Skip to content The Transformative Power of Faith and Forgiveness in Luke 17-18 Jul 17 · 14 min ...more
The Transformative Power of Faith and Forgiveness in Luke 17-18
July 17, 2025 · 14 min
Discover how even a tiny measure of faith can bring about great transformation in life.
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The Power of Faith and Forgiveness 0:10 Good morning. Welcome to Stand on the Word. 2 very powerful chapters today as we look at chapter 17 and 18 of the book of Luke. And there's a common thread. I think you're gonna see it. It's the thread of0:22 faith that's woven in between, throughout these 2 chapters. Verse 27 chapter 18. But he said, these things, which are impossible with men, are possible with God. Now first up,0:33 Jesus gives instructions on forgiveness. Verse 3 chapter 17. Take heed to yourselves. If your brother sins against you, rebuke him. And if he repents, forgive him. And And if he sins against you 7 times in a day, and0:45 7 times in a day returns to you saying I repent, you shall forgive him. Now forgiveness really is a characteristic that should set us as followers of of0:57 Christ apart from the world. Jesus teaches, and this is what he's teaching right here and we've seen it elsewhere, that forgiveness is unending. It's it's springing from a fountain of1:09 life. Just as god's grace and mercies are renewed each morning, so our forgiveness should be toward others. Now look at how the the apostles respond, and I have1:21 to put myself in this category. Look at verse 5. And the apostle said to the lord, increase our faith. Faith. You know, they understood faith in god was required to forgive our fellow man, faith that only1:33 god can provide. In Ephesians, Paul writes this in Ephesians 2 8 4, you are saved by great grace through faith. And this is not from yourselves. It is a gift of god.1:44 Even, you know, our our faith our faith in god's grace is itself a manifestation of god's grace. We don't even we can't muster the faith that we need to trust1:56 god. It is a gift, and and the apostles here are asking, lord, increase our faith so that we can live our lives as you are instructing us to do. And and it's appropriate for us to pray that as well.2:10 Verse 6, so the Lord said, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, be pulled up by the roots and be planted in the sea, and it would2:22 obey you. Now a a a tree of the Mulberry family has roots that are are very strong, virtually impossible to uproot. So Jesus is saying a little faith goes a really long2:34 way. The parable that follows about service can be seen as reinforcing the call to forgiveness as our duty as followers of Christ. It's not for extra credit. You know, it's not like we get a pat on the2:46 head because we forgave someone, a second or third or fourth or fifth or sixth time. That's what's required of us. In verses 11 through 19, Jesus heals 102:57 lepers, but only 1 only 1 returns to give thanks. Verse 14. So when he saw them, he said to them, go show yourselves to the priest. And so it was that as they went, they3:09 were cleansed. And 1 of them, when he saw that he was healed, returned and with a loud voice glorified God and fell down on his face at his feet, that is Jesus' feet, giving him3:21 thanks, and he was a Samaritan. So Jesus answered and said, were there not 10 cleansed, but where are the 9? Were there not any found who3:33 returned to give glory to God except this foreigner? And he said to him, arise, go your way. Your faith has made you well. The connection here between faith there's a connection between3:45 faith and thanksgiving. All 10 were healed. 1 was made whole by his faith as evidenced by his gratitude toward god. Gratitude3:57 is is really 1 of the most powerful life changing attitudes or behaviors that we can develop. Gratitude and there's studies been done on this. Gratitude is like the wonder drug4:08 of character traits. A few years ago, I I wrote a book on on fear entitled No Fear. And on my list of other books to write is 1 on Thanksgiving and gratitude because of its4:20 life changing effect. You know, in the remainder of this chapter, Jesus speaks prophetically about the coming judgment of Jerusalem on the immediate horizon, and4:32 it is a type of the final judgment that is gonna come upon the earth when he returns for his second his second return. Alright. Verse, 26, and he describes it here.4:44 And as it was in the days of Noah, so it will be also in the days of the son of man. They ate. They drank. They married wives. They were given in marriage until the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood4:56 came and destroyed them all. It happened suddenly. Likewise, as it was also in the days of Lot, they ate, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they built. But on the5:07 day that Lot went out of Sodom, it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all. It happened in a moment. Even so will it be in the day when the son of man is revealed. So what does this5:19 mean? I believe it speaks both both to the to the evil and the immoral conditions that preceded those events as well as the the indifference and and the5:31 blindness to what was about to happen. They were just totally calloused. We're not paying attention. They were wrapped up in the things of the world. The general population was so wrapped up in the things of the world5:42 that they were caught totally by surprise when the judgment of god came. And Jesus is saying that's what it's gonna be like in the end of time. They'll just think, you know, what is god? You know, there is no god. You5:53 know? And and there's this we see this today. This fact that, you know, man is not accountable to God, that God is is is is a myth. It's a mythical idea of6:05 times past. Now these, these 2 chapters cover quite a bit. Forgiveness, our duty in the kingdom, the importance of gratitude, entering and living in the kingdom, God's6:17 mercy, and more. But I wanna focus today, the remainder of our time here very quickly, on prayer. Okay? On prayer. This is really important, and and and I've said this before, but Luke focuses aPrayer and Persistence 6:29 lot on prayer, Jesus' prayer life instructions on prayer. So I wanna continuing to follow this thread of faith in chapter 18, we have 1 of Jesus' parables that I, quite frankly,6:41 I love to study and teach on. As previously mentioned, you know, there's a lot about prayer, and this, I think, this is 1 of the best. Luke 18 verse beginning6:53 in verse 1. Then he spoke a parable to