It is a strong truth that the God of Scripture is willing to forgive — more willing that we often believe.
Some find that a difficult concept, especially those whose lives have been filled with terrible decisions and flagrant sins.
Yet the Apostle Paul says, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” (2 Cor. 5:17-21 NIV)
At the same time, it is equally true that, in our relationship with God, repentance (sorrow for, and turning from, sin) is a vital component of receiving forgiveness.
Simply put: No repentance, no forgiveness. It’s our fault. We did it.
No one made us do it and no one else is to blame. It’s not the environment, not my parents, not “the system,” that is at fault. The fault is ours and ours alone.
In the 1979 Book of Common Prayer, a confessional prayer reads, “I have sinned by my own fault in thought, word, and deed, in things done and left undone; especially __________.” The blank is for the penitent person to fill in with specific sins.
So strongly is it believed that genuine sorrow for sin is required that, if the priest believes that the person is not serious or is “playing games,” the act of prayer, commonly known as “confession,” is stopped and does not continue until the person realizes the depth of their offense against God and others.
Grace, mercy, and forgiveness are free gifts from God. But when sin is involved, repentance is required. Sometimes, people will say, “I made a mistake,” or “I goofed up,” or “I made a bad choice.” Usually, such weak explanations fall far short of genuine sorrow and repentance.
Every sin — large or small — is not merely an offense against another person, though other people may be affected. Sin is actually a personal and serious offense against a holy God. While He is quick to forgive and His plan is always to restore, He expects it to be taken seriously.
It should also be noted that God’s forgiveness does not always nullify the reality of sowing and reaping. God has established the Church as the “mercy place.”
But He has also established authorities in the earth who task is to punish wrongdoers and, hopefully, rehabilitate them. St Paul wrote:
“For rulers are not a cause of fear for good behavior, but for evil. Do you want to have no fear of authority? Do what is good and you will have praise from the same; for it (the authority) is a minister of God to you for good. But if you do what is evil, be afraid; for it does not bear the sword for nothing; for it is a minister of God, an avenger who brings wrath on the one who practices evil. Therefore it is necessary to be in subjection, not only because of wrath, but also for conscience’ sake (Romans 13:3-5 NASB).
These authorities are “the justice place.” I may be truly repentant for speeding but I may still have to go to court and pay the penalty.
My job as a priest is to hold out the promise of mercy and forgiveness to every person while, at the same time, helping people to understand that without true repentance, not just sorrow at being caught, forgiveness will not be forthcoming.
Billy Graham once said, “I am tired of people singing ‘Just as I Am,’ coming just as they are, and leaving just as they were.”
He also said, “Sin will always take you further than you wanted to go, make you stay longer than you wanted to stay, and cost you more than you wanted to pay.” The Reverend Graham is a wise man.
Whatever the sin, God can forgive it. Whatever the life, God can heal it. Whatever is broken, God can mend it. But the pathway is the path of repentance. Anything else is avoidance and self-delusion.
[David Epps is the pastor of the Cathedral of Christ the King, Sharpsburg, GA (www.ctkcec.org). He is the bishop of the Mid-South Diocese which consists of Georgia and Tennessee (www.midsouthdiocese.org) and the Associate Endorser for the Department of the Armed Forces, U.S. Military Chaplains, ICCEC. He may contacted at [email protected].]
