Having peace with a person who harmed you!! - Zac Poonen

this is almost the only command in the New Testament the only command in the New Testament which begins with the words if possible you never read any other command like that if possible don't get angry if possible don't lust after women if possible speak the truth never never never because those things you can do you can overcome anger you can overcome dirty thoughts you can overcome telling lies but when it comes to peace with all men it says if possible because it depends on the other party as well that's why all those other things like anger and dirty thoughts and telling lies and all that depends entirely on you it's got nothing to do with another person almost sins got only to do with me my attitude but peace with all men depends on is he willing to have peace with me that's why it says if possible as much as it depends on you that means from your side you always want peace with everybody but if that guy does not want peace you can't do anything about it you're not going to fight with him but if he wants to fight with you what do you do so sometimes the best way to pursue peace with all men is by never meeting them never visiting their home I give that advice to people I say don't visit that home because the Bible says pursue peace with all men some people think pursue peace with all men means I was going to visit that person and try and build fellowship with him no no no no the Pharisees who called Jesus Prince of Devil's Jesus didn't go over sitting there home and saying hey let me explain to you I'm not a prince of Devils he couldn't care less what they thought he forgave them but he warned them be careful what you speak here to give an account in the day of judgment he was very faithful there but from his side he pursued peace and one of the classic examples of that to me is it always speaks to my heart when those evils people came to cat Jesus and I think it was the high priests servant Malka the high priest was furious with Jesus and his servant must have been mad at Jesus because he was a servant of the high priest and they go to kill Jesus and go to capture him and when Peter takes a sword and swipes off that high priest servants here look at Jesus attitude He healed it he picked it up from the ground and attached it back I don't think that Malchus served that high priest anymore after that he said you can't ask me to kill a man like this I have a feeling I'll see Malka in heaven and he'll thank Peter and say because you cut off my ear only I'm here thank you you know the good the evil that other people do what spoke to me is the attitude of Jesus put your sword back Peter this is a cup which my father has given me to drink Malchus is only bringing it he's the postman don't get angry with the postman it's a cup from my heavenly father I want to drink it Jesus attitude was if other people are not at peace with me they come to capture me kill me I'm gonna be at peace with him I'm gonna do good to them I'm gonna do good to those who hate me I'm gonna pray for those who persecute me I'm gonna bless those who curse me and I praise God for the opportunities I've had in my life to do that how can you obey those verses if nobody curses you then how will anybody bless those who curse you thank God for those who curse you you've got a chance to obey God's Word thank God for those who despitefully use you because you got a chance to pray for them thank God for enemies because you got a chance to obey the word which says love your enemies so don't say I have so many problems this person troubling me that's present for me brothers sister you got a chance to obey God's Word as much it lies in you be at peace with all men and never verse 19 never never never just like it says in verse 17 never pay back evil never take your own revenge revenge must never be found in a believer you did this to me I'm gonna teach you a lesson that's for unbelievers children oh the devil can do that but we will never say that and we will never talk like that and we won't have that attitude as long as you live in the world if you're a disciple of Jesus Christ you're going to face a lot of problems from others but we have a tremendous comfort which we all know from 1 Corinthians 10:13 that God is in control of everything he will not allow anything to come to me which is beyond my ability to bear and till my hour comes like in Jesus case I cannot die Jesus died only when his hour came it kind of happened if you're a wholehearted disciple of Jesus you can't die before your hour comes in no way and so and coupled with Romans 8:28 which comes earlier in this book all things work together for good then why should I take revenge that person's done evil to me God is going to make it for work for my good it's like getting a promotion in my job I'm not angry with somebody who gives me a promotion in my job but that's what happens if you can see the tremendous power of your heavenly father that's why I say all sin comes from unbelief it's when we don't believe that God is in control that we try to fight back and we can't be at peace with people from our side never take your around revenge that doesn't mean nothing will happen God will deal with him but you don't have to deal with him vengeance is mine God does not say I might repay him no I believe what scripture says did that guy hurt you don't take revenge don't wish evil for him wish the best for him pray for him bless him but if he does not repent God says one day I will pay him back for what he did to you and you cannot hold these gods and say no no don't do that he will repay that's for sure and I don't try to be more spiritual than the Holy Spirit and say God don't repay him see what the Apostle Paul who was such a godly man said in 2nd Timothy 4 verse 14 there was a person I don't know which town he was in 2nd timothy 4:14 i don't know whether he was a Jew or a backslidden Christian his name is Alexander second Timothy 4:14 Alexander the coppersmith did me much harm now Paul was a man who had been beaten hammered imprisoned so it was not something small not once he did mean much harm I'm sure Paul forgave him he forgave him