Of all God has done for us, one of His traits is most appreciated. There would be no hope for any one of us if it were not for that attribute. If it was not for His forgiving us of our sins, we would all need to be fearful of the eternity in the Lake of Fire that would await us.
“Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases; 4 Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies;” Psalm 103: 3-4
We can receive that excellent gift of forgiveness not because of something we did or could do, but only because God is merciful. Although He knows of our sins, He often chooses to forgive what we have done and waives the repercussions we deserve. He can heal all who ask and trust Him (“… who healeth all thy diseases …” — vs. 3).
God’s forgiveness is all-encompassing. In Psalm 103, we see that God:
- Paid for (“redeemed”) our sins with the shed blood of His only son, Jesus. He did this so we could avoid eternal punishment due to an unforgiven sinner.
“Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; …” Psalm 103:4 - Can give undeserved mercy (vss. 4b, 8, 17).
- Is gracious to us and does not always give us the punishment we deserve (vss. 8, 10).
- Often stops being angry at some (vs. 9).
- Can put our sins far away from Him. Once He forgives us of our iniquities, they are as far away as the East is from the West. Those two compass points never meet, nor does our wicked past meet with God’s judgment if we are saved (that is the only way God can forgive one of their sins).
“As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.” Psalm 103:12 - Knows what we are made of and knows that we are weak (vs. 14).
Christian, imagine standing in front of God and being reminded of ALL your unrighteousness. That will never happen to a child of God. We are forgiven.
“And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.” Ephesians 4:32
Thank you God for forgivng me