What does First B Jackson teach about how to forgive?
Drawn from the messages where it was actually addressed: the words said from the front, the passages taught, and where to hear the whole thing.
At First B Jackson, the teaching on forgiveness starts with an uncomfortable truth: unforgiveness damages the person carrying it more than anyone else. It stunts spiritual growth, pulls a person off the path God has for them, and creates what Michael Demetrius described as a prison of the mind where thoughts run toward revenge rather than love. Michael, the youth director at First B Jackson, was direct that forgiveness is not optional for a believer, grounding that claim in Matthew 6:14-15, where Jesus says plainly that if we do not forgive others, the Father will not forgive us.
Before talking about what forgiveness is, both messages spend real time clearing away what it is not. Forgiving someone is not the same as approving of what they did, not the same as forgetting, and not the same as trusting again, because forgiveness is freely given while trust is earned. It is also not fair by design, because the scales are already uneven the moment forgiveness is even needed. The parable in Matthew 18 sits at the center of this teaching: a servant forgiven an enormous debt turned around and refused to forgive a small one, and Jesus uses that story to show how seriously God takes the connection between the forgiveness we receive and the forgiveness we extend.
The later message, preached on Hebrews 12:14-15, pushes further into what happens when forgiveness is withheld over time. A root of bitterness, left alone, will spring up, cause trouble, and defile many people around it. The teaching at First B Jackson is that the same inexhaustible grace God offers us is the only thing strong enough to kill that root at the source, and that the work of uprooting bitterness is part of the deeper work God is doing to conform believers into the image of His Son, as Romans 8:28-29 describes.
Taught from Matthew 6:14-15 · Matthew 18:21-35 · Hebrews 12:14-15 · Romans 8:28-29 · Matthew 6:9-13
The passage taught · 1 John 1:9
9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us the sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
World English Bible
Messages that go deeper
- February 2, 2020 Forgiving People Forgive People A Wyoming pastor walks through forgiveness step by step, from taking honest account of sin to making the choice to let go, rooted in Hebrews 12:14-15.
- February 10, 2019 Forgiveness Is Not Optional Michael Demetrius teaches First Baptist Jackson on why forgiveness is not optional for believers, what it is, what it isn't, and how to actually do it.
- February 10, 2019 Forgiveness Is Your Path to Freedom A sermon on forgiveness from Matthew 6 and 18, exploring what forgiveness is, what it isn't, and why Jesus calls every believer to practice it freely.