The Freedom of Forgiveness
1 John 1:5-10
5 This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.
6 If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth:
7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.
8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
10 If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.
Introduction: This past Sunday the Lord led me to deliver a message on the subject of apostasy and one of the points that I shared with you concerned the issue of backsliding and we said that a Christian who sins may be forgiven and that they can be restored to a right relationship with God.
I. The Fact of Our Sin v. 8
a. The denial of sin - (If we say that we have no sin)
A PREREQUISITE TO FORGIVENESS
A pastor finished his message early one Sunday, (and that pastor was not me) and he wanted to check his congregation’s understanding. So he asked, "Can anyone tell me what you must do before you can obtain forgiveness of sin?"
There was a short pause and then, from the back of the room, a small boy spoke up, "You have to sin."
This is true of us all. Before we can come to God we must we willing to admit that we have sinned. I heard and old preacher say years ago that, “…before you can get a sinner saved you must get him lost.”
b. The deception of sin – (we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us)
To deny that we have sinned is to deny the truth that God Himself has declared about us in His word therefore we are deceiving ourselves in the worst way possible.
Romans 3:23 “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.”
Sin is deceptive. It is like an apple worm, which is really codling moth larva. On the outside of the apple you see a small hole, a little blemish. But when you open the apple up it is ruined.
There are few experiences that equal biting into a crisp, flavorful apple, but few worse than finding half a worm in the remaining portion.
Sin we destroy you life from the inside out just like the codling moth larva, or apple worn. You might be able to hide the blemish from the rest of the world, but you are ruined on the inside just the same.
You know everyone who sees you is seeing a mask, because you are too guilty to show them the real you.
II. The Focus on Our Sin v. 9a
a. The confession of sin (If we confess our sin)
Confession of sin starts with our admission of sin. Forgiveness cannot occur without the acknowledgement that we have sinned.
NOT "IF"
Warren Wiersbe tells of a counselor who was trying to help a man who had come forward during an evangelistic meeting. "I’m a Christian," the man said, "but there’s sin in my life, and I need help." The counselor showed him 1 John 1:9 and suggested that the man confess his sins to God.
"O Father," the man began, "if we have done anything wrong--" "Just a minute!" the counselor interrupted. "Don’t drag me into your sin! My brother, it’s not ’if’ or ’we’—you’d better get down to business with God!"
The counselor was right.
(Bible Exposition Commentary - New Testament)
We must be honest with God and with ourselves!
b. The cleansing from sin (the blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth us from all sin)
Purifying Agent
The Apostle Paul writes about the empowering agent that enables the child of God to live that victorious life: Romans 8:9-11 says, "You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit, who lives in you." 1 John 1:9 says, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness." "Purify" (katharizo) in the spiritual sense is to cleanse from the pollution and guilt of sin.
The purifying work of the Holy Spirit is like the mother who was getting her four year old boy ready for church. She gave him a bath and got him all dressed up. She set him in front of the TV while she got herself ready and told him to keep his eyes focused on the TV.
The little boy became distracted by something outside and he went out to investigate it. In the process he fell down in the mud and wiped off his hands on the front of his pants. He scratches his nose and brushed the hair out of his eyes. In just a few seconds he found himself covered in mud from the top of his head to his toes.
Thinking nothing of his condition the dirty little boy went back and sat in front of the TV. Needless to say, mom was hurt and disappointed over the condition of her little boy. She informed him of his dirty condition and chastised him for his self-centeredness and for acting on his own accord. After his apology, mother forgave him and then got him cleaned up for church.
It is the same with the child of God. Even though his previous sins were washed clean by the blood of Christ, his sinful nature has a tendency to distract him from what he is supposed to be doing. Thus, he finds himself soiled once again. The Holy Spirit convicts him, God chastises him, as he repents, Jesus Christ forgives him and sends the Holy Spirit to clean him up so he can be effective in the true church.
