“The Forgiveness of Sins”

Have you considered the value of having all your sins forgiven? Hello, I’m Phil Sanders, this is a
Bible study “In Search of the Lord’s Way.” Today we’re examining the beauty and joy of being forgiven.

Welcome to In SEARCH of the Lord’s Way! We’re here to search the Scriptures for God’s will. I can
think of no greater blessing in life than knowing that I am now free from my sin and walking with God.
Sin stains the soul, but the blood of Jesus can wash away my sins and cleanse my conscience. A clean
conscience is a foretaste of heaven, but a guilty conscience burdens the soul and robs hope. God wants
something better for us all. Thanks for taking time for us today. And we’d love to hear from you and
want to be a part of your life each week.

Everyone who reaches the age where they understand right from wrong and then breaks the
commandments of God has committed sin. Romans 3 and verse 10 says, “There is none righteous, not
even one.” Verse 23 says that, “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” Paul said in Romans 7
and verse 9, “I was once alive apart from the Law; but when the commandment came (that is when he
understood the truth), sin became alive and I died.” When one comes to know the teaching of God and
sins, one dies spiritually. He separates himself from the grace of God. Romans 6 and verse 23 says “the
wages of sin is death”; and that hasn’t changed. It’s still true.

You know at some point each person realizes the awful evil of his own sin. It’s easy to see the
wickedness of others. We see their guilt and shame; but it’s difficult to admit the same evil in our own
lives. We must admit, “I have sinned against God, and I am no longer innocent.” Much of life is spent
ignoring the reality of our sins. We deny that we’ve sinned or we imagine sin is no big deal. We blame
others or we blame God. God didn’t make us sinners, we choose to sin. And we’re all accountable to
God and responsible for our sins.

Now this is an important study on forgiveness; and we offer it free! If you’d like a printed copy and
you live in the United States, mail your request to In Search of the Lord’s Way, P.O. Box 371, Edmond,
OK 73083 or send an e-mail to searchtv@searchtv.org. Or, you can call our toll-free telephone number.
That number is 1-800-321-8633. We also have free materials on our website at www.searchtv.org. And
you can also see us on YouTube.

We’ll now worship in song, read from Isaiah 53:4 to 6, and explore the inspired path to true
forgiveness in Christ Jesus.

Our reading comes from Isaiah chapter 53 verses 4 to 6 and talks about all the things that our Lord
Jesus did so that we might be forgiven.
Surely our griefs He Himself bore,
And our sorrows He carried;
Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken,
Smitten of God, and afflicted.
But He was pierced through for our transgressions,
He was crushed for our iniquities;
The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him,
And by His scourging we are healed.
All of us like sheep have gone astray,
Each of us has turned to his own way;
But the LORD has caused the iniquity of us all
To fall on Him.

That’s a reading from God’s holy word. Let’s pray. Father we’re thankful that Your Son Jesus paid
the ultimate price so that we might have the forgiveness of our sins. We’re thankful that He bore our
guilt and we are thankful for His love. Help us Heavenly Father to act in obedience and out of love and
appreciation for Your Son has done for us. This is our prayer in the name of Jesus, Amen.

Mankind often takes God’s grace for granted. Some imagine God is a kindly old gentleman who
approves whatever we do and never gets angry. Such a God has never existed. God has always known
us. Proverbs 15 and verse 3 says that, “The eyes of the LORD are in every place, Watching the evil and
the good.” The prophet Hosea spoke of the evil deeds of Samaria in Hosea 7 and verse 2. And he said,
“And they do not consider in their hearts That I remember all their wickedness. Now their deeds are all
around them; They are before My face.” God always knows the good and the evil that people do.

It’s the tendency of humans to downplay their sins, to think God isn’t serious about punishing sin.
The Lord Jesus said in Matthew 7:13 to 14, “Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the
way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small
and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.” Yes the Lord Jesus is the judge
of all mankind, and He says that many will be lost but only a few will be saved.

2 Thessalonians 1:6 to 9 was written to Christians who were being afflicted by unbelievers. It says,
“For after all it is only just for God to repay with affliction those who afflict you (that is you Christians),
and to give relief to you who are afflicted and to us as well when the Lord Jesus will be revealed from
heaven with His mighty angels in flaming fire, dealing out retribution to those who do not know God
and to those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. These will pay the penalty of eternal
destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power.” Sin, ignoring God,
and disobeying the gospel will cause people to be lost.

