02

That's right. And he didn't see himself as the same anymore. No. No. He realized he was new in Christ. And that's the thing you have to do in Christ and give other people grace just as God gives you the grace. You know, even though they do you wrong, you shouldn't be mad at them. I'm you know, give some grace.

SPEAKER_01

Get you a case. That's right.

SPEAKER_02

Get you get you give some grace to people. If they've done you wrong, I understand that. But give them some grace and say, you know what? God gave me grace when I was wrong. Amen. I'm gonna give them the same grace that they get that God give me. I'm supposed to be like Jesus. Yep. And Jesus lives in me. And as that He lives in you, He starts giving overflowing in you, should be coming out of you, not just in, you know, everything you should do. That means grace, mercy, love. Everything should be flowing out of you. When God lives inside of you, the Holy Spirit inside of you, these things come out. They're not gonna be stayed inside that I'm mad, I'm angry at somebody. They've said something to offend me, and I'm upset. No. Let the love of Jesus come in and say, you know what, they might have said something wrong that upset me. They might have talked, but you know what, I forgive them.

SPEAKER_03

That's right.

SPEAKER_02

And I love them.

SPEAKER_00

You know, and I I like this topic a lot because, you know, as y'all know, I got in that motorcycle wreck, and that was not God's doing, that was the devil's doing. The devil's trying to take using that guy that was hyped up on whatever he was hyped up on. Yeah. And I cannot read the Lord's Prayer, verse 12, where Jesus tells us to forgive our debts as we forgive our debtors and stay mad at that guy. I don't think I would have healed like I've healed if I'd stayed mad at that guy.

SPEAKER_02

You wouldn't have. Because if there's ill temper inside of you, you know, you're holding back what God's got planned for you. Right. You are. Like when you get in this kind of stuff, and I see people all the time, you know, and I just I think of them, you know, like they're always ill, they always have anger toward other people. And then they wonder, well, why is God not doing this in my life? Why isn't it? Because your heart's not right.

SPEAKER_00

Right. Hard-hearted. Yeah, you're hard-hearted, yeah. And and my thing is too, is I know a lot of people that they'll say, Well, we can forgive, but that don't mean we have to forget. Well, if you don't forget, to me, that's really not forgiving. Yeah, let it go. Yeah. We're supposed to be reaching forward of that.

SPEAKER_01

That wouldn't mean I got to have the exact same relationship with you. Right. I mean, I'm not gonna hand you a loaded shotgun if you shot at me one time. I say it like this, I'm not gonna cuddle up with you.

SPEAKER_02

I'm not gonna get around you. I'm not gonna hang out. I mean, but you know, I don't look at people that have done me wrong, and I can go sit down and have a meal with them. Yeah. I can go love them because I'm not gonna hold anger in my heart because I know, and here's my hope, they're gonna be I know I'm going to heaven. Right. I'm headed to heaven, I'm heavy-bound. When I leave this world, I'm going to see Jesus. And they're a good chance they're gonna be there too.

SPEAKER_01

There's not more than one heaven.

SPEAKER_02

That's right. So I'm gonna be there with them, and I don't want to No, I'm not gonna hold any unforgiveness.

SPEAKER_01

You got a problem with another with another person enough you don't want them to go to heaven or you can't be with them in heaven. One of you ain't gonna make it. That's right. And I would say it's the one that's got the bigger problem.

SPEAKER_02

You can't have unforgiveness. He said, How can how can you expect me to forgive you if you can't forgive others?

SPEAKER_01

Well, if you look at it, it the Bible teaches that forgiveness is not optional. It's not optional. It's not optional. It's not it is the very be a Christian is to be Christ-like. I'm gonna give you an example here. When he was on the cross, hanging there, still in pain, still nailed to the cross, he said, Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do. Now, where in that do you get you're supposed to hold unforgiveness? That's right. You don't. That means even when somebody's in the very act of killing you, you're supposed to say, Forgive them. I had that verse in one of my verses. Oh, I'm sorry.

SPEAKER_00

No, you're you're fine. No, that's perfect. I mean, because I mean that's what we're here to do, is talk about it.

SPEAKER_02

I mean, that that that is so in Ephesians 1 7, in him we have a redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins according to the riches of his grace. We're not forgiven because we earned it. We're not we're not forgiven just because we cleaned ourselves up or just because we've done it. No, it's because of the blood of Jesus that we got to forgiveness. He's given us that, and it means the forgiveness wasn't cheap, cost it a high price. He gave it all. He gave his life for it. That's what I'm saying. He gave it all. It is free to us, but it costs Jesus everything. Cost him everything to give it to us, and he's you shouldn't just sweep that under the rug when you get the understanding that it costs Jesus everything to give us this forgiveness. Don't sweep it under the rug and think, oh, that's nothing. He just forgives. No, you need to understand he paid it all to forgive you of everything that you could ever do. I mean, your past, your present, and your future. He gave it all to cover that because he loved you. And don't sweep that under the rug and say, No, he said he gave his all for that.

SPEAKER_00

I can't I understand how some people can call themselves Christians and not be able to forgive somebody. Or even if they say that, all right, I I I have forgive them, but every time you hear them, they're like talking junk about 'em or saying something bad about 'em. Yeah. I mean, it's just hard that hard heart. I mean, there's not gonna be I mean, you can't be a Christian and talk like that and not be able to forgive somebody.

SPEAKER_02

That's exactly right. I code up to the people that have done me wrong, especially if you know what the best thing is, I know if it's somebody I know that's done me wrong, I make it a point out of my way to go by and give them a handshake. Be nice to them. Yeah, give them a handshake, give them some love, tell them I'm glad to see you, I love you.

SPEAKER_00

That's right.

SPEAKER_02

I go out of my way. I want the Lord to know and everybody else know they ain't no hurt. I'm not harboring it up in here. I've let it all go. I want them to know, I want everybody else to know.

SPEAKER_01

Be surprised at how mad that makes the person that has done it to you. Just the fact that you don't hold it no more.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah, I'm not going to. I will never hold it. I think they call that kill em with kindness.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah. Kill them with kindness. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00

You're killing them with kindness. That's right. Yeah. Um I had Matthew 14 and 15 on here too that to follow up for that. I mean, you've already said something about that. Jesus says, For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly father will also forgive you. Yep. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your father forgive your trespasses. Yeah. I mean, that tells you right there, if you're gonna be a Christian, you gotta let it all go. Yeah. Any bad thing that you've ever said about somebody, you need to apologize. Or if they've said something about you or hurt your feelings, just forgive them and move on.

