A Beautiful Word - FORGIVENESS There are many beautiful words, such as love, mother, home, mercy and grace, in our language. But one of the most beautiful is the word forgiveness. When did you first hear it? Did your mother use it when you first said you were sorry? Did you learn then the joy of forgiveness? Perhaps over the years you have also learned the cost of forgiveness. Was it when someone you loved did something that hurt you very much? There are always two sides of forgiveness - the joy and the cost. The word means to send away, to dismiss, or to release. It is actually two words, which if you turn them around, they become to 'give for' or to give something in place of something else. For example, God gives peace in place of guilt and forgiveness in place of punishment. God is able to forgive our sin and give us His fellowship on the basis of Jesus Christ's sacrifice of Himself for us. Ephesians 4:32 says, 'In Christ, God forgave you.' The whole concept of the Bible is of Christ taking our place on the cross and paying the punishment, the cost of our sin. Now because our debt has been paid by Christ, God can accept us. When we see our sinful state and want to be finished with it, God has made only one condition for our acceptance that we accept what Christ has done for us already. Let's go back to the two parts of the actual word, to give for. When God forgives, what happens? We lose our sins. That is the first part. Then He gives us the righteousness of Christ in the place of our sin. That is justification, all part of God's plan of salvation. What a wonderful exchange! Righteousness for our sin! A VERSE FOR TODAY: Look up 2 Corinthians 5:21 and see what God has done for you. |
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