Pardoning, grace -- חנינה

And the LORD said, "I Do Not Remember"

How little we understand of eternal redemption! How many times will God forgive you? If you have truly set your heart to follow Him, He will cancel your sins as often as you ask*. Will He forgive of the worst sin you can think of? Yes! You may have to live with the concequences of your misdeed, but the redemptive power of God is such that, even in your sin, there are many things of value to be reclaimed. As for the sin itself, if you deeply and sincerely repent* of it, not only will God forgive you, He will blot it out of His memory.

Let me share an experience. A certain man of God has been gifted with revelatory insight into people's lives. During an evening service he ministered to a Prebyterian pastor and his wife. By the gift of the Spirit, he revealed the couple's past, uncovered their present situation and then disclosed to them what was to come. This work of God greatly impressed the couple, and as the prophecies were fulfilled, one month later the presbyterian minister brought two other pastors, each with their wives, to another service for personal ministry. The word of knowledge was exceptionally sure that night, and the second minister and his wife marveled at the accuracy and truth in the prophetic word. The third couple stepped forward for ministry and again the word of knowledge was present. The prophet spoke to the husband, revealing his past, present and insight into his future. Then the man turned to his third minister's wife. As he began to speak of her past, suddenly he stopped. "There was a very serious sin in your past." The woman, with her worst fear seeminly upon her, turned pale and closed her eyes. The congregation hushed and moved to the edge of their seats. The prophet continued, "And I asked the Lord, 'What was this sin that she committed?'And the Lord answered, 'I do not remember!' "
The LORD had been faithful to His promise, "I will not remember your sins." Although many times this minister's wife had asked for cleansing, still she could not believe the depth of God's forgiveness. He removed it "as far as the east is from the west" (Ps. 103:12). From everywhere but the prison of her own mind, her sin had been paid for and removed. And now in His great mercy, He removed it from there as well!

Oh, what burdens we carry, what guilt and limitations surround us because we do not accept God's total and perfect forgiveness! In Isaiah we read, "I, even I, am the One who wipes out your transgressions for my own sake; and I will not remember your sins" (Isa. 43:25). How great is the God we serve! How wonderful is His love toward us! He is our Redeemer! Our Savior! If you are willing to forgive others and will but ask to forgive you, He will pardon your debts as often as you contritely turn to Him. He promises He will remember your sins no more! He who calls us to His perfections, has also provided perfectly for us to approach Him. Holiness is an unfolding relationship with the grace of God.

(Excerpt from the book: 'Holiness, Truth and the Presence of God' by F.Frangipane)


*"...He will cancel your sins as often as you ask..." -And further on: "...if you deeply and sincerely repent." I wanted to clarify this part, because I hope those who are reading this are true followers of the Lord and will not take grace as an excuse or opportunity for sin to abound like Paul seriously and clearly explains in Romans 5 and 6. Like it's also written in Proverbs 28: 13, "He who covers his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy". This is the true repentance, to confess and forsake our sin.

Help us LORD to surrender to you, to feed Your Spirit within us and not to give in to the desires of our flesh.