God's Unbroken Promises
I Will Forgive You
Romans 6:1-7
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Welcome
Introduction
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Forgiveness is a previous thing.
- In fact, God graciously gives us those words in HIs Word, "I will forgive" (Jer. 31:34 for instance).
- It is a profound promise and one that should resonate within our hearts.
Forgiveness is a beautiful, if not a mind-boggling, thing!
- Forgiveness is a promise that God make for those who call upon his name and seek His Son's cleaning blood!
What's the big deal…why should I care that God forgives me?
- The Bible does say that all have sinned and that the wages of that sin is death.
- The world today might just tell you, "Sure your not perfect, but a sinner…now thats just harsh. No, your a good person who occasionally does something bad."
- The question I would pose is...if we were so good then why not stop doing those bad things.
- "Well, that's just impossible!"
Jesus would say, "You are right…because you are a sinner!"
- Indeed, the heart of man is wicked, deceitful and sick (Jer. 17:9)
- Forgiveness is something that we all NEED! (last week's promise I WIll Give You What You Need)
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Text
"What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. For one who has died has been set free from sin." Romans 6:1-7
Being forgiven…that just sounds too go to be true.
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- I want you to notice all the past-tense verbs in this passage:
- "have died to sin"
- "were…buried with Him"
- "old self was crucified"
- "has been set free"
The message of forgiveness is one that deals with the past.
- What do I mean?
- This can be 30 years, 20 years, 15 years, 5 years, 10 hours, or minutes ago!
- The past has no bearing on the whatsoever on the way in which God sees you now.
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When you come to God forgiveness is given once and for all:
- Sin, addictions, moral lapses, abuse, failed marriages…when placed before God they are all FORGIVEN!
Lesson
The charge that Paul make's here is clear & effective:
- How can anyone who has been on the receiving end of the largest operation of grace continue to willfully sin?
- How can anyone who truly understand the cost of forgiveness flippantly live in a life of sin?
- How can anyone who understand the damage that sin causes make no effort to cease and desist?
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His greatest argument concerns the power that authentic forgiveness catalyzes in the life of a true convert.
- "For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his." vs. 5
- What happens when we receive God's forgiveness?
- We die to our old way and are then resurrected to a new way of life!
- Before the spirit was willing but the flesh was weak…
- Now, through Christ, the spirit is willing and the flesh is able!
Later Paul states:
- "Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness." vs. 13
- Will we ever reach perfection this side of heaven? No….
- BUT - we can choose to say no to sin when the temptation asked to use our mouth, ears, hands, heart, mind or any other part for sinful purposes.
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New Master
We are no longer slaves to our sin…we don't have to obey it!
Why? WE HAVE A NEW MASTER!
This should motivate us to exercise discipline , effort and commitment towards defeating destructive habits in our lives.
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EX. - Charles Blondin - tight rope walker in the mid-1800's
- He walked from Canada to US 17 different times on a tightrope!
- In one story he was on the rope and shouted, "I am Charles Blondin,do you believe me?"
- They responded by saying, "Yes, we believe you!"
- Next he said, "Do you believe that I can go back across carrying someone on my shoulders?"
- "Yes…we believe!"
- "Who will be the first one?"…the crowd went silent!
- Saying your committed is totally different from living if you actually are.
- Total commitment is the life that God is calling us to!
Have you ever met someone who claims to be a Christ-follower but has a casual attitude towards sin?
- Christ's promise to forgive our sin is followed by the power to overcome it.
- "Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator." Col. 3:9-10
- "I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." Gal. 2:20
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Two examples of this (I've uses them before but they are both so fitting):
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King David - he stole another man's wife, got her pregnant, and then killed her husband to cover it all up (2 Sam. 11)
- But he came to his senses; humbled himself, confessed his sins and repented.
- He later wrote: "...as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us." Psalm 103:12
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Saul - God also chose a man who's past is far worse than any of ours.
- He was responsible for the deaths of hundreds of Christians
- In fact, as Stephen was being stoned he was there giving his approval oftheir actions.
- He would launch the Christian movement in much of the Greco-Roman world.
- He would pen most of the NT that we study today!
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"in him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace…" Eph. 1:7
Conclusion
Those who have been been baptized and follow Christ are sons and daughters of God.
- Our heavenly Father loves and cadres for us like no other, and one of the greatest gifts of this love is His forgiveness!
- Paul wrote of this in his letter to the church in Rome,
- "Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, and whose sins are covered;" Rom. 4:7
Why are those who have been forgiven so blessed?
- Because forgiveness means that nothing stands between them and God.
- For many the blessing is so overwhelming that they approach it with weeping and gratitude.
- They realize that God reached out when no one else would, and offered the most precious gift of all…FORGIVENESS!
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