Forgiveness Mindset for Healing and Freedom Purity 1400

Good morning, welcome to the MT for Christ 247 podcast. I'm M.t. Clark and this is today's message. As we fumble with the blog a little— good morning. Today's photo of a work of art displaying a man seeking the attention and perhaps the forgiveness of a woman who is present but looking away comes to us from yours truly as I captured this unknown painting with my iPhone during a visit to the American Painting Salon in the George Walter Smith Art Museum back on December 9th, 2023. And, uh, well, it's Saturday and the topic of forgiveness is on my mind this morning, uh, because I recently led two life coaching clients through prayer ministry where they were led to forgive those who have hurt them or caused them offense in the recent past. My clients are seeking spiritual formation, a closer relationship with God, and to adopt a different way of living that will reduce their selfishness, fleshly or destructive tendencies, and the negative emotions those tendencies tend to produce, and simultaneously increase their peace, contentment, and joy for life. That's no small order, of course, and after a few positive sessions of life coaching, I decided to call in the big guns. God the Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit to help these men to find peace and possibly change in ways that my spiritual advice and instruction would fail to accomplish. Let's face it, if I expect these men to have their lives transformed, we have to call on God to help them to resolve the unseen underlying root issues that are preventing their progress in order to be free indeed. And to live in freedom, I felt we needed to clean house by going to the one, the Lord, who could set the captives free and who could really give them a hope and a future. So in our prayer sessions, my clients confessed of their sins, renounced any involvement with the occult or exposure of false religion, and offered forgiveness to those who have hurt them, which in each case included themselves and God. Fortunately, both of my clients had been through the Steps to Freedom in Christ before and had done some forgiveness work before, so they had pretty short lists of people who had offended or hurt them. But I was a little surprised and disappointed to hear them need to forgive themselves and offer their forgiveness, uh, uh, to God, uh, for their disappointments with him. Um, the Freedom in Christ mindset is a forgiveness mindset. And when we have to forgive ourselves, that is not a good sign of growth, as it indicates an active narrative of condemnation. They are beating themselves up when they should know that they are forgiven and free. Uh, condemning ourselves is actually rebellion against God because it is simultaneously denying God's forgiveness and sovereignty. When we condemn ourselves, we are telling God that we aren't accepting his forgiveness. And that we are going to be our, our judge, our own judge, and, and not allow ourselves to enjoy his mercy and grace. Condemnation is a sign of spiritual immaturity or ignorance or spiritual warfare, quite frankly, and a lack of trust in God. Similarly, the need to forgive God, who does no wrong, confesses our lack of maturity, understanding, or acceptance of God as sovereign. As, as somewhere in our hurt and disappointment, we blame God for not doing what we wanted him to do. Being angry at God is in essence saying that we know better than God or that we are higher than God in our estimation because our quote-unquote genie-in-the-bottle God hasn't arranged time and space to meet our personal needs and desires. So not surprisingly, there is more work to do with my clients in teaching them about who they are in Christ and who who the God they put their faith in really is. Because— but I am hopeful that the work of forgiveness, the choices they made to forgive, will be the antidote to their pain and will create the space in their hearts and minds to grow into the men God created them to be. Forgiveness is a core teaching and discipline for Christians, and I was delighted to encounter a teaching on it in my Get Used to Different student guide this morning. So I wanted to share share it with you today. Uh, the team of authors at The Chosen write, uh, about a narrative from the series in, uh, season 3 where the Apostle Andrew lashes out at Mary Magdalene, who shockingly fell back into sin after meeting Jesus, and seeks her forgiveness after hearing Jesus's Sermon on the Mount. Uh, the authors write about how we all will all be hurt or will hurt others in this world, and they use the narrative from season 3 to teach on the importance of forgiveness and healing. The Chosen team writes, Andrew lashed out, yelled at her, and told her that the chaos and confusion were all her fault. Her words cut— his words cut Mary deeply. Truth is, following Jesus doesn't prevent us from inflicting wounds upon each other, but God does offer medicine for those wounds. No matter their source or size. As Jesus was hanging in agony on the cross, he said one of the most astonishing things in all history: Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing. Luke 23:34. Forgive them, Jesus said, even as the murderous men divvied up his clothes. And forgiveness is the antidote for heart wounds. In order to heal, you have to forgive those who wounded you, and you must ask for forgiveness from those you wounded. But that's easier said than done, right? We tend to hold on to pain, which turns into a grudge, which turns into bitterness. Yet when you forgive, the power of those words— those wounds, uh, the power of those wounds hold over you begins to fade. Forgiveness actually frees you from the bondage of bitterness. Likewise, when you seek forgiveness from those you've wronged, you open your heart to the work God wants to do inside of you. Perhaps the hurt that has been inflicted upon you goes deeper than anyone can imagine, and your heart bears scars from years of neglect or