This Week's Sermons

It’s No Mistake
by Andy Stanley
Romans 3:23

Sin. It’s such a pesky word. … I mean, sin makes me think of God. Sin makes me think of judgment. Sin would mean there’s some giant moral absolute or absolutes out there, and I’m accountable and if I’ve broken those laws or those rules that God has set up, then I’m in big trouble and I’m accountable. There might be a judgment and I might have to beg for forgiveness. Or, probably, if there’s such a thing as sin, that I’m going to be punished, right?

The Landmine of Unforgiveness
by Charles Stanley
Ephesians 4:26-32

What was your response the last time someone hurt you? Perhaps you felt the urge to retaliate. Maybe you took no action, but instead harbored bitterness in your heart. If so, you failed to realize that you do great damage to yourself when you have an unforgiving spirit. Failure to forgive is a devastating form of self-punishment—a destructive landmine in the path of the believer.

Forgiveness
by Mike Wilkins
Matthew 6:14-15

...Some people who have troubles with forgiveness think that forgiveness does not take the harm of sin seriously. But forgiveness does take it very seriously. Forgiveness does not excuse sin…No, forgiveness calls sin, sin, and in many ways it holds the sinner accountable for their actions. Forgiveness says, “You hurt me, and what you did was wrong, but I will not hold it against you, I will not try to get back at you and I will not hate you for it.”

Dealing with Forgiveness
by John Hamby
Genesis 45:1-14

The story of Joseph gives us a model for forgiveness. The past had shattered Joseph’s ability to trust his brothers. In order to trust his brothers, Joseph needed to know and believe two things—that they were telling him the whole truth and that they were truly sorry for what they had done.

Forgiveness
by Johanna Radelfinger
1 Corinthians 2:10-11

Why should we forgive anyway? First of all, because God forgave us. Look up 1 John 1:9. Now look up Luke 6:37. If God condemned us every time we sin, we would all be lost. Instead He sent his son to take that penalty for you and me. So if God forgives us, is it too much to ask for us to forgive each other? Go to Eph. 4:31-32. Another reason to forgive is because God told us to. He knows what is best for us.

This Week's Videos

Offered by: Evangelize.com Wounded Bride Time: 4:44 Make the story of Hosea personal to your congregation. This video takes the principles from that story and applies them to a present day couple. This parable shows that God’s love is unconditional, his grace unceasing, and his forgiveness readily available for each of us. Click to watch »

Offered by: SermonSpice The Story Behind the Hymn: Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing Time: 5:26 In 1757, Robert Robinson penned the words to the famous hymn, “Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing.” This moving video illustration follows Robinson’s struggle in finding the joy he once had when he wrote the hymn. Use this modern interpretation set to the hymn sung by Sufjan Stevens, to teach on faith and perseverance. The timeless words of “Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing” set to video will help this story of redemption and forgiveness come alive. Click to watch »

Offered by: SermonSpice What God Sees in Man Time: 3:39 A fast-paced, upbeat look at how God saw potential in characters in the Bible and asks what does God see in you? Great sermon subject for a fresh start! What potential has God given you to serve this year? This is a relevant demonstration of Gods grace to each of us even at the times when we least deserve it. Click to watch »

Offered by: WorshipHouse Media Kids Talk Forgiveness 1 Time: 0:33 JellyTelly presents Kids Talk. In this segment a little boy describes what it's like to forgive someone. Click to watch »

Offered by: Evangelize.com The Cell Time: 2:28 Sin has a way of trapping us in a prison of guilt and shame. But we still have a choice. Can you escape The Cell? Click to watch »

This Week's Sermon Illustrations

A Pardon Must Be Accepted
Contributor: Bobby Scobey

... About the year 1830, a man named George Wilson killed a government employee who caught him in the act of robbing the mails. He was tried and sentenced to be hanged. However, President Andrew Jackson sent him a pardon. But Wilson did a strange thing. He refused to accept the pardon, and no one knew what to do. So the case was carried to the Supreme Court. Chief Justice Marshall, perhaps one of the greatest justices ever, wrote the court's opinion …

Now I'll Go
Source: (Autoillustrator, A Cure for Hatred)
Contributor: Darren Ethier

A woman testified to the transformation in her life that had resulted through her experience in conversion. She declared, "I’m so glad I got religion. I have an uncle I used to hate so much I vowed I’d never go to his funeral…

"I Don’t Remember"
Contributor: Bobby Scobey

Some will accept that they are going to heaven but not that they are forgiven while they still live on this earth. Bruce Larson tells the true story of a Catholic priest living in the Philippines, a much-loved man of God who once carried a secret burden of long-past sin buried deep in his heart. He had committed that sin once, many years before, during his time in seminary. No one else knew of this sin. He had repented of it and he had suffered years of remorse for it, but he still had no peace, no inner joy, no sense of God's forgiveness…

Continue reading this FREE illustration»

Concrete Love
Contributor: Glenn Hickey

Pastor Joel Gregory tells the story of a seminary professor who taught the Christian graces of love and forbearance for forty years until he retired. Occupying himself in his retirement years, he poured a new concrete driveway to his house. Finished, he went in to rest and get a glass of ice tea. Returning later to view his proud achievement, he discovered that the neighborhood kids were putting their footprints all in the wet concrete…

"FIX IT!"
Contributor: Johnny Wilson

The Catholic archbishop and novelist, Andrew Greeley, brilliantly describes God’s redemptive work and holy clean-up as "God’s big crayon making crooked lines straight," but this only addresses the result, not the process. It reminds me of when, as a young boy, my mother and I would color at the same coloring book--she on one page while I colored on another. Her work was beautiful. My work was that of a child with lousy motor skills.…

Marriage Satisfaction and Forgiveness
Source: Peter J. Larson, New Forgiveness Research, Jan 27, 2003
Contributor: Michael Raisbeck

Recently, a survey was made of 200 married adults in regards to forgiveness. The researchers were wondering how one’s ability to forgive others would affect their marital satisfaction and personal well-being. The results were astounding! This research suggests that there is a huge relationship between marriage satisfaction and forgiveness...

Forgiveness Kids
Contributor: Nathan Johnson

There was a mother that was trying to calm her daughter down and she said, "Now, Sarah, your brother said he was sorry he broke your doll, so I hope that you'll forgive him." …

Yancey: At Last I Get It
Source: Philip Yancey, What’s So Amazing About Grace? p. 93
Contributor: Mike Wilkins

"At last I understood: in the final analysis, forgiveness is an act of faith. By forgiving another, I am trusting that God is a better justice-maker than I am…"

Forgiveness and Psychiatry
Source: Today in the Word, March 1989, p. 8. From a sermon by Timothy Dolan, "Your Past Is History" 8/3/2008

Karl Menninger, a famed psychiatrist, once said that if he could convince the patients in psychiatric hospitals that their sins were forgiven…

A Hungry Enemy
Contributor: Jeff Strite

A woman wrote to "Pulpit Helps" to explain a miraculous lesson her family experienced. During one of their family Bible readings as new Christians, they ran across the verse, "If your enemy is hungry, feed him" (Romans 12:20 RSV). She writes: Ours sons, 7 and 10 at the time, were especially puzzled. "Why should you feed your enemy?" they wondered. My husband and I wondered too, but the only answer John could think of to give the boys was, "We’re supposed to because God says so." It never occurred to us that we would soon learn why.…

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