You might say, “My sins aren’t that bad”; but you’re speaking as a guilty sinner and not as the One
sinned against. You may downplay your sins, but your conscience still convicts you. It’s not just your
conscience; every sin is offensive to God. Have you considered how many times in your life that you
have sinned against God? Psalm 130 verses 3 and 4 says and asks, “If You, LORD, should mark iniquities,
O Lord, who could stand? But there is forgiveness with You, That You may be feared.” David prayed, in
Psalm 143 and verse 2, “And do not enter into judgment with Your servant, For in Your sight no man
living is righteous.” We need the Lord’s forgiveness! Without the blood of Jesus, we have no hope of
eternal life.

Jesus is the righteous judge (2 Timothy 4:8). He will judge the sinner and justify the
righteous believer. Habakkuk 1:13 says of God, “Your eyes are to pure to approve evil, And You cannot
look on wickedness with favor.” Again Psalm 5 and verse 4 says, “For You are not a God who takes
pleasure in wickedness; No evil dwells with You.” Hebrews 13 and verse 14 reminds us, “Strive for
peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord.” We become holy
when we are washed in the blood of Jesus and cleansed from sin. We can’t stand before God as
blameless without the blood of Jesus.

Isaiah 59:1 and 2 says that, “Behold, the LORD’S hand is not so short That it cannot save; Nor is His
ear so dull That it cannot hear. But your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, And your sins have hidden His face from you so that He does not hear.” Separation from God not only
affects our salvation but also the entirety of our relationship. God doesn’t hear the prayer of a person
who loves sin. Psalm 66 and verse 18 says that , “If I regard (or I cherish) wickedness in my heart, The Lord will not hear.” Proverbs 15:8 says that, “The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the LORD,
But the prayer of the upright is His delight.”

God doesn’t want anyone to be lost; He wants everyone to be saved. And to be saved you have to
decide to come to the Lord Jesus and follow Him. Some will consent to do what is right, while others
rebel. Their choices matter to God. Isaiah 1:18 to 20 says, “Come now, and let us reason together,” Says
the LORD, “Though your sins are as scarlet, They will be as white as snow; Though they are red like
crimson, They will be like wool. If you consent and obey, You will eat the best of the land; But if you
refuse and rebel, You will be devoured by the sword.” Truly, the mouth of the LORD has spoken. We
could wonder why anyone would rebel against the Lord, knowing that only punishment awaits him.

How much better it is for people to follow the Lord, to forsake their sins and to turn to
righteousness. Isaiah 55 verses 6 to 7 urges us, “Seek the LORD while He may be found; Call upon Him
while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his way And the unrighteous man his thoughts; And let him
return to the LORD, And He will have compassion on him, And to our God, For He will abundantly
pardon.” When people turn from their wicked ways back to the Lord, the Lord will abundantly pardon.
That means He will forgive even a lifetime of sinning and the worst of sins. God’s grace is greater than
our sins, because the blood of Jesus can wash away all sin.

Colossians 2:12-13 reminds us, “having been buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also raised up with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead. (Then he says) When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions.” Now if God could raise up Jesus,
He can forgive you of all your sins by making you alive with Christ. When we’re baptized, we die to that
old man of sin and we rise up to walk in newness of life. 2 Corinthians 5 and verse 17 says, “Therefore if
anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.”
All one’s old sins are gone. God no longer holds are sins against us when we are baptized into Christ. In
Christ we are new creatures, new people, children of God, saints.

There can’t be a greater difference between the difference Christ makes in our lives. Before we
become a Christians, we are dead in our sins and transgressions; but after we become a Christians, we
are washed clean by the blood of Christ, free from sin, and new creatures filled with hope.

The happiest day of our lives and the best news we’ll ever hear is the news that we’re forgiven of
our sins. David wrote in Psalm 103 verses 8 to 12, “The LORD is compassionate and gracious, Slow to
anger and abounding in lovingkindness. He will not always strive with us, Nor will He keep His anger
forever. He has not dealt with us according to our sins, Nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. For
as high as the heavens are above the earth, So great is His lovingkindness toward those who fear Him.
As far as the east is from the west, So far has He removed our transgressions from us.” David realized
the Lord was merciful and completely removed our sins from Him. And from us when we are forgiven.
When God forgives, He does so intentionally and He does it out of love. God’s mercy means He has
decided not to hold our sins, or transgressions, against us.

The prophet Micah could say in Micah 7:18-19, “Who is a God like You, who pardons
iniquity And passes over the rebellious act of the remnant of His possession? He does not retain His
anger forever, Because He delights in unchanging love. He will again have compassion on us; He will
tread our iniquities under foot. Yes, You will cast (that is You God will cast) all their sins Into the depths
of the sea.” Forgiveness means God no longer holds our sins against us; they’re no longer on His mind
when He thinks of us. The Lord said in Isaiah 44:22, “I have wiped out your wrongdoings like a thick
cloud And your sins like a heavy mist. Return to Me, for I have redeemed you.”

