How Does Jesus Forgive?

 

“Forgive Like Jesus Forgives.” These were the words on a roadside billboard.

I couldn’t help but wonder how many people know much about how Jesus forgives. In order for Him to forgive us we must confess and repent of our sin. Real repentance will include restitution when it’s required. And, He considers how we forgive others before forgiving us.

In our culture we have been slowly but surely replacing confession, restitution, and repentance with a simple acknowledgment of our sin. We see it and are willing to call it “a mistake,” “a lapse in judgment” or an “error.” People usually see no need to confess or repent of things so trivial.

It isn’t unusual to hear a professing Christian woman say that she is “a rebel,” laughing as though this is just fine with God and an excuse for her sinful attitudes or behaviors. Under what conditions does Jesus forgive a mocking, rebellious person?

There is currently a very popular teaching that Jesus “loves” unconditionally. Many believe this and extend it to Jesus “forgives” unconditionally.  These are errors. From His own Scriptures, look at these “conditions”:

• For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. Matthew 6:14-15
• But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses. Mark 11:26
• And Jesus answered and said to them, “Do you suppose that these Galileans were worse sinners than all other Galileans, because they suffered such things? I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish.” Luke 13:2-3
• Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:38

Knowing that we must repent of our sin and also forgive others, we have to add what we know to be true about God. The truth from Psalm 86:15: “But You, O Lord, are a God full of compassion, and gracious, Longsuffering and abundant in mercy and truth.”

He is patient. He will prompt us and convict us of our sin out of a desire to bring us to repentance so we can be right before Him. This is the grace of God that He extends to us in an act of His mercy, and sometimes His fury, so we will understand the seriousness of our sin.

If our attitude is that we have made a mistake or that we have experienced a momentary lapse of judgment that “a loving God will understand,” we are in trouble. We are in trouble because He does understand that our desire to please ourselves is greater than our desire to please Him.

He has been communicating this truth to His people for a very long time. The Word of the Lord came to Ezekiel through whom He said, “Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways,” says the Lord GOD. “Repent, and turn from all your transgressions, so that iniquity will not be your ruin” (Ezekiel 18:30).

The billboard I mentioned above struck me because I fear it taps into the idea of Christ’s “unconditional” love and forgiveness.  Perhaps if it had said, “Repent and Be Forgiven by Jesus,” I would have found it more palatable.

If we would “forgive like Jesus forgives,” a lot more people would be hearing the Gospel and not just acknowledging or even confessing their sin, but repenting of it. Maybe the area with the billboard has many Christians who do know how Jesus forgives but it is infrequently taught.

By all means we should obey Christ in forgiving others, let’s just make sure that it is not how “we think” He forgives but what the scriptures say about how He forgives.