Episode Transcript
[00:00:04] Speaker A: Good morning, church family.
[00:00:06] Speaker B: We are so glad that you are here with us this morning. Please stand and join us in worship.
I was lost in shame could not get past my blame until he called my name I'm so glad he changed me Darkness held me down But Jesus pulled me, me out and I'm no longer bound I'm so glad he saved me Now a new creation Christ the old has gone there's new light I live by faith not by sight.
[00:00:57] Speaker C: There is a new name written down in.
[00:01:00] Speaker B: Glory and it's mine Mine yes, it's mine I've met the open of my story and he's mine yes, he's mine Sin had left me blind But Jesus opened my eyes Now I see the light I'm so glad he changed me Now I'm walking free I've got the victory it's all over me I'm so glad he changed me See I now a new creation cry the old is.
[00:01:43] Speaker C: Gone the old is gone there's new.
[00:01:47] Speaker B: Life I live by faith I live by faith not by sight There is a new name written down in glory and it's mine yes, it's mine I met the author of my story and he's mine yes, he's mine There is a new name written down in glory and he's mine yes, it's mine I.
[00:02:27] Speaker C: Met the author of my story and.
[00:02:30] Speaker B: It'S mine yes, he's mine all right, Come on. Oh. Sing.
[00:02:36] Speaker C: Singing I am who I am because the I am tells me who I am I am who I am because the I am tells me who I am I am who I am because the I am tells me who I am I am who I am because.
[00:02:53] Speaker B: The I am tells me who I am I am who I am because the I am tells me who I am I am who I am because the I am tells me who I am I am who I am because the I am tells me who Yes, I am I am who I am because the I am tells me who I am There is a new name written down in glory and it's mine.
[00:03:24] Speaker C: Yes, it's mine I've met the author.
[00:03:29] Speaker B: Of my story and he's mine yes, he's mine There is a new name written down in glory and it's mine yes, it's mine Hallelujah I met the author of my story and it's mine yes, he's mine and he's mine yes, he's mine yes, he's mine and he's mine and he's mine yes, he's Mine.
[00:04:13] Speaker C: Amen.
[00:04:14] Speaker D: That's good stuff, right? You can go ahead and have a seat for a second.
Welcome to Westgate Chapel. It is good to worship together. Amen.
Amen. Yes. My name is Adam Burr. I'm the worship pastor here and I'm so excited you chose to worship with us this morning. If you're a first time guest, welcome. Please check out the visitor center in the back there by the main entrance. We've got just a small gift for you way to welcome you to our church. And for all of you, please take the time to to fill out the connection card in the pew in front of you. It's a way for us to get connected to you as well. And hi on the live stream as well. Same for you guys. You can check out the app, check out the website. It's a way for you so you can see what's going on at Westgate so you don't get bombarded with all the info at once. You can figure out how you want to be plugged in. And it's an awesome app, right? Who has the app?
Hey, we're getting there.
[00:05:06] Speaker A: All right.
[00:05:07] Speaker D: More and more of you.
[00:05:07] Speaker B: There you go.
[00:05:08] Speaker D: It's really awesome. So with that being said, I'm really excited to share a couple small things with you that are coming up here. Sorry, a couple awesome things. I just said smaller. It's not small. So Dads and kids Olympics night. Remember the Dads and kids game night?
[00:05:21] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:05:22] Speaker D: This is awesome. We got another one coming up. Friday, March 6th. Grandpas are welcome. So in the first service I accidentally said, dads, it's okay to beat your kids.
Yes. Yes. That is not what I meant. And I'm gonna say yeah.
[00:05:37] Speaker C: There.
[00:05:38] Speaker A: Okay.
[00:05:38] Speaker D: Funny. Yeah. That is not what I mean. If you think it means the wrong thing. It doesn't. I mean it's okay to meet your kids in a race. Okay. Mario Kart, stuff like that. And here at Olympics night. So it's okay. It'll be fun. Bring your kids. You'll have a great time. 5:30 to 8:30 Friday March 6th. And then one more. We've got night of worship coming up. How many of y' all love to worship?
Yes.
First service was excited too, so. And they're usually more asleep, but I know you guys are a little more awake. But we are really excited to worship together as a team. It's just you don't have to know anything special. Just bring yourself, bring your heart ready to worship. It'll be a breath of fresh air. And with that being said, I'M gonna invite my good friends Josh Cook and Sherry Curtez up, tell you about something else. Give him a hand.
[00:06:28] Speaker E: Yes. Good morning everybody. If you don't know me like Adam said, my name is Josh Cook and I get to serve on staff at Westgate as the Missions resident. And I am joined here by Sherry Cortez today because we're going to tell you about a really cool event that we're doing and March called them March 14 called the Maker's Mark.
So if you are newer to Westgate, we actually have a short term missions fund that helps support our adult teams with scholarships and things like that to help them go on these trips. You'll see above me there is actually a team in Germany right now preparing to serve over 100 kids in Northeast Germany with the Carey family who we sent and support.
Additionally, we're going to have another team this coming summer going to Germany to help with the Erics family in southern Germany. And events like the Makers Mart really help have help these teams kind of get off the ground and go. So Sherry, could you explain to us quickly, you know, what is a Makersmart?
[00:07:28] Speaker F: I've been asked that a lot.
So Makers Mart is bringing a group of crafters and artisans to offer locally made handmade quality merchandise for you to buy, for you to come to.
[00:07:44] Speaker D: Shop.
[00:07:44] Speaker F: We have several different categories. We have some pictures, we have fiber arts, we have this is a really cool shirt here.
