Freedom Through Forgiveness
God's Answer to Your Deepest Needs - Part 5 of 7
Matthew 6:12 and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
This Morning I want us to look at " Freedom Through Forgiveness”. One of the greatest needs in our lives is the need for forgiveness.
Many people struggle with feelings of guilt, shame and fear. The reason we struggle with these feelings is because we have sinned against a Holy God.
God's word tells us that all have sinned and come short of God's glory. God's word also tells us that the wages of sin is death, but thank God the scripture doesn't stop there. If it did we would all be hopelessly lost forever.
It goes on to say, “ But the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord ”. There is “ Freedom ” from Guilt, shame and fear through “ Forgiveness”.
1 John 1:9 says, “ If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
But before I get into the heart of this message I want you to notice three things about this scripture.
1.) If we confess our sins. Forgiveness is conditioned upon our confession of the sin that is in our lives. Not if we make excuses for our sin or blame someone else for our sin. We take personal responsibilities for our sins and confess them to God.
2.) He is Faithful and just to forgive us. That simply means that you can count on God to forgive you and cancel the debt of your sin and release you from the penalty of your sins. He is “Faithful and just” The death of Jesus Christ on the Cross provides the grounds for our forgiveness.
3.) Not only will God forgive you but God will also cleanse you of all unrighteousness.
I like what Hebrews 10:22 says in The New Living Translation let us go right into the presence of God, with true hearts fully trusting him. For our evil consciences have been sprinkled with Christ's blood to make us clean, and our bodies have been washed with pure water.
When we confess our sins not only does God forgive us, He also gives us a clear conscience and washes us with the pure water of His word.
There's only one way to have Freedom from our guilt shame and fear and that is through forgiveness. Freedom through Forgiveness, and there's only one source for forgiveness and that is Jesus Christ. And there's only one way to get forgiveness. Ask for it.
Matthew 6:12 "This is how you should pray, “ Forgive us our debts”. How do you get rid of guilt? It's simple. You ask God. You ask for forgiveness.
Have you ever confessed a sin, maybe many, many times, but still feel guilty about it? Why is it that sometimes you confess something, you admit it to God but you still feel guilty?
The problem is that many people don't understand how God forgives. They don't really understand or believe how God forgives.
There is real Freedom Through Forgiveness when you understand how God forgives. I want us to look at four ways that God Forgives us this morning.
1. God forgives instantly.
2. God forgives completely. He utterly wipes everything out. Completely.
3. God forgives repeatedly. Good news for those of us who are not perfect.
4. God forgives freely. You don't earn it or deserve it; it's a free gift.
1. GOD FORGIVES INSTANTLY
Nehemiah 9:17 "You are a God of forgiveness always ready to pardon, gracious and merciful, full of love." God is always ready to forgive you. He forgives instantly, immediately, no delay. God is more ready to forgive you right now than you are ready to ask for forgiveness. He's always ready.
Have you ever hurt someone or offended them and then went to them to ask for their forgiveness? After you asked them to forgive you they say I will think about it.
They want to rub your face in it for a while and make you feel miserable before they forgive you. God never makes you wait for forgiveness. Never. It's instant, immediate; it's the moment you ask, without delay because your body was not designed to carry guilt.
Should a believer ever feel guilty? Yes, for about about as long it takes for you to admit a sin to God, confess it, ask Him to forgive you, and choose to change.
“Forgiveness is yours for the asking." He not only wants to forgive you, He wants you to feel forgiven. God wants you to walk feeling forgiven all the time. He doesn't want you carrying the load around.
It is instant. The great tragedy today is that there are millions and millions of people carrying around unnecessary guilt. It's just not necessary.
The Bible says, "God is merciful and quick to forgive." Isaiah 55:7.
2. HE FORGIVES COMPLETELY
Colossians 2:13-14 (Phillips translation) "He has forgiven all your sins; He has utterly wiped out the evidence of broken commandments which always hung over our heads, and has completely annulled it by nailing it to the cross."
When Jesus died on the cross he died for every sin that you have ever committed or ever will commit. There is forgiveness for past sins, present sins and forgiveness for future sins.
1 John 2:1 My dear children, I am writing this to you so that you will not sin. But if you do sin, there is someone to plead for you before the Father. He is Jesus Christ, the one who pleases God completely. 2 He is the sacrifice for our sins. He takes away not only our sins but the sins of all the world.
John is saying don't sin, but if you do, we have an advocate with the Father that pleads our case. He is the one who takes away our sins and the sins of the world. We are not free to sin as we please.
God's does not set us free so we can go on living in sin. God sets us free so that we can go on living without sin. Sin is not my master any more, the Lord Jesus Christ Is.
Notice it says, “He wiped it out.” I like that -- what a super stain remover. Talk about Shout it out! It's no longer there.
If somebody asks us for forgiveness we want to say, "Yes, I'll forgive you but I'm going to keep my eye on you." But the Bible says, "Love keeps no records of wrong." Jesus forgives completely, He wipes it out. God does not hold a grudge against you. That's good news. He forgives instantly and He forgives completely.
