“I am writing to you, dear children, because your sins have been forgiven on account of his name.” (1 John 2:7)

When you have messed up or failed, it is wonderful when you are forgiven. All of us as humans have messed up and failed our Lord. We are all sinners. Paul said, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23) That is why our salvation is so wonderful. Because we have been forgiven. However, forgiveness has been costly to God. The entire sacrificial system in the Old Testament set the stage for God’s cost of forgiveness. In the establishment of the old covenant Moses offered sacrifices. “When Moses had proclaimed every command of the law to all the people, he took the blood of calves, together with water, scarlet wool and branches of hyssop, and sprinkled the scroll and all the people. He said, ‘This is the blood of the covenant, which God has commanded you to keep.’ In the same way, he sprinkled with the blood both the tabernacle and everything used in its ceremonies. In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.” (Hebrews 9:19-22)

Our forgiveness cost the shedding of blood, the blood of the Son of God. Forgiveness comes to us through Jesus Christ. “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 1:7-8) God, in His love for us, was willing to come and take our judgment for our sin. He opened the way for us to return to Him in forgiveness and restoration of our relationship with Him, which sin had severed. “But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear.” (Isaiah 59:2) Through His sacrifice on the cross, Jesus established a way for us to be forgiven and return to our relationship with our Creator and Lord God. This relationship is established as the Father, and the Son sent to us the Holy Spirit as we put our faith in Jesus Christ. “But if Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life because of righteousness. And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you.” (Romans 8:10-11)

In our relationship with God, we are to live as those forgiven and restored through our obedience to Him. “But if anyone obeys his word, love for God is truly made complete in them. This is how we know we are in him: Whoever claims to live in him must live as Jesus did.” (1 John 2:5-6) God’s love has brought us back into a relationship with Him, by His willingness to pay the price for our restoration. Now we can demonstrate our love for Him through our obedience, as we rejoice in the forgiveness which He has given to us.

In the Love of Jesus,

Michael Block