Knowing the Truth concerning God’s Forgiveness

Have you ever wondered whether God really forgave you of all the sins you committed before you were saved? Or worried that God didn’t forgive you of a particular sin you committed after you were saved?

Sometimes we may feel forgiven, but other times we may not. Sometimes we may think we’re forgiven, but other times we’re convinced we’re not. But being forgiven by God isn’t based on what we feel or think. The fact of God’s forgiveness is based on His sure Word. 

We must have a clear understanding and strong assurance of God’s forgiveness as it applies to both the sins we committed before we were saved and those we commit after. In this post, we’ll discuss some key verses to see this great matter in the Bible. This will rescue us from all unsettling doubts and fears and help us progress in our Christian life.

What does it mean to be forgiven by God?

As a result of the fall of man, we’re all sinful. Our transgressions, evil deeds, and sinful living create a problem between us and God that we can’t solve on our own. And as sinners, we’re condemned to death according to God’s righteous judgment. 

But in His wonderful salvation, Christ came as the Lamb of God to die as our Substitute on the cross. He fully paid the price for our sins and redeemed us back to God. When we heard this good news, we repented and believed in Jesus as our Savior. At that time, God forgave us of all our sins that we had previously committed.

So what does it mean to be forgiven? Several words in Greek, the original language of the New Testament, are used for forgive and forgiveness. One of these, aphiemi, literally means to cause to depart. Another, aphesis, means to send away. God’s forgiveness means He causes the sins we committed to depart from us and sends them away; they are no longer with us.

To see how it’s possible for our sins to depart from us, let’s read 1 Peter 2:24:

“Who [Christ] Himself bore up our sins in His body on the tree.”

When the Lord Jesus was on the cross (the tree), God laid the sins of the world on Him. Jesus carried all our sins and suffered the judgment and punishment for them in our place. This is how our sins departed from us forever.

So where did our sins go? To answer this question, we need to turn to the Old Testament, which reveals many different aspects of who God is and how He deals with humanity in the way of pictures, or types.

In Leviticus 16, we can see a vivid portrayal of the great redemption Christ accomplished for us. In this chapter concerning the atonement of the children of Israel, God instructed Aaron, the high priest, to take two male goats for a sin offering. Verse 8 says:

“And Aaron shall cast lots on the two goats: one lot for Jehovah and the other lot for Azazel.”

What did these two goats represent? Note 1 on Azazel in the Recovery Version of the Bible explains:

“Azazel signifies Satan, the devil, the sinful one, the one who is the source, the origin, of sin (John 8:44). The goat that was for Jehovah was to be killed (v. 9), but the goat that was for Azazel was to be sent away into the wilderness to bear away all the iniquities of the children of Israel on itself (vv. 10, 20-22). This signifies that Christ as the sin offering for God’s people, on the one hand, deals with our sin before God and, on the other hand, sends sin, through the efficacy of the cross, back to Satan, from whom sin came into man. Through the cross the Lord Jesus has the position and qualification with the power, strength, and authority to take sin away from the redeemed ones (John 1:29; Heb. 9:26) and send it back to its source, Satan, who will bear it in the lake of fire forever (Rev. 20:10).”

This is God’s forgiveness. The Lord Jesus as our sin offering took our sins away from us and sent them back to Satan, where they came from. When God forgives us, our sins are no longer with us!

How can God forgive sinners?

Though God loves us immensely, He is also righteous. Our sins offend Him and violate His righteousness; anyone who sins is condemned to death. So how is it possible for God to forgive sinners?

Hebrews 9:22 clearly says:

“Without shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.”

This verse makes it clear that God’s forgiveness requires and is based on the shedding of blood. But whose blood?

Note 1 on shedding of blood in this verse explains:

“Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins. Without forgiveness of sins there is no way for the requirement of God’s righteousness to be fulfilled that the covenant may be enacted. But Christ’s blood was shed for the forgiveness of sins, and the covenant was enacted with His blood (Matt. 26:28).”

In the Old Testament, when God’s people sinned they had to offer Him an animal that would shed its blood by being killed on the altar. This was God’s way of atonement at that time. The animal whose blood was shed was a symbol, a picture, that pointed to the Lord Jesus. Jesus is the sinless, spotless Lamb of God, the real sacrifice for sins.

