Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,
Some of us as Believers, myself included, have or do struggle with God’s forgiveness. Complicating it further is Scripture wrongly taught creating confusion. Confusion is not of God. It is a tactic of Satan. God would never contradict Himself and create confusion. Satan did this in the Garden in his first encounter with Adam and Eve. He deliberately twisted The Word of God and used the deception to cause the fall of man. Sadly, rather than go to their Father and ask before doing, Adam and Eve went ahead and did.
Proverbs 3:6
In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths.
Satan has created confusion and deception about God’s forgiveness. This has caused such extreme reactions in the Church, the Body of Christ, such as new denominations being formed, Believers living in bondage to a lie, and the world mocking our Father for seemingly talking out of both sides of His mouth.
We all can agree when we accept and make Jesus Christ the King and Lord of our lives, as the Son of God and as the perfect and one-time sacrifice for the remission of our sin, we are eternally forgiven, and God remembers our sin no more.
Romans 3:23-25
23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
24 Being justified freely by His [God] grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:
25 Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in His blood, to declare His righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;
Romans 3:23-25 makes it clear all of mankind has sinned and come short of the glory of God – meaning eternal life. However, those that accept and make Jesus Christ their Savior are freely justified by God’s grace through the redemption (purchased from eternal death and slavery) in Christ Jesus and the remission (the cancellation of a debt, charge, or penalty) of our sins. The following two verses in Isaiah 43:25 and Psalm 103:12 make it clear the remission of our sins means God The Father has permanently forgotten our sin. It no longer exists. The record has been wiped cleaned, or washed, by the blood of Jesus Christ.
Isaiah 43:25
I, even I, am He that blotteth out thy transgressions for Mine Own sake, and will not remember thy sins.
Psalm 103:12
As far as the east is from the west, so far hath He [God The Father] removed our transgressions from us.
What caused past confusion for me was I John 1:8-9. I’d read it and ask myself this question: “If God doesn’t remember our sin anymore, then why am I confessing my daily sin to Him? Maybe this never bothered you, but I couldn’t reconcile it for years. However, I never diligently sought the answer, as commanded, so God could reveal it to me. I just accepted not understanding and hoped someone would eventually clear it up for me. How lazy I was about God’s Word at times.
I John 1:8-9
8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the Truth is not in us.
9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
The following is a high-level, simple answer to the question I had about I John 1:9. You will need to study it further to receive deeper revelation. To whom was John writing the book of I John? Yes, to Believers. This is why I John 1:8-9 starts with, “If we….” If we the Believers. The Believers of the First Church completely understood what John wrote. So, John didn’t have to further qualify the Scriptures. The key is understanding Who we’re confessing to in I John 1:9. We’re not confessing to God The Father; we’re confessing to God The Holy Spirit. God The Father told us in Isaiah 43:25 and Psalm 103:12 that with the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, He no longer remembers our sin. This is why we’re able, as Believers, to approach God The Father’s Throne of Grace boldly (Hebrews 4:16). God The Father remembers no sin.
The Godhead is the Great Three In One. Each member of the Godhead has a role to play. Since Pentecost, in the Book of Acts, The Holy Spirit is the only member of the Godhead operating in the earth. God The Father is on His Throne, and God The Son, Jesus, is seated at His Father’s right hand. God The Son, Jesus, will not come back to this earth until the Millennial Reign. In the Rapture, Jesus will stop short of the earth in the clouds. God The Father will not come back to this earth until we have the new earth and the new Jerusalem.
The Holy Spirit really helped me to understand I John 1:8-9 by taking me to John 13. John 13-17 recounts the Last Supper, the Passover Meal, and the events surrounding it. In John 13, when Jesus and the Disciples had finished eating, Jesus laid aside His garments and washed the Disciples’ feet. When Jesus reached Peter, they had an exchange reflected in the following verses.
John 13:6-10
6 Then cometh He [Jesus] to Simon Peter: and Peter saith unto Him, Lord, dost Thou wash my feet?
7 Jesus answered and said unto him, What I do thou knowest not now; but thou shalt know hereafter.
8 Peter saith unto Him, Thou shalt never wash my feet. Jesus answered him, If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with Me.