them that men always ought to pray and not lose heart, saying there was a certain judge in a a city. There there was in a certain city, a judge who did not7:05 fear God nor regard man. Now there was a widow in that city, and she came to him saying, get justice for me from my adversary. And he would not for a while, but afterward, he said within himself, though I do not fear God7:17 nor regard man, yet because this widow troubles me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me. He he didn't really care what people thought, didn't7:29 care about God, didn't think I don't know. Maybe he didn't think that God existed. But he said, because this woman won't leave me alone, I'm gonna give her justice. Then the lord said, hear what the unjust7:41 judge said. And shall not god avenge his own elect who cry out day and night to him, though he bears long with him? I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless, when7:53 the son of man comes, will he really find faith on the earth? Alright. In chapter 11, Jesus taught his disciples how to8:05 pray, a structure for their prayer. Here we have the application, I think a case study of prayer in this parable. Of all the illustrations that Jesus could pick, he chooses8:17 to use a godless politician, an unjust judge, because I think that's you know, you hear you can't fight city hall. No. But you can pray to heaven, and God will8:28 change the hearts of those leaders. So up against this unjust, godless judge that doesn't fear god or have a respect for his fellow man, we have a widow, the8:40 weakest the weakest, most powerless individual in society at that time. They had no protection, no advocate. They were taken advantage of at will by8:52 the broader society. That's why you you repeatedly hear in the especially in the old testament, to care for the widow and the orphan and the stranger is because they were often taken advantage9:04 of because they had no advocate. Now the, in fact, that's why God often says he's judging. That's why the judgment came upon the nation because they were not doing that. They were9:16 not taking care of the the widow, the orphan, and the stranger because it was an issue of justice. Now not the social justice that we hear about today from, the wokesters, but the denial of the9:36 all. That's what this nation was founded on. Now we've gotten away from that, but that was bay based on a biblical principle. Now not to get too far off on that. Let me go back here. The parable makes it very clear that9:48 prayer because that's the focus here. I don't wanna get off on too much on these other issues. The parable is about prayer, and it makes very clear that prayer is not passive. You know, I I I think God10:00 sees the prayer lives of many Christians as having the same characteristics as a drive by shooting. You know? Just random prayers fired off as we speed through our prayer time. That's not what prayer10:11 is to be. Look first at the foundation of prayer. It is our faith in god. Look, verse 8, I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless, when the son of man comes,10:23 will he really find faith on the earth? What is Jesus saying here? God will answer our prayers. That doesn't mean immediately. But when that answer comes,10:35 it will come quickly. But faith is required. Notice that he adds when he returns, that faith will be in short supply. When he returns to the earth, that faith will be in short supply.10:48 Supply. As we have read elsewhere, there will be a falling away. The love of many will grow cold. Faith will diminish. The foundation for our prayer is our faith in God,11:00 which should propel us to be passionate, bold in our request, persistently seeking God until we have an answer. Now there is more in this11:12 chapter, including the blind beggar near Jericho. Look at verse 36. And hearing a multitude passing by, he asked what it meant. This was the beggar, the blind man. So they told him that Jesus of Nazareth11:24 was passing by, and he cried out saying, Jesus, son of David, have mercy on me. Then those who went before warned him that he should be quiet, but he cried out all the more, son of David, have mercy on11:36 me. You know, you need to you need to cry out to god. Don't tell peep don't let people tell you to be silent. Declare your need and your want for the lord. So11:47 Jesus stood still, and he commanded him to be brought to him. And when he came near him, he asked him, saying, what do you want me to do for you? He said, Lord, that I may11:59 receive my sight. Then Jesus said to him, receive your sight. Your faith has made you well. And immediately he received his sight and followed him, glorifying God. And all the people, when they12:11 saw it, gave praise to God. Notice that Jesus said your faith has made you well or better translated whole. Then it reads immediately that he immediately, he12:23 received his sight. He was saved, made whole. He received his sight. How? How did that happen? By faith. We see in these 2 chapters that nothing happens without faith12:35 in God. But remember, that faith is not even of ourselves. We can ask God for the faith that we need to trust him. And when we put that faith in God, our lives are made12:46 whole, and we see miracles happen. Father, we thank you for your word. And, Lord, we do pray for the faith, the faith to forgive, to to live in the kingdom,12:58 your kingdom, according to your standards. Kingdom living is is opposite of the living of this world. It is it is counterintuitive, and we need faith. So, lord, help our13:10 faith. As the as the apostles, those who were with Jesus said, increase our faith increase our faith that we might trust you, believe, and and and see you13:22 work in our midst, and that others, as a result, would give glory and praise to you. For it is about you. It is about your name being lifted up and men, women, and children coming to know13:34 you and being in fellowship with you. So father, use us for your kingdom and glory. We pray in Jesus' name. Amen. Alright. Thanks for joining me this morning. Until next time, keep standing on13:46 the word.13:49 Today's study comes from the Stand on the Word Bible Reading Plan available for free at f r c dot o r g slash bible. By following along in just a few minutes a day, you14:01 can read through the entire Bible in just 2 years. Learn more and request the free reading guide at frc dot org slash bible.In this video 0:00 The Power of Faith and Forgiveness6:22 Prayer and Persistence
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