Class Lesson June 22, 2014

Start by believing. Then go beyond belief.

The Digital Age has produced huge amounts of information that have radically advanced human learning. The amount of knowledge available to us is mind-numbing. In fact, information is multiplying so rapidly that textbooks, how-to manuals, and even daily newspapers seem perpetually outdated. But what do we know about God? Are we advancing as rapidly in our knowledge of Him?

Do we really know God?



Your life won't change unless you do! 

“Beyond Belief” seeks to help us increase our knowledge of God by studying His character and moral attributes. But we don’t want to just know about God; we want to know Him intimately. We could spend a lifetime studying the character and attributes of God revealed in the Bible and still only begin to scratch the surface of understanding the sovereign God of all creation. Therefore, the lessons in this study will focus on six major attributes of God: His holiness, love, justice, forgiveness, wisdom, and faithfulness.






As we begin to understand what God is like and how He works in our lives, we will not only know God more, but we will also learn about ourselves and who we are in Christ.








Our fourth lesson in this series is entitled: "God is Forgiving"

 

God always forgives when I truly repent.

What's that old saying? “Forgive and Forget”

When is forgiving the hardest for you? Are there some things that you just can’t forgive?

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Sometimes forgiveness is hard – really hard.

• “She walked out on our kids and our 20-year marriage to do what she wanted to do.”
• “We trusted this advisor, and now our life savings and retirement are gone for good.”
• “He hurt my daughter.”
• “He opened fire in a school.”

Why should I forgive them for that?

These aren’t scenarios in which we expect to hear the word “forgiveness.” And why should we, especially if the person who did wrong isn’t sorry? We can’t forget. We can’t trust the person any longer, so why should we forgive?

One answer to that question is to remember how much God has forgiven us. He forgives us when we walk away. He forgives us when we squander and abuse all that He has given us. He forgives us when we hurt His children – those He loves.

Why is God forgiveness of us so crucial to our forgiveness of others?

The main point of lesson 4 is, “God always forgives when we truly repent.” Our God is rich in mercy and forgiveness. No matter what we have done, if we confess to Him and forsake our sin, He will forgive us. 



What are the requirements for forgiveness from Scripture? 

Because God hates sin, the price for forgiveness is high. Scripture gives the following requirements for forgiveness:

1. Sacrifice. Hebrews 9:22 says that "without the shedding of Blood, there is no forgiveness." In the Old Testament, a sacrifice of an unblemished lamb was required to satisfy God's wrath. Jesus, the sinless Son of God, died on the cross and became the ultimate sacrifice for sin. Jesus bought our forgiveness when he died on the cross. "For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God." (1 Peter 3:18a) "In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace." (Ephesians 1:7)
2. Forgiveness of others. Another requirement for forgiveness of sins in that we forgive others. 1 Corinthians 13:5 says that "real love keeps no record of wrongs." Remember that Proverbs 17:9 tells us that a real friend will forgive. God has also made forgiving others a requirement for receiving His forgiveness. "For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins." (Matthew 6:14,15) "Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ, God forgave you." (Ephesians 4:32)
3. Confession of sin. We must admit our sins to God if our relationship with Him is to be restored completely. Looking back at the real need for forgiveness, we see that unconfessed sin can separate us in our relationship with God. Confession is the way to restore that relationship with the Lord, remembering that it is for our own benefit that we confess to return to the Lord because He is faithful even when we are not (2 Timothy 2:13). "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness." (1 John 1:9)
4. Repentance. We must decide to change, to turn from our sins. "Therefore this is what the Lord says, 'If you repent, I will restore you that you may serve me.'" (Jeremiah 15:19a)

Pray Now: Thanking God for His forgiving nature. Confess that all people are in need of forgiveness – including everyone in this class. Ask that God’s Spirit would be present during the discussion and highlight specific areas of your lives in which repentance is needed. 




