I Believe in the Forgiveness of Sins |
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In what ways do Christians claim to believe in the Forgiveness of Sins? Do we mean that it doesn't matter what we do because everything is forgiven? Not in the least. God calls his people to life of holiness, not of sin. Romans Ch 6:1-2 says "What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?" No, but God is, nevertheless, a forgiving God. God forgives the repentant sinner.There is a sense in which this is one of the central truths of Christianity. Without it Christianity would be a religion of despair, not of hope. For the Bible very clearly teaches us that "all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." ( Rom. 3:23 ) It also says that "the wages of sin is death." ( Rom. 6:23 ). Therefore, without forgiveness, there is no hope but death. Yet the glorious message of Christianity is that God is a forgiving God. The Bible makes it clear that the way to gain forgiveness from God is through repentance. Repentance is basically a changing of the mind. To repent is to accept God's viewpoint of an action. If we say that our actions are not sin but just mistakes or personal weaknesses or just the way we are made then we leave no room for repentance and, therefore, no room for forgiveness. To repent is to say, "I recognize this action (or lack of action) as a sin and I apologize to God for it and determine, with God's help to turn away from doing this again." Such a prayer God hears and is always gracious to forgive the sinful action. "If we confess our sins he is faithful and just and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all iniquity." It is worth noticing that this definition of repentance does not make mention of anything approaching emotionalism. Emotion is involved, for how can we say "sorry" without the emotion of sorrow. But we are not talking about sackcloth and ashes or wailing and gnashing of teeth. Repentance does not require this - it requires recognition that God is right and I am wrong. In some cases this will be accompanied by deep emotions and involve bitter tears but a lack of these outward signs is no proof of a lack of repentance. It is God who sees the heart while we see only the exterior. We must forgive ourselves those things which God has forgiven us.One of the most tragic things about our human nature is its inability to understand that if God has forgiven us we are truly forgiven. Many people hang onto guilt and allow past sins to haunt them long after God has declared them to have been forgiven. It sometimes seems that Satan has two related strategies where sin is concerned. As long as possible he keeps us from recognizing our sin so that we don't repent and receive forgiveness. Once that has failed and forgiveness has been given, he tries to keep us from accepting the forgiveness - from living in the reality of it. It often seems that God has forgiven us but we refuse to forgive ourselves. By holding onto things which God has already dealt with we end up living with an unnecessary burden of guilt. This not only cripples us spiritually but can also affect us mentally and physically. We have the promise of God that when we repent and ask forgiveness, we receive forgiveness. Jesus has died in order to bring us that forgiveness. To doubt our forgiveness is to cast doubt on what Jesus wrought for us on the cross and on what God has said. When God has forgiven us we must accept his forgiveness. We must forgive ourselves those things which God has forgiven us. We must forgive each other.Jesus makes it very clear that forgiveness of one another is not just desired but vital. After teaching that prayer in which he included the words "Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us", he stated: For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins. Unforgiveness is a terrible wound in the Body of Christ. We are called to be one people living in unity one with another. Lack of forgiveness between individuals, between the Church and individuals, between Church and Church continually damage the Church. I believe that unforgiveness within the Body of Christ does more to damage the Church than attacks from outside. Somebody once wrote a book called "With a Church like this Who Needs Satan?" Unfortunately it is an appropriate question to ask in a Church divided by unforgiveness. So serious is the need for us to forgive each other that Jesus makes it a prerequisite to receiving ongoing forgiveness from God. If you do not forgive you will not receive forgiveness. This is not a matter of God being harsh but a universal truth. Unless we learn how to forgive others we will not know how to receive forgiveness from God. Unforgiveness is the seed and the root of bitterness. Bitterness damages our relationships with God and with those whom we love. It can result in twisted personality, in disturbed minds and in physical illness. It divides and kills. It is a terrible sin which we need to repent and turn away from. We must forgive one another. Freely you have received - Freely give. The Church must be a place of forgiveness.All too often the Church has seemed to be a place of condemnation, of judgement, of self-righteousness. This was never how God intended the Church to be. God intended the Church to be a place of security, a haven of forgiveness, a life-giving spiritual force, a continuation of the work of him who said "I am the way, the truth and the life". It is sadly true that there are many people who could tell of experiences of going to a Church and finding that they are condemned for smoking, for having an alcoholic drink, for the way they dress, for the relationships they have and for a whole host of things that the Church has labelled as "sinful", "worldly" or "unholy". This is not to say that the Church should condone or encourage sin - far from it. But let us look for a moment at Jesus' approach to a sinful woman whom he met in Samaria.
In all of this passage there is not a single word of condemnation yet he brought not only this woman but many other Samaritans to salvation through this encounter. This is not to argue that we should never condemn sin, that we should never call sin by its true name. The Church is also called to be the watchmen on the tower. The Church has a duty to lead people from sin - and occasionally even to exclude the unrepentant sinner. Yet even then forgiveness must be at the forefront of all that is done. In I Corinthians 5, Paul instructs that Church to expel an immoral member. In II Corinthians 2, he instructs them that The punishment inflicted on him by the majority is sufficient for him. Now instead, you ought to forgive and comfort him, so that he will not be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow. I urge you, therefore, to reaffirm your love for him. Forgiveness and love is actually the aim even of "excommunication".
The Church should be the place in which are found security and significance.
These come through a sense of love and forgiveness. It should be a place
where people know that Jesus welcomes them, where Jesus offers healing
and forgiveness, where the love of Jesus is at the heart of all that happens.
(All full biblical quotations in this article are taken from the
New International Version and have been inserted into the text using "QuickVerse
for Windows" from
Parsons Technology
.)
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