Grace and Forgiveness Chapter 12 & 15

…People think they can fix the problem of sin themselves

So they try to be really really good

But sin a BIG problem that only God can fix…

Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Ephesians 2:8-10 For by grace you have been saved though faith, and this is not your own doing; it is a gift from God—not the result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are what he has made us, created in Jesus Christ for good works, which God prepared before hand to be our way of life.

Through God’s grace (free gift) he made a way through Jesus (death and resurrection)

Psalms 103:8-12 The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. He will not always accuse, nor will he keep his anger forever. He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities. For as the heavens are high above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far he removes our transgressions from us.

Colossians 1:13-14 He has rescued us from the power of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

We are no longer separated and Jesus calls us to forgive just as God forgave you

Colossians 3:13 Bear with one another and, if anyone has complaint against another, forgive each other; just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you must also forgive.

Kingdom of God The church is not yet the kingdom of God—it is a foretaste of the kingdom— it never attains it in its fullness The Sagrada Familia— Barcelona, Spain

Church – Community of Sinners and Saints In this life, the gathering of all who believe in Christ remains incomplete and tainted by people’s failures Jesus tells us that saints and sinners will coexist “until the harvest” (Parable of the weeds among the wheat, Matt. 13:24-30)

Then and now… There are many events in the history of the Church which we now see as serious sins What concerns us today are those sins that are still a stain on the body of Christ

Sins of the Church that need to be forgiven –Pope John Paul II 1. The division of Christians 2. The use of force and intolerance in the service of truth 3. The sin against the Jewish people 4. The responsibility of Catholics for the evils of today

The Evils of Today The death of God in our culture Religious indifference The climate of secularism Loss of ethical commitments The denial of the right to life of the unborn child Indifference to the cry of the poor