Who among us has not been affected by unforgiveness? Many of us have wronged someone else – intentionally or unintentionally – and though we may have sought forgiveness, it was not offered. Others have been so hurt by someone else that the idea of forgiving seems impossible. Fortunately, God is not like us. The Bible reveals to us a loving God whom we have wronged with our rebellion and sin, yet He offers us total forgiveness. 


What's Happening In Today's Lesson
The apostle John wrote the letter of 1 John to believers facing the attack of their faith by false teachers. He wrote to counteract the doctrinal, moral, and social fabrications proclaimed by those misguided teachers and to assure believers of the trustworthiness of the gospel they had first received. He included in his reassurance the reality that every person sins, but Christ’s work provides the means of restored fellowship with God. John wrote this letter to put believers back on track, to show the difference between light and darkness (truth and error), and to encourage the church to grow in genuine love for God and for one another. The main problem confronting the church at this time was declining commitment: many believers were conforming to the world’s standards, failing to stand up for Christ, and compromising their faith.

Read 1 John 1:5-2:2

I. WE NEED FORGIVENESS BECAUSE WE ARE SINFUL – 1 JOHN 1:5-8

5 Now this is the message we have heard from Him and declare to you: God is light, and there is absolutely no darkness in Him. 6 If we say, “We have fellowship with Him,” yet we walk in darkness, we are lying and are not practicing the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light as He Himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin. 8 If we say, “We have no sin,” we are deceiving ourselves, and the truth is not in us.



What are the contrasting themes here?

1. Light and Darkness
2. Lying and Truth

John wrote this letter to countered the false teachings that denied the reality of sin.

• John says that is we continue in sin, we can’t claim to belong to God. If we say we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and refusing to accept the truth. While we must be quick to rejoice in our salvation, we must keep in mind that sin is still very real in our lives.
• One of the first points John made here is that God is holy and we are not. God is “God is light, and in him is no darkness at all” (v.5). God has no sin and knows no sin. James declared the same thing when he said, “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change” (James 1:17). God is perfect in all His ways, thoughts, deeds, and words. On the other hand, we are not. And if we claim that we are, “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us” (v.8).
• John is clear that we have sin, and if we say we do not, we sin by doing so! We are a sinful people. We are, as Luther said, incurvatus in se; meaning we are curved in on ourselves. If we ever doubt this, we should just read Romans 7 where Paul said, “For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good. So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out” (Rom. 7:15-18). We must keep in mind that this was written after Paul had become a Christian. All of us can relate to this, which is why we so desperately need to seek God’s forgiveness all throughout the Christian life. The penalty of sin has been canceled, the power of sin has been broken, but the presence of sin remains.

Here John was confronting three claims of the false teachers:

1. Sin doesn’t break fellowship with God. That we can have fellowship with God and still walk in darkness. The false teachers denied that our sin breaks fellowship with God. False teachers who thought that the physical body was evil or worthless taught one of two approaches to behavior: either they insisted on denying bodily desires through rigid discipline, or they approved of gratifying every physical lust because the body was going to be destroyed anyway. Obviously the second approach was more popular! Here John is saying that no one can claim to be a Christian and still live in evil and immorality. We can’t love God and court sin at the same time.
2. People don’t have a sinful nature. That people had no natural tendency toward sin, that they were “without sin,” and that they were then incapable of sinning. This idea is at best self-deception and at worst a bald-face lie. The false teachers refused to take sin seriously. They wanted to be considered Christians, but they saw no need to confess and repent. The death of Christ did not mean much to them because they didn’t think they needed it. Instead of repenting and being purified by Christ’s blood, they were encouraging sin among believers. In this life we are always capable of sinning, so we should never let down our guard.
3. Our conduct isn’t sinful at all (1:10). That was a lie that ignored one basic truth: all people are sinners by nature and by practice. At conversion all our sins are forgiven – past, present, and future. Yet even after we become Christians, we still sin and still need to confess. 8 If we say, “We have no sin,” we are deceiving ourselves, and the truth is not in us.