9 Simon Peter saith unto Him, Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head.
10 Jesus saith to him, He that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet, but is clean every whit: and ye are clean, but not all.
Jesus performing the washing of the Disciples feet was significant. It symbolized the end of the Old Covenant and the start of the New Covenant. Under the Old Covenant, Believers had to perform for God. Under the New Covenant, God performs for the Believer. There is also significance in that it was Peter that had the exchange with Jesus. Peter represents the law, his name given him by Jesus meaning “stone.” The law was written upon stone. Jesus is Grace. Grace is replacing the law. This is why Jesus told Peter in verse 8 if Peter would not allow Jesus to wash his feet, Peter could not receive Grace. Peter would have been clinging to the law and not accepting Grace.
In verse 9 when Peter asks Jesus to not only wash Peter’s feet but to also wash his head and hands, Jesus, in verse 10, told Peter there was no need to wash his head and hands – AGAIN. Peter and the ten Disciples (Judas Iscariot not saved) were saved by faith, yet not born again. You are born again when the Holy Spirit indwells you. The Disciples would be born again at Pentecost in the Book of Acts. When they were born again, Ephesians 2:8-9 kicked into effect. Go read the verses. The key is, “For by grace are you saved through faith…” The Disciples had faith, but they hadn’t yet received Grace. Grace became effective upon Jesus’ resurrection.
Since the Disciples were saved, they are spiritually considered “washed” from head to toe. So why did Jesus tell Peter in verse 10, “He that is washed (saved) needeth not save to wash his feet, but is clean every whit:” The Old English is stating “if one is washed, they are entirely clean and only need to wash their feet daily.” The Jews understood this because it was custom when one entered a home, they were provided a basin of water to wash the dust off their feet since they wore sandals. This symbolized the daily washing or repenting of your sin (I John 1:9). The spiritual significance of this is the Believer is washed clean of his sin before God The Father through the shed blood of Jesus Christ. However, the Believer needs to confess daily sin (not to a Priest) to The Holy Spirit. When this is done in faith, I John 1:9 is enacted on behalf of the Believer. But we must BELIEVE in the promise of I John 1:9 (faithful to forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness).
So, why do we, as Believers, need to repent of our daily sin if it is not held against us by God The Father? Good question. If God The Father doesn’t remember a Believer’s sin anymore, and it doesn’t keep us out of Heaven or from eternal life, why do we need to confess it? Romans 8:1-2 provides us the answer.
Romans 8:1-2
1 There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.
If we, as Believers, do not confess our daily sin to The Holy Spirit, we come under condemnation from Satan. Not confessing our daily sin causes us to walk in the flesh. Walking in the flesh, or the natural realm, enables Satan to attack and condemn us in the realm for which he is god of this world. Condemnation quenches our faith. A lack of faith puts us into fear. Remember, you can only be in one of two spiritual states: faith or fear. There is no third state, middle ground, or grey area. Faith or fear. Fear voids our ability to receive God’s promises.
Notice in Romans 8:1 it says, “…who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.” Satan cannot successfully condemn when you are walking in the Spirit, repenting of sin. When he tries to condemn, you rebuff him with the spoken Word of God in faith. If you’re not repenting of your sin, you are walking in the flesh and are vulnerable to Satan’s attacks of condemnation. This condemnation weakens or quenches your faith. Now, instead of marching forward in your Believer’s walk, you are mired in a tar pit, stuck under the condemnation and deception of Satan’s accusations. This is where Satan wants to keep all Believers – powerless and ineffective in the Kingdom of God. Don’t let him.
Don’t be a casualty in the battle against Satan. The war has been won by Jesus Christ. You’ll be involved in spiritual battles, often. But Satan is no match for you if you battle him with The Word of God and repent daily of any sin in your life. Again, the sin will never keep you out of Heaven if you are a Believer, but it will quench your faith. A Believer with little-to-no faith will not see the promises of God come to pass in his life on this earth. He can’t enjoy God’s best for him, and he won’t be a light unto the world for Christ.
In Christ,
Larry