Sins are seen here as a debt. Righteousness from us is the Lord’s due. What we are to ask for is the free discharge of this debt without any payment being offered by us. The word ‘forgive’ means literally to ‘send away’ or ‘let go’. Our request is that God should dismiss our sins freely. No one will properly ask for this who at the same time is trying to make his own payment by atoning for his own sins by good works. To be forgiven is to be spared an eternal punishment at the cost of the blood of the Jesus Christ. Debtors may come to God as those with nothing to pay. Those who are conscious of their guilt, their aggravated guilt, and persistent and repeated transgression of the law of God; those who know the seriousness of disobedience, that sin deserve death, and who have sinned in spite of this; those who have sensed the awesome holiness of God and how impossible it is to approach him unforgiven; those who know they have used every possible deceit to hide their evil ways from the eyes of God: all these may come to God and none of these things should prevent them coming. Sin is a debt to God and one that we have no possibility of paying off, because we would have to spend eternity in hell to do that. When would we ever make our final payment? The terrible burden of this debt and the knowledge that we have nothing to pay it off is part of the torment of hell. After a thousand years in hell, a soul still faces an eternity of payment. Debt drives men mad in this life when it is only owed to other men, but this debt is owed to God; once we have passed beyond the grave, he will not forget it or cease to demand its repayment. Wonderful then is the amazing good news that God does not require payment, because for Christ’s sake he is willing to forgive us freely. No matter what we have done, if we come sincerely, he will forgive us from his heart and put our sins far out of his sight. Forgiveness rests entirely on the atonement provided through Christ’s shed blood, without which even God would be unable to forgive our sins.
Debts are in the plural. We cannot remember them all. It is happy for us that confession does not have to include every single sin, but we must not deliberately leave any out before the Lord. We ask for forgiveness of sins of ignorance also.
What are the impediments to forgiving others?
{
1. A desire for bitterness to persist and an unwillingness to let go of it;
2. A tendency to despise and withdraw from that person;
3. Lack of effort to build bridges;
4. Allowing pride to sizzle, and to be wounded at something said to you;
5. Becoming trapped by the devil by having a sense of disdain for others. We may develop a critical spirit that laughs at others. That will put us on a pedestal;
6. Failure to believe the word of God. Do we believe warnings: ‘neither will your Father in heaven forgive you?’;
7. A desire for revenge;
8. Delay in acting quickly – the sooner we act, the less it grows out of proportion. It might have been seen more clearly at first;
9. Lack of affinity or natural chemistry with that person. We accept that with wide variety of personalities there are some you have no affinity with, but watch out: don’t let it stop you forgiving;
10. Selfishness that applies to forgiveness – I may want things I am not prepared to give;
}
What are the consequences of not forgiving others?
{
1. I get no forgiveness from God, no assurance therefore. I carry on as a hypocrite;
2. I cannot count on God’s blessings;
3. My conscience will be hardened;
4. My usefulness will be taken away;
5. My deeper awareness of spiritual truth will be removed;
6. I receive no guidance;
7. A critical spirit will take over and I will lose trust in God’s power.
}
How do we know if others have repented? They do not necessarily have to confess verbally and kneel in front of us and admit it. Yes it is good if sin is acknowledged, but it is not obvious that little things can practically be acknowledged. Some bring list of sins to you which they have done, but it is not practical. Others show warmth or mend their ways and there is a definite effort to mend their ways. Don’t expect the other to mend their ways if you have compacted the matter further on your side. You have to call it quits and mend fences and build bridges. Maybe the other person responded; how have you responded? Just forgive and be reconciled.
What is the difference between God’s forgiveness and ours?
{
1. God forgives as the lawgiver, as one who is pure. Don’t try to imitate that. I forgive as an equal sinner;
2. God forgives on account of Christ’s redeeming work, we forgive as we are ordered to;
3. God removes condemnation, we remove anger at most;
4. God forgives at great cost, we at very little cost.
}
What are the conditions for forgiving others? Offences against me or against God. Don’t be like Billy Graham who forgave Clinton when there was no evidence of repentance. Not his place to forgive. And often you assume repentance with those we know well. So important the Lord puts it in the prayer. Forgive us our sins – no forgiveness extended if none is asked for. We don’t council Christians should be weak to things. God will not forgive us if we are remiss. I also must not be forgiven if I am remiss. Where the need to forgive and forget we must have a forgiving spirit. When forgiveness is asked for it should be given. Many offences are so small they are forgiven without a word. We trust we regret them. Some do evidence late require repentance and we forgive never referring to it again. If I will not let it go or forgive when it is long past, it tells God I am a very proud person. I can’t go on holding out if I have seen the depth of my own sin. We do not forgive obdurate – not licence to abandon discipline. But the Lord will not wash sin which while there is resentment. This subject given more space than anything. Verses 14-15. Underlies great seriousness given more space than anything seriousness of coming to God in a thin application vindictive hostile spirit.
Why do Christians need to ask for forgiveness? Are they not already justified? Are not past present and future sins pardoned at the moment of conversion so that nothing can separate them from the love of Christ? Truly, they could not be more secure than they are from the time they first trust in Christ, nevertheless sin remains in them. John describes the situation in his first epistle: all Christians have sin and if any say they have no sin, they deceive themselves and the truth is not in them. Sin does not break the believer’s relationship with God so that he ceases to be his child, but it does break the fellowship that we have with our heavenly Father. In order that this relationship should be restored and there should be favour from the Lord, the Christian must confess sin daily to God, repent of it and ask to be forgiven. That forgiveness results in our restoration to fellowship and continued walking in the light. A child who does wrong in the home still needs to ask for forgiveness, but this does not in any way imply loss of sonship.
Repentance is hard and some say they cannot remember their sins and don’t feel them as they should. How do we deal with that? We ask friends to pray for conviction: not for an overwhelming burden, but to see the reality of sin. (Some want an excessive burden, which can be self-indulgence, emotionalism, and a bit of works religion – ‘If I feel deeply, I will purge this away myself.’) We ask people to pray for conviction and then think of Isaiah 6. Read and reflect on this. Read Ephesians 1 and 6. Consider the debts you owe to God. It may be that emotion means a little frozen and not begin with repentance. It is the order of the Lord’s prayer. Begin with intercession. Or suggest they carry out repentance in instalments. Just think of one sin and repent of it. Reflect on past sins which have been forgiven and thank God. Don’t repent of them again. Repent with your mind. It is best to feel guilt, but not actually vital. You can do it intellectually. Not vital to have the feeling, but do it genuinely.