Dealing with Mistakes

August 21, 2005

Introduction

 

            Let’s suppose you are in a restaurant and you hear the sound of glass breaking—What goes through your mind?  Somebody made a mistake, didn’t they?  Somebody is embarrassed, something of value has been lost, and a mess has been made.

 

            How do we deal with mistakes?  There are the mistakes that I make, and there are the mistakes that others make.  How does man deal with his mistakes and the mistakes of others?  The Bible clearly deals with mistakes.  It tells how man handles them, and how they should be handled.  It tells that Jesus died so that our mistakes – our sins could be forgiven.

 

Body

 

I.          There are some who refuse to accept responsibility for their actions.

 

A.     "It's not my fault" mentality.

 

1.      There is the excuse making of Adam and Eve.

 

(Gen 3:8 NKJV)  And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden. 9 _ Then the LORD God called to Adam and said to him, "Where are you?"  10_ So he said, "I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself."  11_ And He said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you that you should not eat?"  12 Then the man said, "The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate."  13_  And the LORD God said to the woman, "What is this you have done?" The woman said, "The serpent deceived me, and I ate."  

 

B.     Those who were called by Jesus made excuses for not coming.

 

(Luke 14:16 NKJV)  Then He said to him, "A certain man gave a great supper and invited many, {17}  "and sent his servant at supper time to say to those who were invited, 'Come, for all things are now ready.'  {18} "But they all with one accord began to make excuses. The first said to him, 'I have bought a piece of ground, and I must go and see it. I ask you to have me excused.'  {19} "And another said, 'I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going to test them. I ask you to have me excused.'  {20} "Still another said, 'I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.'  

 

1.      Excuse making did not pardon them.

(Luke 14:23)  "Then the master said to the servant, 'Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled.  {24}  'For I say to you that none of those men who were invited shall taste my supper.'"

 

C.     Excuse making is clearly not God's plan for dealing with sin.

 

II.        God expects us to confess our faults and to work to overcome them.

 

  1. John addresses confessing our sins to God.

 

(1 John 1:8-10 NKJV)  If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. {9} If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. {10} If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.

 

1.      We need to acknowledge our sins.

2.      We are to work to overcome our sins.

 

(1 John 3:9 NKJV)  Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God.

 

(1 John 3:9 NASB)  No one who is born of God practices sin, because His seed abides in him; and he cannot sin, because he is born of God.

 

(1 John 3:9 NIV)  No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God's seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God.

 

  1. Peter is a proper example of handling sin.

 

(Mat 26:75 NKJV)  And Peter remembered the word of Jesus who had said to him, "Before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times."  So he went out and wept bitterly.

 

1.      Handling sin properly isn't easy, but it makes recovery possible.

 

  1. There is the need of confessing our sins.

 

1.      We need to confess to the one we have sinned against and ask forgiveness.

 

 

(James 5:16 NKJV)  Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.

 

2.      We are to confess our faults to God.

 

(1 John 1:9 NKJV)  If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

 

 

III.     Handling mistakes of others.

           

  1. Our duty is to forgive.

 

(Mat 6:12-15 NKJV)  And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors. {13} And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen. {14} "For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. {15} "But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

 

  1. Vengeance is to be left to God, not for us to handle.

 

(Rom 12:17-21 NKJV)  Repay no one evil for evil. Have regard for good things in the sight of all men. {18} If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men. {19} Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, "Vengeance is Mine, I will repay," says the Lord. {20} Therefore "If your enemy is hungry, feed him; If he is thirsty, give him a drink; For in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head." {21} Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

 

Conclusion

 

I.          Mistakes are made, but how do we handle them?

II.        Our's must be confessed and made right if we can

III.     Is your life right with God?

Scripture quotations marked "NKJV™" are taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

 

 

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