Pastor Gail Welcome
1. We’re so glad you’re here, I love it that the fact that even if we’re late, the Lord never is. Praise God. Isn’t it amazing we’re serving ever present, that we serve a God who is always there? And he’s out of time, he’s always on time, and he loves to hear our worship. So, praise God, we are privileged today to be able to worship the Lord together. So, we’re going to declare our freedom today because we are forgiven. Amen. “Who the Son sets free is free indeed,” (John 8:36) Amen. Shall we stand, amen.
2. Amen. This morning I would like us very much to begin service this morning. Let’s just pray about the situation of the wars. The wars, notice I said plural. Sometimes I think we can almost become desensitized. I think about people just every day they’ve heard so much about the Ukraine, they forget to pray for the Ukrainians and the Russians. The Sudan. But of course, we know very clearly the situation, Iran, Iraq, the Kurds, Lebanon, Israel, it’s just so difficult right now.
3. Let’s lift up the Lord. He is ultimately in control. And that the Lord will work to be glorified in these situations, amen. Let’s pray together. Father, in the name of the Lord Jesus right now, we lift you up. Lord, we believe God, even when we can’t see it, and we’re not even certain of it, but Lord it is true, Lord, that you are ultimately in control. God, we believe that these situations are happening, God, because you want people to come to the knowledge that man does not have the answer, but you alone, God, you are our answer. Oh Jesus, you are the way, the truth, and the life. We thank you, Jesus, today that you came to bring forgiveness. You came to bring peace, Lord, beyond any of our understanding. It is a peace that the world cannot know, and it is a peace in you. We pray, O God, for the mothers that have lost their sons. We pray, O God, for the mothers and fathers that have lost sons and daughters, Lord, in all these wars. We pray for the hurt, God. We pray, O God, for the psychological damage in so many. Father, we pray, God, that you will send Christians, God, with words of healing in the name of the Lord. We know, God, you are great and mighty God. And we look to you, “We lift up our eyes into the hills, from which comes our help. Our help comes from God, maker of heaven and earth.” (Psalm 121:1-2). Lord, you are a helper. Who is our helper? You are God. We declared, Lord, today you are our helper in the name of the Lord Jesus. Amen, O, amen, and amen.
4. I want to challenge you when you pray. Sometimes we just kind of, there’s a bullet. What’s the one where it’s just shot everywhere? What’s that called? Scatter shot. Yeah, there’s bullets that are just called scatter shots. They just kind of go everywhere and they don’t hit anything. Scatter shots don’t hit anything because it just scattered everywhere. It doesn’t hit the target. I can tell them as.
5. But if we pray, knowing our target, first of all, is the love of God to come into their life. In whatever situation. Instead of just saying, Lord, just help them. Let’s pray a little more directed. Would you turn with me in Ephesians 1:3 and there are Bibles around the room in the back of the chairs? I love seeing people open the Bibles. It’s so good, it’s so good.
6. Starting in Ephesians 1:3-8. Oh, the amazing love of God. “Blessed is the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavens in Christ. For he chose us in him before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless in love before him. He predestined us to be adopted as sons through Jesus Christ for himself, according to the good pleasure of his will. To the praise of his glorious grace that he lavished on us in the beloved one. In him, we have redemption through his blood. The forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace. That he richly poured out on us with all wisdom and understanding.”
7. Let all of us say, ‘let the reading of the Word be a blessing. That we would bless others with the Word flowing through us.’ Amen. Turn to somebody and smile. Praise God. The reading of the word, how wonderful it is.
8. Just a short testimony from myself this morning. It gives you a second to set, too. All this last week, I was here in Greece. I was here with the World Mission Commission. I get to sit on that commission. And it was exciting to hear the projections of what God is going to do.
9. It was also troubling that we don’t have enough people yet willing to go. But we believe that God is getting ready to touch our hearts and his body and his family. As never before, the lost and the broken that they would know Jesus. Amen.
10. Sarah, I didn’t have time to ask you, but I think would you mind sharing, would you like to stand or come up here really quickly and share where you’ve been and what happened? Because we had some people from the church go with you just very quickly.

Sarah Wheway
11. Good morning, everybody. Yes, I’m myself and Lara from the church and Lucia Maria. We just went to the conference in Katerini. It was called Movement Day. And it was for the Balkan countries. I’ve attended this conference in Dubai for the last four years. And now they’ve brought this to Greece and to the Balkans.
