RT Kendall - 7 Proofs of Total Forgiveness

[Music] [Music] I'd like to talk about how to know that one has totally forgiven I think there are many good people sincere people who believe truly believe that they have forgiven those people that have hurt them and there's a way to know if you really have and it can be a very painful kind of analysis tests but it all comes out of the life of Joseph and in Genesis chapter 45 we have right there right there in the scriptures the evidences how to know you have totally forgiven your enemy those who've hurt you whatever how to know proof number one you don't tell anybody what they did to you you don't tell who hurt you or what they did and I find that many people see this is the toughest of all because the most natural thing in the world when you've been hurt is to want to tell people you want to make your people look bad that have hurt you and we're on the phone so here's what they did why would we want to do that one reason we don't want anybody to like them we don't want anybody to admire them we think it is reprehensible that they would be admired or extolled or honored by anybody and we need to bring them down to size by telling what they did proof number one that we have totally forgiven and this is hard you don't tell anybody listen as soon as these eleven brothers come to Joseph and he knows who they are first thing he does he says everybody out everybody leave the room and now there's Joseph and the eleven brothers why did he make everybody leave the answer is he's going to persuade these 11 brothers when they go back to Canaan to get their dad Jacob and all the family to come and live in Egypt in the land of goshen this was his plan his his strategy to get him to move there because he knows by prophecy there's gonna be five more years of famine and they're gonna be bad in bad shape if they stay back in Cana so he's gonna get him to Egypt he wants to make sure nobody in Egypt knows what his brothers had done to him he's gonna make sure so behind closed doors everybody's out of the room he reveals his identity to his brothers Joseph knows that he is a hero in Egypt he wants his brothers and all his family to be heroes he wants everybody in Egypt to love them and he knows if the word leaks out if one Egyptian finds out what those brothers had done to their beloved Prime Minister every Egyptian would hate those men which funnily enough is what Joseph would have wanted at one time you see this is this is the most natural feeling in the world you want everybody to know what they did so people will understand how horrible they are they could be admired but you don't want her to be admired so you tell what they did there are two exceptions one I had a lady to see me at Westminster Chapel who said they have found my rapist and they want me to testify in a court of law I said well you you must you must testify she said but dr. Kendall you have taught me to forgive and I have forgiven him I said well this is wonderful I'm glad you've forgiven him and I believe you but he has become a danger to society it's not personal with you you have forgiven him and you just go and answer their questions ah but she said he is from a Middle Eastern country and he will be beheaded if he goes back as a rapist I said well that's pretty tough but your job is simply to answer their questions he's a danger to society and you're not responsible and it's not bitterness so she did testify and I would say here the exception of when you tell what they did is if there's a crime and it's not personal you're not doing it to get even to hurt the people to make yourself look better and make them look bad that's not the issue but if it's a crime then you must expose that person and there's no bitterness on your part the other exception as you need to tell one other person you do I told Joseph tone I knew he wouldn't tell anybody so I think we need to confide in somebody find one other person that you can tell this to it may be your Minister your vicar your pastor church leader close friend someone who will hear you understand and be your friend but who won't tell it you could tell one not ten not 500 one we all need to do that by the way you can always tell the Lord Psalm 142 verses want to pour your complaint out to the Lord it's a great verse in the Bible I was so glad when I saw that verse you see God likes it when he's the only one that knows pour your complaint out to the Lord he can cope with it in fact he wants to be in on it and he likes it if he's the only one that knows if you've told 200 and then tell him that's not much for him if you really confide in him it's when nobody else knows so pour your complaint out to the Lord so the proof that you've totally forgiven you don't tell anybody what they did proof number two don't let them be afraid of you you won't let them be afraid of you will keep them from being afraid of you you see these 11 brothers were terrified the moment Joseph opens his mouth and speaks in their language and says I'm Joseph they're scared to death and the first thing Joseph does is he says come close to me come close to me he just wants to love on them the last thing he wants is for them to be afraid of him and you see when we've totally forgiven we don't want the other person to be nervous around us afraid of us but put them at ease make them feel good make them feel good he said well they don't deserve that we're not dealing with whether they deserve it you see it's not what they think of you it's what you think of them and when you've totally forgiven you just want to put them at ease you don't want to instill fear in them perfect love casts out fear 1 John 4:18 perfect love casts out fear and fear has to do with punishment in other words you want to punish the person when you're afraid you want to see them punished you can only think of punishment when you're afraid and one way you punish them is by instilling fear in them you know husbands and wives who play this game keep them a bit nervous keep your wife nervous keep your husband nervous because you're having a little spouse