When God forgives, God forgets! Forgiveness from God results in a complete “fresh start” from God’s perspective. Nothing of the old is counted against a person. No matter how many times a person sins against God after he or she is saved, a person can be forgiven and experience a new beginning. Any time we turn to God with a sincere heart and admit our failures, shortcomings, and willful rebellion, God hears our prayer and responds with forgiveness. Once we are forgiven, we stand before God totally cleansed. God never holds our past sin against us.
God says, “Though your sins are like scarlet,
they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall be
as wool.” - Isaiah 1:18
God’s stipulation concerning forgiveness:
1)
You must repent.
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Repentance is required for the
forgiveness of sins. (Mark 1:4)
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Unless you repent, you all will
perish. (Luke 13:3)
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In the past, God overlooked such
ignorance, but now He commands all people everywhere to repent. (Acts 17:30)
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Jesus said to his disciples: “Things
that cause people to sin are bound to come, but woe to that person through whom
they come. It would be better for him
to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around his neck than for him to
cause someone else to sin. So watch
yourselves. If your brother sins,
rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him.
Even if he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times comes
back to you and says, ‘I repent,’ forgive him.” (Luke
17:1-4)
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Do you
think it’s fair to forgive someone when they actively continue to sin against
you if they repent? __________________________________________________
2)
You must be willing to forgive others.
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Jesus said, “Whenever you pray, if you
have anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in Heaven may
also forgive you of your trespasses.
But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in Heaven forgive
you of your trespasses. (Mark 11:25-26)
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If you forgive men when they sin
against you, your Heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men of their sins,
your Father will not forgive you of your sins.
(Matthew 6:14-15)
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Do not judge and you will not be
judged. Do not condemn and you will not
be condemned. Forgive and you will be
forgiven. (Luke 6:37)
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How do
you feel about God’s command that you forgive others in order to be forgiven
yourself? _______________________________________________
3)
You must believe in the sacrificial
death and resurrection of Jesus Christ and accept what Jesus did as having been
on your behalf.
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Jesus said to his disciples, “I will
be betrayed to the chief priests and the teachers of the law. They will condemn me to death and will turn
me over to be mocked and crucified. On
the third day, I will raise to life. (Matthew 20:17-18)
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Since God loved the world so much, He
gave His only Son so that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have
eternal life. For God did not send
Jesus into the world to condemn it, but to save it.
(John 3:16-17)
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God will lovingly deliver your soul
from the pit of corruption; he will cast all of your sins behind your back.
(Isaiah 38:17)
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As far as the east is from the west,
so far has God removed our transgressions from us.
(Psalm 103:12)
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Have you
ever experienced God’s offer of forgiveness?
How did you feel when you received God’s forgiveness of your sin nature?
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