These verses are all about having Fellowship with God.


What do you think it means to have fellowship with God?

• God gave our world the wonderful gift of friendship, but He gave Christians specifically the additional gift of fellowship. Fellowship goes far beyond friendship; it’s tied to something that unites us in a powerful way because of what we share in common. Fellowship points to the intimate spiritual connection between Christians – a connection that exists both in and through Jesus Christ.
• The opening verses of 1 John tie our fellowship with God and with His Son to the eternal life we have in Him (vv. 2-3). And here’s the interesting thing: if I have eternal life and fellowship with God, and you also have it, then we have fellowship with each other. With that in mind, how do we gain this fellowship with God? How do we access it? Only through the forgiveness that is available through Christ.
• John used the metaphor of “light” when writing about God. He described God as having “absolutely no darkness in Him,” which is reference to God’s perfection. Only God truly is perfect, and God’s perfection makes Him the embodiment of righteousness. As the Righteous One, He exists in unapproachable light.
• We are not perfect. Because we have sin in our lives, we are in darkness. And if we’re living in darkness, we cannot possibly be living in the light as well – not on our own. But the great news for us is that Christ removes our sin and forgives us. Consequently, He moves us away from darkness and into the light of God and fellowship with Him.
• The term fellowship refers to salvation itself (Greek: koinonia) is not a sub-category of salvation, as if some Christians have fellowship with God and other Christians do not. It refers to salvation itself and emphasizes the spiritual union and communion we have with God and His Son on the one hand, and with each other as believers on the other hand (1:3). The point of this verse is that some people claim to have fellowship with God or know God, but they really don’t – instead they are still in the dark.

Why do we need forgiveness to restore fellowship?

• Only God truly is perfect, and God’s perfection makes Him the embodiment of righteousness. As the Righteous One, He exists in unapproachable light.
• We are not perfect. Because we have sin in our lives, we are in darkness. And if we’re living in darkness, we cannot possibly be living in the light as well – not on our own.

“the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.”



How does Jesus’ blood purify us from every sin?

• In Old Testament times, believers symbolically transferred their sins to an animal, which they then sacrificed. The animal died in their place to pay for their sin and to allow them to continue living in God’s favor. God graciously forgave them because of their faith in Him, and because they obeyed His commandments concerning the sacrifice. Those sacrifices anticipated the day when Christ would completely remove sin. Real cleansing from sin came with Jesus, the “Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29). Sin, by its very nature, brings death – that is a fact as certain as the law of gravity. Jesus did not die for His own sins; He had none. Instead, by a transaction that we may never fully understand, He died for the sins of the world. When we commit our lives to Christ and thus identify ourselves with Him, His death becomes ours. He has paid the penalty for our sins, and His blood has purified us. Just as Christ rose from the grave, we rise to a new life of fellowship with Him (Romans 6:4).

II. WE RECEIVE FORGIVENESS THROUGH CONFESSION – 1 JOHN 1:9-2:1

9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say, “We don’t have any sin,” we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.

2 My little children, I am writing you these things so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ the Righteous One.


Rather than denying that we have any sin, John says that we should own our sin and confess it to God. The verse is worth reading again: “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (v.9). This is a glorious verse! God is promising to us that if we confess, that He will forgive. No matter what we bring to Him, He will forgive us. Now we must of course be careful not to take this to mean that we can abuse grace since “My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin” (2:1).



What is confession?

