A Deeper Look At Forgiveness
After writing Forgiveness I found that many did not understand what I meant. I thought maybe I need to show more scripture to make my view more powerful and so now we have Forgiveness 2
Introduction
When we say “God loves you” to people what are they to think? The word love is used in many ways and so this statement can be easily misunderstood. I believe most take it as a brotherly love, that we are telling them God likes them and feels good about them. However, that is not what is meant. In reality, just the opposite of that is true, they are at odds with God. When we say “God loves you” we are saying God cares enough to want to save and change you; that He had to sacrifice His Son for you. I say this because if we are not clear about a word like love some simple misunderstanding or really false teaching can take place. This is true with the word “forgive.”
Forgiveness is part of Reconciliation
I think it is important to understand what forgiveness means. To understand forgive we need to realize what it is for. Forgiveness is a part of reconciling a sin.
And the priest shall make an atonement for him as touching his sin that he hath sinned in one of these, and it shall be forgiven him: and the remnant shall be the priest’s, as a meat offering.
Leviticus 5:13
And he shall bring his trespass offering unto the Lord, a ram without blemish out of the flock, with thy estimation, for a trespass offering, unto the priest: And the priest shall make an atonement for him before the Lord: and it shall be forgiven him for anything of all that he hath done in trespassing therein.
Leviticus 6:6-7
Forgiveness is beyond Justice
According to pure justice, a payment is equal to the crime.
And if any mischief follow, then thou shalt give life for life, Eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, Burning for burning, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.
Exodus 21:23-25
And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission.
Hebrews 9:22
This one for one concept is not evil but justice. God could extract the exact payment from each one of us and our eternity would be grave and God would be just. Forgiveness is not a given, it is not a requirement for justice and that is why the righteous men of old were in such awe and joy at the thought of God giving forgiveness. Forgiveness is an act of mercy.
A Psalm of David, Maschil.
Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man unto whom the Lord imputeth not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile.Psalms 32:1-2
Repentance is Required for Forgiveness
So there is the idea that because of sin a man is separate or at odds with God and as a just God He must reconcile the debt. He cannot simply let sin go or He is not just. God will not forgive without repentance.
The Lord is longsuffering, and of great mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression, and by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation.
Numbers 14:18
The word forgive is a contraction which means to give beforehand. This is also the ideas of the Greek and Hebrew words translated as forgive. So the idea is before the debt is paid or reconciled there is a willingness for the victim to take on the debt; at least part of the debt. When one forgives they are placing part or all of the debt upon themselves.
Righteousness will not allow forgiveness or the paying of a debt before one recognizes there is a need for the debt to be paid. To pay the debt without acknowledgment of sin is to enable sin to continue. This is why God commanded repentance before forgiveness. We have already seen this in the previously quoted Leviticus 5:13;6:6-7, Numbers 14:18. Now here are more verses to show that one must repent for God to be just in forgiving.
When heaven is shut up, and there is no rain, because they have sinned against thee; if they pray toward this place, and confess thy name, and turn from their sin, when thou afflictest them: Then hear thou in heaven, and forgive the sin of thy servants, and of thy people Israel, that thou teach them the good way wherein they should walk, and give rain upon thy land, which thou hast given to thy people for an inheritance.
1 Kings 8:35-36
Hearken therefore unto the supplications of thy servant, and of thy people Israel, which they shall make toward this place: hear thou from thy dwelling place, even from heaven; and when thou hearest, forgive.
2 Chronicles 6:21
If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.
2 Chronicles 7:14
So we have seen that sin provides the opportunity for forgiveness. We also know that forgiveness is the taking on at least part of the debt that is owed. Forgiveness is not given to the unrepentant. God is consistent in that He will not let one man’s sin go and make another repent. Mercy keeps forgiveness standing at attention. If mercy was not there and repentance was not immediate then justice would be executed immediately.
For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee.
Psalms 86:5
Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases; Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies; Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle’s…
..But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him, and his righteousness unto children’s children; To such as keep his covenant, and to those that remember his commandments to do them.
Psalms 103:3-5,17-18
So when we say, hear, or read the word forgive we must see it fully. Just as the word love is rich in meaning so is forgiveness. Forgiveness is given to one who acknowledges the debt and their responsibility in it. It is given in place of justice, but it justifies because there is a reconciliation.
Most of this is taken from the old testament and one should not think that God has changed the fundamentals of forgiveness and mercy in the new testament. So let us look there next.
Jesus’ Teaching on Forgiveness
If we are going to understand Jesus’ teaching on forgiveness then there is probably no better place to start than Matthew chapter 18.
In this chapter, Jesus goes from offending to forgiving. He gives a stern warning to people about offending others.
But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea.