SPEAKER_02

This is the best way that my my grandma taught me this a long time ago. And she was a godly lady and she was Christian, born out. I'm telling you, she she loved the Lord. And she told me, she says, you got two choices to make. And she says, you can either be a rooster or you can be a duck. She says, two things. She said, if you get that rooster wet, his feathers all go to sabbin. They all he looks like he's been defeated. She said, or you can be a duck. She says, and when people come and they spit on you and the waters come, she said, he just shakes it like this, and it all runs off. So she said, be she said, John Paul, be the duck. She said, just let it shake off of you. Don't let what everybody else says affect you, because you know what? You've got your own life to live. That's right. And if you let everything everybody else says affect you, then you're gonna live a miserable life like that rooster that's soaking wet. He's miserable, he hates the water, but that duck, he excels in it. He's into he excels in it. Yeah, he's like he loves the water. You can make a choice in life about being offensive, and I know this is about forgiveness, but I'm helping people that have to deal with this all the time. Just let things go. You know, and don't worry about who other people and what they think and care about, forgive them and let them go. Um there was a man in uh Mark two verses Mark Two. I think it starts in verse five. And it was a they was immediately gathered together. There was a large room to receive near the door that Jesus was preaching in this room, and there was a man who was paralyzed, and there was no room for him in the room. And they started, his friends took him up and lowered him in from the very top of the ceiling. They tore the roof off, and they started lowering him in. And he said to him in verse 10, But that you may know the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins. He said, I say to you, arise, take your bed, your bed, and go your way home. And immediately he arose. So what he did was first he talked to this man that was paralyzed. He took care of the problem of him being a physical, and then he dealt with something even deeper and says, I forgive you sins. This is before the cross. Right. Jesus had a heart to forgive people and had the authority to forgive sins. You need to understand Jesus from the very beginning, before he was even on the cross, had the authority to forgive sins, and they didn't like that. People didn't like it, but he had the power to forgive them. And so these people had such great faith they started ripping the roof off. I hope I got some friends like that that would be willing to drop in. They were willing to do it. So, and that Psalms you were saying earlier was Psalms 103 verses 10 and uh 12. He cast your sins away as far as from the east is to the west, and he's removed our transgressions from us. He didn't do it halfway. He did it all the way. He forgave us all the way, and he's not keep reminding you of what you've done. God's not up there. Well, you remember what you used to do, you know what you used to do. No. God's forgave it and forgot about it. He doesn't even think about it. Yeah, the east to the west never meets. That means God has put your sins in a place where he will never bring them back against you. Right. That never meets. He's put them in a place that he'll never bring them back up to you again. He's forgave it. He doesn't confront you about your sins. He's not constantly bringing it up, he's not constantly telling you you're wrong, you were wrong. That's the enemy that loves to come in and make you feel like you're less than what you really are. Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law. Christ has redeemed us. Do you got to get that on the inside of you that all that stuff has already been paid for that you gotta walk in that you're no longer in that.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, I feel like I feel like that's a struggle too for a lot of people. It is, man. I mean, that new Christians become Christians, but they don't get right into that word and start studying it. We even ask people that they might know that you know, like our pastor or something about that kind of stuff, and they still hold those grudges and it just eats at 'em.

SPEAKER_02

I mean, some of them that's been in church their whole life. I know some I know people my age that have been in church their whole life and they know about Christ and they know about, but yet they are just as cold hearted towards somebody else.

SPEAKER_00

I'm like I know some people are like that. And I've seen people in churches get mad because the preacher said something they didn't like, and they've been members of that church for like fifteen, twenty, thirty years, and just up and leave and go find somewhere to go.

SPEAKER_02

Why are you talking about me like that? I don't know. Told you not to talk about that like that. You sound like me. I'm usually the one offending people sometimes, and I'm like, that's another podcast how John Paul offends people when they run them off from the city.

SPEAKER_00

Seriously, though. I mean, I I mean I've seen that growing up.

SPEAKER_02

John does that too.

SPEAKER_00

Growing up, growing up in a Southern Baptist church. Yeah. I mean, it's like, really? And then like every five years they're looking to replace the preacher because they're tired of hearing him or something. I'm like, why are you gonna like that? Yeah. I mean, I don't get it. I mean, if somebody can answer that, please comment on this video when you see it and tell me why it's like that.

SPEAKER_01

It's hard, it's hard. They don't like most of them. Well, the religious people are the ones that killed Jesus.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

I mean, I'll be real honest. He was a friend of sinners, but the religious people killed him. They devoted Jesus out too.

SPEAKER_00

That's right. They'd have to still tickled over here. You shouldn't upset people like that and they wouldn't be leaving your shirt. It just ain't all that.

SPEAKER_02

I just hearing what you just said about they get upset and they're ready to replace the batch. They do, man. I know. It was just I've seen it a million times. And it's just another story.

SPEAKER_01

There's a lot of people that you need to get them a beach tile and tell them to hold it just like this right here, and just look at them and say, now you're super mad.

SPEAKER_02

Super mad. They're always mad. I don't understand it. No, but your forgiveness is um Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

We don't want to take it. Okay. All right. Colossians 3.13. Bearing with one another and forgiving one and forgive one another. If anyone has a complaint against another, even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. Amen. You know, you're not saying that what they didn't done is is right, it ain't accept it's not you're not saying it's acceptable. You're saying I refuse to let what they did poison me.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah. That's good. I got I'm already here in Matthew back in Matthew chapter eighteen. Excuse me, verses twenty-one and twenty-two. I mean the furthest the parable of the unforgiving servant. I mean it's the first two verses if you read that. Then Peter came to him and said, Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me? And I forgive him up to seven times? And Jesus said to him, I do not say to you up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven. And I mean that's pretty much indefinitely. I mean not just, all right, I'm gonna forgive him seventy times seven.

SPEAKER_01

So basically if you pull out the calculators and you figure it out that's four hundred and ninety times. So let me ask you this, if you're keeping a record and you've got up to four hundred and eighty-nine times, did you really forgive them the first time because you wrote it down, stupid? Not at all. I mean, that's what I'm saying. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00

And that's what he's getting at when he says that. Yeah. I mean it don't matter how many times they do something against you, you are to forgive them.

SPEAKER_01

Well, see, Peter, Peter, Peter actually thought he was being generous in saying seven times.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah. Yeah, because I think what the back then it was like four was the typical thing, is what the religious folks said. Yeah. You can give them up to four times, but he he he was being generous by saying seven.