12. And it’s really to encourage us in our churches to be looking at ways to reach people. To be praying for the peace in our cities. And really just working together for new ways to help those around us. I actually have a few books in English that I’ve returned with. One is for Pastor Gail. Please help yourself if you want to read more from some of the pastors or leaders that were from the Balkan countries.

Pastor Gail
13. Good morning, Whit family. I’m so excited about how God is calling us to focus on the lost. I love that we’re family. Leonardo, we’re so glad you’re here and your family. George, we’re so glad you’re here. We’re welcoming the family today. Amen. Praise God. Amen. Everybody looks good. Amen. All right.
14. Thank you, Lord, for forgiveness. We thank the Lord for forgiveness. Anybody in here perfect? You never need forgiveness? Anyone? I saw one hand. We’re going to have lots of prayer. Okay. Praise God. I’m so thankful. I’m forgiven. I need lots of forgiveness. Would you stand with me?
15. As the worship team continues to play, if you’re here this morning and you need healing in your body, or you know someone else, would you just rinse your hands? We want to pray for healing today. Amen. Amen. Amen. Look at the hands all around the room.
16. Would you keep them up? If you’re near, someone has their hand up. If you would just lay your hand on them if they would let you and agree with them, and agree with them that in the name of Jesus, they’re healed. Let’s pray.
17. Father, the name of the Lord Jesus right now, Lord. We pray for healing God. We thank you, Lord. You are our healer. One of your names, I am the God who heals you. Lord, for everyone in this room, God, that needs healing. For those, Lord, that we’re praying for that are not here today. Lord, there’s no distance, God. Lord, you can hear our prayer today and you can heal in Africa and America and South Africa. Lord, it’s all over in China, wherever God. We’re praying right now, Lord, that you will touch and heal. God, we believe today. We believe today, God. Things that doctors cannot heal. God, you are the healer. We come against cancer. We declare those that can’t walk that they shall rise. Armand shall get up and walk in the name of Jesus. For Mary’s eyes, for the report of the Lord, for the cancer to be gone out of her eyes. In the name of the Lord, oh God, lung problems, heart problems, in your name.
18. We have a dear sister and friend of mine here today. Lucy and her husband, Justin. They pastor in Czech. Lucy actually is Czech. She’s a preacher. I would have loved to have had her share today, but we just couldn’t fit everything in. So, Lucy’s going to come and share a little word with us. Lucy, if you’ll come. I didn’t know she’s pregnant. Thank God, it’s her baby.

Lucy
19. Hello, baby boy. Hello, everybody. It’s such an honor to be here. I’ve known Gail. I was counting. It’s like 10 years or something. It’s been a long time. And she’s a dear friend of ours. We usually meet in the U.S. conferences. And she actually came to our town to a mission’s conference some years ago. And so, it’s an honor to be here and see her church in her hometown. Well, more like a city. Athens is no town.
20. I would love to share with you just one thing that God has been strongly putting on my heart. And that is that he is always at work in the hearts of people around us. And we talked yesterday in the car. And I asked you what the spiritual background here is. And how hard is to share faith.
21. And I can relate to what I heard. Because the majority of my country is atheist. And we used to have actually really large Christian community. But due to wars and Catholic church being used as a ruling power. And then 40 years of communism, we now only have less than 1% of people who actually believe in God.
22. And so, it can feel hard sometimes. In a room like this you would maybe have one person who’s Christian. But we see one thing that we have not seen in a long time. And that is that the young generation is open. They are ready. We don’t understand it. It doesn’t really make sense. But I serve in a mission organization that serves in 16 countries of Central and Eastern Europe, post-communist countries. And we see it everywhere.
23. We see it in the UK. We see it in Western European countries as well. God is doing something. And these young people, you don’t really have to water it down for them. Like make it nice and fun. You can give them the Gospel in its fullness, the challenge of Jesus – Take up your cross and follow me. And they say yes. They are somehow ready for it.
24. And so, we are learning how to be very direct with the Gospel. How to reach them. And my organization focuses on young people. Because in the context that we are at, most people believe in Christ before they turn 18. So, it is a critical age. Yes. But what we believe in is a movement of God through these young people that will transform all of the generations and the whole society.
25. And I really want to encourage you, we do not always see it. People sometimes hide it. But the Holy Spirit is working in them, period. Because he wants to reach them. And so, keep praying for those you have on your prayer list. Because salvation ultimately is God’s miracle. So, keep praying for them. And maybe ask God to give you boldness. And directness if need be.
