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The Great Blessing (and Practice) of Coming to God for Forgiveness as A Way of Life


 One of the many reasons Christians or believers or disciples of Jesus are happy, positive, secure and thankful people is because we have come to know God as One who is good and glad to forgive our sins. This even though He is a holy and righteous God – absolutely morally perfect and pure as the driven snow. Have you come to know Him as such?

 

Early in the prophet Isaiah’s life and ministry God gave him an unforgettable encounter in the temple wherein Isaiah saw both the Lord in all of His glory and six Seraphim standing above the Lord crying out to one another these words, “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord of hosts, The whole earth is full of His glory.”  (see Isaiah 6:1-3)

 

God as the holy God that He is has allowed evil to remain in the world, but He (unlike us) has never been affected by it. As the prophet Habakkuk declared, “Your eyes are too pure to approve (look at) evil, And You cannot look on wickedness with favor…” Habakkuk 1:13                        

 

The great leader and priest, Ezra, saw the holiness and righteousness of God, and drew the conclusion that we all should draw in light of it, O Lord God of Israel, You are righteous,…behold we are before You in our guilt, for no one can stand before You because of this.” Ezra 9:15 

 

The reality is we are all born with sinful natures and we sin often. This was Isaiah’s conclusion after he saw the Lord and his attending Seraphim in the temple, “Woe is me for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips…” Isa. 6:5  

 

The apostle Paul, who saw the brilliance and purity of the blinding light of God on the Damascus road, declared, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” Romans 3:23. We were created and called to reflect this glory, but we have all failed to do so. 

 

Later to the church at Ephesus, Paul reminded the believers there, “among them we too …were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest.” Ephesians 2:3   This means we not only sin, but we are at the very core of our nature – sinners.

 

Thus John the apostle declares unequivocally to the churches he was ministering to from afar, “If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us.”  I John 1:8

 

There are lots of ways this important truth is discovered. One is by encounters such as Isaiah and Paul had. Another is by hearing these truths taught (or by reading them). Some have encounters with God, dreams, visions or angelic encounters. Some of us had to experience the awful consequences of our sins. Ultimately however it comes, seeing and accepting that we are sinners much in need of the forgiveness and mercy of this holy God is a great blessing.

 

But an even greater blessing is knowing and experiencing God as the merciful, forgiving and loving God that He is. This is such great news, especially for those of us who have perhaps seen for the first time just how corrupt and defiled our sinful natures are.

 

For instance, King David, who was no stranger to personal sin or to the pain of it declared, “For You, Lord, are good, and ready to forgive, And abundant in lovingkindness to all who call upon You.”  Psalm 86:5           When the accuser of the brethren reminds you of your sins, especially those you have asked forgiveness for and then gone on and repeated them perhaps time after time after time, you must stand on the fact that He is more than ready to forgive you. And His lovingkindness is “abundant”. The K.J. translates this “plenteous in mercy” – never ever running out!

 

Had King David not believed these truths for himself, (despite the devil’s lies) he would never have gone on to write, “The Lord is gracious and merciful; Slow to anger and great in lovingkindness.” Psalm 145:8

Please remember that Christ died for you when you wanted nothing to do with Him. Now that you belong to Him, will He not forgive?? “But God demonstrates His own love towards us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8 And one of the primary things He suffered so greatly for us is that we might be forgiven of all of our sins, “In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace which He lavished on us.” Eph. 1:7,8  Let’s not make light of things He specifically died for us to enjoy.

So how are you doing at coming to God with your sins and banking on His forgiveness? You do realize you are commanded to do so don’t you? 

Isaiah out of a lifetime of serving a wonderfully forgiving God urged, “Let the wicked forsake his way And the unrighteous man his thoughts; And let him return to the Lord, And He will have compassion on him, And to our God, For He will abundantly pardon.”  Isaiah 55:7

 

Our Lord Jesus, in seeking to help His disciples learn to pray as a way of life, taught them to ask for forgiveness also as a way of life, “Pray then in this way: Our Father who is in heaven….And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.”  Matthew 6:9, 12

 

And the apostle John points us all to the utter faithfulness and righteousness of God to fulfill His word and many promises to forgive us when we humbly come to Him, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”  I John 1:9

 

I leave you with some of my favorite promises for the great blessing of being constantly and regularly forgiven for our sins. The first two from King David, whose sins were great, but never too great. And then from his son Solomon, who learned this both from his father and from his own experience:

How blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, Whose sin is covered!” Psalm 32:1

 

As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us.”  Psalm 103:12

 

He who conceals his transgressions will not prosper, But he who confesses and forsake them will find compassion.” Proverbs 28:13

 

May you never hesitate to come to our great God and Savior for His wonderful promise of forgiveness for all of our sins.

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