One of
the many unique blessings of Christianity is that we have a Saviour, Jesus Christ,
who forgives all sin in those who believe in Him. We did not, and cannot,
contribute anything towards this, or even assist Jesus in His forgiveness of
those who receive Him. Nor can we add anything to our faith relationship with Jesus
that can enhance or extend His forgiveness to those who confess Him as Lord
(Romans 10:9-10).
Forgiveness
is central to the gospel of Jesus, which is one reason why the gospel is “good
news.” Colossians 1:14 tells us that in Christ we
have redemption, the forgiveness of sins (cf. 1 John 2:12).
Redemption includes total cleansing before God, so the Lord views us as pure,
with the righteousness of Jesus Christ. Christians need to remind themselves
often of this life changing cleansing (2
Peter 1:9). Through faith in Jesus’ substitutional death and resurrection, there
is no sin; past, present, or future, that is not pardoned for those who repent
and love Jesus (Mark 1:15; Luke 7:47).
As
forgiven children of God, we are able to present the world with many types of evidence,
proving Jesus’ forgiveness to be active in our lives. Worship, commitment to God’s
Word, obedience, effort in pure living, perseverance, faithfulness, selfless service,
Christlike love for others, forgiveness of those who offend and hurt us etc.
These are some of the real-world expressions of the gospel having been
effective in our lives.
To
the deceived sorcerer named Simon, who claimed to believe, was baptised, followed
Philip, then tried to buy the gift of God with money, Peter corrected with this
invitation. Simon, your heart is not right
before God. Repent of this wickedness and pray to the Lord in the hope that he
may forgive you for having such a thought in your heart. For I see that you are
full of bitterness and captive to sin (Acts 8:21-23 NIV). No matter
how evil, or opposed to God a sinner may be, forgiveness is readily available
upon repentance. Repentance is intentional belief that changes your thinking about God, about Jesus, about
judgement for our sin, about the cross of Jesus, and about how we should respond
to Jesus’ forgiveness.
Put bluntly,
our response to Jesus’ forgiveness tells the world how genuine our belief is. Being
convinced of Jesus’ full forgiveness inspires us to live wholeheartedly for
Him. Christ’s forgiveness should never be presumed upon as motivation for bad behaviour,
thinking that we are forgiven so we can do whatever we want.
When
the Lord pardons us, we are set free from God’s judgement, from guilt before God,
and from the lies of God’s enemies about having to earn God’s grace. King David
understood his dependency upon grace when he confessed his sin to the Lord.
David prayed, have mercy on me, O God, because
of your unfailing love. Because of your great compassion, blot out the stain of
my sins. Wash me clean from my guilt. Purify me from my sin (Psalm 51:1-2 NLT). God’s forgiveness, made
available to us through Jesus, is comprehensive and not just theoretical. It deals
with the whole person and rejuvenates every aspect of the human heart and life
(cf. 2 Corinthians 5:17). In other words, if we
confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse
us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9).
I
encourage you to ensure that you are both forgiven and living a life that
presents evidence of Christ’s cleansing. May the continual grace of God
continue to transform our lives as forgiven sinners.
