Chapter # 2 Paragraph # 1 Study # 4
June 11, 2019
Moss Bluff, Louisiana
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Thesis:   "Forgiveness of sins" is a far more potent concept than what is presented throughout the culture of modern day "Christendom".

Introduction:   In our study last time, we put the focus of our thinking upon the declaration by Mark that Jesus "saw their faith" as a statement of the "human" side of the promise that "repentance will result in the forgiveness of sins". In that study we noted that, as we would expect, the concept of "faith" is greatly distorted and confused in our day (we do, after all, have a wily adversary who always "goes for the jugular" by corrupting the very meaning of words so that we cannot understand if we do not have a legitimate definition in mind). Secondly, we argued that the very first issue of "faith" is "content" (without a commitment from God, rooted in either His character, or, more characteristically, His words, there can be no "faith"). Thirdly, we saw that "faith" in the Bible always produces a response by God in harmony with His promise(s), so that if the thing "believed" does not come to pass, "faith" was not involved. And, something we did not discuss, but is helpful in understanding, is the fact that the "response by God" is sometimes "outside" of the actions of the "believer" and sometimes it is "within" the believer unto his/her actions.

This evening we are going to look a bit closer at the "divine side" of the larger issue. The larger issue is the intention of God in making both "repentance" and "forgiveness of sins" key aspects of one issue: the reunion of God and man in harmonious relationship across the board in terms of both "love" as the key "agenda" word and "faith" as the key "methodology" word. For man to be "reconciled to God" he has to accept the "Love" of God as his "agenda-guide" and the "Truth" of God as his "pursuit-method".

Thus, the "divine" side is "forgiveness of sins" as the pump-priming element for living in the "Life" of God.

• I. The Presentation of "Forgiveness of Sins" as The Response of God to "Repentance" Demands That There Be a Legitimate Grasp of What "Forgiveness of Sins" Actually Means.
  • A. The first issue is the root of "Divine Forgiveness" as "Grace".
    • 1. This is the massively overlooked foundation for God's response to "repentance".
    • 2. "Grace" is not a benign, passive response by God to an "apology".
      • a. First, because "repentance" is not fundamentally expressed as "an apology".
      • b. Second, because "Grace" is not fundamentally a passive acquiescence to a request for an acceptance of an apology.
      • c. Third, because "Grace" is "divine provision in action to correct whatever it is in man that sponsors his 'sins'".
  • B. The second issue is the inescapable consequences that forgiveness imposes on both "Forgiver" and "Forgiven".
    • 1. "Forgiveness" by the "Forgiver" inescapably imposes the "absorption of the results of the sinful action" of the one seeking to be forgiven upon the one to whom he turns for "forgiveness" (Matthew 18:27; the "forgiver" will never see the debt paid and knows that so that he simply absorbs the loss).
    • 2. "Forgiveness" for the "Forgiven" inescapably imposes the "necessity of the same willingness to absorb" upon the "Forgiven" (Matthew 18:35).
      • a. This does not contradict "Grace" because the Bible clearly teaches that "Grace" requires nothing on the "front end", but settles "obligation" upon the recipient on the "back end".
      • b. The issue of "Grace" is not the presence or absence of "obligation"; it is the question of how the obligation is to be met (Will the "flesh" have to come up with the required obligation, or will "God" come up with the required obligation?).
  • C. The third issue is the actual intention of God in extending "forgiveness of sins" to the "repentant".
    • 1. This intention is to bring "harmony" back into the relationship so that both "Love" and "Faith" are embraced by both "sinner" and "victim".
    • 2. This intention is to provide a sufficient motivation in the "sinner" to seek the "grace" of God in addressing the root(s) of the "sins" so that they are actively "uprooted" as motivations for actions taken.
• II. The Presentation of "Forgiveness of Sins" as The Response of God to "Repentance" Demands That There Be a Legitimate Grasp of Who is to be Forgiven.
  • A. There is a massive deception that exists as "true doctrine" in visible Christendom today: the idea that every sinner is to be "forgiven" without regard for any other issue.
  • B. The "biblical" reality is that "forgiveness is never, ever presented in Scripture apart from genuine repentance".
    • 1. Any text that urges "forgiveness" without mentioning the pre-requisite is simply assuming that no sane person thinks there is no pre-requisite.
    • 2. Most texts that actually do urge "forgiveness" also "set the stage" by presenting the pre-requisite.

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This is article #080.
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