Clothing, artisanal foods.
We have handmade personal items like Bethany Munn is offering honey products.
We have jewelry, several types of jewelry. We have wood crafts and furniture type things, home decor gift items. And I just signed up someone this morning who makes leather crafts.
So I'm very excited about that. I'm actually looking for someone who is a glass maker and a metal worker. So if you know anybody, you can see us at the table later.
[00:08:29] Speaker E: So Sher, you did mention there is possibly some room to still be a maker. Are there other ways people can participate in the Maker's Mart still?
[00:08:36] Speaker A: Yes.
[00:08:36] Speaker F: So we do have a few spots left. Time is of the essence because the mart is five weeks from yesterday, which will go in a blink, as we all know.
So if you are interested in being a maker, we have a card out on the table you can grab and there's an interest form for you to fill out and I ask you to send me at least three pictures to make sure you're right for the mart and then we go from there. We will also be having volunteers in various ways. One of the ways I mentioned before Was we are going to have a make or breaker.
[00:09:09] Speaker C: I know.
[00:09:10] Speaker F: Isn't that cute? Instead of just saying someone to help you, I called it a make or breaker. So a make or breaker will come to the break the Maker's. What was I thinking? Maker's booth and say, hey, do you need a break? Do you want to go get some food, get a drink, use the restroom, whatever?
We also have people who will be working with our silent auction.
And there's various different ways you can help serve at the Maker's Mart. If you are interested in donating items or products for the silent auction, there's a form for that, too, on the card. This is for individuals or businesses that would like to donate something that will be bid on at the silent auction and raise money for the the teams going this summer.
Did I cover everything?
[00:10:01] Speaker E: Yeah, I think so.
[00:10:02] Speaker F: I think I did.
Yeah, I did.
[00:10:04] Speaker E: One of the things I know Sherry's still looking for, too is someone who works with metal. I don't know if you said that, and that would be so cool if someone works with metal.
[00:10:10] Speaker F: But Josh said no swords.
[00:10:12] Speaker E: No swords. Todd would kill me.
But yeah. So thanks for that. Yeah. If you guys are interested at all in serving this event, either as a volunteer or as a maker or participant in the silent auction, please come talk to me and Sherry after service outside near the cafe because we'd love to talk to you and hear kind of what your ideas are and what you have.
Now I'd like to invite you guys all to stand up and greet one another and ask them the icebreaker question of the day of who do you want to win the big game today? Patriots, Seahawks, or neither, because you're a Bears fan like me. And they lost.
[00:10:46] Speaker B: So.
There's.
Sam.
[00:11:48] Speaker C: Who.
[00:11:49] Speaker D: Let me ask y', all, who. Who does not care who wins the super bowl tonight? All right, that's what I figured.
That's what I figured.
Who just wants to see the Patriots lose?
There's a few.
[00:12:03] Speaker B: Okay.
[00:12:03] Speaker A: There.
[00:12:03] Speaker D: Yes.
[00:12:03] Speaker B: That's.
[00:12:10] Speaker D: Will you join me in prayer? We're going to continue worship together. I know we love talking, but we're gonna continue worshiping together.
God, thank you so much for bringing us here. Lord, I pray over the hearts and minds of everybody in this room.
[00:12:26] Speaker B: Lord.
[00:12:29] Speaker D: They would expect, and we would all expect to be changed by you this morning.
[00:12:36] Speaker C: Lord.
[00:12:37] Speaker D: Empty us out and make us filled with more of you, God.
[00:12:40] Speaker B: Take.
[00:12:40] Speaker D: Take control of our lives.
We love you, Lord.
It's in your name we pray.
[00:13:11] Speaker C: We're creation suddenly articulate with a thousand Tongues to lift one cry.
Then from north to south and east to west we'd hear Christ be magnified.
Were the whole earth echoing His.
His name would burst from sea and sky.
From rivers to the mountaintops we'd hear Christ, be magnified.
[00:14:07] Speaker D: Lift up your voice. Sing this together.
[00:14:11] Speaker C: We're singing O Christ, be magnified.
Just let his praise arise.
Christ, be magnified in me.
Singing O Christ, be magnified from the altar of my life.
Christ, be magnified in me.
As.
When every creature finds its inmost melody and every human heart it's native Christ.
Then in one in raptured hymn of praise we'll sing Christ, be magnified.
Yes, Christ, be magnified. Magnified.
Raise your voice.
Oh we sing it all.
Christ, be magnified.
Let his praise arise.
Christ, be magnified in me.
Sing it. Oh Christ, be magnified from the altar of my life.
Christ, be magnified in me.
[00:15:50] Speaker D: You think about what those words mean.
It means we have to let all of our sin and shame fade from our lives. We have to turn that over to Him.
How can Christ be magnified if we haven't given our lives over to him completely?
Amen.
Everything within us has to be turned.
[00:16:09] Speaker C: Over to the Lord.
[00:16:12] Speaker D: If we truly want him to be magnified in our lives. If we truly want to bring the gospel to the nations, we have to turn everything over to him.
As we sing this bridge here in just a second, I want you to think about these words.
It's a lot. There's a lot of richness here.
[00:16:35] Speaker C: And I won't bow to idols. I'll stand strong and worship you.
And if it puts me through the fire, I'll rejoice. Cause you're there too.
Oh I won't be formed by feelings. I hold fast to what is true. Cause if the cross brings transformation, you can hang me there with you.
Cause death is just the doorway into rest, resurrection, life.
