Crossing the Line (God's forgiveness) Q: Owen, there is no line. The fact is, you can't sin more than God can forgive! A: Man, my head believes you, but my heart just can't. You wouldn't understand Q: Why do you feel that way? A: Because I knew the right thing to do, and I ignored it. I deliberately chose to do something I knew was wrong. Q: But isn't that what everybody does when they sin? Remember David, the "man after God's own heart"? You think he didn't know it was wrong to have sex with Bathsheba and then have her husband murdered? Yet God forgave him. A: I know that. But it just feels too easy. Anyway, when I do tell God I'm sorry, I still feel awful. It's like this voice keeps whispering, 'You fake. You hypocrite. You loser.' Q: Do you think that voice is coming from God? No way, man. The bible says he does forgive. He even forgets. He doesn't condemn his own people. No the devil... he loves to accuse us of stuff A: Oh, OK, the devil, Yeah, right Q: I'm serious. God convicts us of sin in order to draw us back to him. He wants to forgive us and help us move on. He wants to forgive us and help us move on. Satan does the opposite. He tries to overwhelm us with guilt to push us further from God. A: But if I'm really forgiven, why do I still feel guilty? Q: I'm telling you, man, it's Satan. He's the one who want to knock you out of the battle and keep you down. He's the one saying "You're pathetic. You blew it. You're a failure." Meanwhile, Gods Spirit is saying, 'Yes, you did something you shouldn't have. Let's deal with it and move on.' It comes down to this Owen: Who are you going to listen to? Forgiven! First John 1:9 says it clearly: "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness." When we've blown it somehow, our responsibility is to confess. That means to agree with God- to say the same thing about our sin that he says, to have the same attitude toward it that he has. And what does he say? That our sin is wrong, unnecessary, and even foolish. But more than that, he says it is forgiven. He wants us to leave our sin behind and move on with our lives. This is evidenced when he pardoned the woman who committed adultery and simply said "Go and sin no more". What's God's role in all this? To forgive us and make us pure. How do we know he will? Look at 1 John 1:9 again. He's faithful! He always does what he says he will do. If you're still not convinced, check out these other great passages on forgiveness: Psalm 51, Isaiah 38:10-20, Zechariah 3:1-5, John 8:1-11. Remember, one of Satan's favorite tactics is to use feelings of shame and guilt to isolate us from God and from other believers. It may sound difficult, but talking about your guilt with a trustworthy friend, youth pastor, or godly adult can help. But most importantly, confess it to God. And remember that you are forgiven (This is from revolution bible for teen guys)
agreed Roady. I am not saying there are no consequences, because the justice of God will not be mocked. We reap what we sow. However, I wanted this to be a reminder that we are still forgiven and loved, even inspite of the consequences. And in fact, the consequences and discipline is actually a sign of love since the bible says that "God disciplines those He loves"