SPEAKER_01

Jesus was actually not telling him a number. He was saying, hey, dodo. Right. It's supposed to be a lifestyle. A lifestyle. You're supposed to have a lifestyle of forgiveness. For a for a lifetime. Peter was hard headed. Right. Peter was a lot like a lot of us. He was hot headed and hard headed.

SPEAKER_00

I mean, I've got I ain't gonna lie to you, I've got I've got family members that have disowned myself and my brother and refuse to forgive us of whatever we were supposed to have done. Yeah. And I hold no grudge against them, not whatsoever. I have them too. Yep. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

Well, you know what? I have 'em and I haven't missed them. Yeah. Well. It's like I'm on a vacation. Right. Thank you. You're watching this.

SPEAKER_00

If they were that arguably, yeah, I can see that.

SPEAKER_02

Well, all right. So getting back to what my topic was, God remembers forgives your sins and remembers them no more. I'm gonna back this up. I like backing up everything I say two or three times. Hebrews 8 12. I will be merciful, merciful to their unrighteousness and their sins and their lawless deeds, and I will remember them no more. That doesn't mean that God has memory laws. It means he will not hold them against you. He's not bringing up any evidence against you. He's not using it to disqualify you. Some people think that, well, I'm not good enough for this. No, God's not looking at your past saying you're not good enough. He's looking at where you are right now and saying, I want to use you and I want to do it. I cannot, you know, this is covenant language when he's talking in this. He's saying, you know, you're under a new covenant. The old covenant you were under, he said, I'm bitting you on a new one. It's the finished work of Jesus Christ at the cross that you've been forgiven. You're no longer held against you, that you've been doing it. How do you get this? First John 1 9. If we confessed our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us. Us of our sins and to be cleaned us up of all unrighteousness. All unrighteousness. If we'll confess our sins with your mouth, He is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and to clean us up from all unrighteousness. So He's faithful to forgive us.

SPEAKER_00

And verse 10, right after that, though, if we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar. Yeah. And his word is not in us.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00

So therefore you cannot back you cannot call yourself a Christian and not be able to forgive somebody no matter what they've done. Yeah. That's right. You can't do it.

SPEAKER_01

Well, you know, Romans, Romans 3.23, it goes along with what he was saying right there. You know, all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. At some point in time, all of us sinned. That's right. And now, you know, you hear this all the time, well, I'm just a sinner saved by grace. No, if you've accepted Jesus, you're saved by grace. You're no longer a sinner.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, that's been done away with. And I I want I want new Christians out there, if you happen to be listening to this podcast, I mean, if if you think that 'cause whatever you've done in your past cannot be forgiven, you're wrong. It don't matter what you've done, you are forgiven when you accept the Lord Jesus Christ your Lord.

SPEAKER_02

Absolutely. We covered this in the past podcast that Paul was out hunting Christians down. I mean, killing them like I mean, he was he was hunting them down. So don't tell me what I've done is not worthy of forgiveness from Jesus. Amen. He took care of it all. If you'll just say, I've confessed my sins, and then he's forgiven it, then guess what? He don't just forgive, he cleanses you up. God doesn't start a work that he can't finish. He's gonna clean you up. You say, Well, I'm not good enough, I'm not where I need to be. He'll clean you. Let God do the cleaning. You've been trying to clean yourself up for a long time and ain't got nowhere yet. You've been trying. Why don't you just stop trying and let God do it? Let God do the cleaning up, he'll forgive you, he'll remove all guilt, he'll remove all the stains, he'll take care of all of it if you'll just give him your life and say, Give my life to you. I confess that I have sinned, and now he'll clean you up just like that. But you've got to be willing to start that first part off and saying, I'm willing to be, I know that I have messed up. And then he'll just do the rest of it. Don't try to clean yourself up. I tried to clean myself up plenty of times, and that didn't never work. I failed every time. Never worked for me, neither. Yeah, but when I started, I gave my life to Jesus and I gave everything I had. He cleansed me up, he forgive me. He actually let me know, hey, buddy, you're forgiven. And I care for you.

SPEAKER_01

So yeah. Well, after after you accept Jesus, it says the blood covers all sin. You know, when God looks at you, he don't see that no more. He all he sees is the blood of Jesus that that cleanses you.

SPEAKER_02

Your forgiveness has become new. If anyone is in Christ, he's a new creation. 2 Corinthians 5, 17. I like to back everything up I'm saying. You're a new creation. Forgiveness is not just God wiping off the dirty record. Forgiveness is bringing you into a new identity and who you are in Christ. It's not him just cleaning you up. Oh, well, I you're not a refurbished model. I wanted to say that. You're not a refurbished model. You're not this old thing that he's just cleaning up. You're a brand new creation. You're not just being cleaned up a little bit, he makes you brand new. You know, not just your worst mistakes, not just your past, not what other people'cause caused you. He makes you brand new. He takes you and cleanses you and makes you brand new.

SPEAKER_01

So you know, Luke 17, three and four, take heed to yourself. If your brother sins against you, rebuke him. And if he repents, forgive him. And if he sins you against you seven times in a day, and seven times in a day returns to you saying, I repent, you shall forgive him. Jesus was teaching there that forgiveness is not emotional weakness, forgiveness is is spiritual obedience. And you can't just say, Well, but I don't feel like forgiving. It it it's like I said earlier, it's not optional.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah. It's not No, it never has been optional. I mean, it's it's the evil inside us that makes us think that we can handle it all to start with and not depend on God. I mean that that's what it boils down to, in my opinion. I mean, because everybody I mean, we were all born sinners. And it's hard. And when we come to Christ, you know, you first until you really start studying and getting into the word, you don't realize how important it it is to forgive people. And like we were just saying earlier, how it's tearing you up on the inside. Just not bothering it's not bothering John. I mean, but it's eating me up because I'm letting it. I mean, where God says, you know, forget about it, forgive and forget about it, and move on with your life. Like I said, you ain't got to go hang out with 'em and eat with 'em, but you are to forgive 'em. Yeah. But I'm like you. I mean, I'd go break bread with them right now if they call me.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah. I mean, like, hey, I'm gonna let you know right up front that you I ain't got a problem in this world. I'll probably end up blessing you. I mean I'll buy you supper. I'll do all of it just to just to show you that you can't say anybody, John Paul, has a problem with me. I because I'll look at you and say, No, I don't.