If I join you in your sufferings, then I'll join you when you rise and when you return in glory with all the angels and the saints. Oh my heart will still be singing.
[00:17:24] Speaker B: Oh my song will be the same.
[00:17:28] Speaker C: Sing it all.
Christ be magnified.
Let it his praise arise.
Christ be magnified in me.
Sing it all.
Christ, be magnified from the altar of our lives.
Christ, be magnified in me.
Sing it all.
Christ be magnified.
[00:17:59] Speaker B: Let's just let his praise arise.
[00:18:08] Speaker C: Singing oh Christ, be magnified from the altar of our lives.
Christ, be magnified in me.
[00:18:21] Speaker B: Yes.
[00:18:26] Speaker C: Christ, be magnified in my life.
Today and every day.
[00:18:41] Speaker D: Just sing that bridge again.
Just really think and reflect on these words.
[00:18:58] Speaker C: I'll stand strong and worship you.
And if it puts me through the fire, I'll rejoice. Cause you're there too.
And I won't be formed by feelings. I hold fast to what is true. Cause if the cross brings transformation, you can hang me there with you.
Cause death is just the doorway into resurrection life.
If I join you in your your sufferings, then I'll join you when you rise and when you return in glory with all the angels and the saints. Oh my heart will still be singing. Oh my song will be the same.
Singing O Christ, be magnified.
Just let his praise arise.
Christ be magnificent.
[00:19:58] Speaker B: Magnified in me.
[00:20:01] Speaker C: Sing it. Oh Christ be magnified.
From the altar of our lives.
Christ, be magnified in me.
[00:20:18] Speaker D: Thank you God.
[00:20:19] Speaker B: Amen.
I love you Lord.
Oh your mercy never fails.
And all my days I've been held in your hands.
From the moment that I wake up until I lay my head.
Oh I will sing of the goodness of God.
All my life you have been faithful.
All my life you have been so, so good.
With every breath that I am able.
Oh I will sing of the goodness of God.
I love your voice.
You have led me through the fire and in darkest nights you were close like no other.
I've known you as a father.
[00:22:07] Speaker A: I've.
[00:22:07] Speaker B: Known you as a friend.
And I have lived in the goodness of God.
All my life you have been so, so good.
With every breath that I am.
Oh I will sing of the goodness of God.
With my life laid down. I'm surrendered now I give you everything.
Your goodness is running after.
It's running after me.
Your goodness is running after.
It's running after me.
Your goodness is running after.
It's running after me.
With my life, life laid down. Surrender now. I give you everything.
Your goodness is running. It keeps running after me.
All my life you have been faithful.
[00:24:02] Speaker A: All my life.
[00:24:03] Speaker C: Yes you have.
[00:24:05] Speaker B: And all my life you have been so, so good.
With every breath that I am able.
Oh I'm gonna sing of the goodness of God.
I'm gonna sing, I'm gonna sing.
All my life you have been faithful.
[00:24:37] Speaker C: All my life.
[00:24:40] Speaker B: All my life you have been so, so good.
With every breath that I am able.
Oh I'm gonna sing of the goodness of God.
I'm gonna sing me.
[00:25:15] Speaker C: Cuz all my life you have been faithful.
And all my life you have been so good.
With every breath that I am made.
Oh I will see of the goodness of God.
[00:25:43] Speaker D: Amen man.
[00:25:46] Speaker A: Amen.
Why don't you guys have a seat.
This is the part of the worship service where we get to give offerings for us to do ministry for the Lord to bless his people throughout the world.
There are buckets that are going to be in the aisles on this side. If there's a moment before we do this, I'm going to pray, but take the buckets and just kind of pass them along this way and the ushers will come up and collect them. But in the meantime, let's pray. Lord, what an awesome.
True that. We just sang together in song and now we get to give together.
People that are here, people that are online, we get to give with cheerful hearts. And we are asking God that you would use these funds to bring glory to Jesus and bring.
Bring the kingdom. Build the kingdom, the kingdom of God to him be the glory. We pray in Jesus name. Amen.
Amen.
[00:26:45] Speaker B: Sam.
[00:27:27] Speaker A: There's a lot of cheerful givers out there.
Well, good morning, church family. My name is Randy Fall. I serve on staff as care pastor here at Westgate Chapel. It's a privilege to open up God's word with you today.
It's kind of a heavy message, if you will, depending on where you're at in your faith. There's some notes on here.
This is what my Bible study with God is like. So if you want an inside picture of how I study, this is where you'll see these points like, oh, I see why he highlighted that. Oh, that's why he wanted to get this word in there. It's because there's so much truth from the story of Joseph.
And this whole series has been fantastic for those who have been with us online and or here in person.
Have you ever noticed, though, in our culture, forgiveness has been replaced slowly by an unfollow button?
Instead of working through conflict, people quietly unfollow or unfriend somebody.
We go so far as to block people and then pretend like the person never existed.
That's a real thing.
If Joseph's story took place today, his brothers might not have thrown him in the pit. They would have just kicked him out of the family group chat and changed the wi fi password on him. Perhaps. And that's how we deal with offense now. One click and poof, the problem's solved.
Except we know it's not solved. It's just buried.
Our culture keeps lowering the bar on forgiveness, but God keeps raising that bar.
And Joseph's story shows us what real God honoring forgiveness looks like for us today.
How does God honoring repentance work and transform relationships? How God awakens the heart and how forgiveness frees the person who chooses.
Joseph's story reads like a roller coaster, wouldn't you agree? For those who are familiar with the story and Pastor Rob and what all's been happening, you'll see that this man went from the favorite son to the bottom of a pit, to Potiphar's house, back to the palace and then to prison, back to the palace.
