God's Forgiveness of the Sinner

God has forgiven us, those of us who are his children, of all of our sins.

Paul, in his letter to the church at Colossae writes, "He forgave all our sins ..." ¹ All. The word in Greek is panta (πάντα) and it carries the meaning of something being addressed extensively and intensively. In the Greek the meaning is emphatic, intensifying the effects of that forgiveness. The whole of your sins and every individual one are forgiven. No stone is left unturned, there are no exceptions. ²

But admittedly, there are times when our heart is burdened by guilt, by doubt, and by the voices that whisper "not enough". God understands those doubts, and He has compassion on us. John the Baptist, Peter the apostle, and Elijah the prophet, were all men who doubted, yet God met them at the point of their doubts and provided the encouragement they needed. The Lord knows there are times when we need extra assurance, so He sends us writers, apostles of the faith like John who wrote,

"I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life." ³

“That you may know.” Not guess, not hope, but know. John wrote these words to bring the "sinner" comfort. He who leaned on the heart of Jesus writes to us words from the heart of our Savior to comfort our sin-weary souls. And, knowing that there are times we need a promise to hold on to, some extra assurance, he writes about the refreshing flow of forgiveness that comes from confession,

"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."⁴

This precious promise is not a work to be performed to secure the forgiveness of God, (remember, He forgave us ALL our sins) but rather a promise that brings assurance to our hearts when we feel the pangs of guilt after imbibing in temporary pleasures. The refreshing that comes from confessing our sin reiterates to our souls the truth that all our sins have been atoned for, paid in full by the blood of Jesus. All our sins have already been dealt with: past, present, and future. Love covers a multitude of sin. ⁵

This scripture is NOT saying that every time we sin, we must confess that sin to God or else we have exposure to unforgiveness. We could never confess every sin we commit - this would be a full-time job, too great for any man to bear. Neither does this scripture give us license to sin. This scripture gives us the opportunity to reiterate to our guilt-prone souls that all our sins are forgiven, paid for. There is refreshing in this. It is not a work to be performed or a religious ceremony or duty that must be carried out to appease an angry God. Christ has already appeased the wrath of God.

We all sin, and there are times our sin produces guilt that overtakes our sight, our hope of forgiveness. But John makes his point clear here. In the midst of our sinning, which is undeniable - we all do it - there is a guarantee: God is faithful and God is just to stick by his promise. God forgives.

Are you feeling the weight of guilt today? Have you sinned? Come to the throne of grace and receive needed mercy and find empowering grace. Come boldly. Come now.

References

¹ Colossians 2:13

² Strong's Greek: 3956. πᾶς (pas) -- All, every, whole, entire

³ 1 John 5:13

⁴ 1 John 1:9

⁵ 1 Peter 4:8 - Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.