© 98 Colin Melbourne
Searching for God’s forgiveness? Do you need to be forgiven for something you’ve done wrong?
By the time you’ve finished reading this page you will have discovered:
- Your Greatest Problem is already solved
- The one who can forgive your sins
- What real forgiveness means
- If God wants to forgive you
- The cost of forgiveness
- How to receive total forgiveness
- True peace with God
- Friendship with God
Hungry and Thirsty?
Anybody genuinely hungry for righteousness, who calls out to God for mercy and peace will get His attention. He moves Heaven and Earth to point them to;
The Lord Jesus Christ: Almighty God in the Flesh
The only source of Divine forgiveness.
Nothing moves God more than a sincerely repentant person seeking His forgiveness. Nothing releases God’s Power quicker than genuine faith in His word of promise to show mercy to all who trust in the Lord Jesus Christ. There’s nothing more amazing than God’s grace to forgive.
The Holy Bible is God’s written word, and it declares:
Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? he retaineth not his anger for ever, because he delighteth in mercy. He will turn again, he will have compassion upon us; he will subdue our iniquities; and thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.
Holy Bible, Micah 7:18-19 KJV
God doesn’t begrudge forgiveness, He delights in showing mercy.
You’ve been whipped by sin, it got the better of you. Come to Jesus. You didn’t mean to do it, but you did it nonetheless. Come to Jesus. Satan said it wasn’t wrong, and a little wouldn’t hurt. You’ve discovered he’s a liar. Come to Jesus now.
Your Greatest Problem is Already Solved
SIN
It’s been your downfall from the instant you were conceived. Sin made you rebellious, proud, and unholy. It has led you into misery, sickness, and destruction. Welcome to the human race.
You couldn’t match God’s standard, so you ignored it, set your own, then failed to attain even that. Is sin in your genes? Worse, it’s in your heart, your spirit, the core of your being. You inherited it from your ancestors Adam and Eve.
Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:
Ro. 5:12 KJV
God’s judgment followed, and brought condemnation to all. That’s why the world is in such a mess. That is why you are guilty before God. That’s where death came from.
The soul that sins shall die.
The wages of sin is death.Eze. Ch.18, Ro. 6:23
There’s nothing you can do to fix it. Try all the religious stuff; Pray endlessly, count beads, burn candles, pay money, rack-up merit points, spend your life in good works, chant, quote creeds, perform rites and ceremonies. You’ll end up in a frustrated heap, like a dog chasing its tail. It’s a waste of time and energy, utterly useless to save you from the guilt of sin, and God’s wrath.
Why? Because:
…all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags.
Is. 64:6 KJV
There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.
Pr. 16:25 KJV
Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.
Ac. 4:12 KJV
God has already fixed your sin problem.
He came in Christ, lived the perfect sinless life we were supposed to. Then paid the full price to clear everyone’s sin debt.
God had said that sinners must die;
… and without shedding of blood is no remission.
Heb. 9:22 KJV
For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins.
Heb. 10:4 KJV
For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.
Mtt. 26:28 KJV
God gave His Only Son to ransom all who trust in Him. The LORD Jesus Christ shed His Blood and laid down His life for you and me.
Who needeth not daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifice, first for his own sins, and then for the people’s: for this he did once, when he offered up himself.
Heb. 7:27 KJV
God came to Earth to redeem you, through Christ;
…but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment: So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.
Heb. 9:26b-28 KJV
God has opened the prison door. It is up to you to receive Christ and walk free.
The One Who Can Forgive Your Sins
Jesus Christ has paid for your complete redemption from sin, guilt, sickness, Satan, and Hell. Now God gives you the choice: Accept Him, or reject Him, as Lord and Saviour.
There’s no other way to God. Nobody else can forgive your sins.
Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
Jn. 14:6 KJV
To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins.
Acts 10:43 KJV
For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.
I Tim. 2:5 KJV
No priest, no pastor, no religious pundit can bring you to God. Nor can Mary, Angels, the Pope, Mohammed, Krishna, Ghandi, or Buddha. You must come through Christ alone.
He is all you need.
What Real Forgiveness Means
When people forgive a wrong they accept an apology, (and perhaps reimbursement) from the culprit. They file the matter away in their memory, and treat the person warily in future, withholding favour or intimacy. This is not real forgiveness.
When God forgives, its depth and finality is majestic.
He gave us the New Covenant in the Greek language. The root word for forgiveness is aphiemi which means to send away. The effect of that is:
- Punishment for the sin is totally cancelled
- The sinner is granted free pardon
- The cause of the offence is totally removed
- The debt due for the sin is wiped out
- God’s wrath is avoided entirely
- God forgets the matter and promises to never remember it
The one who sinned may recall it, they may hold it against themselves, but once it is forgiven, God won’t. And He gives us His word of Promise:
Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? he retaineth not his anger for ever, because he delighteth in mercy. He will turn again, he will have compassion upon us; he will subdue our iniquities; and thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.
Holy Bible, Micah 7:18-19 KJV
He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him. As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.
Ps. 103:10-12 KJV
I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins.