Matthew 18:6
Then Jesus’ teaching continues on how to reconcile the offended with the offender. Now, this is important because there are stages which must take place for this to be done right. It is important that we note that in the end if the person does not repent they are not to be forgiven, rather they are to be treated as a lost man. Of course, there should always be hope of repentance and the opportunity for forgiveness.
And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church: but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican.
Matthew 18:17
Peter understands that Jesus is telling them to reconcile the differences and ask the question how many times must I forgive. In other words, if we do what Jesus said and the person repents, then how many times must we forgive? The answer is seventy times seven and unless one is a Pharisee we should not try to keep count.
Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven.
Matthew 18:22
While Matthew does not include the words “if he repents” as Luke does in seventeen three, Mathew shows that repentance is mandatory in Jesus’ parable. There was a king who had a servant who owed him a large sum of money and the servant requested mercy and the king showed it to him.
The servant therefore fell down, and worshipped him, saying, Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay thee all.
Matthew 18:26
Then the servant went and found one who owed him a much smaller sum of money and when that servant could not pay he threw him in jail to pay. When the king heard of this he was mad; why? Because the servant who owed much was really not repentant of his debt. He really did not see the grace that was extended to him so the king did not forgive him seventy times seven.
The Apostles View of Forgiveness
Peter Spoke about Forgiveness.
Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins.
Acts 5:31
Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee.
Acts 8:22
We find in the words of Peter that repentance is required for forgiveness.
Paul’s Words on Forgiveness.
If Paul was to be true to his calling he must preach repentance so that men can receive forgiveness.
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.
Acts 26:18
Most of the confusion on this matter comes from the writings of Paul. I believe this is because Paul assumes upon his readers’ certain truths at times such as repentance is a prerequisite for forgiveness. Such a case is in Ephesians chapter four where he is taking us step-by-step from bitterness to forgiveness;
And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.
Ephesians 4:32
There is no mention of repentance but Paul is not undermining what the rest of the Bible teaches.
The following verse along with Ephesians four verse twenty-three are often misunderstood because we forget what the word forgive means. Many times we have told people they must forgive even the unrepentant because God tells us to. The words Paul includes should really guard against the forgiveness without repentance teaching because forgiveness for Christ sake is only given to the repentant.
Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering; Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.
Colossians 3:12-14
In no way does Paul teach something different about forgiving than the rest of the scriptures.
James’ Teaching on Forgiveness
And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.
James 5:15-16
Again the same theme that forgiveness and confession are two parts to the same end.
The Final Words from John
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1 John 1:9
If we confess we find forgiveness.
What We Need to Teach
Jesus gave us clear instructions on how to deal with those that offend, but what do we do when a Christian or a lost man does not repent? I cannot leave this discussion without mentioning Romans chapter twelve.
Recompense to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men. If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men. Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord. Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head. Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.
Romans 12:17-21
This is how you deal with someone who is unrepentant. Notice this is not talking about an eye for an eye because that is not evil but righteous according to the law. Evil for evil is doing something wrong to get back. Stealing from they because they stooled from you is the idea of evil for evil. We are to do our very best to live peaceably with all men, but there comes a time when that is not possible and action through a mediator must take place. We are not to avenge ourselves. Now here is where grace gone wild shows it’s ugly head. Often times it is taught that we are not to even want revenge or to be avenged. We see the saints at the end of the age looking for their revenge in Revelation and there is no rebuke to this.
And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?
Revelation 6:10
God will avenge and it will not be pretty what happens to the offenders. What is being taught in Romans is we are to do right and not become part of the problem where God now has to deal with the offended but with the offender as well. God wants those who have been offended to do good because that is what He does.
Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same?
Matthew 5:43-46
When we react correctly and others who do not respond correctly and proceed to continue to do wrong we are actually making it worse for them. In a sense, we are heaping judgment upon their heads. In other words, God sees our attempt to love our enemies and sees our enemies indifferent to our love and it makes God’s judgment against them even greater. We see this back in Jesus’ teaching on offending and forgiving.
But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea.
Matthew 18:6
Conclusion
- Forgiveness is accepting part or all of the debt that one who has offended owes
- Forgiveness is given to only those who repentant
- We are to always desire that forgiveness can take place
- We are to be merciful and treat those who have offended us with love, patience, long-suffering, kindness, gentleness, etc. as we wait for them to repent.
When Jesus came He found that men had taken the law and defined it in such a way that it was so heavy that nobody could bear it. It is my opinion in the age of grace that we have come to a place that teachers have defined grace in such a way that it is impossible to actually live out. To ask the people of God to forgive the unrepentant when God Himself does not is placing a heavy weight on men.
I also say it has led so many to think that God is so loving that He could not send anyone to hell; all will be forgiven. This mindset has led us down a path that has allowed sin to overcome the church and the nations it was supposed to influence. We are so lost in a world of tolerance and forgiveness because we have lost the correct view of forgiveness.