Imagine, if you will, in today's culture, his social media page might have a status, an update such as promoted again or falsely accused or this one right here interpreted. Another dream like. Like Joseph, life teaches us that our lives may take turns, unexpected turns that were never planned. And God never listen. God never loses his direction. So let me ask you something. Please don't answer out loud.
Have you ever said, I forgive you and then quietly added, I just don't want to see you again, ever.
On the screen, before we even get into prayer and everything, I'm hitting you. That's not forgiveness. That's Christian distancing.
Have you ever forgiven someone but still blocked their number?
Or every time their name comes up, you feel an acceleration in your blood pressure on the screen. Your doctor calls it hypertension, perhaps, but the Bible calls it unfinished business.
Now, I know some of you here have legitimate medical hypertension, so keep taking your medication.
But for some of us, and I mean some of us, not everybody, not everybody has these hangups like me. But there may be a spiritual component that we just can't ignore. And that's what I want to unpack today.
What I'm saying.
Unforgiveness creates a different kind of pressure in our lives.
It's an emotional pressure. It's a spiritual tension that just won't release on its own.
So let me ask you this and just sit with this for a moment.
If their name comes up on your phone or in a social media post, what rises first, peace or tension?
I'm getting awful personal right off the giddyup, and I understand that. But Joseph's story of how he interacts with his brothers is full of application. I could only pull just a few with the time that I have today. But hear me, it's full of application. On forgiveness.
Forgiveness isn't just about pretending that nothing happened.
And it's not about letting someone off the hook.
Do you hear that? Forgiveness isn't always about letting someone off the hook. I submit to you today on the screen, forgiveness is about getting yourself off the hook.
Before we read today's passage, I want to quickly walk through the Story that brought Joseph to this moment I'm describing where he had to make a decision. And it all began in Genesis 37, when Joseph's brothers let jealousy take over. You may recall that they threw him into a pit and they sold him into slavery and actually went home, pretending that he was dead.
From there, Joseph's life took one painful turn after another. He served faithfully in Potiphar's house, only to be falsely accused and thrown into prison.
In prison, he remained faithful once more, interpreting dreams and trusting God, even when people forgot him.
Meanwhile, back at home, the famine's hitting hard. Joseph's brothers eventually traveled to Egypt in search of grain, unaware that the man they were bowing before was the same brother that they had betrayed.
Through a series of tests in chapter 42 and 44, God brought their guilt to the surface and revealed that their hearts had finally changed.
Judah stepped forward in genuine repentance, offering himself in Benjamin's place.
So now, after years of pain, separation, God's behind the scenes work, we arrive at the moment where Joseph reveals himself and where forgiveness becomes more than just an idea, it becomes a miracle. I believe that only God could write.
So if you have your Bibles, turn with me to Genesis 45. I'm going to read verses four through eight.
Verse 4. And Joseph said to his brothers, please come near to me. So they came near. And then he said, I am Joseph, your brother whom you sold into Egypt.
But now verse 5. Do not therefore be grieved or angry with yourselves, because you sold me here.
For God sent me before you to preserve life.
For these two years the famine has been in the land, and there are still five more years in which there will be neither plowing nor harvesting.
Verse 7 says, and God sent me before you to preserve a posterity for you in the earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance.
And in verse 8, so now it was not you who sent me here, but God.
And he has made me a father of Pharaoh and a lord of all his house and a ruler throughout all the land of Egypt. Let's pause there.
What a story.
Those are not words of a young man reacting in the moment.
Those are words of a man being forged by God over many years.
Joseph says, what happened? You sold me.
But then he says, this is what God did.
God sent me. That kind of perspective, I submit to you, does not come to anyone overnight. It's a process.
It comes through years of trusting God when life is anything but easy. Wouldn't you agree?
It takes a minute to get to this kind of position to make that kind of a decision.
Joseph's life wasn't smoothed. It was marked by betrayal and false accusation and abandonment. But even when his circumstances were poor, his faithfulness to God remained. That'll preach.
Before he ever ruled from the palace, he trusted God in the pit.
Before he wore the robe of leadership, he wore the chains of slavery. Through it all.
And hear this. Through all that, he remained faithful.
That's convicting in and of itself. Let's close up right there.
That makes Joseph's forgiveness so powerful. He speaks as a man who kept trusting God when life didn't make any kind of sense. And I know some of you feel that way today.
You're walking through something very confusing, heavy or even unfair.
If you're anything like me, these situations we are experiencing sometimes feels like a full time job.
Your story may not involve jealous brothers or the Egyptian prisons, but emotionally, the weight, it's real.
The hurt, I submit to you, it's real. I hear you. The temptation to give up, as they say in TNC when we served there for years. For real, for real.
It really means something. The temptation to give up. Everybody just wants to quit.
But the struggle to stay faithful, I submit to you, that's just as real.
So your story may not involve jealous brothers.
And if that's you and you have this grief story or this unforgiveness story, then Joseph's story speaks directly into yours. His faithfulness wasn't the result of perfect circumstances.
Many people make choices we don't agree with. Which makes life challenging, right?
Joseph's confidence came from trusting a perfect God. Hear that? Joseph's confidence came from trusting a perfect God in the middle of broken circumstances.
Have you ever tried to move forward on what you believe to be a word from God, yet the pushback caused you to doubt.
Joseph got plenty of pushback and he remained faithful even though he had no idea how God.
How God would accomplish his purposes.
Don't give up. Stay faithful and humble as you seek the Lord for next steps.
