Good Friday Means You Have Complete and Total Forgiveness
As a pastor, I would say one of the top struggles, if not the top struggle, that I hear Christians tell me about is a lack of assurance about forgiveness.
For some of us, it is something we did in the past that still haunts us today every time we think about it.
For others, it is a sin that we just keep doing repeatedly and doubt that God will truly forgive us since we keep doing it over and over again.
It’s terrifying to not know if you are truly forgiven and where you stand with God. It’s a dark place to navigate through this life if you are constantly dealing with guilt and shame over sin.
For most of us, we know that Good Friday is the day that Jesus died for our sins, but we feel like there’s still something we’ve got to do in order to be totally and completely forgiven. But is that true?
JESUS TOOK ALL SINS FOR ALL TIME TO THE CROSS
When Jesus went to the cross, it was a once for all sacrifice for sins.
Here’s what the author of Hebrews says in Hebrews 9:26-28.
But he (Jesus) has appeared once for all at the culmination of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself. 27 Just as people are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, 28 so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many…
The word “many” here is a qualitative reference meaning “all.” (Hughes, Philip. New International Commentary, p. 388)
On Good Friday, Jesus took the sins of all people, of all time (past, present, and future) to the cross, and died for every single one of them.
That means the sin that haunts you from your past was taken to the cross and paid for.
The sins that you are struggling to get a hold of and make you feel sick to your stomach each time you give in, were all taken to the cross.
COMPLETE AND TOTAL FORGIVENESS
If you have put your faith and trust in Jesus’ finished work on the cross for your salvation, you have complete and total forgiveness.
Look at what the apostle Paul said in Colossians 2:13-14.
13 When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, 14 having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; he has taken it away, nailing it to the cross.
The charges against you have been canceled. You are no longer condemned. You are completely forgiven.
You can have the assurance that you and God are ok. You can rest in your eternal security.
With complete and total forgiveness, you can know and experience God’s love for you. You don’t have to live in fear of punishment. You don’t have to carry around shame.
You are loved and accepted by God.
“In Jesus Christ, we have complete, once-and-for-all, eternal forgiveness of sins…The sins you will commit tomorrow are already forgiven. You will feel sorry for that sin and the hurt it caused. You may even ask God to forgive it. His Spirit will answer emphatically: ‘God remembers your sins no more.’ Let that truth sink in. Jesus declared in victory, ‘It is finished!’ Forgiveness is yours.”
Bob George
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