Notice it says "completely annulled... it by nailing it to the cross." Jesus was nailed to a cross so you can stop nailing yourself to a cross. He was hung for your hang-ups. You don't have to go around beating yourself to death because Jesus gave His life and He paid the bill.
Jeremiah 31:34 (Living Bible) "I, the Lord, will forgive and forget their sins." God can forget! Isn't that amazing? God, the creator of the universe, can forget. He chooses to forget every sin that we ever committed once we ask Him to forgive us.
The problem is if you don't really believe that God has completely forgiven you, you're going to think that God is trying to get even with you, and every time you have a problem, you're going to say, "God's getting even with me!"
If you have an accident, a financial crisis, or lose something, you're going to feel like God's paying you back for the sin. God doesn't act that way! He doesn't carry a grudge once we come to Him in humility saying, "Forgive us our debts... I blew it. It was wrong."
He forgives instantly and He forgives completely.
3. GOD FORGIVES REPEATEDLY
How many of you have ever committed the same sin more than once? We tend to get in certain ruts and do the same things over and over. 1 John 1:9 says (Good News translation) "If we confess our sins to God, he will keep his promise and do what is right; he will forgive our sins and make us clean from all wrongdoing."
He will forgive our sins is in the present tense. He not only forgives us once but repeatedly or continuously. That's what John was saying in 1 John 2:1, Don't sin but if you do there is forgiveness as often as you need it.
Hebrews 7:25 (Phillips translation) "Christ is always interceding on our behalf." He's always there, waiting, ready to forgive, instantly, completely, and repeatedly.
Sometimes people procrastinate asking God to forgive them for something they know they've done wrong? All of us have I guess. You know it was wrong but you You procrastinate in asking God for forgiveness. Why?
Because “we don't want to bother Him again with the same sin.” He's heard this one before. Forgiveness does not take care of the future; it only clears up the past. So you come repeatedly.
Guilt is like garbage. You have to take it out repeatedly. You have to take it out regularly. If you don't the whole house starts stinking. You don't just let it pile up.
Why hold onto it for more than thirty seconds? Why let it pile up in your life when God is ready to forgive freely, instantly, continually? Don't let guilt pile up in your life over a long period of time. Let God free you through His Forgiveness.
4. GOD FORGIVES FREELY
Sounds too good to be true. It doesn't even sound fair, does it? For me to commit all of these sins and then go free.
But the bill has been paid, over 2000 years ago on a hill called Golgotha. Jesus Christ, came to earth in the form of a man and said, “Even though I am sinless, I am perfect, I will take all the sin of the world and pay for it.”
Why? Out of love. Romans 3:23-24 (Living Bible) "All of us have sinned... Is anybody not included in "all"? It's everybody. We're all in the same boat. ... Yet now God declares us `not guilty' of offending him IF we trust in Jesus Christ, who freely takes away our sins."
When Jesus Christ died on the cross, the last words He said on the cross was, "It is finished." Arms outstretched He cried out, "It is finished." The plan of salvation is finished. The payment for everybody's guilt and sin is finished.
The word in Greek "It is finished" is just one word, a legal term. It was on a stamp and when somebody paid off a bill at a store they would stamp it. It means, "Paid in Full."
If you're walking around carrying a load of guilt you're carrying guilt that is unnecessary because it has already been paid for by Christ, you just need to accept that forgiveness.
That is such good news! God wants us to be able to live guilt-free lives. What blows my mind is that so many people avoid church thinking they're going to feel guilty there when church is the place that tells you how to get rid of guilt. That's the whole message, that's the gospel, that's the good news.
What I'm talking about today is the central message of the Bible. God loves you and He forgives you.
Ephesians 2:8-9 (Good News) "For it is by God's grace that you have been saved, through faith. It is not your own doing but God's gift. There is nothing to boast of, since it is not the result of your own effort." Forgiveness and salvation is a free gift.
HOW TO BE FORGIVEN
ADMIT -- "God, it was wrong. I blew it." Stop trying to hide it. Be honest with God. What are you pretending not to know in your life? What are you pretending is not sin in your life and you know it is? Call it what it is.
BELIEVE that God wants to forgive you. That it is continuous and instant and free and complete because of what Jesus Christ has done for you. You accept that gift. It's there but it's not appropriated until you accept it. I can hand you a credit card but it doesn't become yours until you take it. Forgiveness of God does not become yours until you trust in Christ and take it.
COMMIT your life to Christ. Romans 8:1 "There is no condemnation for those who live in union with Christ Jesus." No condemnation -- I can't think of a better verse in the Bible than that. Wouldn't you like to let go of your load of guilt? There's no reason why you can't walk out of here today with a clear conscious.
There is freedom through forgiveness. Let me add one closing point. When God Forgives you then you need to forgive those that have hurt and offended you in the same way that God has forgiven you. Not only do you need forgiveness, you also to extend forgiveness to others.