With that in mind, let's walk through how God worked with Joseph and how he brought him to this place of how he could forgive like he did. But before forgiveness ever brings freedom, God begins by awakening the heart, which is our first truth on the screen. God uses guilt to awaken the heart.
Uses guilt to awaken the heart.
Joseph's brothers travel to Egypt looking for food. They are desperate and most definitely feeling afraid.
They are completely unaware of who they are talking to. But Joseph recognizes him. But they have no idea who he is.
Instead of reacting, Joseph pauses.
He watches and he listens.
And while he tests them, something deeper begins to surface.
Thinking Joseph can't understand them. In the background, the brothers are talking amongst themselves on the screen. Genesis 42:21 says, we are truly guilty concerning our brother.
We are truly guilty concerning our brother.
They haven't spoken Joseph's name in decades. Life continued. Their families grew. Life went on. But I submit the guilt remained with them.
Another truth that the Lord brings right out of the Scriptures is time does not heal guilt. Truth does.
Time does not heal guilt.
Truth does.
God often uses circumstances like these to awaken the consciousness. But note this. He doesn't do it to shame us.
I submit to you that he does this to heal us. He's revealing this guilt. He's making us aware of this unforgiveness, and he's not rubbing it in.
Joseph isn't rubbing the brother's failure into their faces. He's bringing it to them in the light so that guilt no longer controls them.
He's bringing it into the light so the guilt no longer controls them.
Let me say this guilt that is ignored, it doesn't fade.
I believe that it hardens.
It shows up in many ways in how we might respond to people.
Some of us respond with defensiveness in our responses, or how we have short tempers, or how we may respond with an anxiety that comes out of nowhere that we just can't explain. And what is that?
Maybe a couple examples of some. You're younger and you cut someone out of your life without explanation. I've learned this past year or so that that's called ghosting, as they say today. Well, or maybe you're older and there's someone in your family and this is real. There's somebody in your family whose name hasn't been mentioned at holiday gatherings in years.
The specifics change.
But guilt works the same way in every generation.
It waits in the shadows until God brings a circumstance that whispers to those who are listening.
It's time to deal with this.
It's time to deal with this. Forgiveness that frees does not skip the truth. It allows God to bring it into the light so that healing can begin.
So guilt wakes us up. It gets our attention. But feeling guilty and actually changing are not the same thing. Which brings us to our next truth.
Truth number two, that true repentance is seen in changed behavior.
One of the hardest lessons we'll ever learn is this. That I'm sorry and actual change are not the same thing.
Words are easy I submit to you all today that change always costs us something.
Change always costs us something.
In our story, Joseph didn't rush into reconciliation. He creates a situation that reveals what's inside his brother's heart.
The silver cup is hidden in Benjamin's sack. And suddenly, it looks like history is about to repeat itself.
Years earlier, the brothers abandoned Joseph, and now they face a similar test with Benjamin. But this time, something different happens. All the brothers return to Joseph, and Judah steps forward, offering himself as a substitute.
Judas says, let your servant remain instead of the lad.
That's not I'm sorry.
Listen up. That's repentance. That you can see in church. If you're the one who needs to repent, don't just say you're sorry.
Show it.
Let time, consistent time, prove it that there's been a change on the screen. This is important. Let your changed behavior speak louder than your words.
We get tripped up on that one.
Real repentance does not demand instant trust. Remember that it earns trust slowly and consistently over time.
Here's a key truth. Before Joseph could reconcile with his brothers, he already settled the matter vertically with God. Wouldn't you agree? If you know the story well, you'll see that he and God had done business.
Forgiveness always begins vertically.
We must give the offense to God before it ever moves horizontally toward a person.
It is a vertical commitment before it becomes a horizontal transaction. Sometimes we get those mixed up and it doesn't stick, and we repeat the process.
Forgiveness does not ignore repentance. It recognizes it. Do you hear me?
Forgiveness does not ignore repentance. It recognizes it.
So on the screen, forgiveness does not mean trust is instantly restored, right?
Or that boundaries disappear. We need wisdom.
Genuine repentance opens the door for restoration because it shows that God has been at work.
But even when repentance is real, hurt can still remain for real.
And that brings us to a crucial truth, a truth that could change everything. Truth number three.
Get this.
Forgiveness. Trust God with the justice.
Forgiveness trusts God with the justice.
This is the heart of Joseph's story. Joseph says in Genesis 45, verses 4 through 5, I am Joseph, your brother whom you sold into Egypt.
But now do you.
Do not therefore be grieved or angry with yourself because you sold me here.
For God sent me before you to preserve life.
[00:44:46] Speaker C: Wow.
[00:44:47] Speaker A: Joseph weeps as he reveals himself and says, you sold me.
But God, he sent me.
Ooh, just got glory bumps. He names the sin honestly, yet refuses to take justice into his own hands. Did you hear that? He refuses to take justice into his own hands. That's where we get tripped up quite a bit.
Think about this. Joseph's not rewriting history. He's actually interpreting it through God's sovereignty. God's got this.
He's using God's sovereignty in his position. It's like, I don't want to get ahead of God. I'm going to trust him that he's got this.
Forgiveness is releasing someone from the debt they owe you. It doesn't mean pretending that the debt never existed.
Joseph didn't say, you didn't sell me. He said, you sold me and God sent me. So how many times have you heard, give it to God and thought, well, how can I do this?
You can see some of the tools that we're talking about. That's how.
It's a vertical, intimate relationship with God first. And then a horizontal transaction can take place when we try to settle the score ourselves, which most of us do, that's our first tool we pull out of the tool bag.
