Forgiveness: Sin, Jesus’ love for us, and a clean slate (1/3)

Most people are familiar with the concept of forgiveness. Jesus gave His life for us, so that we could receive forgiveness for our sins. Of course that doesn’t give us a license to sin, but if Jesus died for both those sins we have committed and those that we will commit, why is it so important to overcome sin?

We sat down for a chat with Milenko, the editor of ActiveChristianity, to discuss some of the many aspects of forgiveness. In Part 1 of this 3-part video series we talk about why we need forgiveness, how forgiveness works, and why Jesus’ sacrifice is applicable to us.

Watch Part 2 (Forgiveness: Conditions, reaping, thankfulness, and love) and Part 3 (Forgiveness: Double grace, a new creation, and eternity) for more of this discussion on forgiveness.
(Audio transcript for this video at the bottom of the article)

Further reading about forgiveness:

Visit our topic page on forgiveness and guilt.

Repentance and the forgiveness of sins

Audio transcript

Kathryn:
Here at ActiveChristianity we've been thinking a lot recently about forgiveness. To take a look at some of the aspects of forgiveness that we don't always talk about, we sat down for a conversation with our editor, Milenko. To start with we asked him why we need forgiveness in the first place.

Milenko:
Well, as human beings, we’ve all committed sin. Sin is actually a separation from God. As it says in Romans 6, the wages of sin is death. So, to restore that relationship, to be able to get redemption, we have to start off with getting committed sins forgiven. That is, wiped out.

Kathryn:
Because we have all sinned.

Milenko:
Yes, we have actually all sinned, we are all sinners.

Kathryn:
So, what is sin actually? What does it mean that we have all sinned?

Milenko:
Having committed sin, doing sin, that means that we have actually trespassed against God’s will. We’ve gone against what He wants, and what He’s placed in our hearts. You can say that another word for sin is egotism. It’s all about me, doing what I want. You can see that with the first fall, Adam and Eve, that they committed sin by disobeying God, doing what they wanted, rather than what God said. And that sin that they committed, actually came down into us. So we can say that we have sin inside us. That’s what we feel that we’re tempted to. But that’s not the same as committing sin. Committing sin is living according to that desire. That’s actually consciously going against what I know is right, what God has told me is right, through my conscience for example.

Kathryn:
So, the intention was to sin? We knew that there was a choice between right and wrong, and we chose to sin?

Milenko:
Yes. And I make that choice, that I want to do my will. It can be a split second decision, but it’s there. I have made that decision. And it is egotism.

Kathryn:
So, before Jesus came, in the time known as the Old Covenant, they also had forgiveness of sins, and they had that through sacrificing animals. So how can you compare the forgiveness we have now in the New Covenant, through Jesus death, to what they had in the Old Covenant?

Milenko:
That’s actually a really good question, because you can wonder, why couldn’t we just continue sacrificing animals? The problem with that was that they had to keep doing it. They had to come back again and again, because they kept sinning. It didn’t help them. And the intention that God wanted for them was that they should stop sinning, that they should do His will. That’s why He gave them the law. But they couldn’t do that, it was impossible for them. So God had to come with a new solution, and what He did was send His own Son, Jesus, as a human being. And what Jesus did was that He sacrificed His own will, so He never had to bring a sacrifice to pay for His sins that He’d committed, because He didn’t commit sin. He was tempted to them, but He didn’t do them. By doing that He actually sacrificed His own life, and He was blameless.

You see in the Old Covenant, they had to bring a lamb that was without blemish; it had to be completely whole; it had to be perfect. And Jesus, in the New Covenant, was that perfect sacrifice, because He never actually committed sin. So, when He was crucified as a criminal, someone who could be blamed for something, when He was actually blameless, He was actually taking upon Himself those wages of sin which is death. He who had never sinned took upon Himself those wages. And who was to blame? That was us, we who are sinners. He was actually paying for the sins that we committed. And that is the difference in the New Covenant. Because Jesus never sinned, even though He was a human being, He opened a way for us. Not only does He forgive us, but He has given us a possibility to actually stop sinning, by showing us the way to go.

Kathryn:
And He came voluntarily.

Milenko:
Yes, that’s really the great thing about this, that Jesus, He voluntarily became a human being. We can read in Philippians that He was equal with God, that He was in heaven with God, and He emptied Himself and took upon Himself the form of a servant. Which means He became a human being just like you and me. And He actually received that human nature where He was tempted in all points as we are, without sinning.

Imagine taking that risk! That He had the possibility to sin. And if He’d done that, not only would He Himself have been lost, but all of humankind would have lost salvation. But He did that for our sake. That He voluntarily came, that He received a nature like ours, was tempted like we are, and was faithful all His life without sinning. So that when He was crucified as a criminal, He was actually a blameless sacrifice, that could pay for our sins.

Kathryn:
Why would He do that for us? What would inspire, or what would motivate Him to do that for us?

Milenko:
There’s only one thing. That’s love. And that’s the love that God has for us, that He sent His Son. See what great love He had, that He sent His only begotten Son! And Jesus, who loved us so much that He was willing to do it. It was only for that reason: that He loves us. What He gives us now is a free gift, because He loves us. And that’s why we can receive that. We don’t deserve it, but He does it because He loves us.

Kathryn:
So the fact remains though, that we have all sinned. So how does Jesus not having sinned apply to us?

Milenko:
Yes, that’s the fact, we have sinned. And as it says in Romans 6 that the wages of sin is death, so that’s actually what we deserve. That’s what Satan, who’s called the accuser, goes to God with. He says, “This person has sinned, give him to me.” He’s got this, as it says in Colossians, handwriting of requirements against us. And he’s right. When we’ve sinned, that’s what we deserve.

The thing is that now Jesus, who never sinned, took upon Himself that punishment, you can say, when He was crucified, and He died. He even experienced the spiritual death of separation from God. He cried out, “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?” He even experienced that. He paid the price. And He now is our advocate. So when Satan then comes with this claim against us, he’s got this letter against us, Jesus our advocate steps in and says, “Wait a minute! I’ve paid this price. I have actually paid the price for this person. He’s not yours, He’s mine!” That’s incredible. Think about that! We’ve got an advocate in heaven who’s actually paid the price for what we’ve done!

Kathryn:
So, how do we receive that? Do we just believe it and it’s ours? Or how do we receive it for ourselves?

Milenko:
It’s important to realize that we don’t deserve it, we can’t do anything to “earn” forgiveness. It is a free gift, it always will be; it’s by grace alone. We just have to accept that. And, those who believe in Him, can receive that.