• It involves many things, but at its core, confession is a verbal recognition that we are wrong and that God is right. We are wrong in how we’ve spoken to our wives, related to our children, or treated our friends. And we bring this to God in prayer and ask Him to forgive us. This of course does not mean that if we die before we confess our sins that we will not enter Heaven. Rather John is showing us the pattern of the Christian life that is, we are to keep short accounts with God. Regular confession keeps us from walking too deeply into a particular sin.
• Confession is supposed to free us to enjoy fellowship with Christ. It should ease our consciences and lighten our cares. But some Christians do not understand how it works. They feel so guilty that they confess the same sins over and over; then they wonder if they might have forgotten something. Other Christians believe that God forgives them when they confess, but if they died with unconfessed sins, they would be forever lost. These Christians do not understand that God wants to forgive us. He allowed His beloved Son to die just so He could offer us pardon. When we come to Christ, He forgives all the sins we have committed or will ever commit. We don’t need to confess the sins of the past all over again, and we don’t need to fear that God will reject us if we don’t keep our slate perfectly clean. Of course we should continue to confess our sins, but not because failure to do so will make us lose our salvation. Our relationship with Christ is secure. Instead, we should confess so that we can enjoy maximum fellowship and joy with Him.
• True confession also involves a commitment not to continue in sin. We wouldn’t be genuinely confessing our sins to God if we planned to commit them again and just wanted temporary forgiveness. We should also pray for strength to defeat temptation the next time we face it. This kind of confession is not offered to gain God’s acceptance, but to remove the barrier to fellowship that our sin has put between us and Him.

It is difficult, however, for many people to admit their faults and shortcomings, even to God. It takes humility and honesty to recognize our weaknesses, and most of us would rather pretend that we are strong. But we need not fear revealing our sins to God – He knows them already. He will not push us away, no matter what we’ve done. Instead He will draw us to Himself.

Is there anything out there that is keeping you from repenting of your sin and seeking God’s forgiveness? What are your barriers to forgiveness?

What’s one step you can take to begin knocking down those obstacles and move toward forgiveness? _________________________




What is the third contrasting theme here?

3. Confessing sin and Denying sin

 


Commentary: The first four verses of 1 John form the Prologue and establish one of the two major truths in this epistle: the person of Christ. One of the fundamental and non-negotiable doctrines of the Christian faith is that Jesus Christ is the God-man – fully God and fully man. He was neither a humanized god nor a deified man. He is 100 percent God and 100 percent man.


Verse 5 introduces another key truth of the epistle. Now this is the message we have heard from Him and declared to you: God is light, and there is absolutely no darkness in Him. The existence, nature, and attributes of God are themes that permeate the Scriptures, and one of God’s attributes is that He is light. This refers to His hatred of sin and evil and His love of truth and righteousness. John’s style was that he often stated the same truth in two different ways, and he did so here by declaring that there is absolutely no darkness in Him. God never causes nor condones sin. He will judge all sins and often brings judgment against sin in this life.


John specifically addressed sin and salvation in verses 6-10. Each Greek verse begins with the word “If,” which introduces a conditional sentence. The string of conditional sentences begins with a negative, which also forms a warning to those who are guilty of doing this: If we say, “We have fellowship with Him,” yet we walk in darkness. The term fellowship (Greek: koinonia) is not a sub-category of salvation, as if some Christians have fellowship with God and other Christians do not. It refers to salvation itself and emphasizes the spiritual union and communion we have with God and His Son on the one hand, and with each other as believers on the other hand (1:3). The point of this verse is that some people claim to have fellowship with God or know God, but they really don’t – instead they are still in the dark.



Though many take darkness here in the sense of a sinful lifestyle, it is best to see it as the opposite of the light of the truth of the gospel. There are billions of people today who believe they can have a relationship with God without knowing and believing the truth about Jesus Christ. But Jesus clearly stated, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6).



John’s conclusion about those who are in darkness is that they are lying and are not practicing the truth. The deceitfulness of sin means people are prone to accept lies as truth in spiritual matters. The gospel states that all people are sinful and separated from God and that only faith in Christ provides salvation. People cannot save themselves through good works, but billions of people around the world deny this and live their lives as if they can earn salvation on their own.



