The issue of forgiveness always seems to bring out the gray areas in life. When someone wrongs us, the tendency is to hold a grudge. It is natural for us to want to get back at those who have wronged us. It is also natural to just “sweep it under the rug” and “get on with life” when we have wronged others.
In John 10:10, Jesus said that He had come to give anyone and everyone who trusts and follows Him abundant life… life to the fullest… life the way God intended it to be lived. One of the key elements to this abundant life is forgiveness. Without forgiveness, one cannot fully experience this abundant life.
Jesus’ Teachings on Forgiveness
If you were to examine all of the teachings of Jesus, it would not take long to see that the message of forgiveness was one that was close to His heart.
And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. (Matthew 6:12 CSB)
So if you are offering your gift on the altar, and there you remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled with your brother or sister, and then come and offer your gift. (Matthew 5:23-24 CSB)
In Matthew 18:21-35, Peter asks a question about how many times we should forgive those who wrong us. Jesus shares a parable to show that if we do not forgive others, then we do not understand the forgiveness that has been shown to us.
Since the issue of forgiveness was so important to Jesus, it should be important to us. With this in mind, where does this forgiveness come from?
Three Types of Forgiveness
1. Forgiveness from God
In order to extend the forgiveness that the Bible talks about, we must first experience it ourselves. The Bible is clear that we need the forgiveness of God.
For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. (Romans 3:23 CSB)
It is easy to agree with that statement. We all have our mistakes. We all know that we are not perfect. The problem is that our “mistakes” have created a separation between us and the goodness of God.
For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:23 CSB)
Every single human being that has ever lived on this earth has sinned against God. The payment for that sin is death – separation from the goodness of God. We can see that we have a great need to be forgiven by God because nothing that we can do on our own can ever bridge the gap between us and God.
The amazing thing about God’s forgiveness is that it is a full forgiveness. It deals with all of our sin – past, present, and future. It is also a free forgiveness. It is not dependent upon us being good enough to receive it. Jesus paid the high price for forgiveness to come to us. It is also a fast forgiveness. God doesn’t say that we have to clean up and get right to earn His forgiveness. Jesus told the criminal on the cross beside Him that on that day the criminal would be with Jesus in paradise (Luke 23:43).
2. Forgiveness with Others
The second type of forgiveness that we see in the Bible is the forgiveness that we extend to those who wrong us or receive from those we have wronged.
In the Parable of the Unforgiving Slave (Matthew 18:23-35), Jesus shares that a person who does not give forgiveness to others or seek forgiveness from others is one that does not understand the wonderful gift that has been given to them.
When a person chooses not to forgive, they are choosing to become a slave to that person. We are told in the Bible that we are to be slaves to God not any man (Romans 6:22).
Forgiving another does not mean that you are to forget what happened. The deal of “forgive and forget” is bunk. Forgiveness is the releasing of the right that you have to get back at the one who wronged you and giving the God of justice to what is best.
When we withhold forgiveness from others or refuse to at least to attempt to make things right with those we’ve wronged, then we are placing a barrier in our life that keeps us from experiencing the abundant life that Jesus came to give us.
3. Forgiveness of Self
One of the most common overlooked areas of forgiveness is the area of forgiving yourself. When we blow it, we can run to God, confess that sin and receive His forgiveness. We might even go to the person that we wronged and receive their forgiveness. We might even extend forgiveness to those who have wronged us. When it comes to looking in the mirror, we tend to be our most critical judge.
As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. (Psalm 103:12 CSB)
God is trying to teach us that when He forgives something, we should also.
It is interesting that the Psalmist uses the phrase “as far as the east is from the west”. Why did the author not say, “north from south”? The reason is that when you travel north, you will come to a point where north ends and the southern direction begins. When you travel east, you will never encounter a western direction.
If God has removed the wrong like that, who are we to hold on to it? If we have received forgiveness from God, we have no reason to continue to beat ourselves up over it. It is gone… done… dealt with.
Forgiveness is truly a delicate issue. It brings up many scars and wounds that we would rather not deal with. While it is a touchy subject, it is something that must be in our lives for us to experience the abundant life that Jesus came to give us.
What type of forgiveness do you need to deal with today?
