Forgiveness: Stop Peeking Into Your Box of Old Sins

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If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. —1 John 1:9

Forgiveness

Forgiveness. I don’t know about you, but I am in awe of the forgiveness of Christ. I struggle with resting in the fact that once He has forgiven us, we are forgiven forever – we no longer need to dwell on past sins.

Before I came to Christ, I committed some grave sins. One had burdened my heart for a long time. At the time, I was in a Catholic church and confessed my sin to our priest. (I am no longer attached to the Catholic church. One of the reasons that I left was the worship of the priests. Many were good men, but not God and not to be idolized, but that is a post for another day. I’m not knocking Catholics. This was my personal issue). This kind man “of the cloth” assured me that no matter how great the sin, I was forgiven if I truly repented and believed in God’s forgiveness.

It sounded great and comforted me, at the time, but I never forgave myself. Did you catch that? God forgave me, but I couldn’t forgive myself.

A few years later, when I was saved by the blood of Christ, I reconfessed this sin. Every now and then, I think of it and mourn over it all over again. Recently, after church one Sunday, I mentioned the sin to my husband. (He already knew of it) and how my heart still hurt over it. He reminded me that my sins were forgiven and that I had to stop second-guessing God. BAM! It hit me. Is this what I was doing?

I had knelt before the cross and Jesus had forgiven me. I had to stop taking “my sin box” off of the shelf and peeking in. The past is the past. I have been forgiven. While I can’t take back what I did and it will forever change me (and to some degree has shaped me), I have been forgiven.

Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross is made that possible for us. When a person receives God’s gift of forgiveness, condemnation for all sin just leaves us – it evaporates — past, present, and future! It has nothing to do with the person, but has everything to do with the One who has forgiven us — Jesus and His blood and righteousness.

The song, Who Am I, by Casting Crowns, outlines this perfectly. Let’s take a look at the lyrics and song:

Who am I, that the lord of all the earth
Would care to know my name
Would care to feel my hurt?
Who am I, that the bright and morning star
Would choose to light the way
For my ever wandering heart?

Not because of who I am
But because of what you’ve done
Not because of what I’ve done
But because of who you are

I am a flower quickly fading
Here today and gone tomorrow
A wave tossed in the ocean
A vapor in the wind
Still you hear me when I’m calling
Lord, you catch me when I’m falling
And you’ve told me who I am
I am yours

Who am I, that the eyes that see my sin
Would look on me with love
And watch me rise again?
Who am I, that the voice that calmed the sea
Would call out through the rain
And calm the storm in me?

Not because of who I am
But because of what you’ve done
Not because of what I’ve done
But because of who you are

I am a flower quickly fading
Here today and gone tomorrow
A wave tossed in the ocean
A vapor in the wind
Still you hear me when I’m calling
Lord, you catch me when I’m falling
And you’ve told me who I am
I am yours

Not because of who I am
But because of what you’ve done
Not because of what I’ve done
But because of who you are
I am a flower quickly fading
Here today and gone tomorrow
A wave tossed in the ocean
A vapor in the wind
Still you hear me when I’m calling
Lord, you catch me when I’m falling
And you’ve told me who I am
I am yours
I am yours
I am yours

Whom shall I fear, whom shall I fear?
‘Cause I am yours
I am yours

Songwriters: John Mark Hall

The Bible is clear that life is not about us. When we rely on our own ability to do the right thing, we just end up sinning more. That happens when we don’t make Jesus the central focus of our life. We are putting ourselves first. Our needs, our anxieties, our sins. The Bible is also clear on forgiveness. We are forgiven. Always and forever. We are created new in Him.

We no longer have to peek into that old box of sins and mourn. We have joy in Him. We are forgiven.

2 Corinthians 5:17-18

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation;

Do you have a sin that you are holding onto? One that you keep taking down and peeking at over and over again? Put it down, my friend, once and for all. You are forgiven and you are a new creation in our Lord Jesus Christ.

If you are struggling with this, the below resources have helped me tremendously and may be a blessing to you.

Because of Him,

Sue

Have you practiced fasting as a form of worship and prayer? Learn more about the four types of fasting HERE.