SPEAKER_01

Prepare the table before me. In the presence of my enemies.

SPEAKER_02

I'll say might say that in my prayer. I've prayed that several times when I had people that had a real problem against me. I said, Lord, I thank you that you prepares the table in the presence of my enemies. Well, that one that's disowned me, I'll send a many a happy birthday text.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02

And just love them. Yeah, that's right. It doesn't matter if they decide to that's their choice if they decide to let me. I do want that if y'all got something you can, but I mean I was just gonna show you something.

SPEAKER_00

I'm already here. I had Luke 23, chapter 23, verse 34. I said I was there, but here I am.

SPEAKER_01

Do you realize how much Jesus while you're doing that, do you realize how much Jesus talked about forgiveness in the Bible?

SPEAKER_00

That's right. That's why I was me when you were still in the restaurant, I told John Paul, I mean, forgiveness or the uh a variation of forgive is in the New King James Version over a hundred times throughout the whole Bible. That's what I'm saying. It it I mean, that's another one of the important words just like love.

SPEAKER_01

Well, it if it wasn't important, you know, the Bible covers from the very beginning of time and it's the only living book because it it doesn't have an end. So somebody's probably just said, Well, it has an end, Revelation's twenty-two. You haven't read it apparently. Right. Because in the end we win. But God didn't have a deal with a publishing company that he had to write eleven hundred pages.

SPEAKER_00

Right.

SPEAKER_01

If it's in there, it's important. And I I can tell you this, if it's in there more than one time, you better take note of it. Exactly.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, that Luke 34, we've already discussed this. I mean, 'cause it Jesus on the cross. Mm-hmm. I mean, how n no more words can be more important when it comes to talking on this topic topic of forgiveness than Jesus saying, Father, forgive them for they do not know what they do. I mean, he was up there dying on that cross, getting ready to get bleeding. Bleeding, getting ready to get stuck in their ribs with a spear. Being mocked. Yeah, being mocked, spit on.

SPEAKER_01

I mean, and he asked God to forgive them. That kind of destroys your opinion of well, I d or your words of I don't feel like it.

SPEAKER_00

Exactly.

SPEAKER_01

That kinda that kind of uh just slaps you if you're saying, Well, I don't feel like it kind of hits you right beside the head. Well, I he probably won't feel any exact On the cross there.

SPEAKER_02

That's right. Bleeding out with people that done it to him right in front of the ones that were screaming, Crucify him, crucify him. He's like, Father, forgive him.

SPEAKER_01

The one that had just stuck vinegar in his mouth.

SPEAKER_02

When he said it was forgiving. The ones that had just nailed his hands. Forgive him. Forgive him. His feet, forgive him. Every one of them. Every one of 'em. Forgive him. He even told about this in Luke 16 verse eleven. He gave this parable of a lost son. And a certain man had two sons, and the younger one said to the father, Give me my portion of the goods that falls to me. So he divided him up as livelihood. And many days after the younger son had gathered all together in a journey of far country, where he wasted all his possessions. On Progle eleven. And but when he had spent it all, he arose there was a severe family in the land, and he began to want. And he had joined himself to citizens of that country, and he went into the field to feed with the swine, and he would gladly have filled his stomach with the pods that the swine ate, but no one would give him anything. But when he came to himself he said, How many of my father's hired hands have bread enough to st and to spare, and I here perish with hunger? I will arise and go to my father's, and I will say to him, Father, I have sinned against you in heaven and before against you in heaven before you, and I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like a hired servant. And he arose and came to his father, but when he was still a far great ways off his father saw him, and had compassion and ran and fell around him and kissed him. And he said to his father, I have sins against you in heaven in your sides, and I'm no longer worthy to be called your son. But a father said to his servant, Bring out the best robe and put it on him, put a ring on his hand, and sandals on his feet, and bring out the fatty calf and kill it, let us eat and be merry. This shows example of God. Even when you have took and wasted away what you had, his father didn't dishonor him, his father forgave him. He had wasted away his inheritance, he had ended up in a pig pen, but when his father seen that boy coming, this is the same thing God anybody that's listened to a believer, the non believer today, listen to this. When he seen him coming, when God sees you coming, he comes running towards you to meet you there, to throw on the best robe he's got, put a ring on your finger, and then he has a celebration just for you because he loves you that much. That's the point you need to understand. God doesn't look at what you've done in your past. He didn't sit there and say, Oh, well, you've been out doing this, you wasted your stuff away. He didn't look at all that. He said, I'm glad you're home. That's what God does. He looks at you and says, I'm glad you're home. He meets you with the best compassion and just says, Glad you're here. I want you.

SPEAKER_01

Then you got the fellow Christian over there. The younger brother. The the other brother that said, Why are you doing this for him? I've been there the whole time. That sounds like religion.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, because he weren't willing to forgive his own brother. Yeah. I mean, that's that's where the the problem where that falls.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00

And I I don't know anybody like this, but I've heard stories of parents not even being able to forgive their children for stuff that they've done when they went astray just because they dirty the family name. I mean, how that's hard for me to believe. I want that clean to start with.

SPEAKER_02

How great was your name in the first place.

SPEAKER_01

Well, you you know, you then you hear people all the time, Well, my child is doing this, my child is doing that. Why don't you start confessing like the Bible says and and call those things that be not as though they were? That sounds like it would be good in the Bible to put that in somewhere. Even like God did. Even as God called those things that be not as though they were, start calling them things to be not as though they were and call them into the kingdom. It says that you have the right to speak things into existence just like God. Just like God, you can speak things into existence. If you're believing it will happen. You promised your children to a thousand generations. It bothers me when I there's a lot of things that bother me in life. Especially well, I mean it it I let it go, but I'm I'm saying I hear people say stuff and I'm like, show me that. Show show me where the Bible says that. Where's that at in the Bible? Yeah, where where where is that at in the Bible? You know, call those things to be not as though they were. I had Matthew eighteen, twenty-three through thirty-five, that story there, where the uh well, I reckon I could read it. Read it.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, read it, man.

SPEAKER_01

We look at the Bible. Therefore the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. As he began to the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand bags of gold was brought to him. Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that him and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt. At this time the servant fell to his knees before him. Be patient with me, he begged. I will pay you back everything. And the ma the servant's master took pity on him, cancelled the debt, and let him go. But when this same servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred bags, or a hundred not even a hundred bags, a hundred silver coins. Now he's just been forgiven ten thousand bags of gold. A debt of ten thousand bags of gold. Now I'm just gonna ask y'all which one's worth more, gold coin or bags of gold. Bags of gold.