Bitterness takes root, Wouldn't you agree?
Bitterness promises control, but it brings bondage.
Some of you may say, but, Pastor, the person who hurt me hasn't changed. They haven't apologized, or they don't even think that they did anything wrong. Or they could be fully unaware that anything took place. And here you are stewing.
Am I supposed to pretend that it's okay?
As Apostle Paul said, certainly not.
Certainly not.
Forgiveness is not anything about pretending.
Joseph brothers repented. Sometimes people won't. So what then? What if they never acknowledged what they did? What if they died? What if they're thriving while you're suffering?
Even then, you can release someone from your courtroom into God's courtroom. On the screen, he places the entire situation into God's hands. That's a tool that you need to learn how to use first rather than last and going through years of misery.
So what does this mean? That you place the entire situation into God's hands.
You forgive for your sake.
Did you hear me? You forgive for your sake, not theirs. Forgiveness only takes one person. You. And then, of course, God.
Reconciliation takes two. So you can forgive while maintaining boundaries. You can forgive and still protect yourself. We need God's wisdom here on the screen. God deals with the justice. We deal with the grace. Don't forget about the G word.
A lot of us refuse to pull that tool out and show grace when it's so needed.
Rapid fire. Here's another point on the screen. And God, or excuse me, the scripture's on the screen, and God sent me before you to Preserve a posterity for you in the earth. God is always working. He has a plan. And to save your lives by a great deliverance. That's the plan.
So now it was not you who sent me here, but it was God. God was in control of this the whole time. He didn't know that when he got thrown into that pit, but he chose to look to God for the answers of why, what's happening here, the challenges that overwhelmed him. I'm certain you can still release someone to God's justice even when they never say they're sorry. That's another point. You can still release someone to God's justice even when they never say they're sorry.
I gotta slow down a little bit because there's so much coming right after.
And let me slow down because this part right here is crucial.
You can forgive and still maintain boundaries.
All right? Hear that? You don't put yourself in danger. You know what I'm talking about. Potentially there are some forgiveness things that require safety and wisdom, but you can still forgive.
I had to ask for personal forgiveness in 2025 and 2026, so far more than I would like to admit.
The moment I found out that I unintentionally hurt someone with my words, words that weren't even directed at this person, my heart just sunk, you guys.
Words that weren't even directed at this person. As my heart shrunk, it crushed me when I recognized this, like, dog gone it Randy.
And I had to call it what it was.
I agreed with God and confessed. It was gossip.
Bottom line, I needed to own that I spoke on someone's behalf without them being in the room.
Unacceptable.
Unacceptable.
Gossip trips us so instantly. Sometimes our culture softens it up by calling. I'm processing out loud. Or I got a prayer request. And here you're sharing information that was never intended to be shared.
When we forget our vertical relationship with God and we ignore the Matthew 18 command to go directly to a brother or sister when something done is offensive, when we ignore our responsibility to go to them first, I believe it becomes sin.
Repentance must take place. Ignoring our responsibility to go to someone first is one of the enemy's tools, favorite tools. And it's a way to divide us, divide our relationships, and our hearts get hardened.
So if we don't go to the person and try and make things right, when you know what to do, the enemy uses that as a tool to separate who came to seek, destroy and divide the enemy.
And here's what the Lord had to remind me through this situation. When we handle hurt the wrong way, it doesn't just wound others, it weighs us down. I was so weighed down with guilt once I realized I messed up, that I reached out and I had a restorative conversation that I believe fully restored. Glorified God, gossip, resentment, replaying offenses. Those things clutter our hearts and fog our minds and steal our peace. And I didn't want my peace stolen. So I knew what I had to do. I needed to go ask for forgiveness.
That was hard.
When we take the hurt vertically to God first, which is what I did, he begins to clear out what. What bitterness tries to build up. That's why this next truth matters so much. On the screen, it says, forgiveness frees your heart and wisdom.
Wisdom protects your life.
I believe both can be true.
This is where forgiveness becomes more than a command, you guys.
It becomes a gift.
When you release someone to God, you don't just loosen your grip on the offense. God loosens the offender's grip on you.
Joseph learned this long before reconciliation ever happened. And think about this for a moment. When you stop caring what God is meant to carry, your heart finally has room to breathe again.
Joseph didn't get justice first.
He got freedom first. And when you release justice to God, he gives you something you could never give yourself.
He gives you the freedom that you're chasing after.
God gives you freedom. That brings us to our final truth. Number four. Forgiveness frees the forgiver first.
We see that in Joseph's story. Forgiveness frees the forgiver first.
And Joseph weeps with his brothers. Can you imagine that scene? He embraces them and speaks kindly to them, and they don't recognize him at first. But when he finally says that, imagine in his Egyptian garb, all shaved and everything, makeup and blah, blah, blah, whatever it was like in that culture.
And all of a sudden they recognize this is our brother.
Joseph weeps with his brothers.
He recognized once this relationship was restored, Joseph had already been set free. But on the screen, forgiveness didn't change his past, but it released his future.
Wouldn't you agree with that observation?
He chose not to hang on to it, so it releases him. He's not burdened by carrying something he wasn't intended to carry.
It released his future.
Holding on to a hurt. Next point always makes a promise it cannot keep. I've been tricked by that one.
Holding on to hurt tells us that we're protecting ourselves. But in reality, it doesn't harden the offender. Guess what? It does. It hardens us.