On the night Jesus was betrayed, He took a cup and gave it to His disciples. Matthew 26:28 records what He spoke at that time, just before His crucifixion:

“This is My blood of the covenant, which is being poured out for many for forgiveness of sins.”

On the cross, the Lord Jesus poured out His blood,  fulfilling the righteous requirement of God and granting us forgiveness of sins. How precious Christ’s blood is to both God and us!

When does God forgive us of our sins?

Acts 10:43 says:

“To this One [Jesus] all the prophets testify that through His name everyone who believes into Him will receive forgiveness of sins.”

The apostle Peter spoke this word to a Roman centurion named Cornelius. Acts 10:2 tells us that Cornelius was “devout and one who feared God with all his household, giving many alms to the people and beseeching God continually.” Peter made it clear to Cornelius that by believing in Jesus, he would receive forgiveness of sins. There was no other requirement to fulfill.

In the Recovery Version, note 1 on forgiveness in Acts 10:43 explains:

“This proves that even though Cornelius feared God and worked righteousness and his prayers and alms had been accepted by God, he still needed God’s forgiveness of his sins through his believing into Christ, the Redeemer.”

When we believe in Christ the Redeemer, God forgives us of all the sins we’ve committed immediately, without delay. Our sinful record with God is erased. Forgiveness is the very first thing we enjoy in God’s salvation.

How we can continue to experience God’s forgiveness

Of course, after we’re saved, we still commit sins and offend God. Does God forgive those sins?

Yes, He does! But when we sin after we’re saved, we must confess our sins to God in order to receive His forgiveness.

The apostle John wrote 1 John 1:9 to believers. It says:

“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

God doesn’t require us to do penance or perform good works in order to earn His forgiveness. We must simply acknowledge and confess our sins to God, and His Word tells us He is faithful and righteous to forgive and even cleanse us.

Note 2 on the word faithful in this verse explains what God does when we confess:

“God is faithful in His word (v. 10) and righteous in the blood of Jesus His Son (v. 7). His word is the word of the truth of His gospel (Eph. 1:13), which tells us that He will forgive us our sins because of Christ (Acts 10:43); and the blood of Christ has fulfilled His righteous requirements that He might forgive us our sins (Matt. 26:28). If we confess our sins, He, according to His word and based on the redemption through the blood of Jesus, forgives us because He must be faithful in His word and righteous in the blood of Jesus; otherwise, He would be unfaithful and unrighteous. Our confession is needed for His forgiveness. Such forgiveness of God, which is for the restoration of our fellowship with Him, is conditional; it depends on our confession.”

Does God keep a record of our sins after He forgives us?

We may have a very good memory of our past sins and failures. And even though we know God has sent them away from us, we may still fear that He remembers them.

God’s Word reveals His attitude toward our past sins. Hebrews 8:12 says:

“For I will be propitious to their unrighteousnesses, and their sins I shall by no means remember anymore.”

This verse tells us clearly that God doesn’t keep a record of our sins! When we confess and He forgives, He forgets. If we try to remind God of a sin we’ve already confessed, He doesn’t remember it.

The importance of knowing God’s forgiveness

We’ve seen how God forgives us immediately, thoroughly, and absolutely, and that His forgiveness is based entirely on Christ’s death on the cross for us and on His shed blood.

Of course, knowing the depth and thoroughness of God’s forgiveness doesn’t give us the right to be careless in our living or indifferent about committing sins. Instead, we need to take our sins seriously because they cut off the fellowship between us and God. So when we sin, we must confess. We then experience His forgiveness, which restores the fellowship between us and causes us to love Him more. And because we love Him, we don’t want to offend Him.

When we know and experience the truth of God’s forgiveness, we’re set free from oppressing doubts and fears. Then we can go on in our Christian life to grow in the divine life of God with grateful hearts. Thank God for His forgiveness of our sins!

If you live in the US, we encourage you to order a free copy of the New Testament Recovery Version here.

If you live in the US, you can order a free copy of the New Testament Recovery Version here.