Continuing my look into the forgiveness that God offers that some, including myself find so difficult to accept.
How Does God Forgive ?
1) Always by the shedding of blood.
Hebrews 9:22
In fact the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of
blood there is no forgiveness.
2) Fulfilled by the blood of Christ
Colossians 1: 13 & 14
For he has rescued us from the domain of darkness and brought us into the Kingdom of the Son he loves
In whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
Colossians 2: 13 & 14
When you were dead in your sin and in the uncircumsion of your flesh, God made you alive with Christ, He forgave us all our sins
Having cancelled the charge of our legal indebtedness which stood against us and condemned us
He has taken it away, nailing it to the cross.
Hebrews 9: 14
How much more than will the blood of Christ, who through the Eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God.
Hebrews 9:28
So Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.
3) Jesus Forgives Sins
Mark 2:1-12New International Version (NIV)
Jesus Forgives and Heals a Paralyzed Man
2 A few days later, when Jesus again entered Capernaum, the people heard that he had come home. 2 They gathered in such large numbers that there was no room left, not even outside the door, and he preached the word to them. 3 Some men came, bringing to him a paralyzed man, carried by four of them. 4 Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus by digging through it and then lowered the mat the man was lying on. 5 When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralyzed man, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”
6 Now some teachers of the law were sitting there, thinking to themselves, 7 “Why does this fellow talk like that? He’s blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?”
8 Immediately Jesus knew in his spirit that this was what they were thinking in their hearts, and he said to them, “Why are you thinking these things? 9 Which is easier: to say to this paralyzed man, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, take your mat and walk’? 10 But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the man, 11 “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.” 12 He got up, took his mat and walked out in full view of them all. This amazed everyone and they praised God, saying, “We have never seen anything like this!”
This is a story about a lame man whose friends believed that Jesus could heal him. At last they found a way to get their friend before Jesus by opening the roof and letting him down by ropes attached to his bed. But Jesus didn’t heal the man’s lameness — he forgave his sins.
The teachers of the law didn’t like that, and with good cause. How could a mere man forgive sins, something that only God had authority to do? Jesus knew their thoughts, and he asked them a question, “Which is easier: to say to this paralyzed man, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, take your mat and walk’?”
It’s a rhetorical question. Both statements would be impossible for anyone but God. If Jesus had authority to make the lame walk by merely uttering the word, then he also had authority to forgive sins, because the power to do either was in God’s domain, not man’s.
Today, a team of doctors might be able to restore the ability to walk to people with certain kinds of problems. Even after the operation, however, the person would still need a long period of therapy and rehabilitation. But no one, not even the finest doctor, can simply say, “Rise up and walk,” and cause it to happen.