We start getting hardened. We're hanging on to something we were never intended to carry. I've talked with people in their 20s still carrying wounds from high school. And I've met with people in their 70s still replaying something that a parent said offensive to them when they were kids. Fifty years later, still dealing with some things that unfinished business on a screen. You're still giving them power over your life today. If you're walking in that, if you're hanging on to hurt, the offense changes, right?
Remember this bondage works the same way. Sometimes forgiveness is not a one time moment. And hear this. It's a daily surrender.
You bring the same hurt to God again and again until his peace replaces your pain. And you know what? That is our next point. That's not weakness, that's worship.
That's spending time with our Father, confessing our sins. And he's giving you the peace as you release what you're hanging onto to.
How can he give you peace when you're stuck here holding and your fists are gripped onto your offense until you release it? Then you can grab the peace that was planned for you all along.
Every time you release it.
God replaces bitterness with blessing.
He replaces pain with his peace.
Romans 8, 5 reminds us that what we set our minds on, it shapes our lives.
So if your mind stays fixed on the offense, you remain bound to that offense.
But when your mind is set on a holy Spirit and on the truth of God's word, God begins to loosen what had its grip on you.
Joseph chose freedom over resentment.
So on the screen, forgiveness is not a feeling. Hear that? Forgiveness is not a feeling that you wait for. It's a decision.
It's a decision that you step into.
I'm making a choice. I'm making a different choice. I'm tired of carrying this weight that I can no longer carry. And I'm stepping into forgiveness. Why? What if the outcome doesn't come like I want? So what, we worship a perfect God that knows what we don't. We don't always know what he's doing. Joseph wasn't aware that this pit was the beginning of a run to the palace and to rule all of Egypt. That wasn't on his mind. That wasn't on his, as they say, his bingo card.
The first person who experiences freedom, remember, it's not the offender, it's us.
Listen to this story of a person I'll call Sarah.
She sat in my office just a year ago or so, weeping because her father walked out on her family when she was 12.
For 23 years she carried that abandonment like a Backpack full of rocks.
Every relationship suffered. Every success felt hollow. She told me, pastor, I don't know where to forgive someone who never.
I don't even know how, who never said they were sorry. That's real.
So we walked through some of these same things that I've been learning over and over again. Worshiping God, I gave her some truths. We prayed together. Then I said something that surprised her. Sarah, when you forgave him, you're not doing it for him. You're doing it so that you can finally breathe again.
Somebody needs to hear that today, about six months later or so, give or take, she came back. Same chair. We were catching up. Different face, different countenance.
She said, pastor, I still don't have a relationship with my dad, but I'm free for the first time in my life these last few months, when his name comes up, my chest doesn't tighten up. I sleep through the night. I can trust people again. She paused.
I didn't realize how much energy it took to hate someone until I stopped.
That's what forgiveness does.
It doesn't always restore the relationship, right? But it always restores you. To wrap everything up today, guess what? On the screen, here's a wrap up.
Forgiveness frees us when we allow God to bring truth into the light, repentance into our relationships, and he brings justice into his hands and our hearts into his freedom. See the. See the path for forgiveness that frees you from the offense.
This week's challenge is to bring one person to mind. Just one. On the screen and in your notes, write this down.
Whom is God asking you to release?
You may not need to contact that person. You may not even have an opportunity to contact that person.
[00:58:43] Speaker B: And.
[00:58:44] Speaker A: But follow the Lord's leading on this. You don't need to resolve everything today. But today you have enough tools right now to start the process of forgiveness and to release unforgiveness between you and God. Say, lord, I release them to you. Lord, I will not be their judge.
You handle the justice. I'm choosing to walk in freedom.
I'm choosing to walk in freedom. And if God brings more than one name, release that to them too.
And listen, if later God prompts you to reach out, to reconcile or to rebuild, I'm confident our perfect God will show you how to do that. And he'll make it clear.
Church, family. As we step back from Joseph's story, we see God changing hearts all along.
Joseph brothers are no longer hiding guilt.
Joseph is no longer defined by what has done to him. And that's what the gospel does, it changes our hearts before it changes our actions.
You remember Romans 5, 8? It says that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
God didn't wait for us to clean up.
He moved us toward. He moved toward us in love.
First Corinthians 15. From the apostle Paul's mouth, it reminds us that Christ died, was buried, and he rose again. It means guilt can be forgiven. The past can be redeemed, and hearts can be made new.
The reason we can forgive is not because we're strong enough.
It's because we've been forgiven a debt we could never repay. And when you realize what Jesus released us from, releasing others becomes kind of possible, doesn't it?
He taught us to forgive as we've been forgiven.
He wasn't teaching works or anything like that. He was just teaching evidence. This is what happens when you release what you're not intended to carry.
A forgiven heart becomes a forgiving heart.
Now, before we come to the Lord's table, I want to give you a moment to do business with God.
I'm gonna pray, and then I'm gonna have the band come up. But for some of you, God has been whispering a name all morning.
Others of you know you need to ask forgiveness. Some of you need healing from wounds that have been lingering for years.
This is a holy moment. And let's bow our heads as I pray with you guys right now.
Father, we become. We come before you with hearts that are heavy and hurting and holding on to things that were never meant to carry.
I want you to picture that person's face right now.
The one who hurt you. The one you can't seem to let go of.
Now picture Jesus standing between you and them.
He's already carried what they did to you.
He's already paid for it.
Now, in your heart, in this quiet moment, say their name to God.
I release this person to you, Lord. I will not be their judge.
You handle the justice. I choose to walk in freedom.
Some of you need to say, God, forgive me, I've been the one that hurt someone, and I need to make it right.
