Hey —–,
Your mom said that you would be interested to know more about the subject of forgiveness from the Bible.
I was just preaching a sermon from the Gospel of Matthew in which Jesus healed a paralyzed man after saying, “Take heart, my son, your sins are forgiven.” This was a striking statement to me. Often times Christians say that they want to hear God one day say to them “Well done, my good and faithful servant.” I’d much rather hear, “Take heart, my son, your sins are forgiven.”
Ultimately, all sins are sins against God. Even when we sin against someone else, we are breaking God’s law. All people are sinners, myself included, so I hardly expect God to say to me, “Well done.”
But in the grace of God, he says something even better. He says to those who have faith in him, “Take heart, my son, your sins are forgiven.” Instead of being called a servant, they are called a son! That is a big upgrade! And instead of the focus being on my deeds (which are often sin), the focus is on God’s forgiveness.
So ultimately forgiveness in the Bible is God’s forgiveness. He forgives the sins of His people because of His love. That is incredibly good news. We can’t be perfect, but God forgives sinners.
That forgiveness is known to all who believe in Jesus Christ. If you know Jesus, you know forgiveness, because you can see his forgiveness on the cross where he died in the place of sinners.
Some verses that might help are:
[Psa 103:2-3] 2 Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, 3 who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases,
[Act 10:43] 43 To him all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”
[Col 1:13-14] 13 He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
I pray that the Lord blesses you with a spirit of peace, knowing that in Christ there is forgiveness. Look to Christ.
Blessings, – Pastor Doug