by Randal Matheny

In those depressing, despairing moments when I have seen clearly my sin, I wonder, how can God forgive? Why would he even want to forgive me? How can I be worth forgiving?

My friend Francisco Bezerra, editor of Edificação Magazine, mentioned to me last week that in several languages he checked, among them English, French, Portuguese, and Latin, the word "give" inheres in the term for forgiveness.

Literally, God gives forgiveness.

GOD'S GIFT IS REALLY FREE

Indeed, God's forgiveness doesn't mark "Paid in Full" after we have settled all accounts, but gives what we can't possibly pay off. Free. God (for)gives with no strings attached. Take a gander at these verses:

"[All] are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus" (Rom. 3.24, NIV).

"We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us" (1 Cor. 2.12).

". . . To him who is thirsty I will give to drink without cost from the spring of the water of life" (Rev. 21.7b).

". . . Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life" (Rev. 22.17b).

So it's not a cute coincidence that giving inheres in forgiveness. For it is a free gift.

GIFTS MUST BE ACCEPTED

Gifts can be and have been refused. God respects our free will. He doesn't force forgiveness upon us. He extends it to all, so that John the Baptist can say, "Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!" (John 1.29). The offer is good to anybody, anywhere, any time.

That's why Paul will say that the living God "is the Savior of all men, and especially of those who believe" (1 Tim. 4.9). He is the Savior of all, potentially, and of those who believe, actually. God awaits the acceptance of his gift.

Scripture describes our acceptance of God's gift in various ways. One is "to receive" Jesus (John 1.12), the Spirit of God (Gal. 3.2), or God's grace (2 Cor. 6.1). In the latter passage, Paul even contemplates the possibility of receiving grace in vain. And John laments that "his own [people, the Jews] did not receive him" (1.11).

The Word also describes this acceptance process as obedience. Jesus is the source or cause of salvation to those who obey him (Heb. 5.9). In his message, Peter call upon the witness of "the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him" (Acts 5.32). Thus, there is the offer, the acceptance (receiving, obeying, etc.), and the actual giving.

Receiving and obeying are general terms. They include the hearing, believing, repenting, confessing, immersing and faithful living necessary for salvation. (Another time,we'll delve into these.)

A GIVING GOD

God enjoys giving. (Check out Jas. 1.5, for example.) It seems the first thing he did after creating man was to bless him and give him food. Again, in Christ, God gives forgiveness. To those who will accept and receive it.

Best of all, he gives forgiveness to those of us who still shake our heads in wonder when we see the enormity of our sin. We get a glimpse then of the size of the gift.