SPEAKER_00

I'd say bags of gold.

SPEAKER_01

I'd say bags of gold. That's right. He grabbed him, grabbed him and began to choke him. Pay me back what you owe me. His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, be patient with me. I'll pay you back the same thing he just said to the king. But he refused and said he went off and had the man thrown in prison until he could pay the debt. When the other servants saw what had happened, they were outraged and went and told their master everything that had happened. When the master called the servant in, you wicked servant, he said, I cancelled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. Shouldn't you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you? In anger his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured until he should pay back all he owed. This is how my heavenly father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.

SPEAKER_00

That's what's good stuff.

SPEAKER_01

I mean, and that's Jesus. I mean that my favorite preacher of all times. He made it in the Bible.

SPEAKER_00

And there's two parables right there. If anything else in the Bible other than when Jesus had told us to forgive them, for they never know what they do. There's two parables right there that just spells it out.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

I mean, I don't think he could have made it no more plain than that one.

SPEAKER_00

No, whatsoever. No, whatsoever.

SPEAKER_01

It's pretty straightforward there. I mean, if you got a guess on that one.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah. He put it pretty plain for them in case, because you know, they were the du disciples. Yeah. So we I think we covered this uh just a little bit ago, but I wanted to say a little bit more about it and talking about Mark 11, 25. And whenever you stand praying, if any of you have anything against anyone, forgive him. That your father in in heaven may also forgive you. But if you do not, neither your father will forgive you of your trespasses. So we've covered it in parables, covered in what he's saying. He didn't say, he didn't say if they apologize, then you forgive them. Uh uh. No. You don't wait for somebody else to come and apologize to you. You go out of your way, go to their house, right? You go to them and you say, Hey, I just want, even if you didn't do anything wrong, even if they did you wrong, you go and say, Hey, I apologize. I just want you to know I love you and I'm sorry. Because I I I used to have a hard time saying I was sorry. I did. Well, I mean that that's the man, the man in us. Yeah, that's right. I'm and I I used to have a hard time saying I love you to everybody. Not Christ in us, that's man in us. And I had a hard time saying I love you to everybody, I had a hard time saying I'm sorry, you know. But then I got into this Bible and realized you didn't even gotta do nothing wrong. Just look at people and say, I'm sorry. Because hey, I'm gonna go ahead and let you know. I'm sorry. I'm not trying to, I don't want I love you. I don't want you to stop me from going to heaven is my main thing. Like, I'm not letting you hold me back. I'm going to heaven and I want to make sure that God knows I I'm forgiven of everything. I'm thankful for you. I apologize. I know even if they deserve it, if they don't, I don't care. You know, hey, I you didn't say if they deserved it. He said just forgive them. That's right. Let them go. And forgiving is not just in your heart.

SPEAKER_00

Right.

SPEAKER_02

I'm gonna tell you this.

SPEAKER_00

I've sent some of them uh text like that before.

SPEAKER_02

If there's some forgiveness is not just in your heart, and I'm on this is gonna might get some people a little bit ruffled in your feathers, but if it does, beat a duck and shake it off. Forgiveness is not just in your heart. Just as confessing sins with your mouth, you need to say it out loud to them. Amen. You need to say, hey, I want you to know I forgive you. I'm sorry. And there ain't no problems between me and you on my side. That's right. You need to say it. This is the biggest revelation I've ever had because people can't say, Well, I don't know how he feels. You're gonna know how John Paul feels. If you come around me, you're gonna find out because I'll I'm blunt. For one thing, I'm gonna let you know, hey, there ain't no problems. I love you. I forgive you. I'm sorry if I've offended you. I love you, and we're good. We're good on all the levels because I'm not gonna hold on to anything. I hope nobody else holds on to it for me, because I'm letting it go. Do you need to say that to people? If you're listening this and you got a problem or somebody else has got a problem, but you clear the air, go ahead and let it be known. Hey, there ain't no problem on my side.

SPEAKER_00

Well, I tell you, my in my case, I sent a text because I know they wouldn't have nothing to do with me. They wouldn't even see me. I couldn't get close to them to talk to them. Right. But everybody I knew that they know I have mentioned it. Yeah. That there's no hard feelings, no love loss. On my part, all is forgiving, because I know it's gonna get back to them. Yeah. And if they don't want to reciprocate, then that's between them and the Lord. But it's not gonna eat at me. It ain't it hated me for a couple of years. Yeah. But it it don't know more. I've forgiven myself for whatever I done wrong. Not in that not that I know I done anything wrong. Yeah. But whatever it was. Send them a get well soon card.

SPEAKER_02

We love you. Get well soon. And they're like, because that'll be a qu that'll be a question when they get that card. What is this? What is this? They might just call you then and you're angering on a sp response. I'm good at eager on this. I just wanted to talk to you. I figured this would get a response.

SPEAKER_01

Forgiveness becomes a prison. It does. You know, uh Hebrews uh 12 15 any root of bitterness spring up, cause you trouble, and by this many become defiled. It once you hold on to unforgiveness, it becomes bitterness. Bitter bitterness don't stay contained. It never stays contained. It spreads into your joy, it'll spread into your peace, then it spreads into your relationships. It'll it'll affect your worship, it'll affect your prayer life. Family life and everything. I mean, it it it starts affecting unforgiveness keeps you chained to the moment that the hurt that hurt you, to that moment. And, you know, you're waiting, like you said, you might be waiting on them to apologize, but God wants you to heal so you can move on.

SPEAKER_03

That's right.

SPEAKER_01

You know, that unforgiving servant that we talked about there, we should become people who forgive. I was gonna say, you know, in uh I was trying to find the scripture, I've got it in.

SPEAKER_02

God forgive you of us of our debts that we could never replay, and then we turn around and refuse to forgive people who owe us less than what we owe God. Talking about that guy. You know, how can you just like Ray said, how can you act like a Christian? You can't. And you it's an act. Uh I mean it is a really good act, but I'm saying, how can you do this when God forgives you of a debt that you could not pay? That's right. You could not repay it. It would cost you your life or your child's life to repay a debt, and you'd have to live a spotless, sinless life, and you couldn't do that. No, you can't do that. And so what I'm saying is you couldn't repay this debt, and then we turn around and refuse to forgive. So I'm not forgiving them. I'm not ready yet. When are you gonna be ready? I want to look, I want to say that word. When are you gonna be ready, stupid? When are you gonna be ready? Because you you're never gonna get ready the way you're acting because you just need to let them go and say, Hey, I don't care anymore. God has been so good to me to forgive me of everything.