26. Sometimes it can be hard to share with the close ones, right? To the ones that we have close relationships with. And so, pray for wisdom, pray for boldness. You might be surprised.
27. I have a friend back home and she just shared the Gospel with her mom. And she was really scared to share about the sin part, you know, the ugly part of Gospel. And her mom goes, well, I know I’m sinful. I have a big problem. I know I sinned a lot. My friend was so surprised.
28. And then her mom goes, well, what can I do about it? My friend goes, nothing. But I’m going to tell you what Jesus did about it next time. They have this Bible study that goes through the four steps of salvation. And so, this was the second step. And my friend is one of the people who got saved on a youth group. Her and her husband are both Christian. She serves full time for young people. And now her mom is being reached for the Gospel.
29. And she said, I was so shocked. To see how much she was ready. So, God is moving. As much when we see the darkness and the heavy stuff getting heavier and darker. His light shines brighter. And so, let’s be part of it. It’s exciting.

Pastor Gail
30. Be sure to visit with Lucy upstairs at coffee time. Amen. Amen.
31. Praise God. Praise God. I’d like our ushers to come forward as we’re going to receive our offering this morning and our tithes. Thank you to the Lord. What a joy. To be able to give to the Lord. Praise God. Yes. Praise God.
32. And as they’re coming, I’m going to ask Stavros if he will pray for the offering. Yes.

Stavros Prayer for the Offering

Pastor Gail
33. Yes. It’s beautiful worship to be able to give to the Lord. This Saturday is men’s breakfast. You don’t want to miss it. At all. What did I say? This Saturday. And. News. Exciting news. Next Sunday. The clocks go forward. One hour. I know. I know. I don’t like it either. That’s why I’m trying to get myself geared up. I don’t like it. But next Sunday they go forward one hour. Don’t be late. Don’t please. I pity none of you. This will be the second time I had to do it. Many of you who are not on you go forward. Oh, it’s two weeks. I thought it was next Sunday. What’s next Sunday? Next Sunday’s not the 28th. Oh, good. We don’t want to rush time then. Yes. Mark it on your calendar so you’re already prepared.
34. For those of you that were late this morning. We had a special treat. Nahir was playing for us this morning and she will be joining the worship team. If you don’t know who Nahir is, she is our beautiful young Turkish friend. We’re so glad.
35. On Monday we have a group arriving from America to work here and serve for the next two weeks. And so, because they are here for the next two Wednesday nights, Marina and Lars. We will do the care group here in the local church because there are ten of them. The church will be open for the next two Wednesday nights and we’ll be meeting here.
36. Please go to your home group. If you’re not in a care group let me know. But we’ve been loving and enjoying our care groups, our home groups. They’re rich. Henneke has a group, Evy has a group. Evy’s is in the morning. On Tuesday morning. It’s wonderful. I believe Samantha has a group, but I think Samantha’s group is all in Sinhala, yes? But we’re so, if you speak Sinhala, go be with Samantha. Praise God.
37. This group will even be going up with Michael and Kata. They’ll be having Bible study with them, a type of sharing up near Malakasa and their home and the refugee camp. We’re so glad we’re going to be able to go up there. Praise God.
38. Wonderful things are happening. Yes. Amen. Amen. Amen. Aren’t you glad there’s a place in the heart of God for each one of us? I’m so glad I deserved punishment. I was a sinner. But mercy, mercy said no. We want to save her. Amen. Praise God.

Anton Beukes – Main Message
1. Thank you, Pastor Gail. Good morning, everybody. It’s good to be with you again. I missed you. I truly did miss you. But it was good to visit the USA and Canada. To our fellowship with many people there, that regularly pray for Greece, some of them been here, minister here, and some of them want to come back to minister here.
2. Let’s turn to Ephesians 4. The text will be on screen, but I’m going to ask you to have your Bibles open because we’re going to look at a few other texts as well. And before we read, let’s pray together.
3. Our Father in heaven, we thank you Lord for your Word. Your Word is true. Your Word is life. It’s through your Word that we know you. And it’s through your Word that we can have a relationship with you. We pray Lord that you open your Word for us. We pray Lord that we learn from your Word. We pray Lord that your Holy Spirit will explain your Word to us. And we pray Lord that you’ll give us the strength to apply your Word. Thank you, Lord, for your love. For your grace and your mercy. And thank you that we can pray this in the name of Jesus. Amen.