abuse. Perhaps you've endured so much hurt that it impacts the way you see the world. Around you. Um, you will likely never forget these things. So let's be really clear, to forget— to forgive doesn't mean to forget, because forgetting isn't something we were usually capable of. But forgiveness does accomplish two things. First, it actually acknowledges you've been hurt deeply. Second, it prevents your pain from defining you. It diminishes the power that your wounds hold over you. And after he heard the Sermon on the Mount, Andrew visited Mary Magdalene and asked for her forgiveness. In doing so, he unlocked something incredible, not only in himself but also in Mary, who said, 'This might be the first time someone has said sorry to me.' You will be hurt. It's unavoidable. But learning to forgive not only frees you from the power that, uh, that heart wounds have, it also transforms your heart, making you more like the one you follow. Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they were doing. Then the chosen team prompts us to pray, Father, you have forgiven my sins through the sacrifice Jesus made on the cross. Help me to forgive others in the same way and give me the strength to seek forgiveness for those— from those I've hurt too. Amen. I love how The Chosen team affirms that forgiveness not only holds the power to heal our wounds but also can play a role in the Lord making us more like him. Jesus taught us with his words and his life to forgive. He came to set the captives free and to give us peace, and to give us peace. And having a forgiveness mindset will aid us in being healed and to teach us to walk in freedom. Today's Bible verses come from The Quick Scripture Reference for Counseling by John G. Cruis. This morning's meditation verses come from this section on false prophets and teachers, and today's passage is Ezekiel 13:1 through 16. In the NKJV, the word of God says, and the word of the Lord came to me saying, son of man, prophesy against the prophets of Israel who prophesy and say to those who prophesy out of their own heart, hear the word of the Lord. Thus says the Lord God, woe to the foolish prophets who follow their own spirit and have seen nothing. O Israel, your prophets are like foxes in the desert. You have not gone up into the gaps to build a wall for the house of Israel to stand in battle on the day of the Lord. They have envisioned futility and false divination, saying, 'Thus says the Lord,' but the Lord has not sent them. Yet they hope that they— they hope that the word may be confirmed. Have you not seen a futile vision, and have you not spoken false divination. You say, the Lord says, but I have not spoken. Therefore, thus says the Lord God, because you have spoken nonsense and envisioned lies, therefore I am indeed against you, says the Lord God. My hand will be against the prophets who envision futility and who define— who divine lies. They shall not be in the assembly assembly of my people, nor be written in the record of the house of Israel, nor shall they enter into the land of Israel. Then you shall know that I am the Lord God. Because indeed, because they have seduced my people, saying peace when there is no peace. And one builds a wall and they plaster it with untempered mortar. Say to those who plaster it with untempered mortar that it will fall. There will be flooding rain, and you, O great hailstones, shall fall, and a stormy wind shall tear it down. Surely the wall has fallen. Will it not be said to you, where is the mortar which— with which you plastered it? Therefore thus says the Lord God, I will cause a stormy wind to break forth in my fury, and there shall be a flooding rain in my anger, and great hailstones and fury to consume it. So I will break down the wall you have plastered with untempered mortar and bring it down to the ground so that its foundation will be uncovered. It will fall, and you shall be consumed in the midst of it. Then you shall know that I am the Lord. Thus will I accomplish my wrath on the wall and on those who have plastered it with untempered mortar. And I will say to you, the wall is no more. Nor those who plastered it. That is the prophets of Israel who prophesy concerning Jerusalem and who see visions of peace for her when there is no peace, says the Lord God. Today's verses are the second of two passages of scripture that fall under the fourth point of our Counseling Reference Guide's resource section on, uh, on false prophets and teachers. And that fourth point is God warns his people not to listen to the false prophets who say that he will not punish unrepentant incompetent sinners. Today's verses make it clear that if we feel that we, quote unquote, have gotten a word from the Lord, we should be discerning. Go to God in prayer to ask about it before we share it. We don't live in a spiritual vacuum, after all. And unfortunately, because Satan's kingdom of darkness exists, the spirit that whispers into our minds at times will not be the Holy Spirit but demons. However, I've heard many prophetic words spoken that I— wow. Yeah. You know, basically, I have a history in a charismatic church where I've seen many, many things spoken that were true and come to pass. And so I believe in the gift of the spirits to some extent, that God does move and speak to us. However, as I write here, I have heard many prophetic words spoken that did not come to pass, and I had a sense of things that I thought and I could prophetically predict that also didn't come to pass. And finally, I've also received promptings to go tell people certain things that I resisted, and I was relieved that I did because those words would not— would have led them astray. So if we believe that the gift of prophecy is still alive and well today, and I believe it is to some extent, God will move us and talk to us at times, then we have to not only have to be aware of the possibility of false prophets out there, we also have to be careful not to be one of them. Um, be wise