Say that now. Lord, we choose freedom over bitterness.
Lord, we choose trust over control.
We release these burdens into your precious hands. In Jesus name.
Amen.
Church, family, as we pray, prepare for communion, we remember that forgiveness costs Jesus everything.
If you haven't received the elements right now, I'm certain that people will. If you raised your hand, they will bring those elements to you.
Remember, his body was broken. His blood was shed.
Not so we could try Harder, but so we can be forgiven and set free.
Because Jesus forgives us completely, not partially and not conditionally.
We can forgive others from a place of an abundance instead of a place of emptiness.
Remember, forgiveness begins when we take our horizontal hurts and bring them vertically to God.
Only then, then can we extend grace horizontally.
Communion reminds us that Jesus went first.
He forgave us while we were still sinners.
Just take a moment and ask the Lord, is there something I'm still holding onto that you want me to release?
Is there someone I need to forgive? Not in my strength, but in your strength.
Joseph could forgive his brothers because he had already given the hurt vertically to God.
And today we come to the Lord's table because Jesus did the same thing for us. He carried what we could not carry and he paid what we could not pay. Joseph said, you sold me, but God sent me. Communion reminds us of a greater truth. We sinned, but God sent His Son.
The only way we can release others is by first being released ourselves. And the only way we can forgive is because Christ forgave us.
So the other way that bitterness is broken is because Jesus body was broken for us.
What do we do in communion? This is not a ritual.
This is something that we get to experience today. Could you imagine if someone said, lord Jesus, I am just tired of fighting this. I can't get to heaven on my own terms. I just can't get anything right right now. I release myself to you. Fill me with your Holy Spirit. Spirit, I follow you now. Could you imagine if you did that right now and you take communion for the first time as a free person, free from the guilt that he paid for.
As we open up our cups, we're going to grab the bread right now. We're going to remember that his body was broken for us. There was a whole process in order in order for God Himself, through Jesus Christ, to open up a doorway into heaven. He did it through His Son, Jesus. His body was broken for us. Let's a take, take the bread together.
In the same way he shed his blood. For why?
For the forgiveness of sin.
We've sinned, haven't we? I'm looking around this room, I see a room full of sinners.
We've sinned, we've made mistakes.
But Jesus, a perfect God, forgave us.
And we can come to him and celebrate him right now. So for the forgiveness of sin, let's remember what he did. He shed that blood for us. Let's drink the cup together, remembering him that he shed for us.
Even while we are still sinners.
Sit on that for a moment.
[01:05:41] Speaker B: Sa.
[01:06:07] Speaker C: Confess.
Bowing Here I find my rest and without you I fall apart.
You're the one that guides my heart.
Lord, I need you. O I need you.
Every hour I need you.
My one defense, my righteousness. O God, how I need you.
Where sin runs deep, your grace is more.
Where grace is found is where you are in where you are.
Lord, I am free.
Holy holiness is Christ in me is who you are.
Lord, I am free.
Holiness is Christ in me.
Lord, I need you.
[01:07:48] Speaker B: O need you.
[01:07:53] Speaker C: Every hour I need you.
My one defense, my righteousness.
Oh God, how I need you.
So teach my song to rise to.
[01:08:19] Speaker B: You.
[01:08:22] Speaker C: When temptation comes my way.
And when I cannot stand, I'll fall on you.
Oh Jesus, you're my hope and stay.
And when I cannot stand, I'll follow you.
[01:08:43] Speaker B: You.
[01:08:45] Speaker C: Yes, Jesus, you're my hope and stay.
[01:08:54] Speaker B: Lord, I need you.
[01:08:57] Speaker C: Oh yes, I need you.
Every hour I need you by one defense. You are my righteousness. Oh God, how I need you.
[01:09:20] Speaker D: Just raise your voice and sing.
[01:09:24] Speaker C: Oh Lord, I need you.
[01:09:27] Speaker B: Oh, I need you.
[01:09:30] Speaker C: Yes, every hour.
Oh yeah, I need you.
My one defense, my righteousness.
Oh God, how I need.
[01:09:50] Speaker D: Sing that again. Sing it out your voices.
[01:09:52] Speaker C: Lord, I need you. Oh, I need you.
[01:10:00] Speaker B: Every hour I need.
[01:10:04] Speaker A: I need you.
[01:10:07] Speaker B: My one defense, my right.
How I need you.
[01:10:21] Speaker C: My one defense, my right.
[01:10:29] Speaker B: Oh God, how I need.
[01:10:36] Speaker D: Give God praise.
[01:10:44] Speaker A: That's heavy. Wasn't it? I kind of had a feeling it was because it was heavy with me as well. It's hard.
It costs you something to make different choices. There's going to be prayer folks up here for those who want to say, you know, I'm going to start this process right now, but I need a little boost. We have excellent people up here willing to take you to the throne room of heaven through grace and mercy.
Do business with God. Don't leave here or at least consider thinking through these notes that we talked about in this word from the Holy Spirit. I believe he was preaching to us today because we got a culture right now that wants to divide us. It's dividing families, parties, all kinds of stuff. It's crazy. May you be found faithful in his power, forgiving and being forgiven.
Forgiven.
Lord, I just ask that you will just bless this family, those online as well, that you will just take these words and sow them right into our hearts so that that brings you glory.
We praise you together.
Bless my friends and bring them back next week.
Be there. Everything today, even in the chance of this super bowl going on.
Help us to remember to be kind. We pray in Jesus name. Amen.
Amen.
[01:12:12] Speaker B: It.
