“For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more. I will cleanse them from all their iniquity by which they have sinned against Me, and I will pardon all their iniquities by which they have sinned against Me and by which they have transgressed against Me” (Jer. 31:34a, 33:8).

“I-yes, I alone- will blot out your sins for my own sake and will never think of them again” (Is. 43:25).

“He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor has He rewarded us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is His loving kindness toward those who fear Him.  As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us” (Ps. 103:10-12).

• What does God promise to do with the sins of His people?
• What would be a good definition of sin? 
• Why does He forgive our sins? 
• Which of these promises is the most meaningful to you and why?

“In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace which He lavished on us in all wisdom and insight” (Eph. 1:7,8).

“For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus; whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation in His blood through faith. This was to demonstrate His righteousness, because in the forbearance of God He passed over the sins previously committed” (Rom. 3:23-26).

•  How has God provided for your forgiveness and freedom from sin?
• How do you receive this forgiveness?
• What did you have to do to receive forgiveness?
• How does God’s forgiveness compare to the world and our current culture's understanding of forgiveness?

You were made right with God by His grace. When you believed in Jesus all of your sins-past, present and future- were forgiven. Through faith in Christ’s perfect life, substitutionary death and victorious resurrection, you are justified—that is, declared righteous in God’s sight. The perfect righteousness of Christ is credited to you. You have peace with God. You now stand in His favor and grace. You live by faith.

“These things we write, so that our joy may be made complete. This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (I John 1:4-9).

• What do you need to do in order to experience and enjoy God’s forgiveness?
• What does “confess” mean?
• Do you need to work to obtain God’s forgiveness?

A. How to Forgive Others

“Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you” (Eph. 4:32).

“Do not judge, and you will not be judged; and do not condemn, and you will not be condemned; pardon, and you will be pardoned” (Luke 6:37).

“…bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you” (Col. 3:13).

“Whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father who is in heaven will also forgive you your transgressions” (Mark 11:25).

• What do these verses teach about forgiving others?
• How completely has Christ forgiven you?
• How are you to forgive others?

 
B. Myths about Forgiveness

1. Forgiveness diminishes the offense.
2. Forgiveness releases the offender from his or her consequences.
3. Forgiveness requires forgetting.
4. Forgiveness requires that I have a relationship with the offender.
5. Forgiveness requires that my feelings match my decision: “I feel like I have forgiven them, so I forgive them.”

•  Truth: Forgiveness is a one-time faith decision AND a commitment to walk down a path of forgiveness with Jesus.
• Truth: Forgiveness wants for that person what God wants.
•  Truth: You can know when you have forgiven someone fully when you can pray God’s best for them and not have malice towards them in your heart.

 C. Biblical Example of Forgiveness

1. The parable of the unmerciful servant.
Read Matthew 18:21-35

• What is the main point of this story?  

If we view forgiving others as “cancelling the debt they owe us” rather than having a “forgiving feeling towards them,” we can act in faith and forgive people who have hurt us apart from any "feelings" of forgiveness!

We can do this by praying a forgiveness prayer like the following: “In Jesus’ name, because He forgives me, I choose to forgive _____________________. I hereby cancel their debt. I let them off the hook. I let them go free. They owe me nothing. They never have to apologize. They never have to admit they were wrong. I release them by faith. In Jesus’ name. Amen (Adapted from Grace Plus Nothing by Jeff Harkin).

• Is there anyone you need to forgive?
• Take a moment and use the forgiveness prayer to release them.

2. The Lord’s Prayer.
Read Matthew 6:12

“And forgive us our debts (our sins) as we forgive our debtors (those who sin against us).”
 
Jesus gave us the Lord’s Prayer to help us to maintain our fellowship with God and our forgiveness of others.  On a daily basis you can practice receiving God’s forgiveness for yourself and releasing His forgiveness to others when we pray daily set your heart to release forgiveness those who offend you.

Picture yourself as stepping into the “the river of God’s forgiveness.” Let His forgiveness flow into your heart and then flow out through your heart to others.