MY GOD FORGIVES ME

 

A SUCCESSFUL IRISH BOXER was converted and became a preacher.  He happened to be in a new town setting up his evangelistic tent when a couple of tough thugs noticed what he was doing.  Knowing nothing of his background, they made a few insulting remarks.  The Irishman merely turned and looked at them.  Pressing his luck, one of the bullies took a swing and struck a glancing blow on one side of the ex-boxer’s face.  He shook it off and said nothing as he stuck out his jaw.  The fellow took another glancing blow on the other side. At that point the preacher swiftly took off his coat, rolled up his sleeves, and announced, “The Lord gave me no further instruction.”  Whop!

                                                                                      --J. Vernon McGee, Matthew

You will never hear something like…

·       We won’t win the national championship unless we have childlike teamwork

·       Or I’ll get out of debt, if I earn like a child

In the areas of life that are seemingly insignificant we would never want to imitate a child yet in the most important and eternal things…it’s the only way we can experience it.

 

15 I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it." Mark 10:15

 

Children understand forgiveness and it makes sense to them.  They desperately need it and their world it isn’t ok until they have received it.  A child simply believes that…MY GOD FORGIVES ME

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9

When we confess our sins God not only forgives our sins, but forgets them.

HOW DOES GOD FORGIVE?

1)   GOD REMOVES OUR SIN COMPLETELY

 

He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west.

Psalm 103:12 NLT

God not only forgives us of our sins, He removes them from us and completely forgets them. 

2)   GOD FORGETS OUR SIN IMMEDIATELY

 

I, even I, am he who blots out your transgressions, for my own sake, and remembers your sins no more.

Isaiah 43:25

The all-knowing creator of the world makes the willful decision to limit His memory as it relates to our sin.

 

When I was in college I had a paper required, before computers, and typed it on an old manual typewriter.   The paper could not have any mistakes, when I made a mistake I couldn’t just backspace or white out the error.  Unless I retyped the page over the mistake was still there, not like with a computer where you can backspace and retype the problem, it is gone and forgotten.

God erases His memory of our sin and remembers no longer has a record of it.

 

We may ask for forgiveness but it continues to follow us like a dark cloud and we define ourselves by the very sin we’ve asked God to forgive us for…what do kids understand that we need to learn?

 

Have you at one point in your life or another asked for God’s forgiveness yet don’t feel forgiven?

 

Satan keeps reminding you about past sins to make you feel unworthy of God’s salvation or to serve Him in ministry.

People have said that they want to take care of sins, habits or other problem areas in their life before committing their life to Christ as Lord and Savior.

Jesus wants you to come as you are and He will make take care of any areas in your life that need to be changed.