4. So, when we look at the book of Ephesians, we see that Paul constructed this letter very carefully. The first 3 chapters, Paul focuses on the content of our faith. On the doctrines, the teachings. And then the last 3 chapters, he focuses on the application of our faith.
5. For Paul, it was not only important to know the truth. And to believe the truth. But also, to put the truth into action. What do we believe? What do we know is true? And how does that affect our daily lives? In the first part of this chapter, he looks at what does it mean to live in unity as the body. He says that we are called to walk in unity. When we walk in unity, we are a church together. He talks about the grace and the gifts. He talks about ministry and what it is like to grow in maturity.
6. And then in the latter part of this chapter, Paul is saying, how do we put our old life away and focus on the new life? He describes the old, gentile lifestyle. And then how can we learn from Christ what it means to have a new life? And then from verse 25 onwards, he gives us some practical, ethical instructions.
7. And we’re going to look at the last four verses of this chapter. And when we read through this, look at it carefully, because initially it will look like there’s just a few things that are put randomly. But there’s a beautiful structure in here that we will look at a bit later.
8. So, Paul says, “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouth, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs that it may benefit those who listen. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage, and anger brawling and slander along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other. As is in Christ, God forgave you.”
9. Okay, so let’s turn back to verse 29. So, when we look at the structure of this passage, we see that Paul is saying two things in this verse. A negative and a positive. In verse 30, he actually gives us the focus of this passage. And then verse 31 and 32, he goes back to the negative and the positive.
10. And this passage focuses on what we say. Paul is saying in verse 29, do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouth. Have we listened to what Paul has said? Do we do what Paul has said? If I look at my own life and I don’t talk much, I talk much to myself but not to other people. I know this is very true of myself. That although I want to say good things, there is still a lot of unwholesome things coming out of this mouth. That is part of our sinful, broken body and lives.
11. But Paul is also saying, we don’t have to continue saying all these negative things. He says, but say only what is helpful for building others up. Our mouths do not function independently. Sometimes I think for some that is true. But for most of us, our mouths say what our hearts feel. And what our minds are thinking. And when we want to change what we say and how we say it, we should not start by just focusing on what we say and trying to put a guard in front of our mouths. It should start with a change in our hearts. And a change in our minds.
12. What am I thinking about? What do I focus on? How do I feel towards other people? Because if I am only focusing on myself, my sinful desires, my needs, then I will not put those guards in front of my mouth. Because what I feel and what I think, will come out of my mouth. But when I focus on others, when their needs are in my heart, and when I think about what is the benefit to others, then it will be easier to say the right things, to say the helpful things, and to say the things that will build others up.
13. Let’s keep verse 13, and go to verse 31. And here again, Paul focuses on the negative first. He says, get rid of these things. A bitter heart. A rage, emotion that is filled with bitterness and negativity. Anger because of what we think and what we believe and what we feel. Brawling and slander. Saying things in anger towards other people. Making false statements against others. And have malice in our hearts.
14. You see our words, what we say is not just the words what we say, but it is the bitterness in our minds. The anger in our hearts. The rage that comes out through our emotions. And what we have, what we feel towards other people. Paul is saying, get rid of these things. Lay them down, crucify them, but instead, in verse 32, he says, be kind and compassionate to one another. And instead of slander, forgive each other. When we have kindness towards one another, when we think of the needs of others, whether our words will break them down or build them up, when we show compassion in what we think and feel and say, and instead of slander, forgiving one another.
15. It’s so easy just to say words. Say what we think and say what we feel. But Paul is calling us in these verses to think first. To test our hearts. Before we say things. In the Greek and Roman world, in a world full of honor and shame, whatever was done to you, you were expected to do the same. When you receive a gift, you should give a gift. When somebody has shown kindness to you, you show kindness back.
16. If somebody curses you, you were entitled to curse them back. If somebody slandered you or said something wrong towards you, you could do the same towards them. But Paul comes and he says, according to the gospel, according to the change that Christ brought to us, we cannot do the same. Yet, when somebody is kind to you, you need to be kind. But not in the same amount. You need to be so much more. If somebody gives a gift to you, don’t feel entitled to just give a gift back. But be generous in how you treat that person, in how you love that person, in how you care for that person.
