Despite faith in God many Christians still feel unforgiven, and still others harbour unforgiveness toward their neighbours. Sadly, the soul-freeing liberty of true forgiveness eludes them both.
Unforgiveness destroys the soul and forgiveness saves it. But the freedom of heart-felt forgiveness, which must lie at the heart of all flourishing relationships is seldom embraced because it is simply not understood. So, with a view to enlighteningd the beleaguered reader, I want to enhance a general understanding of the subject, enabling the reader to claim the full blessings of forgiveness…
1. Divinely Guaranteed: God’s forgiveness of sinners is set into His eternal plan
Forgiveness is at the heart of any human interaction with God, and is the initiative and work of God in response to the human moral condition–sin.
Forgiveness only exists because sin exists and sin only exists because humans have made and continue to make choices to deviate from God’s moral will–breaking fellowship with him and other humans. Consequently then the foundation of ‘all’ true forgiveness lies in, and begins with, the authentic rectification of the divine/human relationship–that is, being forgiven by God!
But what does being forgiven by God involve?
In answering this, we need to understand who and what God is. God is a morally perfect, eternal, loving person. In fact, God is not just ‘a’ person, but ‘three’ persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Consequently, God does ‘truly’ understand relational intimacy and existentially knows that at the heart of forgiveness is the restoration of this relational intimacy. Unlike a pagan deity, who might demand endless good works or human sacrifices to amend a loss of favour; the ‘triune’ God of the Bible, motivated by a boundless interpersonal love, extends every effort toward estranged humanity (his children)—such that they might be restored to him and, as a result, one another.
Because the moral bridge between divine holiness and human sinfulness is impossibly wide, only God’s divine initiative can enable its crossing. Self-willed humans would never and can never return to God under their own self-determination — simply because of the ‘selfish’ nature of sin. So, God walks across the bridge and personally offers to bring lost souls back across.
How?
The Father initiated a plan that involved the Son taking human form, under the enabling power of the Holy Spirit. Thus, the Son (Jesus), endowed and enabled by God’s will and the Holy Spirit’s power, lived a perfect human life qualifying him as a valid offering/mediator and then voluntarily died a sacrificial death to atone (pay the price) for all human sinfulness. He then rose from the dead proving his victory over the estranging power of human sin. The morally obedient life, the all-sufficient sacrificial death, and the hope-granting resurrection of Jesus Christ reliably provide the keys that unlock the chains of sin that bind the estranged human condition; setting the sinner free and enabling them from cross from the domain of death to the liberty of life, finding restoration of God’s favour—His forgiveness!
Picking up the keys and unlocking the chains of sin invariably requires a step of heart-felt faith. Appropriated through faith through the mediation of Jesus’ all sufficient work, a burdened soul can claim the benefits of favour with God. Indeed, only through the empowering presence of the Holy Spirit, can this lost soul know the intimate heart-felt forgiveness that guarantees this divinely offered favour! No human mediator is required–no priest, pastor, or minister–only God the father can grant forgiveness, only Jesus Christ can secure it, and only the Holy Spirit can personally endow it!
What does all this mean for me, personally?
Knowing that behind God’s offer of forgiveness, there is an eternal plan guaranteeing forgiveness, is both intellectually and emotionally reassuring. Actively involving all three persons of this loving, powerful, relational God; this plan insures that the forgiveness offered to ‘me’ (the penitent sinner) through The Gospel, is: By way of the Father–totally authentic, by way of the Son–completely sufficient, and by way of the Holy Spirit–readily available. In short, if I really want it, I ‘can’ have it!
2. No lingering guilt: God’s forgiveness is instantaneous and complete
Let’s consider a real-life example. When the hapless tax-collector, Zacchaeus, had a surprising encounter with Jesus, both he and the crowd of witnesses, could scarcely believe it.