SPEAKER_00

John talking about that bitterness, though. I mean, I've seen the time in my life when the traffic around here would get me so ill. I mean, it it comes out, I would come home and I'd be so ill, then I'd start taking it out on my family. I'd be barking at Demers for no reason whatsoever. You know, then I'd had to apologize. I mean, and this morning, just this morning, now like I said, we're not all perfect, we're all gonna sin. We had to go somewhere. And I guarantee you there was nobody behind me for three quarters of a mile. But some kids. Kid had to pull right out in front of me and I had to nosedive my truck. I mean, nobody behind me for a long ways. Yeah. And I didn't say any cuss words, but I was getting ill and I was grumbling, and my wife said, Ray, got some grace. James 3, 16. Almost melded. And I'm serious. I mean, because I I need to quit letting stuff like that bother me. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02

I've got where I help you out on that. When somebody pulls out in front of you, instead of getting upset, this is what I started. Well, thank you, Jesus. I mean, I've started doing that. Thank you, Jesus. And I thought, go ahead, stupid. I mean, I am. I mean, I I say that, but I I'd sell thank you, Jesus, for everything.

SPEAKER_00

And I've done that a lot down here going, you know what? That just poured out in front of me and slowed me down. And that might have been because around the corner down there, somebody could have really worked out to run a stop sign and hit us.

SPEAKER_02

I just say thank you, Jesus. And just keep it going.

SPEAKER_01

James 316. For where strife for envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work. And that's what unforgiveness turns into. It turns into strife. And whenever you do that, you open up the door and let let every evil work in you.

SPEAKER_00

And just makes you evil and bitter, and like I said, then it just comes out and next thing you know, it affects everybody around you. And nobody wants to be around you.

SPEAKER_02

Nobody wants to be around somebody that's always ill and stuff like that. No.

SPEAKER_00

I mean I I used to work with people like that. I'd be like, man, why do you even wake up in the mornings if you're gonna come and be like that? I mean, every day's a Monday.

SPEAKER_03

Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_00

That's something else I never understood. Everyone, man, it's Monday off no swamps over you are. Like, well, if you had Monday off, you'd be the same way on Tuesday, so what's the difference? That extra day off not gonna make any difference. What we got next? Y'all read y'all read my verses.

SPEAKER_02

Um I think I got one in Acts. I'm headed there. I think we're going to Acts. We're talking about um Stephan forgave. Acts seven. I'm headed there now. Verses 59. I just wanted to read it out of the Bible. I got it on my iPad, but I like to read it out of this. Oh takes me a little bit more time, but I get there. All right. And they had they stoned Stephen, and as they called to God on God saying, The Lord Jesus receive my spirit. Then they knelt down and cried with a loud voice, Lord, charge them with their sins. And when he said this, he fell asleep. Look at this, um, as he was being the spirit-filled life is being a forgived life. They cast him out of the sea and the city. Oh, where is I staying? Receive my spirit. Then he knelt down and cried with a loud voice, Lord, do not charge them. There it is. Do not charge them with this sin. As he's been as he's been stu has been stoned, he knelt down and cried out with a loud voice, Lord, do not charge them with this sin. And then and when he has said this, he fell asleep. The very thing that he was dealing with that they had come to kill him, he forgive him.

SPEAKER_01

Sounds like somebody else we just talked about, don't it?

SPEAKER_02

Yep. That's right. Joseph and Genesis 5, I mean Genesis 50, verses 20, you know, he got sold into slavery from his brothers. Then God ended up having to be a servant in Potiphar's house. Thrown in prison. Thrown in prison. Over a lie. Over a lie, he got through in prison. Then he had to serve in there for some time. Then he finally makes it all the way up to Pharaoh. And then he gets promoted up all the way up to like second in command of the kingdom. And over all the food, he got promoted up. And his brothers show back up. He didn't cast them away. He didn't look at them and say, No, you can't have nothing. He had the power and the authority. Gotta run them off. And said, You know what? Get out of here. Take these men and go put them in prison. He had that much authority. There would have been no questions asked.

SPEAKER_01

What he actually said though was what you meant for evil.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah, I got it. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

To save much people alive.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah. Yeah. So he looked at them and said, What you meant for evil against me, but God meant it for good.

SPEAKER_00

Right.

SPEAKER_02

So he didn't hold it against them what they did. I mean, and you think you got it bad. That's what I want to look at people out of this whole entire what I'm saying in this podcast is you think you got it bad. You won't sold into slavery, had to be a slave in the house for a long time, and didn't go into prison for years on end, eight to 40 years and didn't get promoted up. And you think you got it bad. Because somebody said something to hurt my little feelings. You hurt my feelings. Get over your feelings. Yeah, I mean, get over your feelings. If Jesus showed you two examples, three examples, I can show you parables and then what he told you. Then he's on the cross saying, Lord forgive him. Then a man that's been stoned, Stephanie said, don't charge him against him. Then you got Joseph over here that went through all this stuff in the Old Testament and he didn't hold it against. Who are you? Who do you think you are, you special little somebody? I'm sorry if I'm hurting your feelings. I'm not really sorry. I hope it does hurt your feelings and you get some boldness up to go forgive somebody. Sorry. I don't like it that you, you know, people have this, well, I've got to, I've got to just, I'm gonna be upset and against somebody. You know, you gotta let go. Like I said earlier, you got to make up your mind. Are you gonna be that rooster that gets your feathers in a muck, or you gonna be, I'm just gonna let this roll off of me. I don't care what they said, I'm moving on. I got Jesus. He loves me.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, I've always liked that saying like water off a duck's back. Yeah. Let it roll. I'm gonna have to remember that story your grandma told too, because I like that one.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah, I mean feelings need to become less popular. It does. Well yeah. Who cares?

SPEAKER_02

You don't want to care about your feelings. That's it. Nobody else cares.

SPEAKER_01

Yep. But I'm glad you shared with us that you're, you know, that that you hurt people's feelings.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

I'm glad you shared with it with us because I didn't know that about it.

SPEAKER_02

I don't try to hurt people's feelings. It just comes off a little bit blunt and well, a lot of bit blunt. I'm not gonna lie on this podcast, a lot of bit blunt. And if you don't like I mean, you don't like that, then find somebody else.