and you just want them to be a little bit afraid look like you've done liver given that fear it just goes perfect love casts out fear and by the way this talk I'm giving to you on totally forgiving could heal any marriage by sundown today or sunrise tomorrow if both of you will stop pointing the finger this is the thing 1 Corinthians 13 verse 5 love keeps no record of wrongs why do we keep records well to prove we've paid why do we keep a record of wrong in order to throw it up at the opportune time the husband says to the wife I will remember that and he does three days later he hits her with something she said or did but love keeps no record of wrongs tear up that record Burnet never refer again to anything in another person's past ever because that's the way God is with us as far as the east is from the west so far are our transgressions remove from us the blood of Jesus washes away all sins and this is your opportunity to be like Jesus put them at ease make them feel at home make them feel good and these brothers were scared to death and Joseph just says come close to me come close to me he wanted to love on them that's what the Holy Spirit does when he floods the soul all the bitterness is gone the need to point the finger the need to prove that you're in the right and to make the other person look back it just goes it's just not important anymore well proof number one you don't tell anybody what they did proof number two you don't let them be afraid of you proof number three you don't even let them feel guilty now here's what Joseph said to his brothers he said I am your brother Joseph yes I'm the one you sold into safe slavery don't be angry with yourselves for doing this because God is behind it don't be angry with yourselves you see he knew that they had trouble forgiving themselves and when we make it easy for the other person to forgive themselves that is true godliness do you want to know what godliness is godliness is not a legalistic way of behaving or dressing or in your appearance nope godliness is when you're like God who is merciful merciful to the just and to the unjust and when God is merciful it means he doesn't want us to feel bad have you ever said to a person well I I hope you feel bad about what you've done I forgive you but I hope you feel bad you you haven't totally forgiven when you still want him to feel bad total forgiveness is when you want to set them free God sets us free he not only forgives us but wants us to forgive ourselves I got an email one day from somebody turns out he's in California who read my book total forgiveness and said thank you for your book but would you please please as soon as possible write a book that will help me to forgive myself so I wrote the book totally forgiving ourselves and I give ten reasons why we should forgive ourselves and and reason number one is what God wants you to do God wants you to forgive yourself and when you are truly godly you not forgive those people that have hurt you but you make it easy for them to forgive themselves and so Joseph said to his brothers don't be angry with yourselves for doing this and this is the height perhaps of total forgiveness when you don't even want them to feel guilty well don't be surprised if the people that have hurt you are close to you they might be known as godly really spiritual people you have to forgive them sometimes people you think are godly are the meanest people in the world I just don't like to be around very religious people they can make it miserable for you and they think they are so spiritual and so godly and so holy and if they really were if they really were they would set you free make you feel better no but they want you to feel worse that's not godliness and you've got an opportunity to display true godliness set them free Joseph said don't even be angry with yourselves have you ever heard the poem living with the Saints above oh that will be glory living with the Saints below well that's another story but then someone will say look here arty you don't have to forgive them until they have repented really where did you get that and their people I have somebody writes me a letter about every 18 months and he's trying to convince me that you don't have to forgive until they repent now that's his line and if they repent then you have to forgive look here if you take that way of thinking you have come up with a recipe for bitterness to your grave these people almost certainly are never going to repent as a matter of fact probably don't even think they've done anything wrong you're not gonna convince them 9 out of 10 people we have to forgive don't even think we've done anything wrong the people that I have had to forgive I mean all of them over the years virtually without exception I don't think there's any exception the people that I've had to forgive you could put any one of them under a lie-detector they don't think they've done anything wrong they claimed when they've done the right thing the idea that I would have to forgive them they would be offended they don't think they've done anything wrong and if you wait for them to repent you'll wait forever they're not going to repent most don't even think they've done anything wrong and by the way it is no great victory to forgive them when they're sorry even the non-christian can do that soft words turn away wrath in the world it just works say I'm sorry and people feel sorry for you everybody hated Richard Nixon because he dug in his heels and wouldn't admit to a problem had that man on the first day broken down and said I have made a mess of things I am so sorry what they say is true I asked for forgiveness the nation would have forgiven him see people won't do that they're too proud don't wait for people to be sorry and if you wait until they're sorry you will never have a victory and by the way as I said when you forgive them because they're sorry no great victory there let me tell you how to get a big victory huge mega forgive them when they don't even know what they've done and they will never know that they're being forgiven you see this is