The purpose of forgiveness is to bring about reconciliation. God forgives us so that He can renew a
relationship with us. When we sinned we broke a loving relationship with God. When the Lord forgives
us in response to our faith, and love, and obedience to His will, He renews that loving relationship with
us. 2 Corinthians 5 and verse 19 says that, “God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not
counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation.” Christ
died for our sins and bore the punishment for our guilty souls, so that His sacrificed blood could atone
for our sins and reconcile us. His death allowed us to be friends with God again.

I want to be righteous. I want to be right with God and have no stain of sin on my soul. I want to be
able to call God my “Father,” knowing the blood of Jesus has pardoned my transgressions and opened
the door for me to be reconciled, that is right with God, once again. I know I can’t change the past.
History is history, and it can’t be undone. But my past is no longer an obstacle separating my God from
my soul. In forgiveness my sin is gone, my guilt is gone, and my shame is gone. I can pray, and God will
hear.

Pardon with forgiveness doesn’t extinguish a person’s past; that can’t be done. You can’t undo
history. The record of what has been done by us of good or evil remains. God doesn’t extinguish the
deeds of the past. But God did send Jesus to suffer the punishment for our sins on the cross. And so
Isaiah 53:5 says, “But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities;
The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, And by His scourging we are healed.” 1 Peter 2 and
verse 24 explains that, “He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin
and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed.” Yes we’re healed of the separation from
God that our sins caused. His death sets us on a new track of righteous living. We die to sin and live to
righteousness.

Forgiveness changes our relationship with the Father, so that the sins are no longer an obstacle to
prayer. Instead we are His children and we work for the accomplishment of His purposes. His love and
favor now shine on us, and we love Him. We want Him to shine in our lives. We want His will to be done
on earth. And humbly we hunger and we thirst for righteousness as we turn from the old life of sin to a
new life of godliness and we enjoy the peace and hope of a right relationship with God. We have life,
newness of life, an abundant life, and eternal life with God. And nothing else is so wonderful or grand.

Are you able to say, “My sins, for which I am ashamed, are all forgiven and washed away by the
blood of Jesus. My sins are now fully forgiven. The rebellious sinner I once was is now dead to sin, and
the person I have become belongs to the Lord Jesus. Can you say that? Can you say I now have my
conscience cleared and my guilt removed. I am now at peace with God through faith in our Lord Jesus
Christ”? Are you living with guilt and shame in your soul or are you free from sin? Can you look in the
mirror and smile at the new person you have become.

Let’s pray together. Heavenly Father we’re thankful that Jesus died for our transgressions and sin so
that we might be free from them and live a new and glorious and abundant life with You. And Father
help us always to do Your will. In Jesus name, Amen.

From the day of Pentecost, the answer to sin, guilt, and shame has been set forth through the
first gospel sermon on the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The Lord Jesus died for our
sins, He was buried, and raised by God from the dead. Eyewitnesses knew God raised Jesus and made
Him both Lord and Christ. Peter in Acts 2:36 pointed to those who crucified Him. They felt the full
weight of sin and guilt. They wondered what they needed to do, because they had sinned against God.

Acts 2:38 to 41 says: Peter said to them, “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus
Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. “For the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off, (even) as many as the Lord our God will call to
Himself.” And with many other words he solemnly testified and kept on exhorting them, saying, “Be
saved from this perverse generation!” So then, those who had received his word were baptized; and
that day there were added about three thousand souls.

Do you need the forgiveness of sins? People aren’t forgiven by faith alone but by repenting and
being baptized. Baptism isn’t a sprinkling; it’s an immersion. Baptism isn’t for little children; it’s for
those responsible enough to believe and repent. Now if you were taught salvation comes from some
other way than what the apostles taught at Pentecost, then remember God alone is the One who
forgives. We must listen to Him. Human councils and traditions aren’t God and they can’t change God’s
plan. Get right with God, God’s way. You never regret doing the right thing.

We pray that today’s study about forgiveness has stirred your soul. If you live in the United States
and you want a free printed copy of this message, mail your request to In Search of the Lord’s Way, P.O.
Box 371, Edmond, OK 73083 or send an e-mail to searchtv@searchtv.org. Or, you can call the Search
office and it’s toll-free at 1-800-321-8633. There’s also a schedule of our programs and a map with the
location of churches in your area on www.searchtv.org and may other good materials. Also you can
catch us on YouTube! We hope that you will go and visit one of the churches of Christ in your area. That
you can find on the map. And tell them that you watch Search.

Well we’ll be back next week, Lord willing. And we hope that you’ll be with us. And as always we
say, God bless you and we love you from all of us at In Search of the Lord’s Way.