We must have our sins forgiven to enter eternal life. Forgiveness is not optional, it is an absolute necessity. Our sins amount to such an enormous debt that it would be impossible for us to ever repay it. “If Thou, LORD, shouldest mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand? But there is forgiveness with Thee, that Thou mayest be feared.” Through faith in Christ, our debt of sin is completely forgiven. God sent his only-begotten Son to pay for our sins on the cross and to cancel our debt. Scripture says, “He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon Him; and with His stripes we are healed.”
Now he calls on us to forgive each other. “Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful.” “Love one another, as I have loved you.” When others do us harm, we should always view it in the light of what God has already done for us in Christ. “Be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.” Because we have been forgiven so great a debt to God, we can now forgive the debts others owe us. And as God put no limits on the number of times He forgives us, neither should we toward our neighbor. Peter asked, “‘Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times?’ Jesus saith unto him, ‘I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven.’”
- Pastor Wyatt Rosebrock