I Believe in the Forgiveness of Sins

Minister:
Date: AM
Text: Acts 5:31, 13:38; Ephesians 1:7; Lord's Day 21
Psalters: 231, 64, 142, 364
  1. The objective reality.
    1. To understand forgiveness we have to have an accurate understanding of sin.
      1. And an accurate knowledge of sin requires an accurate knowledge of God as Creator and as Father.
      2. All men are sinners because of our relationship to Adam, our first father and representative head (Rom. 5:12).
    2. Each and every sin must be and will be punished with eternal damnation (Heb. 12:29).
      1. By nature we constantly conceal, deny, minimize, rationalize, justify our wrongs, or shift the blame to others.
      2. God will by no means clear the guilty (Ex. 34:7); He cannot forgive without the punishment being endured fully.
    3. Forgiveness means that the perfectly just God completely punished each sin and sinfulness, so nothing is left.
      1. Every one of the sins of every believer is forgiven, without exception.
      2. Further, God declares me to be righteous and worthy of eternal life.
      3. The only basis for forgiveness is God's great and amazing grace.
  2. The subjective experience of the forgiveness of sins.
    1. Forgiveness is experienced by faith in the Christ proclaimed by the church in the preaching of the gospel (Acts 5:31; 13:38).
    2. Second, forgiveness is experienced by those who express godly sorrow (over against worldly sorrow) (II Cor. 7:10).
    3. Third, forgiveness is experienced in the way of constant confession/repentance  and embracing Jesus.
    4. Receiving God's forgiving grace...
      1. Gratefully strive to live according to all God's commandments by loving Him with our all.
      2. Be assured that no sin still in us against our will can condemn us.