SPEAKER_00

Well, I'm glad you didn't hurt my feelings. I hold grudges. We'll pray for you right now, brother. Come here.

SPEAKER_01

We'll get this out of it. He was like We we we joke about that a lot, but you'd be surprised how many people get offended by us, and we're not even trying it. It's a point.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah, I mean, I'll I'll not go to the next one. We're not gonna go no deeper into that. No deeper than that.

SPEAKER_00

I can I can see as it is y'all being pastors, you're trying to preach the truth, preaching the gospel, and there is gonna be somebody out there that gets your feelings hurt. And those people need to get in that scripture and check their self.

SPEAKER_01

And if you find out I'm wrong, by all means come and show me a chapter and verse. And I will.

SPEAKER_00

If you don't like what I'm reading out of this Bible podcast, or what y'all read in the church, standing behind that pulpit or in front of the pulpit, show me where I'm wrong in this Bible.

SPEAKER_01

Now show it to me. Talk to my boss, and if it if he'll change what his Bible says for you, I I mean Yeah.

SPEAKER_00

You better check yourself is what I'm saying.

SPEAKER_02

First Corinthians 13 5 goes right along with this. Love keeps no record of wrongdoing. When you're walking in love, that's right. What are we called to do? Walk in in love of Jesus Christ. That's right.

SPEAKER_00

To show the love of Jesus Christ. And if it don't forgive the people that were killing him, I should be able to forgive the people that are against me.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah. And we'll be. Love has no memory. Love keeps no record of doing wrong. Love is not sitting there using something to hold against somebody all the time. Anytime there's an arc argument, it's not sitting there bringing up the same things. That's not forgiveness when you're bringing things up all the time from people's past. You need to let it go. Forgiveness is letting it go, saying, I'm not bringing this up. You need to be like your father in heaven. That he casts it away. Don't be bringing people's past up. I mean, I don't come back, oh well, you used to be wrong, and you know. No. I forgive it. Let it go. You shouldn't have that knife in your hand that you want to jab in somebody every time they do something. This is talking about husbands and wives. I was getting to say that same thing here.

SPEAKER_00

Husbands and wives. That's what I'm just headed to. Do not go to bed angry at one another. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

Well, you you you think about it. I don't have to remember what I done wrong five years ago. My wife can tell me.

SPEAKER_02

I don't need her to tell me. I'm not going.

SPEAKER_01

I'm just saying, yeah. Well, you know, a woman, a woman generally can will remind you of stuff like that.

SPEAKER_00

I mean, and there's ladies, forgive me, but there's been a million times I look at my wife and say, Did you go to school for archaeology? Why do you say that? I say, because you're sure good at digging up the past.

SPEAKER_02

And here's the thing when you start forgiving, and I'm talking to the ladies, talking to the men and everybody, you need to let go of the past. If your husband used to do wrong, you need to start praising God, saying he is a new man. Let things go that was in the past. And I'm not just talking about that. Men, just because your wife has done something wrong in the past, let it go. It's not here to dwell on because if you sit there and dwell on it, you've not really forgiven. Because God shows us a perfect example as far as the East is from the West. That's right. Not to be remembered anymore. Let it go.

SPEAKER_01

And if you keep bringing it up, you're both living in hell.

SPEAKER_00

And the thing is, the divorce rate in America right now is so high because we have got away from this word. New married couples, they get mad at each other, they go to bed angry at each other. They don't they wake up, they don't forgive each other, and the next thing you know, they're getting divorced.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah. We don't go to bed at my house ill at each other. We might uh we we have, I'm gonna tell you, we have our disagreements. Everybody's gonna be able to do that. Yeah, we have our disagreements. We don't have knockout, drag out fights because I walk off. I'm the first one that'll walk out. I'll be like, I'll see you. I know my wife's not leaving her permanently. Don't think of that. But I just like I'm headed to the building to go pray.

SPEAKER_00

I see you. I'm gone. My wife says I just locked down, I just quit talking.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah. I go to the building. I got a building, I can just go outside and pray. I was like, thank you, Lord.

SPEAKER_00

I could spend as I come I come out here in the podcast studio.

SPEAKER_02

And I and you know what? I'll come back in with a big old smile on the face and like, hey, I'm good. I'm good with you, man. And I'm good because I'm not gonna hold it against you. I'm d I'm done. I've already gone outside and talked to my heavenly father. I'm good now. And so I'm not gonna hold anything in it. So just be that kind of person that you as you get connected to God, if you've got something that you're having an issue with, start praying. Just start thanking God and a few minutes. If you can't spend very much time with God without coming up with some forgiveness pretty quickly.

SPEAKER_00

Without ceasing.

SPEAKER_01

Yeah. In his presence is fullness of joy.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, that's right.

SPEAKER_01

His right hand pleasures forevermore.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah. Well, guys, man, this has been a good podcast. Yeah. Forgiveness is always something good to talk about because every one of us needs to keep that in our hearts. That's good. That's because we're having a good time. Forgiveness is something we all need to keep in our hearts, in our minds at all the time. If somebody wrongs you, don't let it eat at you, forgive 'em. I mean, we're called to for just like God's commandments of love thy neighbor, we're called to forgive each other. And don't let it eat at you. I mean, that has ruined a many a friendship, a many a marriage, family.

SPEAKER_02

I mean I'm I'm I got uh thirty-nine points out of uh to go over. No, I'm just kidding. No, I do have some more to go over. Um one thing in a forgiveness is you know, people think that when you've got that you've got to be the judge, jury, and executioner in what you're saying. You know, people come in, well, my kid was hurt and I want justice. Like say a drunk driver, somebody hits him. Right. I want justice. But now if it was your son that hit their kid, I want mercy. I want mercy. I want mercy. Do you see what I'm saying here? But the other thing of it, you have to realize let what does the Bible tell us? Romans 12 19, vengeance is mine, saith the Lord. Let the Lord take out your problems. If somebody's done you wrong, forgive them. Let the Lord handle it. If they're not living right, well, you say, Well, the person that did me wrong, they're they're in sin and they they're doing wrong and they're they're look, who gave you the rent to be judge jury and executioner? It says God takes care of the problem. He said, Vengeance, he'll take care of it. When you're saying that, you're saying I'm a better I'm a better judge than God is. I'm better at it than than what he is. When you're getting into this, you should let him take care of the justice. Whether your kids have been done wrong or somebody else in your family's been done wrong, let God handle it. Not you get involved in it.