Doubtless, he was surprised that Jesus would notice him, let alone ask for an invitation to his house. Also, the crowd were dumb-founded that Jesus would ask to be entertained by a tax-collector–a person in wilful collaboration with the Roman overlords, an obviously a person motivated solely by personal greed, ‘All the people saw this and began to mutter, “He has gone to be the guest of a ‘sinner.‘” Luke 19:7 (NIV). Secondly, the surprise continued as this strangely repentant scoundrel publicly vows to amend his ways, validating his generosity, ‘ “Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.” ‘ Luke 19:8 (NIV)
Jesus’ engagement with Zacchaeus radically transformed his life– seemingly in an instant. The rapidly and authenticity of this transformation is clearly validated in Jesus’ response to Zacchaeus’ actions, ‘ “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.” ‘ Luke 19:9-10 (NIV) Today, right then and there, this renowned sinner was acquitted of all his previous sin and declared by Jesus himself to be numbered among God’s favoured–set free!
Wait a minute. Surely there must be a sense of lingering guilt over his former ways, perhaps there should have been a program of penance proving his remorse, or even a time of probation to see if he had truly repented of his ways? Well, no!
The moment Zacchaeus repented, was the moment he was forgiven; the moment this forgiveness transformed his life, was the very moment his guilty soul was set free. But how could this be?
Well, if we look back at our first point about forgiveness and God’s sovereign initiative in making forgiveness available to all penitent sinners, it should come as no surprise. For we must understand that the basis of our forgiveness before God is not the measure of our sorrow, the multitude of our tears and guilty feelings, our remedial good works, or any other kind of remorseful human response, but the grace of God and his divine initiative through the gospel.
Because if this, the penitent sinner who avails him/herself of the soul-freeing work of God, through genuine faith in Christ, enabled and empowered by the Spirit; can instantaneously know the complete and full forgiveness of sins, and subsequently the liberation from its bondage.
Indeed, this instantaneous and complete forgiveness is continually available to the sincere Christian–who will invariably falter along the road to life, yet can humbly come before God, and reclaim the finished work of Christ as the basis for their ongoing acquittal and forgiven state: ‘If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.’ 1 John 1:9 (NIV)
Moreover, Jesus not only offered himself up as the initial atoning sacrifice to attain forgiveness for every penitent sinner, but continues this intercession on their behalf, ‘ For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathise with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are– yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.’ Hebrews 4:15-16 (NIV)
Yes, the beleaguered Christian pilgrim may have complete confidence that Jesus Christ’s all-sufficient intercession ensures, not only their continuing forgiveness, but a powerful petition before the father, entreating him to empower and protect the struggling saint to overcome the times of temptation!
Therefore, if the basis of forgiveness is the all-sufficient work of God (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) then there is no reason to expect that a penitent sinner (long-time Christian or first-time believer), who genuinely confesses their sin, should feel any ongoing sense of guilt, shame, or fear. They are forgiven, freely, instantly, and completely!
3. Limitless Extent: Forgiveness must translate into unqualified human forgiveness
Forgiveness with God is always linked to forgiveness of others. So important is this truth, that is clearly set out in Jesus’ model prayer, outlined during his ethical teachings in the the Sermon on the Mount: ‘ Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.’ Matt 6:12 (NIV)
More precisely, forgiveness in relation to others has two dimensions. Firstly, a willing desire to forgive those who have wronged us, and secondly, a willingness to seek forgiveness from those we have wronged. Both are necessarily important, in order to claim the full and free benefits of God’s offer of forgiveness. In fact, I suspect that behind many Christians’ out-of-character sense of being unforgiven by God, is actually their own stubborn unwillingness to extend forgiveness to others, and/or a fearful unwillingness to seek forgiveness from those they have wronged. Indeed, this lingering sense of being unforgiven by God, as its relates to the unforgiveness of others, is actually real–not imagined.
