Archive for the ‘forgiviness’ Category

Forgiveness (Be Careful when you say I am not going to forgive you)

Posted: August 29, 2020 in Forgiveness, forgiviness, Forgiving Others, Grace, Uncategorized
Tags: ,
0

Under Gods Command

Mathews 6:14-15 For it you forgive others for their transgressions (Sins), your heavenly Father will also forgive you.  15 But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions. 

Ephesians 4:32 Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you. 

Jesus said if we forgive someone, then the Lord will forgive us. Jesus compares the two types of forgiveness. God’s forgiveness of us is dependent on our forgiving others. As we try to understand Jesus’ words, we must first remember that we have no power over the eternal fate of another person, for Christ alone is our Judge:

We know Jesus was not asking us to forgive someone from the penalty of their sin in eternity for only God can do that. The only kind of forgiveness we can extend to another person is the rebuilding of our earthly fellowship with that person. So, when Jesus asks us to forgive another, He must be speaking in terms of earthly relationships, not eternal outcomes.

If a believer forgives in this way, Jesus says God will forgive us. From the context, the proper interpretation is that God will forgive us in the same way He asks us to forgive others: by restoring fellowship with us. Once again, Jesus is speaking in terms of earth consequences and earthly forgiveness. The Lord will forgive us from the earthly consequences of our sins provided we are willing to show forgiveness to others (which is a part of our mission to show the love of Christ to the world).

The Bible teaches that our sins after faith may still bring us earthly consequences. The Lord may choose to bring discipline against us for our sin, which the Bible calls the discipline of the Lord. Discipline is intended by God to drive us back into a godly walk with Him:

By not forgiving others, we deny our common ground as sinners in need of God’s forgiveness and we break the family relationship God wants us to have with all people.  Our salvation from sin is not based on our forgiving others, but we cannot receive God’s forgiveness until we realize what forgiveness really means.

Lets Bring it Home: We can easily ask God for forgiveness for ourselves but then had on to grudges toward others who are difficult to forgive.  Whenever we ask God to forgive us for sin, we should first ask ourselves if we have forgiven the people who have wronged us.

Spiritual Training 23 April 2015

Posted: April 23, 2015 in forgiviness, Holy Spirit, leviticus, restoration
Tags: ,
0

Under Gods Command (Book of Leviticus)

Leviticus 6:12-13 The fire on the altar must be kept burning; it must not go out. Every morning the priest is to add firewood and arrange the burnt offering on the fire and burn the fat of the fellowship offerings on it.

13The fire must be kept burning on the altar continuously; it must not go out. The Grain Offering    

While the previous offerings and sacrifices were ones that the people did, the section from 6:8–7:38 deals with general and continual priestly duties. The burnt offering was presented in the morning and evening for the whole nation (see Exodus 29:38-43). The holy fire on the altar had to keep burning because God had started it. This represented God’s continual presence in the sacrificial system. It showed the people that only by God’s gracious favor could their sacrifices be acceptable.

Lets Bring it Home: God’s fire is present in each believer’s life today. He lights the fire when the Holy Spirit comes to live in us, and he tends it so that we will grow in grace as we walk with him. When we are aware that God lives in us, we have confidence to come to him for forgiveness and restoration. We can carry out our work with strength and enthusiasm.