completely from his heart 100% but inspired by the Holy Spirit Paul says one day the Lord will repay him according to his deeds but you say hey Paul aren't you supposed to forgive him oh yeah I've forgiven him aren't you supposed not to take revenge no I'm not going to take revenge but why do you say the Lord will repay because the Lord will repay him that's a fact that has got nothing to do with my forgiving him Jesus forgave people is hanging on the cross Father forgive them they were forgiven but the Lord is still going to repay those people who killed Jesus one day when he comes back they'll all be punished they won't go to heaven just because Jesus forgave them because Jesus as I have often said forgave only the horizontal part the human part you hurt me I forgive you but you also hurt God if you want him to forgive you you better repent such sins I've got two dimensions so coming to Hebrews 12 it says pursue peace with all men as much as it lies in you and sanctification without which no one will see the Lord but I want to emphasize this basically we must have your reputation brothers and sisters that we are men and women of peace we don't seek to fight with anybody we will not fight with auto rickshaw drivers if they I mean I'm not saying you should pay them more than what is deserved but don't get into a fight or with porters in the railway stations you see all the arguments or somebody who collides with us on the road we're not going to go for a fight there's a more peaceful way of doing all these things we pursue peace and holiness without which nobody will see the Lord I mean my great passion is to see Jesus one day and it says here if you want to see Jesus you better pursue peace with all men and sanctification if somebody doesn't forgive you that's his business but you make sure your heart is open to him and again let me emphasize he does not mean that you have to visit them it does not mean that you had to go and have fellowship with them because forgiveness is different from fellowship Jesus forgave everybody he had fellowship with very few Jesus had fellowship with very few people on the earth but he forgave everybody on the face of the earth that's my attitude I also have fellowship with very few people really those who are wholehearted disciples of Jesus but forgiveness forgiving everybody to the best of my knowledge I can stand before God and say my account is clear I have nothing in my heart I do not wish any evil to anyone who's ever done me any type of harm in all my life my conscience I'll keep it clear till Jesus comes not because I want to see the Lord because it's the right thing to do supposing it was written well even if you don't have peace with all men you'll still see the Lord I see I still want to have peace with all men I'm not doing it because I want to see the Lord I'm doing it because that is the nature of God he is put inside me to forgive people and I'll tell you this I don't forgive people so that God will forgive me no no I want to forgive I want God to forgive me because I'm such a wretched sinner I've grieved the Lord so much in my life and because Jesus shed his blood for me a lot to forgive me it's got nothing to do with forgiving others that is a separate thing I will forgive others but it is a condition the Lord has said if you don't forgive others God won't forgive you so this is very important and then in this connection it says verse 15 make sure that no one comes short of the grace of God there are many Christians who say this is not for believers foolish deceivers deceivers who say this is not believers and who is it for holy brethren consider the Apostle and high priest of our confession Jesus Christ I'm telling you he says don't come short of the grace of God can you can a believer come short of the grace of God yes otherwise what is it need of such an exhortation see that no root of bitterness spring up can a root of bitterness come up in your heart you tell me you tell me from your past experience hasn't bitterness come up in your heart even after being born again against different people can you say it never came who can say it never came and make sure when you get rid of that bitterness which you had some time ago against somebody maybe your mother-in-law neighbor or your family member who cheated you of the property or somebody who did some evil to you or somebody who took you to court or something like that when you got rid of the bitterness you say okay I forgive him make sure it says yeah there's no root of it still lying there inside your heart ask God to show you if there's a root I remember I asked the Lord to show me once and I found there was a root I had forgiven somebody had completely forgiven someone and I said to the Lord Lord I've forgiven but one day when I heard that something bad happened to him I was happy I really was happy I said oh god is judging him and the Lord said you did not forgive him from your heart I said thank you Lord I forgive him from my heart you're dealing with him as a separate matter I'm not God God's judgment is another thing God resists the proud and he'll resist the proud when they are on earth he'll resist the proud in eternity also but my business is to forgive and forgive from the heart and so now I've discovered that whenever I forgive someone I must also sincerely be able to say Lord I wish good for that person I really want good to happen to that person I don't wish any evil for that person you heard me say that before I know but has it worked in your life you say oh brother Zack I've heard that before I know you'll hear it from me again a hundred times till you come to the life come to that life where it will never come up in your heart wishing evil for another person but that you wish good did you learn multiplication and division just with one lesson your teacher taught you know did you lose understand calculus with one lesson

Channel: A True Christian

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Keywords: God fearing church in Bangalore, people who seek truth, peace, CFC Bangalore

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Length: 15min 2sec (902 seconds)

Published: Tue Dec 03 2019