Verse 7 contrast verse 6: But if we walk in the light as He Himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin. To walk in the light is to walk in the truth of the gospel as revealed by Jesus Himself, believing in Him as the only Savior. When we walk in the light in this way, we provide evidence that we enjoy fellowship with one another and that we have been cleansed by Jesus’ blood. We enjoy spiritual union and communion with each other only because of what Jesus did for us on the cross.



Verses 6-7 address contrasting themes: light verses darkness; similarly, verses 8-10 address contrasting themes: denial of sin verses confession of sin. Verses 8 and 10 refer to acts of sin and their consequent guilt. Verse 9 explains God’s provision through forgiveness and cleansing of sin.



Numerous modern religious views of God either downplay or deny that God judges sin because people believe that, since He is a loving God, He does not and will not punish sin. This is tantamount to saying that there’s no such thing as sin in the first place – and if there is no sin, then there is no reason for guilt. John denounced such false teachings in severe language. If we deny the reality of sin and the guilt that it causes, then we are deceiving ourselves, and the truth is not in us, and we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us. Few things could be worse than self-deception and calling God a liar!



The proper perspective on sin is to accept what God says about it. All sins are condemning sins and deserve God’s punishment. The gospel is the good news that God has provided a remedy for sin – the blood of Christ (v. 7). God forgives the sins of those who believe in Jesus Christ and Him alone for their salvation. Verse 9 explains that those who have been forgiven do not deny sin in their lives but openly admit that they are sinners: If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.



It was because of God’s mercy that Paul could say he was the worst of sinners, knowing that through the grace and love of God he had been saved (1 Tim. 1:12-16). God declares those who have faith in Jesus to be in a right relationship with Him, which includes the forgiveness of sins (Rom. 4:6-8). Forgiveness is something we have as believers, not something we try to attain (Eph. 1:7; Col. 1:14; 1 John 2:12). Forgiveness refers to the cancellation of a debt or legal obligation (Matt. 18:22-27; Luke 7:39-48). The debt we owe God because of sin is beyond our ability to pay. But God provided a way for the debt to be paid through the death of His Son. God always forgives the sins of those who believe in His Son, Jesus Christ, as Savior and Lord.







III. THE GOSPEL IS THE ONLY WAY TO FORGIVENESS – 1 JOHN 2:1-2

2 My little children, I am writing you these things so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ the Righteous One. 2 He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not only for ours, but also for those of the whole world.



Now that John has told us that we need forgiveness and how we receive forgiveness, he now tells us why this forgiveness is so readily available: the Gospel. Jesus Christ died in our place, rose in our place and is now our righteous advocate before the Father (2:1). He took away the wrath of God that we deserved since “He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world” (2:2).



This is why we can receive God’s abundant forgiveness and mercy. Jesus “was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification” (Rom. 4:25). Through His death and resurrection, we are now just as righteous as He is. So now when we ask for forgiveness, the answer is always yes. We must note here that the Gospel is not ground for free sin. Rather, it is a guarantee that our request for forgiveness is always met with a resounding yes.



John uses the address “dear children” in a warm, fatherly way. He is not talking down to his readers but is showing affection for them. At this writing, John was a very old man. He had spent almost all his life in ministry, and many of his readers were indeed his spiritual children.




If Christ’s forgiveness brings me into a relationship with God, what happens when I sin again?





How can we have fellowship with God?

1. When we live in His light.
2. Because of the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ.
3. Through His forgiveness of our sin and our being cleansed from all unrighteousness.

The Gospel and our security in Christ should drive us to confess and repent regularly. Will you lean on your Advocate and trust that He has secured your forgiveness?

John wrote these truths so that we “may not sin.” As Christians, we are not to live in a way that’s characterized by disobedience. Still, the tendency toward sin remains powerful, and because it’s embedded in our very nature, we still can – and do – sin (see Rom. 7:14-24).


So, back to our question: If Christ’s forgiveness brings me into a relationship with God, what happens when I sin again?


