Overcoming Unforgiveness | This Means War | Week 2
Opening
Make space for people in your group to share stories of forgiveness that have shifted their lives.
Overview
Satan’s dominant strategy against the church is the lie of unforgiveness. Unforgiveness strangles potential from crucial relationships, pushes us toward lethal isolation, damages our capacity to give and receive love, and deafens us toward God’s voice. But forgiveness is our weapon again the enemy’s schemes.
Satan seeks to destroy the church through three main lies: you can’t trust Jesus (or His church), you don’t need forgiveness (nor to give it), and you’re better off alone. But we combat those lies with truth. The Father loves us and will empower love through us. The Father forgives us and will help us forgive. The Father has a plan for us through the church. Staying in the truth and practicing forgiveness is how we defend against Satan’s attack.
Discussion Questions
- Where have you withheld forgiveness from others? What caused you to do that?
- What has stopped you from asking others for forgiveness?
Practice
2 Corinthians 2 9 I wrote to you as I did to test you and see if you would fully comply with my instructions. 10 When you forgive this man, I forgive him, too. And when I forgive whatever needs to be forgiven, I do so with Christ’s authority for your benefit, 11 so that Satan will not outsmart us. For we are familiar with his evil schemes.
Matthew 6: 9Our Father in heaven, may your name be kept holy. 10 May your Kingdom come soon. May your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. 11 Give us today the food we need, 12 and forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us. 13 And don’t let us yield to temptation, but rescue us from the evil one.
Read these passages aloud and then discuss the similarities. Where have you seen connections between the work of the enemy and unforgiveness? How else should we combat the enemy? Does anyone see common themes between the first two sermons in this series?
Make space for members of your group to share where they are struggling with unforgiveness. Pray over each other as needs come up.
Closing
Use the model prayer in Matthew 6 as a guide for your closing prayer. You could pray it together or let each section be a guide for more spontaneous praying.