Is. 43:25 KJV
For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more.
Heb 8:12, Jer. 31:31-34 KJV
God does this for everyone who repents and trusts in Jesus, knowing He bore the penalty that they deserve.
He does it for the little sins, and the big sins. The only condition; Repent and believe that Christ did enough to redeem them.
Once they have done this, the sin is gone, forever, and it never comes back to haunt them, not ever, in this life or the next.
God’s forgiveness is eternal.
Do you need it?
Do you want it?
God Wants To Forgive You
And therefore will the LORD wait, that he may be gracious unto you. … that he may have mercy upon you:
Is. 30:18 KJV
God has shown how much He wants to forgive you:
But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
Ro. 5:8 KJV
Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification.
Ro. 4:25 KJV
The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
2 Pe. 3:9 KJV
But God can’t forgive me, I’ve been too wicked!
Yes He can, He bore the punishment due to you:
For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God…
1 Pe. 3:18 KJV
Your sins are stacked up high. You stand condemned. But God promises:
He that believeth on him is not condemned.
Jn. 3:18 KJV
For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
Ro. 10:13 KJV
Whosoever means you.
God has forgiven murderers, thieves, rapists, tyrants, serial-killers, and some of the most wicked people in history.
He wants to forgive you too.
Do what those verses say, and you will be forgiven.
The Cost of Forgiveness
People confuse salvation with religion, but they are light-years apart, and mutually exclusive.
Religion says, in effect; “Pay, we pray, and you get a few days absolution. But you gotta get back next week for some more, ‘cos this stuff wears off.” Or, “You must repeat this prayer 20 times, beg, crawl, and punish yourself to earn your forgiveness.”
Religion is an expensive fraud : Salvation is free!
Jesus invites; I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.
Rev. 21:6 KJV
Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.
Is. 55:7 KJV
You can’t pay for God’s mercy, Jesus paid it all. God won’t let you buy forgiveness; so don’t even try.
For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.
Eph. 2:8-9 KJV
Human nature tries to earn its way back to God. You want to purchase peace: but you can’t. You either accept salvation and forgiveness as God’s free gift, or you will never know what real peace is.
The peace that inspired John Newton to write the beautiful hymn Amazing Grace.
And remember, forgiveness costs you nothing, But it cost God, His Only Son. And it cost God’s Son, His life.
Discover How to Receive Total Forgiveness
True Peace With God
Once you’ve received Christ by faith, and been born of God, you will enjoy the peace beyond understanding that God promises to all who trust in Jesus. (Phil. 4:7)
As you grasp the significance of what God has done for you in Christ, you will never look back to your old life of sin.
Here’s a transcript of the greatest Gospel message you’ll ever hear.
Dr. T.L. Osborn’s ‘Peace With God’
Read it, believe it, embrace it, and you’ll be revolutionised.
Friendship With God
Being born again, becoming God’s child, is a wonderful experience, but it’s just the start. God’s plan was to make you more than His child, He wants to be your Friend too. The Bible calls it fellowship, meaning walking in harmony with God your Father.
He leads you to do what is right, by His Spirit in your heart. (God’s children are led by the Holy Spirit. See Romans 8:14) You obey and follow His leading because it’s right, and because you love pleasing Him.
Your obedience glorifies Jesus, and blesses you. The bond of fellowship resonates in your heart. You grow in grace, and God’s will is done on Earth as it is in Heaven. It’s what we live for!
When a child of God disobeys God’s leading, they experience inner conviction that they have missed it. Our hearts convict us; “You boobed. Back up and get that right.” Our fellowship with God is compromised until we do what God tells us to do in this verse;
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1 Jn. 1:9 KJV
Father I’m sorry. I missed it. I’ll do it right next time.
Okay child, you’re clean, let’s go!
Some Christians ignore God’s gentle conviction of sin and yet claim to be in fellowship with Him. 1 Jn. 1:6+8 says about these people;
If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: … If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
So if we walk in sin there’s no use pretending we are without sin, it doesn’t fool God. Simply confess it to Him, repent, and He’ll purify you from all unrighteousness.
Other people just plain backslide. They get entangled in sin’s deceits, and lose that wonderful fellowship with God.
Is that you? Are you born of God, yet covered in sin? Come back to the Fountain. Make no excuses. Ask Him to wash you, and though your sins are as scarlet, they shall be white as snow. (Is. 1:18)
The Fountain that flows from Emmanuel’s veins, has lost none of its power to cleanse your guilty stains. You’re still His child, still accepted in the beloved, you just need your feet washed. Preachers may scold you, but Jesus won’t, He simply says:
Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
Mtt. 11:28 KJV
Accept another fresh start from Jesus. You’ll have learnt a few things from your mistakes. He doesn’t condemn you. Get rid of your sin, and His Peace will flood your heart afresh. Then read First John 2:12 and hear God speaking to you:
I write unto you, little children, because your sins are forgiven you for his name’s sake.
Don’t waste a second, do it now, then write and Tell Us so we can all rejoice!
© 98 Colin Melbourne