As believers, we still possess Christ’s forgiveness even when we sin. Jesus is our Advocate before the divine court of God. He is at the right hand of God interceding on our behalf (see Rom. 8:34). This results in salvation, of course, but it also means the availability of ongoing forgiveness. In Christ, we become recipients of God’s forgiveness, and we remain recipients of that forgiveness.


Earlier, I mentioned judicial forgiveness, which occurs once When God grants us salvation on the basis of the work of Christ. The second way to look at forgiveness could be called “parental forgiveness.” This aspect of forgiveness is required each time we sin.



When a child is disobedient, his relationship with his parents is affected, but he does not cease to be a son. Similarly, when we fall short of obeying God, our relationship with Him remains intact. Since Christians are God’s adopted children, He does not cease to be our Father, not does He disown us – although fellowship is broken.



We can return to full fellowship with God through confession and repentance (as we saw in 1 John 1:9). Jesus is ever our Advocate, lovingly standing on our behalf. We can be – and will be – forgiven by God each time we sin.



How do God’s character qualities (such as holiness, love, and justice) contribute to His forgiving nature?






How can people get out from under the burden of guilt after God has forgiven them?



Highlight the three culprits often to blame for our continuing guilt and shame:

1. Satan accuses us (see Rev. 12:10).
2. Others don’t forgive us.
3. We keep reminding ourselves of our past disobedience.

While the Spirit of God convicts believers of sin, His motive is to produce repentance. Since God completely forgives us, we should not allow the accusations of Satan, others, and ourselves to overshadow the truth of our good standing and forgiveness in Christ (see Rom. 8:31-34).



We can live free of those lies by living in the truth of God’s forgiveness.





Consider the two types of forgiveness God offers to us:

1. Judicial forgiveness. This occurs when God – acting as the Righteous Judge grants us salvation.
2. Parental forgiveness. This is what God grants us as His followers each time we sin.

Commentary: John’s purpose in writing to his little children was that you may not sin. Christians are not perfect or sinless people; we are forgiven people. We still struggle with sin, and John wanted to help his readers overcome the power of sin in their lives. He also wanted them to know that the forgiveness of sins is something that believers can constantly enjoy: if anyone does sin, we have an Advocate with the Father – Jesus Christ the Righteous One. After saving us, God does not hold us responsible to keep ourselves saved. No, He takes care of that, too. Jesus is our Advocate with the Father anytime we sin; stressing the price He has already paid that our current sin might be forgiven too. This should not promote a casual or indulgent attitude toward sin; rather, it should motivate us to serve our Savior and God with even greater zeal since He has provided forgiveness for all of the sins in our lives – past, present, and future.



The Greek word translated advocate was used in Greek society for someone who helped another in a legal case. None of the four uses of the term in John’s Gospel occur in legal contexts (each one refers to the Holy Spirit), but a heavenly court and judgment against sin fit the context of 1 John 2:1 in reference to Jesus as our advocate with the Father.



If anyone doubted that Jesus could be such an advocate for all of God’s people, John assured them that He is completely capable of doing so: He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not only for ours, but also for those of the whole world. Jesus died for Jews (not only for ours) and Gentiles (the whole world). The gospel originated among the Jews, but it began to spread after Jesus’ death and resurrection and after the coming of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost. It took several decades for the early church to spread the gospel from Jerusalem and Judea into Gentile lands, but by the end of the first century the spread of the gospel had largely become a Gentile movement, though a remnant of Jewish believers has existed in every generation since then. The New Testament consistently emphasized that the gospel would break down barriers between the two since God is the God of both and Jesus is the Savior of both.



