True Forgiveness

Glory to God!

We had a full house on Friday in our church premises in Bockenheim as we gathered together for a time of fellowship and reflection. Looking at the seven last sayings of Jesus on the cross, Richard used the word CROSS to show us how Christ's last words reveal aspects of His life that we are called to follow.

Communion: Jesus lived in unbroken communion with the Father but experienced separation on the cross. Mark 15:34
Reconciliation: Jesus came to reconcile man to God and mankind to one another. Luke 23:43; John 19:30
Obedience: Jesus was obedient to the Father, even to death on the cross. John 19:30
Suffering: Jesus suffered as He persevered in fulfilling the Father's will. John 19:28
Sacrifice: Jesus laid down His life for mankind. Luke 23:34

It was a special time as we reflected on Christ's life and death and shared communion together.

On Sunday we celebrated Christ's resurrection. After a powerful time of worship we ministered to some people in prayer with resurrection power and hope. Richard then shared a message entitled, "The Gospel of Forgiveness" in which he showed us the nature of true forgiveness that involves the 3 stages of death, burial and resurrection. Using traffic lights as a symbol and a reminder of true forgiveness, we saw how Christ's death, burial and resurrection is the essence of the Gospel: the good news of God's forgiveness through Christ.

• The red light symbolises death: Our sin was nailed to the cross. Rom 4:25
• The yellow light symbolises burial: God buries our sin and chooses not to remember it anymore. Heb 10:17,18
• The green light symbolises resurrection: God treats us as though we had never sinned by not counting our sin against us. 2 Cor 5:18,19

A traffic light can however also symbolise the nature of unforgiveness where:

The red light symbolises death: choosing to separate oneself from the one who has sinned against you.
The yellow light symbolises burial: you hold onto the offense and bury it your heart.
The green light symbolises resurrection: I bring up past wrongs to get you back.

In response to the revelation of the nature of God's forgiveness through Christ, we took communion together and were encouraged to receive God's forgiveness and to forgive others in the same way God has forgiven us in Christ (see Mat 6:15; Lk 11:4; Col 3:13).

 Upcoming Events

25.04 - KLF Prayer Meeting at 19:30 at Leipziger Str.60 
18 - 21.05 Deep calls to deep Conference with Steve Porter
26.05 - Global Outreach Day
22 - 24.06 Journey with the Holy Spirit with Edgar Mayer