By Emmett Rushing
Hebrews 10:14-17 says very simply, quoting the Old Testament – “Their sins and lawless acts I will remember no more.”
Of all things we want to know we want to know we’ve been forgiven. Sin raises up psychological barriers between God and man, the 3 D’s – doubt, discouragement and despair.
The Bible deals with this under such terms as Justification. This is where the believer’s sins have been forgiven for Christ’s sake, where we have been made righteous through Him (1 Corinthians 1:30). This leads to a condition of GRACE and that is quite a word, no wonder we renamed our church after it. Think of GRACE this way:
G-R-A-C-E = God’s Riches (for us) At Christ’s Expense
Romans 5:8 says while we were still sinners Christ died for us – forgiveness came with a very expensive price tag, as we see in Romans 5:17.
Ephesians 1:2 shows that the gift involved peace of mind – who doesn’t want that? We don’t have to be looking back over our shoulders at the guilty past any longer.
God makes sons of God out of sons of clay – his new creation, which was worth so much to God that he did not hesitate, in Jesus, to pay the ultimate price for our redemption.
Ephesians 1:10 confirms that the verdict of “not guilty” has been pronounced upon not just the church but the whole human race. It says God will reconcile all the stray parts of the creation under the Headship of Jesus Christ. Isn’t that good news?
Our forgiveness in Christ brings us many great and precious benefits that as Christians we need to remember. Often. Here are some of them:
You become a Christian – a lifelong disciple
His Spirit is united with your spirit (Romans 8:11)
You are now one with Christ, a temple for God to dwell (1 Corinthians 3:16)
We have already passed from death to life (1 John 3:14)
You are now a child of God, an heir of all things (Galatians 4:1)
You already died with Christ and have escaped sin’s claim (Colossians 3:3)!!
You are now seated in the heavenly places in Christ (Ephesians 2:6)
We have escaped all condemnation (Romans 8:1)
We have a house not made with hands waiting for us (2 Corinthians 5:1)
Such blessings are ours because they are confirmed for us in Christ, the Author and Finisher of our salvation. Thanks be to God for his forgiveness – God’s Riches at Christ’s Expense.