God’s Definition of Forgiveness
What Does It Mean to Forgive?
We all have different definitions of the word “forgiveness.” We may say we have forgiven, but by what definition?
What is your definition of forgiveness?
Webster (you know, the guy who wrote the dictionary) says that to forgive someone means that you “cease to feel resentment against” them. In other words, you stop being angry with them for whatever wrong they committed. That seems like a pretty reasonable definition.
God’s definition of forgiveness, however, doesn’t only include ceasing being angry with someone for the wrong they committed, it also includes actually forgetting what they did in the first place. We must wipe it out completely! “I, even I, am he who blots out your transgressions, for my own sake, and remembers your sins no more” (Isaiah 43:25 NIV). God’s forgiving heart is proven again in Psalm 103:12 as the author writes, “He (God) has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west” (NIV). See how far-reaching God’s forgiveness is?
The Bible says God will blot out our sins. To blot something out means to wipe out completely or destroy. Our past has been forgiven. Our sins no longer exist because they have been destroyed by the power of the blood of Jesus Christ. When God sees us, it looks as if we never even sinned.
We see God’s unending forgiveness when we look at the life of Jesus. He said, “If you’ve seen Me, you’ve seen My Father.” When we see the heart of Jesus, we know it is a mirror image of the heart of God the Father. Do you remember when Jesus was being beaten and bruised? The men who crucified Him had such intense anger and resentment toward Him. But His desire was not for them to pay for the sin they committed; His desire was to pay whatever price was necessary for their forgiveness. He paid for their forgiveness, as well as ours, with His precious blood. The whole reason He died was to save them and us!
Jesus lived out what He preached in the Sermon on the Mount when He said, “You have heard the law that says the punishment must match the injury: ‘An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I say, do not resist an evil person! If someone slaps you on the right cheek, offer the other cheek also” (Matthew 5:38 NLT). When Jesus was being tortured and crucified, He didn’t say, “You’re going to be sorry when you realize who I am.” He didn’t even say, “They don’t know who they’re messing with. I am the Son of God. They are going to pay for what they did to Me.” Do you know what He said? He said, “Father, forgive them.” When I reflect on the fact that Jesus forgave the very men who killed Him, I am reminded that any situation in my life can be forgiven and forgotten.
“Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God” (Ephesians 5:1-2 ESV). We are to imitate our Father by following Christ’s example. We are to forgive with a forgiveness that knows no boundaries or conditions.