17. And if somebody curses you, what should you do? You give a blessing. You show kindness. When somebody says false things about you, what do you do? You bless them. How can we do that? I think the important part of this is what we find in verse 32. Paul saying, show kindness. Show compassion. But also forgive each other. Just as in Christ, God forgave you.
18. It’s not easy to show kindness or compassion towards people that hate you. In our nature, we want to do the same towards them. But once we’ve realized who we are and how we stood in front of God, the things that we thought, the things that we felt, the things that we’ve said, the things that we’ve done, and when we look at God’s reaction, that he had all the rights to judge us, to punish us, to show his wrath upon us, but he did not. What did he do? He showed forgiveness.
19. And therefore, for us to understand the change in our hearts, the change in our thoughts, in what we say and what we do can only be understood that because we are forgiven, we can forgive others. And because we can and must forgive others, what we say, what we do, our relationship with one another should change as well.
20. So, let’s look at a few aspects of forgiveness. From this passage as well as a few other passages. The first fact that we need to understand is that God the Father forgives. We can only know what is forgiveness because God has forgiven us.
21. In verse 32 he says, “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” He’s not saying be kind and compassionate and forgiving so that God can forgive you. He says, “Because God has forgiven you. You can show kindness and compassion and forgiveness to others.”
22. The second point is, that forgiveness is part of God’s character. In Exodus 34:6-7 we read, “And he passed in front of Moses proclaiming the Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, bounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished. He punishes the children and their children for the sin of their parents to the third and fourth generation.”
23. To forgive is part of God’s character. It’s not just something that he does. It’s not just one of his functions. It is part of who he is. God reveals himself as a God that forgives. And because he forgives, and because he wants to forgive, he forgives us. It’s not just one of the things that God needs to do. But it is something that he wants to do. He wants to forgive us.
24. Because he knows that the way that we think and feel and do and say, the sin that have come through the fall, and we are all born into, that brings separation between himself and us. But it is God, who from the beginning turned towards Adam and Eve, and called them to him who took the first step of forgiveness to restore that relationship. And it’s the same God that stepped out towards each one of us who offered us forgiveness, so that our relationship with him could be restored.
25. But we also read in Psalm 103:11-12, “As high as the heavens above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him. As far as the east is from the west, so far, he has removed our transgressions from us.” As far as we can see, as far as we can think or imagine, so great is God’s love for us.
26. But as far apart as the east is from the west, so he has removed our sins and transgressions from us. When God forgives, he does it completely. He does not take a deposit of his forgiveness. He takes the full amount. He does not put it on the shelf and say, I’m going to see if you do it again and then I’ll punish you twice. When God forgives, he fully forgives.
27. When we came to faith in our Lord Jesus, and asked for forgiveness, he totally forgave us. When we come daily before him, and ask him to forgive ourselves, he totally forgives us, not in part but totally, everything.
28. But we also see that forgiveness requires repentance. In Acts 3, we read Peter says, “Repent then and turn to God so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshment may come from the Lord and that he may send the Messiah who has been appointed for you, even Jesus.”
29. Our sins will not be forgiven if we have the intention to keep on sinning. If we do that, our words are hollow. When we ask for forgiveness, we need to mean it. When we do mean it, we turn our backs on the sin behind us. That is what it means to repent, to turn around.
30. Without repentance, our forgiveness will not be whole. But 1 John also says, “if we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”
31. Repentance starts in our hearts and our minds, but we also need to confess it. To make it clear, to put words to that, especially when we confess to one another. God is calling us to turn our backs to our sins and confess what we’ve done, so that we can receive the forgiveness.
32. But in the same verse, we see that there is cleansing of sin. If we turn our backs to our sins and we confess our sins, then because God is righteous and just, he will forgive our sins. He will not just think about it. He will not just put it on hold. He will forgive us and he will purify us. That is the promise that we have in this text. If we repent and confess, then God will forgive us and he will make us holy.
33. But the text also says that forgiveness only comes through Christ. Let’s go back to this passage. “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other just as in Christ God forgave you.” God forgives us because Christ paid the price for us. God had to punish us for our sins, but Christ came and took our place. So, when God forgives us, it’s not because we are good or we deserve it, but because he’s already punished Christ for our sins. He was without sin, became our sin. And because of his faithfulness, we are forgiven.
34. In another text in Ephesians 1, Paul writes, “In Him, we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace.” We did not deserve God’s goodness. But he gave us the forgiveness because of what Christ has done. The sacrifice of Christ gave us forgiveness of sin.