III. The Forgiver of Our Sin v. 9b
a. His attributes (He is faithful and just)
Michelle Johnson writes, “Sometimes we need to take a look at where we’ve been with God to really understand His faithfulness and love for us. She was staying with her son at the hospital following a serious surgery. On that particular morning, she was exhausted by their stay, and her steps were slow as she walked to the cafeteria for breakfast. But while waiting on the elevator, she realized she was on the 6th floor. The view out the window of the concrete roof held special significance. It was one she’d seen many times before because it was the same view for the six weeks she had seen after her car wreck. The doctors said she'd never walk normally, she'd have arthritis within a year, and she'd have to have a hip replacement within 5 years. None of that happened. Thirty-five years later, the memories of God’s faithfulness during those days moved her to tears.
And then she writes, “Do you need a reminder of His faithfulness today? Wouldn’t it be cool if we could sit down with some of the men and women in the Bible and talk about their memories of times with God?
- Wouldn’t it be awesome to hear Joseph’s rendition of the events that took him from a dreary prison cell to the palace?
- Or…from Daniel as he told how a faithful God kept him alive and unharmed during an entire night in a den of lions?
- What if Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego could show us the clothes they wore in the fiery furnace—without a burn or scorch mark on them, or even the aroma of smoke…?
Sometimes in the busyness of life, we forget to remember His faithfulness.
Do you need to look back and remember what He’s done for you? Do you need to share those memories with your children, grandchildren or others who need to hear them? I’m so grateful I can look back and remember where I’ve been with Him—and know that the God who was faithful in the past will also be faithful in the future.
Every person who is truly saved can testify to the faithfulness of God.
b. His actions (to forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness)
Two wonderful things happen our lives when we confess of sins. First, they are forgiven! The Bible has much to say about forgiven sin.
Psalm 103:10-12 He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor punished us according to our iniquities. For as the heavens are high above the earth, so great is His mercy toward those who fear Him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us.
Isaiah 43:25 I, even I, am He who blots out your transgressions for My own sake; and I will not remember your sins.
Micah 7:18-19 Who is a God like You, pardoning iniquity and passing over the transgression of the remnant of His heritage? He does not retain His anger forever, because He delights in mercy. He will again have compassion on us, and will subdue our iniquities. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea.
WHAT DOES "ALL" MEAN?
I know people who are carrying around a load of guilt over the past and they're loaded down with this extra weight God doesn't want them to have.
I remember a lady in my church in Wiesbaden I'll call Jill. Jill had rebelled against her parents, had been on drugs, had had three abortions, had cheated on her previous husband resulting in their divorce, and before they had gotten saved had cheated on the husband she was now married to then. She was carrying a lot of guilt, and though she was now saved, she felt she had to atone for her past somehow by works and deeds for God. We all should work for God, but our motive should be to serve Him out of love, not out of guilt.
One day her husband asked me over to talk to her and him because they were having a lot of marital strife. I did and she told me about this awful load of guilt for past sins she was carrying around which had produced a lot of tension in her life that spread to her family.
We looked at scripture after scripture about God's forgiveness of our sins. But she just couldn't seem to feel forgiveness for her abortions. It wasn't until I quoted over and over to her 1 John 1:7, "...and the blood of Jesus Christ, God's Son, cleanses us from ALL sin." I said, "Jill, what does the word 'ALL' mean?" Suddenly the light of God's Word broke through and the tears of joy flowed, and her life was forever transformed. She learned how to serve out of joy and love, not out of guilt and shame.
If you're carrying a load of guilt, claim 1 John 1:9 and ask forgiveness of the Lord and if you've offended any person, go and make it right. Then you can experience the joy of forgiveness and peace and drop your burden! But never take up the burden of yesterday again, for it will just weigh you down from doing your duties today.
Second, what does the text mean when it says that He will “cleanse us from all unrighteousness?”
We needn’t be haunted by the sins of our past. The Bible assures us we received the precious blessings of God’s forgiveness and cleansing when we were saved. Being equipped with the knowledge of these blessings unburdens us of lingering fears about our sins. God took care of them all.
How about after we’re saved? We continue to experience God’s forgiveness and cleansing by confessing our sins to Him to restore our fellowship with God. And we can cooperate with His cleansing of our inward nature by His life by contacting Him in our spirit and enjoying His life in the Word.
Praise the Lord for God’s forgiveness and cleansing!
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