A couple of weeks ago I filled in for John Callan (a fellow elder) in a class called “Different by Design” based on the book of the same name by H. Dale Burke. This particular class was on forgiveness. I studied as I should have for the class, but as I was praying the morning of the class I was struck with the reality of the reason/ basis for us forgiving one another and the need to express to the class this foundation. I extemporaneously dealt with the issue of Christ’s death and resurrection and how it is the basis for God’s forgiveness of us and therefore the basis of our forgiveness of one another (Eph 4:32). While the following will not be exactly what I spoke, it will be close. I believe this is important because of the attack on penal substitution that is underway within so called evangelicalism.

Let’s begin with the verse referenced above. Ephesians 4:32 states, “Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.” How is it that God in Christ has forgiven us? My mind goes to Hebrews 9:22, “without the shedding of blood there us no forgiveness.”  If we cross reference this with Heb 9:28 we see that Christ was offered “once to bear the sins of many.” (I leave the extent of the atonement alone for now, although there are implications that involve that in what I am stating).  There are those who are positing today that Christ’s death was not a substitution (Click here and follow a discussion started by Adrian Warnock in regard to Stephen Chalke who does not belive in Penal Substitution) in that it does not satisfy the wrath of God. If God’s wrath is not satisfied, there is no forgiveness (Romans 5:9; 1 Thes 5:9-10).  This seems plain and simple enough.  But what we must do is reflect upon the forgiveness offered to us and what was necessary for the accomplishment of it, in order to undersand the gravity of our need to forgive others. (The next post will deal with the idea of how we forgive or live in a spirit of forgiveness, if we have not been literally asked for forgiveness.)

If it took the very sacrifice of the Son of God to satisfy the Father’s wrath in order that He might forgive us, how can we hold forgiveness back from those who ask it of us?  What have they done that compares to the horror of the cross?  What have they done that can’t be covered by the blood of Christ that was shed on our behalf?  Is there anything like the cry of Jesus from the cross, “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?” This should cause us to pause and consider what basis we have to not forgive others. The answer seems simple enough, the practice of it seems to be the problem…at least for me.