When you consider our previous discussion about the specific roles of the divine persons in the forgiveness process, and in particular the Holy Spirit’s role in existentially applying forgiveness ( granting that inner peace that comes with forgiveness), understanding this enduring sense of feeling unforgiven makes perfect sense. Ask yourself, ‘How can the personal presence of God, the Holy Spirit, grant that inner peace that naturally attends the forgiveness of God, if the same Spirit is grieved by this particular Christians’ unwillingness to graciously extend forgiveness to another offending party, or as the case may be, seek forgiveness from an offended party?’ Surely it cannot!
The key to breaking the deadlock–entering into the perfect peace that accompanies forgiveness by God through forgiveness with fellow-sinners–first, involves coming to terms with the weight of the ‘sin debt’ that God’s forgiveness of us cancels out; verses the weight of the ‘sin debt’ we have to cancel out with reference to any fellow sinner, that we have an outstanding offence with.
In fact, this matter is poignantly raised by Jesus, in a specific parable spoken in response to a question about how much forgiveness should be offered–the parable of the unmerciful servant (Matt 18).
‘ Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?” Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.’ Matthew 18:21-22 (NIV) By this Jesus was indicating the necessity to offer limitless forgiveness, no matter how ‘unforgiveable’ we might naturally consider the offender.
But what is the basis of this limitless ‘human to human’ forgiveness?
In answering the question with a parable, Jesus tells the story of a King who wanted to settle accounts with all his debtors. He called in a certain man that owed him ten thousand talents. But when this man was unable to repay, the King orders that all he owned, including wife and children, be sold in order to repay the debt. The man, distraught at the prospect, fell on his knees and begged for time. Incredulously, the king went beyond what was fair, and graciously cancelled the man’s great debt, and let him go free!
Now, this man, in turn, went out and found a person who owed him a small amount of money and demanded he pay it back. This debtor, also begged for patience, citing that he will pay it back when he gets the money. However, ungraciously, the man whom the king had forgiven the greater debt, refused to extend the grace that was extended to him, and had the man with the lessor debt throw in prison. On seeing this, the king’s servants reported it to the king: ‘“Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I cancelled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’ In anger his master turned him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed. “This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart.” ‘Matthew 18:32-35 (NIV)
I think Jesus’ point is unambiguous. Firstly, no matter how great we think the debt of sin another sinner might owe us, the debt of sin we owe to a Holy God is immeasurably more. Secondly, because our immeasurable debt has been graciously forgiven, surely we have no cause to ungraciously seek recompense for the lesser sin debts owed us. Thirdly, if grace is truly appreciated, it will invariably flow onto others, as it flowed to us. And finally, a failure to extend the grace offered us, will invariably result in a withdrawal of God’s initial favour.
Yes, the offer of full and free forgiveness readily stands for every penitent sinner, but…
Those who wish to hold onto grudges, resist extending forgiveness to an offending party, are unwilling to offer an olive branch, or make amends for offences and damages to those they have hurt; will look in vain for the peace that God’s true forgiveness offers; being locked out of the personal blessings associated with God’s forgiveness. This will remain so, until these issues are addressed. Moreover, and rather alarmingly, they also run the risk of failing to receive the final acquittal of God on the day of judgment (much like the unmerciful servant in the parable), if they stubbornly and resolutely continue to resist allowing God’s grace to flow out to their fellow sinners–and extend the same non-conditioned forgiveness offered to them by God.
Indeed, for the full benefits of forgiveness to flow, the grace of God that flows to us through the gospel, with its free offer of forgiveness of sins, must continue to freely flow out to others; extending forgiveness without prejudice and without limit–seventy times seven!
Forgiveness: Life full and free
Though you claim to have faith in Jesus, are you really free?
Do you really know the liberating power of God’s rich forgiveness?
If not, remember that God has a rock-solid plan to ensure your forgiveness: Instantaneous, complete, and limitless in the extent that it touches other lives. For when forgiveness flows from God , through you, to others; then the full blessings of forgiveness are truly yours–liberating all within its scope.
A Christian life, full of inner joy and peace, free from guilt; is actually attainable–claim it!
Spirit & Truth 