The Grace of God’s Redemption and Forgiveness
The grace of God saves God’s elect, redeemed, regenerate people from beginning to end. Jesus Christ is God (the Son), the only Savior of sinners (Acts 5:31; Titus 1:3; 2:13; 3:6), who He came into the world to seek and to save when they were lost (Lk 19:10). These sinners, by the grace of God, were chosen by God the Father before the foundation of the world and given to God the Son to be His body of beloved people (Is 49:1–6; Jn 6:37; 17:2, 6, 24; Rom 11:5; Eph 1:4–5; 2:8–9). They are affectionately referred to as the sheep of His pasture (Ps 95:7; 100:3).
Grace is the exclusive work of God, three Persons yet One in substance, that unfailingly saves those who belong to Him (Jn 10:26; 1 Cor 3:23; Eph 2:8–9; Titus 3:5). The elect, redeemed belong to Christ, having been bought for a price (1 Cor 6:20; 7:23) with the currency of His precious blood (1 Pet 1:19). In Him, according to the Apostle Paul, we have redemption (Ps 130:7; Eph 1:7; Heb 9:12). Jesus is our Redeemer, who has purchased His people from the slave market of sin (Jn 8:34; Rom 6:6, 16–20). He has set us free so that we might know the forgiveness of sins (Eph 1:7; Col 1:14).
The Law of God is good, righteous, holy, and spiritual. It was never designed to save anyone, but it is good for condemning all of the unjust, ungodly, unholy sinners everywhere. Breaking God’s Law has two directions. When one sins against his neighbor, he is also sinning against God, the Maker of every neighbor. Thoughts, words, and actions are all subject to judgment. The guilty will not go unpunished (Ex 34:7; Nah 1:3), but vengeance belongs to God (Rom 12:19), the just Judge of the whole earth (Gen 18:25).
Sin has consequences, but God is working it all together for good for His beloved (Rom 8:28). The discipline of God the Father is a sure work (Heb 12:4–11). The Holy Spirit and the Word of truth are the means for the children of God to receive their due sanctification in alignment with God’s will (Jn 17:17; Rom 15:16; 1 Cor 6:11; 1 Thess 4:3, 7; 5:23; 2 Thess 2:13; Heb 10:29; 1 Pet 1:2).
Living under the loving discipline of our heavenly Father, who knows best, is not the most pleasant of experiences. It is far better than living under His wrath, however. “Gracious” and “discipline” are not usually the type of words that writers put together, but this is the testimony of the saints. But again, grace is God’s work in the life of the believer and this includes discipline.
When the purchase of blood was made on the cross, the reality of sins being forgiven did manifest (Mt 26:28). Jesus’ blood atoned for the sins of the people He came into the world to save (Mt 1:21). He saved us (Titus 3:5). He saved us from the wrath of God (Rom 3:25; Heb 2:17; 1 Jn 2:2; 4:10), which is rightly directed against all the sons of Adam, that is, all humanity. Jesus has taken his right place at the right hand of God (Mk 16:19; Lk 22:69; Acts 2:33; 5:31; 7:55–56; Rom 8:34; Col 3:1; Heb 10:12; 12:2; 1 Pet 3:22) and thus, repentance and the forgiveness of sins has been granted to Israel (Acts 5:31), Christ’s church (Gal 6:16).
Having received so great a grace unto salvation, we must live in proper reflection of redemption and forgiveness (Ps 32:1). The redeemed of the Lord now serve the one and only Redeemer of Israel (Is 41:14; 43:14; 44:6; 47:4; 48:17; 49:7; 54:5; 63:16), who alone can forgive sins (Ps 79:9; Mk 2:7; Lk 5:21; Acts 5:31). Having been forgiven so much, we must in turn forgive others.
The Apostle Paul wrote, “Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you (Eph 4:32),” and in similar words, “bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone, just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you (Col 3:13),” and again, “But one who you forgive anything, I forgive also; for indeed what I have forgiven, if I have forgiven anything, I did it for your sakes in the presence of Christ (2 Cor 2:10).”
No man can redeem another (Ps 49:7), as Christ has redeemed His chosen people, but forgiveness is an imperative. The Christian is compelled to forgive others because he himself has been the recipient of such amazing grace. Absolute forgiveness is astonishing. It is the ultimate in applied mercy. It was God’s gracious choice, according to His sovereign will, to have mercy upon those He chose as beneficial recipients (Rom 9:15). When they had nothing but sin, hatred, and enmity for God, He chose to have mercy (Rom 9:23).
Mercy was made a reality by satisfaction being made to the Law. Jesus Christ fulfilled the demands of the Law of God by both His active and passive obedience (Mt 5:17). He was like us yet without sin (Heb 4:15). Without the shedding of Christ’s blood on that cursed tree, there would be no forgiveness of sin for anyone (Heb 9:22; 1 Pet 2:24). His perfect life and unblemished death, coupled with the decision to mercifully forgive elect sinners, searches the unfathomable depths of gratitude in us.
One way of expressing thanksgiving for such a magnanimous act is to have the same attitude as Christ did in His humble incarnation to reconcile us to God (2 Cor 5:19; Phil 2:5–11). He gave Himself up to death on a cross for our sins to be forgiven (Mt 26:28). Then, after His resurrection and ascension to the throne of heaven (Jn 3:13; Eph 4:10). He sent His Spirit to His beloved (Jn 14:17, 26; 15:26). The result, for every believer, is the life of Christ becoming a reality (Gal 2:20; Phil 1:21).
The Christian life is marked by abounding grace (Rom 5:15, 20; 2 Cor 9:8). This grace includes the impetus to forgive others when they offend us. To forgive and forget is grace manifested in us and through us. In this way, Christ’s light shines because forgiveness is not the way of the world. It is a display of the wisdom and power of God in a life being transformed.
The Lord knows I need forgiveness from my brothers and sisters in Christ…daily. The pervasive nature of sin’s pesky infestation of a Christian’s experience means there is almost a constant offense in play or pending. There is a remarkable joy in forgiving others because of the burden lifted. It requires a great energy to maintain a grudge. Pride is crushed by the one forgiven, himself given over to forgive. That, of course, is a good thing, as is all grace exercised by God, who is the God of all grace.
David Norczyk
Spokane Valley, Washington
May 9, 2022