and discerning in sharing your word of wisdom or your word of knowledge, because the enemy would love to speak a false word to us to share. And if our prophecies are not fulfilled, we need to recognize that the office of prophet, if it is still a position that is being assigned by God, is not being filled by us. So beware of false prophets and teachers and start by not being one. And as always, we encourage everyone to go to mtforchrist.com where we always share insights from prominent Christian theologians and counselors to assist our brothers and sisters in Christ with their walk. Today we continue sharing from According to Your Word: Morning and Evening Through the New Testament by Stephen F. Allford. And today's, uh, chapter is 2 Corinthians 10, and from that chapter he shares from verse 5, which says, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ. And Stephen Alford writes, Solomon says, as a man thinks in his heart, so is he. Proverbs 23:7. All issues of life commence with a thought life. How important then to bring every thought captive our every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ. The thoughts and imaginations to be brought into captivity are those which exalt themselves against the knowledge of God. God, in the person of the Lord Jesus, must be supreme in the life of the believer, and if he is supreme in one's life, he must be master of one's thoughts as well. Or, as already observed, thoughts determine the issues of life. A great example of bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience is given in Philippians 2. Here Christ humbled himself and became obedient until death. Philippians 2:8. He did this to bring into captivity the exalted thoughts of sin to the obedience of God. Is it any wonder Paul says, let this mind of Christ be in you? Philippians 2:5. And Alfred ends his devotional by praying, teach me, O Lord, to bring all thoughts captive to you. Amen. And that's the battle we face. The world, the flesh, and the devil would have us think one thing, and the word of God wants us to have the mind of Christ. God wants us to think like he thinks, to know his truth, to know who he is, to know who we are in Christ, and to live according to it. And part of the battle of, you know, being transformed is renewing our mind and surrendering to God. So that's what we want to do. We think one thing, it doesn't necessarily mean it's from God. It could be from the enemy. It could be from our flesh or the world. So we have to be very discerning about the thoughts that we have and where they lead us. You know, um, as A.W. Tozer said, what comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us. Um, and I say what we do with what God's word says about us is the most important thing about us— what we actually do with it. So yeah, it's important what we think for sure, and it's also important what we do with what, what God's word says. Um, And what do we do? Well, we try to serve the kingdom. And just so everyone knows, our announcements basically are that the Celebrate Freedom support group that we lead at Starpoint Church, the recovery/discipleship group, starts on Wednesday, July 24th at 6:30 PM for anyone in the Capital District of New York. You can come on down and join us to to be renewed, to have a deeper walk with God, to get set free, and to fellowship with like-minded Christians. When I saw that God was willing to do the impossible in my life, I asked him, "What's next?" And he's continually led me into things like this ministry. And one other thing he's led me to is the Freedom in Christ Online Men's Course that I'll be hosting starting on September 3rd. Uh, FICM, Freedom in Christ Ministries, is, uh, launching a whole, a whole battery of, uh, discipleship classes that are available in the fall. You can go to ficm.org to check those out. And when you do, the men's group on Tuesday night for the Freedom in Christ course, um, it doesn't list me as the teacher, but that's— I am the facilitator for that group. And if you wanted to join me, it's 2:30 or 6:30 PM Eastern time. And on Tuesday evenings, sign up for that class. That course is $49. The proceeds go to support the ministry, Freedom in Christ Ministries. Um, it does not go to me. Uh, that's part of my— I do these things, the recovery ministry and the work I do with FICM, as part of my, uh, nonprofit, I guess. Um, which I haven't quite established. That's, uh, that's another story. But it's the MT for Christ, uh, Community Freedom Ministry. Um, if you'd like to support that ministry, you can donate to my business, uh, MT for Christ Christian Life Coaching LLC, uh, which I try to use the proceeds for to pay for all my, uh, ministry stuff, the podcast and, uh, my, my stuff, I— whatever I do. Um, yeah, so if you'd like to give, go to mtforchrist.com. Where you'll find a page for donations. So we support your— we, we appreciate any support we get. And, um, as always, we, we seek to encourage people, um, to follow the Lord, to keep walking and talking with the Lord. And as you might hear in the background, my, uh, my stepdaughter's dog, uh, Harley, wants to go for a walk. Um, but, um, first I gotta pray, so we should do that. Lord God, Heavenly Father, thank you for another day in your kingdom. We thank you so much for all that you do, uh, for Lord, we thank you for setting us free. And Lord, we just pray for you to go before us today on the Saturday, to lead us in the way we should go and to be a representative for your kingdom. We pray for you to bless the people listening or watching today's message, um, that you would, you would, you would heal their hearts and lead them into freedom and victory, Lord, and answer their prayer requests where, where they need, need your help, um, Lord, because we all need your help. And, uh, so we just pray for you to help us today. Um, Lord, we thank you, we praise you, we love you, and we pray all these things in the mighty name of Jesus. Amen. And I'm stopping the recording now.