35. But it’s not just the forgiveness from God that we receive. We are also called to forgive one another. In Matthew 6 we read, “For if we forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.”
36. If we realize how broken and how sinful we are, and that none of us deserves God’s grace and mercy, but despite of that, he does give us his grace and mercy. Then out of thankfulness, we should also forgive others.
37. God forgave me. I did not deserve it. My sins are heaping up. But he’s taken it all the way. How can I hold grudge against somebody else? If he has forgiven me, I also need to forgive others. And so much more, when we look at forgiving others in our community.
38. In Ephesians 4:32, our text says, “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other.” It should not just be from one to another, but from all to one another. We cannot just expect our leaders to forgive us, but we should also go to them and forgive them. We need to be open with one another.
39. Confess our sins to one another and forgive one another. And that comes through the confession and mutual forgiveness. That when we confess to one another, James 5: 16 says, “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.” When we do confess our sins to one another, and the forgiveness flows from that, it also brings healing. Healing in our hearts, to rebuild relationships, to restore the unity, and to be a witness outside.
40. Those are the aspects of forgiveness. But there is one aspect of forgiveness that we don’t find explicitly in the Bible. And I think that is the most difficult aspect of forgiveness. And that is forgiving myself. The Bible doesn’t talk about forgiving ourselves. But I think it’s something that we all struggle with.
41. It is sometimes easier to think God can forgive me. Or somebody else can forgive me. But it is not easy for me to forgive myself. But when we look at the aspects of forgiveness, we see that we can apply those aspects onto self-forgiveness as well. The first thing we need to do is to trust God’s promise. We need to trust God’s promises of forgiveness.
42. If the Word of God says God has forgiven us, then we need to believe that. We need to know that. We need to live that out. We cannot say God has forgiven me, but I cannot forgive myself. Because who will then punish us? Who will then judge us? If God has forgiven me, why do I still ponder and worry about that?
43. But the second thing also is that sin is usually connected with shame. But if God has forgiven us, he has also taken away the shame. Therefore, we need to reject the ongoing shame of things that we were forgiven for.
44. And thirdly, we cannot focus on what we do to form and to shape our identity. We need to allow God’s grace to shape our identity. I am not the person because of the things that I’ve done. I am the person because of what Christ has done. Nothing that I can do is worthy to be God’s child. Nothing makes me worthy. It is only because Christ is worthy that I can be a child of God.
45. And if we know that, then the fourth point is also true. It is true that we can grow in holiness. Instead of looking back to the sins that have been forgiven, we need to look at the man and the woman God intended us to be. To be set apart for whom he has intended us to be.
46. I am going to ask you to close your eyes. And in just a few moments, think about what God has done for you in Christ. If there are things that you want to ask, if you want to confess, take that time and confess it before the Lord.
47. If you struggle to forgive yourself, ask the Lord to show you how much he loves you. And ask that he will give you strength to forgive yourself. And move out of this bondage into the full freedom that he has given us.
48. And if somebody here has hurt you, if someone has sinned against you, somebody has said things about you or to you, ask the Lord to give you strength to forgive them. And if you have hurt somebody, if you said something about someone who has done something against you, may I encourage you to go to them and ask for forgiveness. Let us forgive each other as we have been forgiven by God in Christ.
49. Thank you, Lord, that you have forgiven us. That we can stand before your throne, holy and without blemish, because of your son Jesus. Help us, Lord, to accept that forgiveness. Help us, Lord, to forgive ourselves. Help us, Lord, to forgive others. And help us, Lord, to confess our sins to you and to one another. Thank you that we can trust in you. Thank you for your love for us. We pray this, Lord, in Jesus’ name.

Pastor Gail – Closeout
50. For those of you that have asked people to forgive you, and you really mean it, and they don’t, if you honestly ask them, you need to go free in the name of Jesus. You need to go free. One time someone for over a year held something against me. I went, I went, I begged, I begged. They wouldn’t forgive me, and the Lord told me one morning, you’ve done all you can. Be free. Be free. Sometimes we have to know that peoples’ hearts can get hard against us. But if we’ve done all we know to do before the Lord, and Camilla, we love this baby.
51. Be free. Know the Lord. Seize your heart. Amen. Amen. His blood, and we share that freedom. Amen. Let them see you love them even if they won’t forgive you. Let them see you love them. Amen.