Forgiveness is a topic of great relevance for most people. We’ve all been wounded by someone: a parent, sibling, friend, coworker, spouse... Perhaps we have been the one to wound another. Either way forgiveness in different seasons is both given and received. Since we are limited by our human understanding, we can never fully understand the forgiveness granted by God through the shed blood of Christ. Though not part of our lesson I think the words of Paul are a good starting point for the week: “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you” (Eph 4:32). Our focus for this lesson is how almighty God is forever faithful and magnanimous to forgive us an undeserving people.
Verses 5-7 focus on God and His nature. Verse 5 declares the purity (holiness, righteousness) of God. He is seen as light, and there is not even hint of darkness in Him. Darkness is used to represent sin and things that need to be hidden from others. The cover of darkness can only be penetrated by a source of light. In verse 6, John rightly claims that we cannot claim to live in fellowship with the source of pure light and continue to walk in darkness at the same time. The verbs in these verses indicate a continual present action rather than an occasional trespass. Walking in darkness cannot coexist with walking in the light. One result of walking in the light is experiencing fellowship with a community of believers. A community of believers are people who have been and are being cleansed of their sin by the blood of Christ. This fellowship is a natural result of you and I walking together in the light of God. When we are living in harmony with God, we will more naturally be in harmony with one another. The lesson commentary adds this: “The gratitude we have for our sins being forgiven results in more fellowship with one another and with God. We are forgiven when we turn from darkness to light, from sin to righteousness” (BSFL Senior Adult Leader Guide, p.19).
Verses 8-10 The word translated “confess” in verse 9 means to say the same thing; or to agree with. Our confession is simply agreeing with God about our sin. Romans reminds us that all have sinned and fallen short of God’s glory. Therefore, we are all sinners. Initially this confession leads to our salvation. After we come to Christ, we also undergo a process of sanctification. Keeping our daily shortcomings up to date helps us maintain a healthy fellowship with our Lord as we seek to walk in the Spirit rather than the flesh. Our sanctification will not be fully realized in this lifetime, but we are to be conformed into His image more and more each day.
Those who say they have no sin are deceived. There is good news for us. When we confess or agree with God regarding our sinfulness He is “faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (ESV). Note here that we do nothing in our own merits to earn or deserve God’s forgiveness. We come to a place where we receive what God offers each of us. Accompanying God’s forgiveness is a cleansing of our hearts. This cleansing is not a partial cleansing, but it is a complete cleansing from unrighteousness. Aren’t you glad that when God does something He does it completely?
I john 2:1-2 The Apostle refers to the readers as children. He is compassionately teaching from a wealth of knowledge and experience. He says our ultimate goal is to not sin, but he realizes that (daily) we all fall short of that goal. There is some amazing and awesome truth here, however. When we do sin, we have we have an advocate with the Father. An advocate is a helper, a comforter, and an intercessor. We think of an advocate as an attorney representing our case. The Righteous One steps in on our behalf and represents us before the Father. Christ can do this because He is the one who made the atoning sacrifice to take the penalty for our sin upon Himself. Our forgiveness is guaranteed because He Himself paid our sin debt. There is no other who could fulfill this role. I notice again this is an ultimate and comprehensive action. Christ did not offer Himself for a select few. He offered Himself for the entirety of humanity.
Gratefully we can know we are forgiven as the lesson title tells us. God loved us and His plan to redeem us has been in His mind forever from eternity past. He made us and He has redeemed us. We owe Him so much. I pray we can live our lives in thankfulness to Him. Remember this week when we feel the accusations of the enemy and a familiar darkness seeks to dominate our thoughts remember the words of Psalm 103:1-12:
1Praise the Lord, my soul;
all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
2 Praise the Lord, my soul,
and forget not all his benefits—
3 who forgives all your sins
and heals all your diseases,
4 who redeems your life from the pit
and crowns you with love and compassion,
5 who satisfies your desires with good things
so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
6 The Lord works righteousness
and justice for all the oppressed.
7 He made known his ways to Moses,
his deeds to the people of Israel:
8 The Lord is compassionate and gracious,
slow to anger, abounding in love.
9 He will not always accuse,
nor will he harbor his anger forever;
10 he does not treat us as our sins deserve
or repay us according to our iniquities.
11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
so great is his love for those who fear him;
12 as far as the east is from the west,
so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
Thanks again for reading and I hope to see you Sunday.
Chris Larsen
