Holy Humor Sunday
Sunday Morning Worship, April 27, 2025
Sermon: Forgiven
Accompanying Scripture: John 20: 19-31

Forgiven

Yesterday, they laid Poe Francis to rest. He was admired and respected, and I’m saddened by his death. When he spoke, I listened. His words resonated with me and many others around the world. He understood the human condition while acknowledging human sin. He held the sinful accountable and showed us how to forgive.

In our scripture reading this morning, I find it interesting that the first thing Jesus offers as he enters the Upper Room is “Peace.”  No words of recrimination.  “Peace.”  A simple peace.  Then he sends them out and gives them the gift of the Holy Spirit.  In this interesting conversation, he gives them their first directive: Forgive.

That seems odd.  There are many things he could have said: how they were to go out into the world with the good news; how to avoid those who wanted to kill them; a calming word for a grieving group.  But no.  He says, “Forgive.

He’s clear about it.  If you forgive, let it go.  If you can’t forgive, you’ll tie yourself up in knots, and you won’t be much good for disseminating the good news.

Retain your forgiveness and hurt yourself.

A friend of mine is fond of saying, “Not forgiving is like drinking the poison and waiting for the other guy to die.”

The disciples would agree that forgiveness is difficult.  They watched Jesus’ trial and cruel crucifixion; it was unwarranted and unmerited.  He didn’t deserve it, and the world was robbed of a good man: a very good man.  Of course, they’re angry!  They are as mad as anyone can be.  And they’re afraid that it could happen to them.

These disciples must own their part in the crucifixion, the betrayal, the denial, and the running away. They need forgiveness. At this point, I suspect they’re not very happy with themselves and their behavior on that fateful day. They need forgiveness.

But wait.  They received it from the cross.  “Father, forgive them.  They don’t know what they’re doing.” 

What the disciples have to do is forgive themselves.  Forgive each other for their fear dominated actions. 

And that isn’t easy.

I know that of folks in our congregation who have suffered the worst of the worst in terms of unforgivable actions.  They tell me that they had to forgive in order to have life.  But it wasn’t an easy journey.  For some, it took years.

For Jesus, the spreading of the good news is too important to have it poisoned by unforgiveness.  He wants the disciples to not only own their own poor decisions and actions, but to let go of the heinous deeds of the Empire. 

But understand this.  Forgiveness doesn’t mean that the perpetrator is exonerated.  You have been hurt, and accountability is in order.  It doesn’t make the sinful action right.  Christ was crucified, and he wasn’t guilty.  Christ forgave, and God used that evil for good.  Peter and his comrades will need to let go of the events that hold them hostage so that they can serve others in the name of the risen Christ.

The good news is that God always offers peace and challenges us to forgive.  Only in forgiveness do we find the peace that surpasses all understanding.  With the help of the Holy Spirit, we learn to let go and give it to God. 

We resist it, and I understand it.  We want the person who hurt us to acknowledge what they did.  We want them to hurt.  Sometimes, we need to see them in an agony that matches our own. 

In my experience, that doesn’t happen very often.  We may feel that they got off Scot free.  That they’re hurting others as they hurt you.  It isn’t fair; it isn’t right.  They deserve to suffer. 

The truth is they are suffering.  If they weren’t, they wouldn’t be hurting you and others.  You do what you can and then back away.  Hurting them won’t work.  Letting go means letting go of the hope that the past can be changed.  The past is in the past.  There’s nothing you can do to change it.

So, you give it to God and work at letting go of it. 

Instead, accept Jesus’ beautiful words of “Peace.”  When we acknowledge that, we understand our unique skills and talents, and the Holy Spirit puts us in a place where we can serve Jesus’ mission. 

If you think it isn’t hard work, consider the work the disciples would have to do to forgive the religious elite who fired up the crowds and the Empire, who so easily hung him on a cross.  If you think it isn’t difficult work, consider that the disciples would later share in their teachings how they were part of the crucifixion. 

Part of the reason we love to read Paul’s letters, Peter’s, and the disciples’ activities after the Ascension is that they came to grips with forgiveness and became new people ready to serve God and Christ.

They understood Pope Francis’s words: “For outside of forgiveness, there is no hope; outside of forgiveness, there is no peace.”

Forgive as we are forgiven.

Amen.