FORGIVENESS

 

WBS.311

FORGIVENESS

 Ezekiel 18:4,20 “..the soul that sinneth, it shall die…”

This was not only man’s problem; it was also IAUE’s problem.  IAUE created man to have fellowship with him; and to have a family unto which He could show His goodness, mercy, love and kindness forever. In Adam’s fall, man became separated from IAUE. Let’s call it a

“righteous barrier” that man could not cross due to the absence of righteousness in his nature, character and person. Not only did this prevent man from having fellowship with IAUE; it prevented IAUE from having fellowship with man.

Adam’s sin defiled his very nature making it impossible for him to father children that possessed righteousness. Thus Adam’s sin made access to IAUE impossible for everyone descending from his bloodline. It also made it absolutely impossible for anyone throughout human history to be able to remedy the problem.  Every act of an unrighteous man was only tainted by his own uncleanness before IAUE.  Clearly, the remedy had to be initiated by IAUE; thus, the gospel unfolds to reveal IAUE’s love for man was so great that even His son’s life was not too great a price to pay for man’s redemption.  Now, that is the true importance of the fellowship of Elohim and man as measured by the Creator’s action.

The Scripture had revealed that the soul that sins must die. Dying in one’s sins provides no redemption, no forgiveness. No, that is just the penalty being paid for being a sinner. A dead man does not then enjoy fellowship with IAUE. One dying in our place, however, leaves us yet alive that we can live beyond the payment price for our sins.

2 Corinthians 5:14 For the love of Messiah constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead: 15  And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again.

Romans 5:10 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to IAUE by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. 11 And not only so, but we also joy in IAUE through our Maser Yahushua Messiah, by whom we have now received the atonement.

If we embrace the payment price of Yahushua’s death, then we enter into his death that we may also be united with him in his resurrection and become alive unto IAUE.  Note in the verses above that Paul says this union with Messiah produces “joy in IAUE.”  Why does it produce such a joy? It is because man in union with the Master Yahushua Messiah “breaks through the “righteous barrier” because he now has the nature of the “new creature” (2 Corinthians 5:17) and he is clothed in the righteousness of Messiah.  He may now have fellowship with IAUE Elohim; and for one unto whom this is a reality and not just a mere academic doctrine, this is a matter of extreme joy.

Now, I would conjecture that the overwhelming majority of believers do no possess this joy in IAUE; and further, I would posit that the reason for this requires we go back to the primary issue of sin.

What is sin to IAUE?  It is disobedience to His will; thus it is lawlessness (because His will is the law of all creation), and it is an unclean act of evil.  What is sin to man?  It is whatever he does that he regrets having done it.  Can you see the great contrast in these definitions?  Can you see how little man has regard for what IAUE calls evil? 

To IAUE, sin is the heart of the problem. The sin issue must be resolved in order for fellowship to be possible.

Matthew 1:21  And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name Yahushua: for he shall save his people from their sins.

John 1:29 The next day John seeth Yahushua coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of Elohim, which taketh away the sin of the world. 

Acts 5:31  Him hath Elohim exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins.

Acts 13:38 Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins:

Acts 26:18 To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me.

Ephesians 1:7 In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;

Colossians 1:14 In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:

What value does man place upon IAUE’s remedy to his unrighteousness?  The answer to this question hinges upon what value man places upon his sin?

We all know what is called “the sinner’s prayer.”  I often refer to it as “the magic prayer,” because the lost are led to expect that after praying those two or three sentences, they are saved (whatever that means) and they are going to Heaven when they die…just like magic.  They are led to mime it back to the one leading them in the prayer; and it is often the very first time they ever address the sin problem when they pray “…and forgive me of my sins…”  There is no explanation of what sin is.  They are expected simply to know what it is.  If the particular “magic prayer” they are led to repeat includes “…I repent of my sins…”  again, it is the first time that idea has even been mentioned.  They have no idea what it means to repent.

To illustrate this, let’s consider that moment when we gave our life to the Master Messiah Yahushua. If it was like most people, we probably asked to be forgiven of our sins.  When we said that, were we asking to be forgiven of:

-       Speaking back to our parents

-       Eating too much

-       Being angry with someone

-       Cheating on an exam at school

-       Taking home a pen, paperclip, stamp or other cheap supply from our boss’s workplace

-       Telling a lie (any and all of the hundreds of lies told in our lifetime)

-       Having an attitude against a sibling

-       Having an attitude towards another driver on the road

-       Wasting time

-       Arguing with your spouse

-       Ignoring the need of a neighbor

-       Cutting in line

-       Being proud of yourself

-       Pretending to be humble

-       Thinking of yourself as better than others

-       Preferring yourself over anyone else in any circumstance or situation

-       Envying anyone

-       Being bitter

-       Being resentful

-       Being divisive

-       Lusting after someone

-       Sexual immorality

-       Foul language

-       Dishonoring anyone

-       Judging people

-       Disapproving of someone because of their dress, manners, hairstyle, economic status

-       Loving someone or something more than we love IAUE

Obviously, you see how this list could run on forever; but I suspect what really came to mind were the three or four times in your life when your words or actions really hurt someone and you really regret it and wished you could undo it.  It did not even occur to you how in all of the above possible circumstances you hurt Elohim.

Luke 7:40 And Yahushua answering said unto him, Simon, I have somewhat to say unto thee. And he saith, Master, say on. 41 There was a certain creditor which had two debtors: the one owed five hundred pence, and the other fifty. 42 And when they had nothing to pay, he frankly forgave them both. Tell me therefore, which of them will love him most? 43 Simon answered and said, I suppose that he, to whom he forgave most. And he said unto him, Thou hast rightly judged. 44 And he turned to the woman, and said unto Simon, Seest thou this woman? I entered into thine house, thou gavest me no water for my feet: but she hath washed my feet with tears, and wiped them with the hairs of her head. 45 Thou gavest me no kiss: but this woman since the time I came in hath not ceased to kiss my feet. 46 My head with oil thou didst not anoint: but this woman hath anointed my feet with ointment. 47 Wherefore I say unto thee, Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much: but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little.

In this real-life illustration, Yahushua demonstrated the truth about forgiveness. If we only regarded the Master’s forgiveness as touching the three or four particular things in our life for which we felt guilty, it is not going to produce much in the way of gratitude. This is why contemporary Christianity is bound in the Hellenistic grasp of applauding and rewarding knowledge, while the reality of the preciousness of fellowship with IAUE is ignored.  It is why any real devotion of time and heart and love toward IAUE ever occupies the masses of professing believers. They are grossly unaware of how much they have been forgiven because they are unaware of how sinful their lives really were and are.  It is also why the church-a-large seems never to notice that half of the New Testament epistles are dedicated to living sin-free lives.

As a people, we have never considered how pervasive the sin problem is; and how thorough the remedy of forgiveness was needed to be.  This has enabled us to regard the sacrifice of the Son of IAUE to be a mere academic requirement.  The equation needed this variable plugged in to produce the necessary quotient.

How can we expect the church to recognize the joy of fellowship with IAUE without an understanding of how serious the sin problem was, how far reaching His forgiveness is, and how desperately IAUE desired to resolve the “righteous barrier” to be restored in fellowship with His creation?

When you think back to that time about having been forgiven of your sins, what were you thinking?  Did it ever occur to you to contemplate the things in your life that were causes of grief or sadness to IAUE, or were even your thoughts of being forgiven totally selfish?  If you lack a genuine life-motivating love for IAUE, perhaps you should revisit forgiveness, for he who is forgiven much loves much.