Hi to my Forum Friends,
When I say "forgiveness" -- what image does this bring to your mind? To me, it means being cleansed by the blood of my Savior, Jesus Christ. Last Sunday, in church, we were preparing our hearts to receive communion. As usual, our pastor had explained the meaning of the elements of communion -- and had given us a short window of time that we could use to personally ask the Lord to forgive us of any and all transgressions, i.e, sins, lingering on our souls. I began to pray that He would cleanse my heart and my mind of all thoughts and images which were not pleasing to Him.
At that exact moment, a small infant in the back of the church began to cry -- and the sound of that small child was like the sound of an angel to me; for what could be cleaner and more pure than that beautiful child? The angelic sound of that child was, in my heart, like the Lord telling me I was, at that moment, just that cleansed, just as pure -- as that small infant. I smiled and thanked Him. Later, as the Praise Team was going forward to lead us in the closing song, I took the opportunity to share this thought and feeling with the rest of our fellowship.
There are many examples of the forgiveness found through the blood of Jesus Christ. A few years ago, my late "Friends Ministry" friend, Marna Howard, a retired school teacher in Missouri, sent me the following story:
THE BLOOD OF JESUS
One night in a church service a young woman felt the tug of God at her heart. She responded to God's call and accepted Jesus as her Lord and Savior. The young woman had a very rough past which involved alcohol, drugs, and prostitution. But, the change in her was very evident. As time went on, she became a faithful member of the church, eventually becoming involved in the ministry of teaching young children.
After a while, this faithful young woman caught the eye and heart of the pastor's son. The relationship grew and they began to make wedding plans. This is when the problems began. Many of the church members did not think that a woman with a past such as hers was a suitable mate for a pastor's son.
The church began to argue and fight about the matter. Then, they decided to have a meeting. As the people made their arguments and tensions increased, the meeting began getting completely out of hand. The young woman became very upset about all the things being brought up about her past. The pastor's son could not bear the pain it was causing his young, faithful wife-to-be.
As she began to cry, the pastor's son stood to speak. "I challenge every one of you to think carefully about what is happening here tonight. It really is NOT my fiancée's past that is on trial here. What all of you actually are questioning is the ability of the blood of Jesus to wash away sin. Today you have put the blood of Jesus on trial. So, what is your verdict? Does the blood of Christ wash away sin -- or not?"
Tears welled up in the eyes of every Christian in the church. Everyone began to weep as they realized that they really had been slandering the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. Too often, even as Christians, we bring up the past and use it as a weapon against our brothers and sisters, or even against ourselves.
Forgiveness is a very foundational part of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. If the blood of Jesus could not cleanse the soul of every single person, then all of us would be in a lot of trouble. As the hymn says, "What can wash away my sins? NOTHING, but the blood of Jesus." Case closed! God Forgives! Can we do less?
Another story which emphasizes the power of His forgiving blood comes from the book "Perfect Peace" by Charles L. Allen;
FORGIVEN, TOO POOR TO PAY!
It has been said that Robert Louis Stevenson once tried to pray the Lord's Prayer, but he got up from his knees and said, "I cannot pray it."[/i\ He did not feel that he could forgive some people and those words, [i]"Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us" were his stumbling block.
There is the story of a physician whose books were examined after he died. It was discovered that a number of the accounts were crossed out and the doctor had written across the page: "FORGIVEN, TOO POOR TO PAY." The physician's wife decided that many of these people could pay. So she took some of these accounts to court.
The judge asked one question, "Is this your husband's handwriting?" When she replied that it was, he said, "There is no tribunal in the land that can obtain the money, when he has written forgiven." That story comes from the pen of Emery Park. But really, that story comes from the heart of God. When God says it is forgiven, then it is forgiven, and there is no guilt and no liability any longer.
"In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace which He lavished on us. . ." Ephesians 1:7-8
"Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you." Ephesians 4:32
Therefore, considering how much God has forgiven us through the blood of our Lord and Savior -- should we be making fellow Christians, and even our non-believing Friends, walk the gauntlet of our words and thoughts -- as though our words and thoughts have the power to bring them forgiveness? With our Christian brothers and sisters, we share the love of God in fellowship. With our non-believing Friends, we share the love of God by telling them about the forgiveness found only through the blood of Jesus Christ. Yet, at all times, as we are told in 1 Peter 3:15, in love.
God bless, have a wonderful, blessed day,
Bill
Original Post