A LOOK AT FORGIVENESS

 

What is forgiveness? According to Wikipedia, Forgiveness is the intentional and voluntary process by which a victim undergoes a change in feelings and attitude regarding an offense, and overcomes negative emotions such as resentment and vengeance. In other words, the victim absorbs all the cost, pain, etc., associated with the ‘injury.’ The perpetrator goes free, never has to be responsible, pay back anything, or answer questions regarding the issue.     

Have you ever had to forgive someone? What was their offense, and why did you forgive them? Did they admit wrongdoing, and then ask for your forgiveness? Did you forgive, and what did it cost you to forgive: emotionally, socially, and financially? How did you feel personally after forgiving, and how was your relationship with the offender after you forgave? There are many questions to ask ourselves when it comes to forgiveness, whether we are the offender or the victim.

We will each respond differently to these questions, because we are all at different maturity levels in different areas of our lives. There’s One, however, whose attitude toward forgiveness answers these questions perfectly, and that is God! Contrary to what some think, God is the only one we each have to answer to; He is the Creator of the universe, including you and me (see Psalm 24:1). Some think they are free to do as they please, how they please, and when they please. The reality is that what they think doesn’t matter; only what God thinks, wants, and says matters. What people think does not change God’s truth.

Having established that we all have to answer to God, we have to understand that God has an issue with us: we have all sinned and deserve His judgment: “The Lord looks down from heaven on the entire human race; he looks to see if anyone is truly wise, if any seeks God. But no, all have turned away; all have become corrupt. No one does good, not a single one!” (Psalm 14:2-3). Out of love for us, God sent His Son Jesus to die in payment for our sins. The Scriptures put it this way: “The wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23). This doesn’t call for an argument or self-defense; it calls for acknowledgment of sins, confession, and repentance. 

 If you repent, you will be saved: “If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by openly declaring your faith that you are saved” (Romans 10:9-10). When you are saved, Jesus comes to indwell you in the person of the Holy Spirit, making you a new person; God becomes your Father, and you His child; the separation that existed because of sin no longer exists: “Anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!” (2 Corinthians 5:17). On the flip side: “…Those who do not have the Spirit of Christ living in them do not belong to him at all” (Romans 8:9)

 When God forgives, He no longer holds anything against you, no matter how big or little your sin. He credits you with Jesus’ righteousness, as if you have never sinned! “He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west” (Psalm 103:12); “I will forgive their wickedness, and I will never again remember their sins” (Hebrews 8:12), and: “Now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death” (Romans 8:1-2).

Would you like to be saved? As we see from Scripture, God absorbs the cost (by the life of his Son Jesus) of our forgiveness, He forgives completely, and He never brings it back up or rubs it in our face! He does not keep us at arm’s length, but instead, He brings us into His fold and provides a safe haven for us. He loves us, provides for us, and teaches, encourages, and protects us (see Psalms 23 & 46). Nothing will ever be able to separate us from His love (see Romans 8:38-39).

If you have put your faith in Jesus, you are now a new person in Christ. How should you (we) live from now on? We should no longer live in sin because we are controlled by the Holy Spirit, who helps us do what is pleasing to the Spirit (see Romans 8:5), and we should also serve the Lord: “God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God…For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago” (Ephesians 2:8-10). “He died for everyone so that those who receive his new life will no longer live for themselves. Instead, they will live for Christ who died and was raised for them” (2 Corinthians 5:15).

Now that you’ve been born anew, feed on the Word of God to help you grow in your faith, and seek His face through prayer. If possible, find, and fellowship with, a church that holds to these truths. To God be the glory!