What’s Left at the Cross Is Forgotten

When God forgives you, you need to forgive yourself too. Are you continually revisiting past sins long forgiven and forgotten by Him? Sever that chain, free yourself, and move forward—learning from those mistakes and becoming increasingly better.

February’s Awakening, Day 21

Forgiveness does not mean the cancellation of all consequences of wrongdoing. It means the refusal on God’s part to let our guilty past affect His relationship with us.

 —Author Unknown

I will love you, O Lord, and thank you, and confess to your name, because you have forgiven me my evil and nefarious deeds.

 —Augustine of Hippo 

God has cast our confessed sins into the depths of the sea, and He's even put a “No Fishing” sign over the spot.

 —D. L. Moody 

Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits—who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. The Lord works righteousness and justice for all the oppressed. The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever; he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. Psalm 103:2–6, 8–12 NIV   

Who is a God like you, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of his inheritance? You do not stay angry forever but delight to show mercy. You will again have compassion on us; you will tread our sins underfoot and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea. Micah 7:18–19 NIV

            It should be comforting to know that from God’s perspective, once our sins are forgiven they are truly forgotten and not revisited. As far as the east is from the west and cast into the depths of the sea, they are removed from us and never counted against us. That is the purest form of forgiveness, bestowed upon us by God through His grace for all those who come to the Cross. Each day is fresh, the slate is wiped clean, and is a new start. God does require us to have a repentant heart and turn from our sins, for He knows the damage that sin creates in our lives. Even though we are forgiven, we still must always face the consequences of our sins and poor choices. God does not allow sin to stand between us if we are truly repentant, but He does not cancel the consequences. We should be ever grateful of His forgiveness and willfully do our best to avoid those pitfalls of sin.