Christlikeness while we were yet sinners Christ died for us he died for us on the cross we were ungodly he died for us this is a chance to be like Jesus you forgive them and they don't even think they've done anything wrong the people I had to forgive over the years you know what never went to them to say I want you to know I've forgiven you that would have been counterproductive I've never said a word to them ever it happens here don't go up to people and say well I want you to know I'm forgiving you for what you've done which means you haven't if you ever have to say to them I forgive you because you're afraid they don't know how hurt you are and you feel it's your duty to remind them that you're hurt that's not the Holy Spirit that's just you trying to be a busybody trying to vindicate yourself trying to stick in the knife a little bit the only time ever you say I forgive you it's when they're begging for it that's different they come please forgive me Oh forgive them forgive them seven times seven times seven there's no end of that what we're talking about is forgiving them when they don't know what they've done or even if they know what they've done and they're not sorry doesn't matter our our model is Jesus on the cross Father forgive them they don't know what they're doing if you go up to somebody and say I want you to know I forgive you for what you've done they will say what what have I done well you know what no I don't know you do well I don't well you should now you got a fight you see you may not have realized that the heart is so deceitful we don't know how motives we think it's right they ought to know listen forgive them like Jesus who said father you forgive he's praying for them he's praying for them by the way one of my predecessors at Westminster Chapel was a man by the name of G Campbell Morgan and he was preaching from the Gospel of Luke on the words Father forgive them for they don't know what they're doing a camera morgan asked the question were those people saved that jesus prayed for what happened to them and camera morgan said when I get to heaven I expect to see in heaven the very people that nailed in the nails those soldiers that crucified him and the people around him that mocked him Kamel Morgan said I expect to see them in heaven because that prayer was answered well it's an interesting thought and I wouldn't be at all surprised to see them I know there's that when Jesus said it it wasn't just to show humility or isn't this a nice way to be no it was a serious prayer that's why I think they will be in heaven and he's asking the Father to forgive them when we come to the price that we ask God to forgive them and to bless them you're there then I'll come to that in a minute first of all to summarize up to this proof number one you've totally forgiven you don't tell anybody what they did proof number two you don't let them be afraid of you proof number three you don't even let them feel guilty and bless them at their worst and proof number four you let them save face you let them save face it's an oriental expression it means you cover for them and keep them from looking bad or you cover for them and keeping keep them from feeling bad in themselves for example you can rub their noses in it and make them squirm or overlook it in such a way that you cover for them and can feel good listen to Joseph he said look for two years has been famine in the land for the next five years is going to be famine I want you all to come and live in Egypt here and I don't want you to be angry with yourselves because God did it God did it in fact Joseph is implicitly referring to the fact that their grandfather Abraham had been told that his seed would be coming up out of Egypt well that means somebody had to get to age at first and God said Joseph you go first Joseph said I just got here first so that we will be preserved from this great famine you didn't do it God did it you didn't do it God did it these eleven brothers they can't believe their luck at the very man they were going to kill and then hope never to see again it's actually saying God was at the bottom of it all you talk about letting them save face he's covering for them rather than rubbing their noses in it making them look bad horrible he says gods in this whole thing and another thing when Joseph is saying I just got here first it's a way of Joseph saying if I were one of you I would have done what you did you see there's no self righteousness in Joseph here he's not saying I'm a cut above you he's just saying I got here first now I'll tell you another thing and this is perhaps some if I'm not careful I'm going to open Pandora's box and and and lead on into an area that I won't have time to explain but I'll take a chance nothing will help you get over self-righteousness as quickly that's totally forgiving people that have hurt you because when you totally forgive you are enabled by the Holy Spirit to see more of your own sin the can to see you're not perfect either and you've done things that are pretty awful maybe he haven't done what they did but you've done other things in God's sight just is bad and so it'll bring us down off our high horse keep us from thinking that we're so good Joseph is just saying I got here first and it lets these men save face it's what one of the most beautiful moments ever ever ever to come along you know what Joseph said to these man who was too good to be true and by the way when you hear the gospel as it really is it's too good to be true I sometimes say how to know you've really heard the gospel when it was too good to be true until it was too good to be true haven't heard it yet if someone says to you in order to get to heaven you got to do this this this and have all these things before you can even be assured of going to heaven I think good news about that who can ever be sure they're going to go to heaven if it's based upon your obedience and your sanctification and how good you are and all those things but what I am told that I'm going to go to heaven because Jesus died for me on the cross my trust in him putting