Monthly Archives: September 2017

Singing with the King (94) – Forgiven Forgotten

Lord, if you kept a record of our sins, who, O Lord, could ever survive? (Psalm 130:3)

Have you ever noticed that the Bible asks some pretty tough questions? And I see this verse within the context of another verse from the Psalms: For troubles surround me— too many to count! My sins pile up so high I can’t see my way out. They outnumber the hairs on my head. I have lost all courage. (Psalm 40:12) Yeah. There are days like that, when my sins pile up so high around me I can’t see my way out.

Please understand, we’re not talking about sins which are committed by those who do not love the LORD. They wouldn’t even recognize them as sins, let alone even know what sin is. Psalm 40 is about a soul who is vexed by and overwhelmed by his sins. And being in such a state, you see no way through, no way out. Paul felt this:

And I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. I want to do what is right, but I can’t.  I want to do what is good, but I don’t. I don’t want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway.  But if I do what I don’t want to do, I am not really the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it.  I have discovered this principle of life—that when I want to do what is right, I inevitably do what is wrong.  I love God’s law with all my heart.  But there is another power within me that is at war with my mind. This power makes me a slave to the sin that is still within me.  Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death? (Romans 7:18-24)

Now he good news is that Paul does not leave us waiting. The answer comes immediately in verse 25: Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord. So you see how it is: In my mind I really want to obey God’s law, but because of my sinful nature I am a slave to sin. So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus.  And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death. (Romans 7:25-8:2)

When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners. So when Christ died for our sins, and we accepted His sacrifice and His salvation, the Father stopped keeping records.

He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west. (Psalm 103:12)

“I have swept away your sins like a cloud. I have scattered your offenses like the morning mist. Oh, return to me, for I have paid the price to set you free.” (Isaiah 44:22)

“You have put all my sins behind your back.” (Isa8ah 38:17)

“You will again have compassion on us; you will tread our sins underfoot and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea.” (Micah 7:19)

“And I will forgive their wickedness, and I will never again remember their sins.” (Jeremiah 31:34)

Once our sins are forgiven, they are forgotten. The problem is WE keep remembering them. And that’s where we need to learn a lesson in Divine forgiveness. If He has buried our sins in the sea, scattered them like the mist, and removed them as far as the east is form the west, don’t you think we should forget them as well. Otherwise we could be saying that His forgiveness isn’t good enough, and that’s terrible and scary position to take.

In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us. (Ephesians 1:5-8)