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Date: April 6, 1938Place: PenangScripture Reading: 1 John 1:9; James 5:15; Eph. 4:32; Luke 24:47; John 20:22-23; Matt. 18:21-35; 6:14-15
All the passages we have read today speak of forgiveness, but the forgiveness that is spoken of in each place is different. Ephesians 4:32 speaks of a forgiveness that comes from Christ. John 20:22-23 speaks of a forgiveness that is related to the authority of the church; the church has authority to forgive men. This forgiveness is different from the forgiveness of Christ. First John 1:9 shows us that when a man confesses his sin before the Lord, he is forgiven. James 5:15, however, speaks of a special kind of forgiveness in which a sick brother should ask the elders to anoint him with oil. His sickness will then be healed, and his sins will be forgiven. Finally, Matthew 6:14-15 says that if we forgive others' offenses, our Father will also forgive our offenses, and if we do not forgive others' offenses, our Father will also not forgive our offenses.
In the Bible, there is more than one kind of forgiveness. In fact, there are at least five kinds of forgiveness. These five kinds of forgiveness are: (1) eternal forgiveness — this relates to the matter of life; (2) instrumental forgiveness — this relates to the church; (3) restorative forgiveness — this relates to fellowship; (4) governmental forgiveness — this relates to discipline; and (5) kingdom forgiveness — this relates to administration. I have made up these five expressions for ease of reference.
Eternal forgiveness refers to God forgiving our sins through Christ. Once we are forgiven, we are forgiven forever. We receive eternal life forever, and we are justified forever. All of our sins before God are forgiven. In order to receive this forgiveness, we have to believe in the Lord. Once we believe in Him, we are immediately forgiven. This does not come about through man's work but through the work of the Lord's cross. The Lord's blood, which was shed on the cross, has dealt with all our sins. Exodus 12 tells us that the Israelites slaughtered the lamb at the Passover and put the blood of the lamb on the doorpost and side posts. When God saw the blood, He passed over the house immediately. The blood of Christ guarantees that we will not perish, because His blood has satisfied God's righteous requirement according to the law. The blood speaks of the price of sin. Once sin encounters the blood, we find forgiveness, and our sins before God are washed away. When a man's sins are judged, his sins before God are thoroughly removed.
On the night of the Lord's resurrection, He breathed into the disciples and told them to receive the Holy Spirit. After the Lord resurrected, He gave the Holy Spirit to the disciples and told them that they had the authority to forgive or to retain others' sins (John 20:22-23). Only after a man has received the Holy Spirit will he have the authority to forgive or retain others' sins. Why did the Lord say that the disciples and the church have authority to forgive men's sins? This forgiveness is an indirect forgiveness. God forgives men directly, and He also forgives men indirectly through other men. Our forgiveness before God is based on Christ. But here is an institution on earth — the church, the house of God. A person's sins may be forgiven, but he must still go through the judgment of the church. If his sins are considered as forgiven, he can be baptized. But if they are not considered as forgiven, then he cannot be baptized. When the church comes together to break bread and someone walks in, he may be a saved person, but the worker or the church must judge whether he is partaking of the flesh and blood in the Lord's name. If such a one is not a Christian according to our opinion, we should not receive him, because he is not one of us and has nothing to do with the Body of Christ.
If a church is short of the power and leading of the Holy Spirit, it surely will run into errors. But if a church has the leading, the power, and the authority of the Holy Spirit, it can forgive men's sins, and God will honor such forgiveness. If the church retains men's sins, God will also honor such retaining. This is God forgiving through men's forgiving. But only those who have the power of the Holy Spirit can have the authority to forgive. God wants man to declare His forgiveness on earth. The church, the workers of God, and the apostles are the representatives of God on earth today. God declares man's forgiveness through such people. This is not to say that a man has any authority in himself. The church cannot forgive men. But the church can ascertain whether or not a man's sins are forgiven through the power of the Holy Spirit. God forgives through the hand of man. Eternal forgiveness has to do with life. As soon as a person is forgiven, he is regenerated. But instrumental forgiveness is related to a corporate entity, the church. It is the church that determines whether or not a man is qualified to be a part of it.
Most of us have experienced the two kinds of forgiveness spoken of above. We have obtained God's forgiveness, and His children have testified that our sins are forgiven. These are past accomplished facts.