all my eggs in one basket the blood of Jesus that's the way I'm going to go to heaven that's too good to be true but that's the gospel and when it seemed too good to be true that's when you heard it well what Joseph's saying to these brothers was too good to be true proof number five you protect them from their darkest secret now these 11 brothers had a dark secret what was that when they took that coat of many colors off Joseph's back just as he was going with Ishmaelites they took that coat of many colors off Joseph's back dipped it in blood lay it before old Jacob who took the bait and said a wild beast has devoured my son they may have had sudden thoughts that well Joseph may have forgiven us but he's going to go make us go back to Canaan and tell our Father what really happened they would rather die and have to do that a brother died and Joseph knew that and you know what he won't let them tell he won't let them tell but the brothers did he won't let them you can read it Genesis 45 he tells them what to say word for word when they go back to their dad there to tell their dad that Joseph is prime minister of Egypt there to tell their dad where to come and live in Egypt there to tell their dad all the good things that's happened to Joseph Joseph won't let them tell their father the truth what these eleven men had done so wickedly the father would never know and total forgiveness is when you protect your enemy from his or her darkest secret or people from their darkest secret chances are you know something about somebody were you to reveal it you could destroy them you could destroy them and maybe they're scared to death that you are gonna tell one day because you have information at the moment you reveal it could destroy another person could I lovingly say to you first of all never ever ever tell it ever but assure that person if they're nervous about it that no one will ever know you see Gardens like that tell you something we've all in our closets and God's not 1nt yank the skeleton out show the world he's not wanted to do that so don't you do it the proof that you've totally forgiven at least one of them is that you protect them from darkest secret I'm moving out of proof number six this is very very important and some I think forget this it have read my book and heard the sermon it's this total forgiveness is a life sentence that means is you have to do it as long as you live it's like if your physician gives you a tablet says you have to take this as long as you live you'll never get well I'm like that I take a certain little thing for acid reflux have to take it first thing in the morning every day every day there's no healing for it its life sentence total forgiveness is the life sentence you have to do it today and again tomorrow we say well once is enough I just forgave no you my friend if you're thinking along those lines have a faulty doctrine of sanctification I've been quoting Jeremiah chapter 17 verse 9 the heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked who can know it you have to keep doing it the heart is deceitful the devil reminds you three days from now what they did you forgive them today and you feel good about it and then after three days you think you know they're getting away with this and then you want to tell it you you you you kill all the principles in one go you think because you did it for three days mmm not good enough it's a life sentence I know what it is to have totally forgiven and then two years later you get to thinking hmm what they did really needs to be told this needs and you think you've done it for two years now mmm a devil will come back at you and say it's you've done it long enough now you can reveal it now you can get even wrong you say where do you get that out of the life of Joseph well I'll tell you seventeen years later odhh Jacob died their dad died it's in chapter 50 of Genesis the 11 brothers panic they come running to Joseph and they make up a story they said Joseph before our father died he told us to tell you please forgive us for what we did - to cry what's the matter with you man I told you 17 years ago I forgave you I forgave you then I forgive you now don't worry it's okay do you want to know the genius of Joseph wasn't his IQ it wasn't his ability to adjust to a foreign culture it wasn't his ability with foreign languages it wasn't his diplomatic skills you want to know the genius of Joseph he really had forgiven those men it was done but he kept doing it this is the genius of anybody who soars as a result of total forgiveness it's not it's not their education it's not their brain this is what God does the anointing is unable to blossom I've heard I forgave you and that was yesterday but no more no that's no good that I've been saying today is of no value if you forget this point it is arguably the most important of seven proofs of total forgiveness you must keep doing it you must keep doing it hard though it may be that's where the anointing really kicks in if you will forgive me for that phrase because when you keep doing it and God sees you're serious about it you just didn't do it for a day or two to feel better or even a year it's a life sentence well so much for that proof number seven total forgiveness is when you bless them this comes out also in Genesis 50 these brothers can't get over that they're still forgiven and Joseph puts them at ease and says I will bless you I will look after you you don't need to worry and this is the thing when you come to the place that you can bless your enemy and as Jesus did Father forgive them and actually pray for the very people that have hurt you and ask God to bless them CRT I can never do that I understand I understand hardest thing in the world to do you see often we ask God to bless them but we hope he won't or in some cases and this is the way I would have done it for years if I'm honest I would say Heavenly Father I commit them to you hoping God will kill him no that's that's not only once Jesus said bless your enemies pray for them you don't pray for God to get at them get them what they deserve