New Cleansing: Full & Final Forgiveness in Christ

I was ignorant about babies when we had our first. I quickly realized that a baby ate, slept…and eliminated toxic waste! The first two were easy to enjoy…the last one took determined effort to cope with stinky diapers. But our precious infants would have died without the ability to eliminate toxins and waste. It’s the same in the spiritual realm.

Through our faith-response to His death and shed blood on the cross, Jesus removes every last barrier that had hindered us from rushing into the Father’s presence to experience refreshing times. This instantaneous act of forgiveness removes our guilt and shame. It’s so mind-boggling that God seemingly exhausts language to describe its monumental scope.

Read Psalm 103:12 several times. How far is the east from the west?

 

If you travel due north, eventually you will cross over the North Pole and go south. If you journey continuously east, however, you will never reach west. What is God saying? When we come to Christ, He fully forgives all our sins, past, present and future. He removes our sins as far as east from west, an infinite distance from us. He never treats or repays His redeemed people as our sins deserve. His mercy triumphs.

How forgiven are we as His people?

 

Be amazed! God hides my sins behind His back where He cannot see them (Is. 38:17b). My sins are made as white as newly fallen snow and freshly sheared wool (Is. 1:18). God blots out my sins from the record book (Is. 43:25). My sins have disappeared like the morning mist is dissipated by the first warm rays of the sunrise (Is. 44:22). My sins have been hurled into the deepest sea and God has posted a “No Fish’n” sign (Micah 7:19).

Early on my Christian journey, my many failures (the “gap”) spiraled me down…until I grasped what Jesus had already done to forgive every one of my sins. The Lord Jesus Christ died in our place on the cross, as our substitute, His life for ours. He took once for all time all the punishment for every one of your sins and mine. He removed forever all ground for guilt/shame from my separation, bringing my toxic waste to the cross. Forgiveness restores our original Eden open access into the Father’s presence. Any other view of our good God is a false image.

Yet evidence of unforgiveness lies strewn around us. Thin skin, raw emotions, easily offended, blame shifting, unhealed wounds. Jesus completed His part. Have we fully embraced our own forgiveness? Do we believe God here (Rom 8:34) or our accusing enemy (Rev. 12:10)? So forgiveness is based on Christ’s works and merit, not on our religious works, thank God. So keep short accounts with God to enjoy relationship with Him. Yes, Jesus both paid it all and we must respond (1 John 1:9).

This is Reflection #11 in my book, Foundation Stones. I also have a web-site with tools, books and "more than Bible studies" that have helped me to live out of this spiritual DNA, www.JimFredericks.com