By Russ Atmore
If there is one thing that
every Christian knows and prizes as most precious, it must surely be the
forgiveness of God. Matthew 18:22 gives us the reply that Jesus
gave to Peter’s question regarding how often must he forgive his
brother. It is important to note that Peter says his brother keeps on
sinning against him, and in that context, how often must I forgive him.
Jesus said, “seventy times seven”. There is to be no limit to
forgiveness.
The meaning of the word
“forgiveness” is generally expressed by the idea of “sending away”, or
“letting go”. It occurs 15 times in the noun form, and about 40 times in
the verb form.
The initiative in
forgiveness rests completely with God. Only God can forgive your sin
against Him. God does not forgive partially. He does not forgive some
sins and not others. The only sin in the Bible that cannot be forgiven
is the sin against the Holy Spirit (Matthew 12:32; Mark 3:29).
What is this sin? It is to attribute the works of the devil to Christ,
which is exactly what the Pharisees were guilty of. This is done with
complete knowledge of the claims of Christ.
In order to receive
forgiveness there has to be repentance (Luke 17:3,4). God can
only forgive sins through a blood sacrifice because there is life in the
blood (Leviticus 17:11). Blood must be shed (Hebrews 9:22)
for God to forgive our sins. Jesus has shed His blood, and therefore,
forgiveness exists with god. It is not the fact that Jesus died that
must be appropriated, but Jesus Himself must be received. This is not
some sort of commitment that is made – this is biblical conversion.
Forgiveness brings unbounded joy and deep joy. Confession of sin brings
the forgiveness of God (1 John 1:9). Forgiveness means that our
relationship to God is right. We are accepted in Christ.
Forgiveness must also apply
to our neighbors. Luke 17:4 indicates a limitless requirement to
forgiveness. You must keep on forgiving. The only reason that Scripture
offers to us as to why we must go on forgiving those who sin against us,
is simply, because God for Christ’s sake has forgiven us. If you don’t
forgive your brother or sister, then God will not forgive your
trespasses against Him. There must be genuine forgiveness, not just
lip-service. Jesus says that we must forgive “from the heart”
(Matthew 18:35).
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