you're actually asking God let them off the hook I can never do that well I understand this is this is tough this is very tough but this is the teaching of Jesus and if you can come through this the promise of the greatest blessing of the Holy Spirit you've ever had about an increased anointing you talk about God being able to trust you now with lofty positions you see we're living in a day of small men small men church politics they are just ambitious little been wanting jobs that will give them popularity Fame adulation bitter man want some kind of prominence God is looking high and low over the earth for that person who is willing to bless his enemy because if he can find a person devoid of bitterness devoid of bitterness he could trust that person with the loftiest position it was Joseph that's the reason that's the reason he was prime minister of Egypt and who knows I could be talking to the next Billy Graham I can be talking to the next president or governor of your estate or prime minister in Britain Tohno forgiveness is a prereq prerequisite to greatness are you wanting to be great don't seek greatness you'll never get it bless your enemy pray for them and watch what God does but it's something you keep on doing tell you something happened to me when I was minister of Westminster Chapel I come into the pulpit one Sunday morning I'm leading the worship as we did in those days we're singing a great English him praise my soul the king of heaven and I look out in the audience and there was a lady who has done irreparable emotional damage one of our children I saw her out there and I was singing at him I lost it from that point I could only mouth the words I'll kid ears think about her being out there then when that hymn was over I had to read the scripture then the next hymn had to go through it again and then the pastoral prayer I don't know how I got through it the whole time I was praying I was thinking of that woman out there how could she be here what saved me was we come to the offering time in the Secretary of the Deacons comes up gives the notices and lifts the offering and that usually takes four or five minutes so I'm sitting next to the pulpit I have a few minutes just to rest and something happened never had happened before hasn't happened sick sense entered into a conversation with me he did and I don't say that this is verbatim about pretty close pretty close went something like this so Artie you want to see revival in Westminster Chapel yes how much do you want to see revival hmm well a lot really which would you rather have revival or for me to send judgment on that woman out there hmm hmm revival good good pray for her you lord I pray for her he said that's not good enough asked me to bless her blesser say it again bless her say it again bless her and Artie what if I take your word seriously and I answer your prayer and I bless her Lord you wouldn't do that would you that's the point and I had to start praying bless her bless her and it was killing me because I thought you know God's going to bless her and this woman certainly doesn't deserve that but I did it and to prove I meant it I had to put her on my prayer list every day and since that day I've added others to hit 7 enemies prayer list I do every day God will bless them before you think this is a proof of great godliness do you want me to tell you something it's not that it's become the most selfish prayer I could pray the most selfish prayer I could pray because the blessing that I get from it is so wonderful that I want to find more enemies put up all the lists I'm gonna tell you right now after that day something happened to me within days and increased anointing by which I mean insight into Scripture now I can do one thing and let's teach the Bible that's all I do when I was the church in Fort Lauderdale what are the Deacons said take Artie's Bible away from him he can't do anything and I Prince largely true teaching the Bible is what I do it's all I do therefore if I am devoid of insight into scripture I'm dead I have to have insight no he's just getting up and preach you what everybody else has said I want to see something that I've never seen before maybe no one maybe they have and I don't know about it but it's fresh to me I live for that I'm gonna tear right now from the day I started praying for that person something happened to me I began to get more insight publishers come to me queue up wanting books I cannot write them fast enough as I speak I am torn between whether I travel the world or just stay home and write books I can't write them fast enough I don't have time it's a wonderful that God has done this here's my point I couldn't do this without this anointing that God has given me not because of any education I've got not my great brain I doubt my IQ is nearly as high as people think it is it's the anointing it's in sight and that is the truth and when you get to heaven you'll find out what it really was true and I'm saying what God did for me he'll do for you doesn't mean you're gonna be a writer of books but you have a gifts nobody else has untapped anointing and God is waiting to use you but he's looking for that person who will not tell anybody what they did who will not let people be afraid of them their enemy who will enable their enemy not to be angry with themselves who will let their enemy save face who will protect their enemy from their darkest secret and who will keep blessing them and praying for them right to the end blessing them when you do that that's about it I guess that comes to the end of this talk god bless you Heavenly Father apply this word by your Holy Spirit in Jesus name amen [Music] okay are we ready can you see like little pieces of things between my teeth

Channel: Streams Ministries

Views: 15,178

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Keywords: Streams Ministries, life empowerment, Christian, Bible, Spiritual, Jesus, Holy Spirit, Charismatic, Streams Media Plus, R.T Kendall, total forgiveness, forgiveness

Id: m1JglMFDFCg

Length: 43min 15sec (2595 seconds)

Published: Fri Dec 09 2016