The other three kinds of forgiveness are not accomplished facts. They are things that we experience today. Once our previous sins — those we committed before we were saved — are forgiven, they are forever settled before God. When God forgives, His forgiveness is eternal. After we are saved, however, we can still sin. We cannot say that we have become perfect, but we should not say that we are altogether evil either. Whatever we are, it is hard for us to avoid falling into sin after our salvation. When we sin our conscience condemns us, and our fellowship with God is interrupted.
Restorative forgiveness has to do with our fellowship with God. Once the issue of life is settled, it will never change. God has regenerated us, and there is no way for Him to deny our justification. There is no way for Him to deny us as sons. On the one hand, God has begotten us. On the other hand, we have received eternal life. Our Father-son relationship with God in life can never be changed. Life never changes. However, fellowship does change. When a son sins, he feels ashamed when he sees his father because there is a problem with fellowship. When we sin, we are no longer as bold to meet God. We become fearful of Him, and we even are afraid to see our brothers. This means that sin has damaged our fellowship with God. What then shall we do? We have to confess to God. When we were saved, we did not confess every sin that we had committed; no one has the mental capacity to remember all of his sins. When we were saved, we only needed to confess that we were sinners and to believe in the redemption of God's Son. God then forgave us. Eternal forgiveness was granted the minute we believed. However, since we are regenerated and alive and since we are able to tell right from wrong, we have to confess our sins to God one by one before we can secure our forgiveness in fellowship. If we have offended our brothers, we must confess to them as well. We must ask God for forgiveness concerning our offenses. We have to acknowledge what we say and do as sins and ask God for forgiveness before our fellowship with Him can be restored.
Some people do not experience the joy of salvation after they are saved. They do not act like children of God; in- stead, they act like adopted children. They feel this way because they are not confessing their sins, and they are not in fellowship with God. Hence, we must deal thoroughly with every sin that we commit each day. We have to maintain ourselves in constant fellowship with God. Today we are walk- ing in the wilderness. Our feet can become defiled with dirt and uncleanness. We live in this world, in an unclean society. Day by day we have weaknesses. It is true that Christians need not sin, and it is possible for us not to sin. Unfortunately, we sometimes sin and become separated from God in fellowship. When we come to God, we have to acknowledge our sinful acts honestly and ask Him for forgiveness. If we do this, our fellowship with God will be restored; our hearts will be filled with the joy of salvation. If we allow any barrier to come between us and God in our fellowship, we will become cold and dark within because the light has gone out from us.
The secret of the Christian life is maintaining oneself in constant fellowship with God. We must maintain ourselves in a holy position and walk in a holy way. Many believers say in their heart that they will never fall. But once they fall, they are shattered; they roll on the floor and can no longer rise up. We must rise up and ask God for forgiveness, and we must recover the sweet fellowship we had with God. This is the forgiveness mentioned in 1 John 1:9.
This kind of forgiveness is related to our environment. It involves God's arrangement, sovereignty, discipline, and hand. If we have offended God and have confessed to Him, He will forgive our sins and will recover our fellowship with Him. But this does not mean that the case is completely settled. David confessed to God after he sinned, and Nathan told him that God had taken away his sin. However, he also told him that the sword would never depart from his house because he had taken another man's wife to be his wife. He had done it in secret, but the Lord recompensed him under the sun (2 Sam. 12:7-15). It is easy to obtain forgiveness from God when we sin, but it is not that simple a thing when God's disciplining hand is upon us. We reap whatever we sow. We may struggle and wonder why we have encountered all the things that we have encountered, while others are left alone. We should realize that this is God's disciplining hand. We should not reject it; rather, we should submit ourselves under the mighty hand of God. At the right time, His disciplining hand will leave. This is the meaning of governmental forgiveness.
Many people treat others too harshly in this age. In the kingdom age, they will be disciplined. The Lord says, "For with what measure you measure, it shall be measured to you in return" (Luke 6:38). If we treat others in a mean way and criticize others mercilessly, God will deal with us in the same way in the future. Therefore, we have to be careful about the way we deal with others today. The way we deal with others will be the way that God will deal with us in the future. May the Lord grant us the grace to be those who show mercy to others, who do not deal with others in meanness, sharpness, or severity so that we can obtain mercy from God in that day (Matt. 5:7).