Jesus Christ, and Jesus Christ alone, is the Savior of both Jews and Gentiles because only He is the propitiation for our sins. The Greek word used here and the related word Paul used in Romans 3:25 refer to a sacrifice that turns aside or appeases divine wrath. Our sins deserve the wrath of God – eternal punishment in the flames of hell. But Jesus, through His own death on the cross, paid the penalty of our sins and appeased God’s wrath against us. Only Jesus, the God-man, could have done this for sinful humanity. No wonder Jesus is the only Savior and the greatest proof that God is forgiving!



What are some lasting truths from 1 John 2:1-2?

1. Believers may not have a lifestyle of sin, but they still will occasionally sin.
2. When we sin, Christ, who atoned for our sin, stands as our Advocate before the Father.
3. Because of the atoning work of Christ, forgiveness is always available.
4. Christ’s atonement is sufficient for the sins of the whole world; therefore, anyone can believe and receive the eternal life He offers.

Live it Out

How will you respond to God’s offer of forgiveness?

1. Step back for a self-evaluation. As you pray this week, ask the Holy Spirit to reveal any areas of unconfessed sin in your life. Confess those sins in that moment.

2. Let go of false guilt. Seek out areas in your life where you are living under false guilt for sins already forgiven. Choose to believe and accept God’s offer of forgiveness.

3. Forgive when it hurts. Be intentional about forgiving those who have wronged you – even if you don’t want to. Remember that your forgiveness can point others to the ultimate forgiveness in Christ.

You’ve broken God’s rules – a lot. But your fellowship with Him doesn’t have to remain broken. Seek Him and you will find true forgiveness and full restoration. 

 

God through Christ’s work on the cross makes it possible for all who believe to come into right relationship with Him. The New Testament uses several words to describe this onetime event – words like salvation, justification, redemption, reconciliation, and more. After all, how can such a glorious event be captured in a single word! This saving event is complete, permanent, and eternal in its effect.



Yet, after salvation, we still commit sins, not as a lifestyle but as a result of leaning on our own spiritual strength rather than on the abiding presence of the Holy Spirit. However, these sinful acts do not cause us to lose our salvation. They do cause a break in our fellowship with God, just as a rebellious child breaks fellowship with his or her parents. The breach in fellowship can be restored by our confessing our sin to God. In response, God forgives our sin and restores us to fellowship with Him. This too was made possible through Christ, who stands as our Advocate before the Father and whose atoning sacrifice is the grounds for forgiveness.



Sometimes it is difficult to forgive those who wrong us. Imagine how hard it would be to forgive everyone, no matter what they had done! This is what God has done in Jesus. No one, no matter what he or she has done, is beyond forgiveness. All a person has to do is turn from his or her sin, receive Christ’s forgiveness, and commit his or her life to Him.



How can you be sure that you belong to Christ?

If you do what Christ says and live as Christ wants. What does Christ tell us to do? John answers in 3:23 – “to believe in the name of His Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another.” True Christian faith results in loving behavior; that is why John says that the way we act can give us assurance that we belong to Christ.

Prayer of Commitment

Gracious Father, thank You for Jesus through whom we have forgiveness for sins. Amen.

This lesson answers some of the questions we had last week at the close of the lesson - like "Once Saved, Always Saved."

Hope to see you this Sunday!

In His Love,

David & Susan




Added Commentary:


What is a definition for forgiveness?
A definition for forgiveness could be -- giving up my right to hurt you, for hurting me. It is impossible to live on this fallen planet without getting hurt, offended, misunderstood, lied to, and rejected. Learning how to respond properly is one of the basics of the Christian life.
The word “forgive” means to wipe the slate clean, to pardon, to cancel a debt. When we wrong someone, we seek his or her forgiveness in order for the relationship to be restored. It is important to remember that forgiveness is not granted because a person deserves to be forgiven. Instead, it is an act of love, mercy, and grace.
How we act toward that person may change. It doesn't mean we will put ourselves back into a harmful situation or that we suddenly accept or approve of the person's continued wrong behavior. It simply means we release them from the wrong they committed against us. We forgive them because God forgave us (Ephesians 4:31-32 and Romans 5:8). What does God say about forgiveness? The Bible gives us much instruction when it comes to forgiveness.

