Sermon Sept. 14

How many of you have heard of the word “apologia”? Perhaps some who studied Latin, or a few of our friends in the rhetoric department may be familiar with it. Apologia, according to Merriam Webster, is “a defense, especially of one’s opinions, positions, or actions.” In some ways, it’s an apology, or at least an explanation for one’s actions. Businesses use apologia all the time, and are often criticized for not being sincere. You can get a MA in rhetoric and focus on apologia. These scholars analyze the effectiveness of a company’s apology to determine how it will be received by the public. Learning about the correct and effective ways to offer an apology is not limited to academics. Music, books, and movies show the reconciliation that occurs when someone offers a sincere apology, and, what the consequences are if one is not offered. So, you can get a MA focusing on the art of apology, you can turn your radio on and hear dozens of songs addressing the topic, you can read books to learn how to offer a solid apology. This is because apologies are important. Learning how to humble one’s self before a brother or sister and say “I was wrong, I’m sorry” is challenging, but necessary to maintaining and growing relationships.
But what about the recipient of the apology? I don’t know of any MA programs that focus on the science of forgiveness. There aren’t a whole lot of pop songs that say “I’m so glad I’ve forgiven someone.” We don’t focus much on giving forgiveness, do we? But Jesus commands us to look at things differently. The Gospel for today doesn’t focus on the importance of offering an apology, but instead on the importance of forgiving over and over again. In Matthew 18:21, Peter asks Jesus “how many times should I forgive someone who wrongs me? Up to seven times?” You all remember Peter, don’t you? Peter is the Rock on which Jesus will build His church, but will eventually deny Jesus. Peter, who declares Jesus is the Messiah, only to be told “get behind me Satan, you’re a stumbling block?” Well, in this reading, Peter is once again trying to show Jesus how loyal he is. He thought he was being generous with this whole idea of forgiveness. In Jewish tradition, it were not required to forgive. When Peter suggests forgiving someone seven times, he thinks he’s being generous. Peter was coming from a tradition that placed the burden on the one who did wrong—sounds a little like our modern world, doesn’t it? You are to seek out the mercy and forgiveness of anyone whom you have wronged. No one was obligated to offer forgiveness unless they were asked to do so.
Jesus offers a new, radical answer to this question. “not seven times,” “but seventy seven” or, in some translations “seventy times seven.” He commands that our forgiveness never ceases. Instead of focusing on apologia, or the ways in which or neighbor comes to us, we are to focus on offering forgiveness. It intimates that we should make it our constant practice to forgive injuries, and should accustom ourselves to it till it becomes habitual.
But this lesson tells us something else—that we can never pay our debt of sin to God. Like the servant in the parable, our debt is so great it will surely envelop us. Instead of holding us to this great debt, God offers us forgiveness, over and over again. Therefore, if God is willing to forgive a lifetime of sin, we to should forgive our neighbors. Let’s be clear—Jesus isn’t suggesting that our pain doesn’t matter, or that we should forgive and stay in hurtful situations. Abuse, neglect, mistrust can all damage us in deep ways. Jesus isn’t saying that forgiveness means we should stand passively by and allow others to victimize us. Instead, God commands us to forgive so we can fully be free of the pain and the burden that we feel when we hold on to hurt and anger. He is setting the oppressor and the oppressed free through this command.
The repeated, selfless forgiveness Jesus speaks of can often impact those beyond those directly involved. You probably remember the 2006 shooting at an Amish school which took the lives of five girls. But from this tragedy comes one of the most striking examples of forgiveness I have ever heard. On the day of the shooting, a grandfather of one of the murdered Amish girls was heard warning some young relatives not to hate the killer, saying, "We must not think evil of this man."[17] Another Amish father noted, "He had a mother and a wife and a soul and now he's standing before a just God."[18]
A Roberts family spokesman said an Amish neighbor comforted the Roberts family hours after the shooting and extended forgiveness to them.[19] Amish community members visited and comforted Roberts' widow, parents, and parents-in-law. One Amish man held Roberts' sobbing father in his arms, reportedly for as long as an hour, to comfort him.[20] The Amish have also set up a charitable fund for the family of the shooter.[21] About 30 members of the Amish community attended Roberts' funeral,[20] and Marie Roberts, the widow of the killer, was one of the few outsiders invited to the funeral of one of the victims.[22] Marie Roberts wrote an open letter to her Amish neighbors thanking them for their forgiveness, grace, and mercy. She wrote, "Your love for our family has helped to provide the healing we so desperately need. Gifts you've given have touched our hearts in a way no words can describe. Your compassion has reached beyond our family, beyond our community, and is changing our world, and for this we sincerely thank you."[22]
As forgiveness is offered and accepted, healing can begin. May the spirit of forgiveness be in your hearts on this day, and may the power of Jesus’ forgiving word carry you through your darkest hours. Amen.