SPEAKER_00

That's right.

SPEAKER_02

You know, you know, well, they got away with it. Let God handle the situation. It's not for us to take care of it.

SPEAKER_00

You know, I That's why I say, you know, like I forgive that guy that hit me. Yeah. I mean, it's and my wife probably I mean, I wouldn't go up and probably hug him if I saw him in Walmart, but I mean I if I knew who he was, I don't really I couldn't even tell you what he looked like. I mean, that was one of the first things I had to do is forgive him. Like I said, I don't think I would have healed the way I d as good as I have healed if I wouldn't have forgiven. You wouldn't have. And I tried to tell my wife that we need to forgive him. I even told my lawyer, I said, Man, I was forgiving. The only reason I had a lawyer I wouldn't sue an image is you when you su stuff like this happens, you better get a lawyer down with insurance stuff. Yeah. Because they're gonna try to hoodoo you.

SPEAKER_01

That's right.

SPEAKER_00

But you know, I didn't sue that guy. I didn't hadn't there in the plans to.

SPEAKER_02

Made us alive with Christ, having forgiven us of all trespasses, wiping the handwritten requirements that was against us, saying that sin has no record against you anymore. Without the shedding of the blood, there would be no remission of sins. Hebrews nine twelve twenty-two. He's showing you that he's forgiven you all the way. Now, Romans eight one, there is n therefore no condemnation for those who forgive yourself. That's why many people are struggling. They believe God has forgiven them, but they still punish themselves. But God has forgiven you, and you're the only one holding yourself guilty. That doesn't mean that you minimize what happened. It means that you honor the blood of Jesus Christ and to receive what He has paid for you. You've got to receive what He's paid for you. You've got to let go of your past. There's therefore no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus. That's in your Bible. That means the conviction leads you to repentance. You get repentance, you come home just like that son. The father was not the prodigal son. I'm not holding nothing against you now. I'm not. That's what you do. You don't let that keep on doing. The devil comes in to condemn you. He's the one that puts the condemning power in you to come and condemn you and make you feel like you're less than what it is. You know, if people need to receive forgiveness in here, just listening to us, let that, if you're wanting somebody to forgive you, then just start praying about it. Say, Lord, lay it on their heart. I forgive them and I love them. And Lord, I want them to have the same love that I have. Amen. Let him start working on them just like he worked on you, he'll work on them. God's the same God everywhere.

SPEAKER_00

I like I like to say let go and let God.

SPEAKER_02

That's right. Absolutely.

SPEAKER_00

That's what you need. That's what you have to do. Yeah. You like you about to fall asleep over there.

SPEAKER_02

Them wings getting to you. I'm good. Heritage barbecue.

SPEAKER_00

Them chicken wings are I think we're gonna have to start doing a uh food review on this podcast. We'll say the word and then we'll spill the beans of where we eat at, because we always break bread before we do the podcast. That was good. I mean, that's uh Yeah. It was good.

SPEAKER_02

I had a plenty.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, I'm full, I can tell you that. I don't need any more. Anyway, we're talking about Heritage Barbecue here in Wilmington, North Carolina. Go give 'em a try.

SPEAKER_03

Oh.

SPEAKER_00

I mean, they're not we're we're not sponsored. That's just where we decided to go break bread with each other tonight. There is a barbecue. And it w we had ribs and wings and they were good. Go give 'em a give them a shout out. Tell them to test them as a faith podcasting. And the next time we go in here we can get a discount. I love it, guys. No. Y'all got anything else? No. I mean, I know we can sit in there probably talking to midnight, but uh yeah, I could.

SPEAKER_02

This is a big one on me. Because I dealt with me on this one.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, I mean, I and uh and me too, and that's why I like talking about it, because this is not the first time we've talked about forgiveness. We mean you've talked about it when we've done it by ourselves, and we've talked about it a couple of times with John already. I've talked about it when I've done it.

SPEAKER_02

We talked about it one time on the Kubota on the farm.

SPEAKER_00

That's right. Talk about it.

SPEAKER_02

We're talking about forgiveness, and we rode around talking about it. Yeah. Or on the farm when we were hunting, I believe. I remember.

SPEAKER_00

It's just how important it is. I mean, we talk about it everywhere. Yeah. All right. Well, with that being said, I got some Bible verses. Ephesians chapter 4, verses 25 through 32. I always like to read a Bible verse or two at the end, and this one will be a long one, but it's worth reading. Start with verse 25. Therefore, put away lying. Let each one of you speak truth with his neighbor, for we are members of one another. Be angry and do not sin. Do not let the sun go down on your wrath. Or I say a while ago, do not go to bed angry, with your wife or anybody else for as that's concerns, nor give place to the devil. Let him who stole steal no longer, but rather let him labor working with his hands what is good, that he may have something to give him who is need. Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may be may impart grace to the hearers. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God by whom you were sealed for a day of redemption. Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you with all malice, and be kind to one another, tender hearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you. Man, I love it. Yeah. I mean it goes right back Christ forgave us. It is our job to forgive one another. I don't care how bad you think somebody's done something to you, please forgive them. You'll feel a lot better about yourself in the long run. And that's what we're called to do. Yep. That being said, if y'all have been listening to the Testament of Faith podcast, please go to Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, TikTok. Give us a follow, subscribe, share. If you like what we're doing, we'd certainly appreciate it. We're trying to grow this from a little ministry. And I think we're large ministry.

SPEAKER_02

Large ministry. Large ministry.

SPEAKER_00

Yeah, well, Miss, we were trying to grow this little ministry into a large ministry. Yeah. And we'd appreciate all the help. We have a good time doing it. We get to spend time together talking about Christ and what how good he's done for us in our lives and spread the word to y'all and we're trying to plant some seeds. So we'll have this podcast out hopefully tomorrow night. You listen to on all those uh sites I just mentioned, social m all the social medias and all your podcast sites like Apple Music, Spotify, whatever your favorite one is. We try to put it out on all of them. With that being said, I'm gonna ask John Paul to close us out with a prayer. Remember, Jesus loves you, and so do we. God bless y'all.

SPEAKER_02

Have a great day. Father God, we thank you tonight as we dove into your word. As people listen to this, Lord, we thank you that forgiveness fills their heart out. Lord, that they move and step into a new step of grace and mercy. Lord, I thank you that forgiveness flows inside of them. Lord, and we thank you that for tonight, Lord, let it go out and touch many people and save souls for the kingdom of God. In Jesus' mighty name. Amen.