• We forgive because we have been forgiven by God (Ephesians 4:32).
• We forgive in obedience to God (Matthew 6:14-15; Romans 12:18).
• We forgive others to gain control of our lives from hurt emotions (Genesis 4:1-8).
• We forgive so we won’t become bitter and defile those around us (Hebrews 12:14-15).

What if I don’t feel like forgiving others?


There are times we don’t feel like forgiving those who have wronged us. It is easier to act our way into feeling than to feel our way into acting. Having a nature of not forgiving others brings about bitterness, and bitterness has been linked to stress-related illnesses by some medical researchers. By forgiving others, we free ourselves spiritually and emotionally. Forgiveness is an act of our own personal will in obedience and submission to God’s will, trusting God to bring emotional healing.
How can I help those struggling with forgiveness?

People who have experienced abuse, trauma, or loss need time to sort things out and let God bring them to the place of forgiveness in His time. God’s timing is always the right time for each individual. The act of forgiving others is between us and God. The only time we need to forgive a person face-to-face is at the moment we are asked by that person to forgive them for the hurt they have caused.
There are things we can do to help those struggling with the forgiveness of others. We can support them with encouraging words and by listening to them. Taking our time and being gentle with them will allow them to progress through the steps of forgiveness the way God wants them to proceed.







God's Forgiveness - What's Required?


The Bible gives us the costly requirement for God's forgiveness: "Without the shedding of Blood, there is no forgiveness" (Hebrews 9:22). In the Old Testament, the continual sacrifices of unblemished lambs were required to satisfy God's wrath and judgment. However, Jesus Christ, the Son of God, died on a Roman cross and became the ultimate, once-and-for-all sacrifice for our sins. Jesus purchased God's forgiveness on our behalf when he became the Lamb of God and died on the cross for you and me.
"For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God" (1 Peter 3:18). "In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace" (Ephesians 1:7).


God's Forgiveness - He Paid the Price Himself


God hates sin, but He loves the sinner. The price for God's forgiveness is high, but He paid the price Himself. By Christ's loving act of grace, believers are eternally freed from the penalty and guilt of sin. Once we're covered by the Blood of Christ, God doesn't keep a record of our sins. Our forgiveness is total and complete.
"Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, who sins are covered. Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord doesn't count against him and in whose spirit is no deceit" (Psalm 32:1-2). "I, even I, am he who blots out your transgressions, for my own sake, and remembers your sins no more" (Isaiah 43:25). "It is possible for the Lord to look at us without seeing our sins because when he forgave us, he removed our sins as far as the east is from the west" (Psalm 103:12).

God's Forgiveness - Once and for All!


A believer receives God's forgiveness when he repents of sin and places his faith in Jesus Christ for salvation -- all of his sins are forgiven forever. That includes past, present and future, big or small. Jesus died to pay the penalty for all of our sins, and once they are forgiven, they are all forgiven (Colossians 1:14; Acts 10:43). However, when we stumble, we are called to confess our sins - "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:9). Yes, Christians do sin (1 John 1:8) - but the Christian life is not to be identified by a life of sin. Believers are a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17). We have the Holy Spirit in us producing good fruit (Galatians 5:22-23). A Christian life should be a changed life. A person who claims to be a believer yet continually lives a life that says otherwise should question the genuineness of his faith. Christians are forgiven no matter how many times they sin, but at the same time, Christians should live a progressively more holy life as they grow closer to Christ.
Christians continue to sin after they are saved - we will not be free from sin until we die or Jesus comes back. However, becoming a Christian results in a changed life (2 Corinthians 5:17). A person will go from producing the acts of the flesh (Galatians 5:19-21) to producing the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23). This change does not happen instantly, but it does happen over time. Paul tells us, "And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God" (1 Corinthians 6:11).