Isaiah 43:25 "I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins."
My subject tonight is The Blessed Forgiveness of Sin. I stand before you tonight as a man who has experienced the grace of God. God, in his infinite mercy and for reasons known only to himself, has redeemed me, justified me, and saved me by his matchless grace through the blood and righteousness of his own dear Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.
Though my sins are many, loathsome, and vile, the Lord God has blotted out all my sins, and forgiven me all my iniquities. He has put away my sins and purged my conscience of guilt by the blood of Christ.
Yet, in the time of his love, by an act of almighty grace, the Lord God came to me and freely forgave me of all my sins.
Now this is the reason why I am here tonight – I want to tell you about The Blessed Forgiveness of Sin. I want to instruct you who know the Lord in the doctrine of forgiveness. And it is my heart's great desire, burden, and prayer that the Lord will graciously grant to some of you the forgiveness of sin.
I cannot save your soul. I cannot change your heart. I cannot give you life. I cannot forgive your sin. I can do nothing but pray for you and point you to Christ. I can do nothing but preach the gospel to you, and that I shall do.
Since the day Christ saved me and forgave my sin, I cannot help speaking of his love. He has pardoned me! He has forgiven me! He has blotted out my sins! I cannot be silent. This tongue should sooner cleave to the roof of my mouth, than cease to proclaim the free-grace of God in all its mighty displays of electing, redeeming, pardoning, and saving mercy. God has forgiven me! I will praise his holy name! God has forgiven me! I will speak forth his righteousness! God has forgiven me! I will proclaim to you The Blessed Forgiveness of Sin!
Proposition: The Lord our God, the one true and living God of heaven and earth, is a God who freely and abundantly forgives sin through the blood of his Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.
Divisions: This is what God himself says, "I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins." In expounding this great text of Scripture, I want to answer five questions.
I. WHO ARE THE PEOPLE TO WHOM GOD WILL BE MERCIFUL?
In this passage our Lord clearly describes those people upon whom he will bestow his favor. They are not good, righteous, and morally upright men and women. So long as a man thinks that he is good and righteous he will never obtain mercy from God. The characters to whom God says he will be merciful are sinners. The grace and lovingkindness of Jehovah is reserved for sinners.
I come to you in the name of Christ to preach the gospel of the free-grace of God to sinners. I have not a word to say to you Pharisees who think that you are righteous, except this – Until you see that your supposed righteousness is an abomination to God, you will never obtain the righteousness of God in Christ (Rom. 10:1-4).
Romans 10:1-4 "Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be saved. 2 For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge. 3 For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God. 4 For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth."
NOTE: Every promise of the gospel is made to sinners – "The Son of man came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance." (Matt. 11:28-30; Isa. 1:4-6, 18; 55:6-7).
Isaiah 1:4-6 "Ah sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a seed of evildoers, children that are corrupters: they have forsaken the LORD, they have provoked the Holy One of Israel unto anger, they are gone away backward. 5 Why should ye be stricken any more? ye will revolt more and more: the whole head is sick, and the whole heart faint. 6 From the sole of the foot even unto the head there is no soundness in it; but wounds, and bruises, and putrifying sores: they have not been closed, neither bound up, neither mollified with ointment."
Isaiah 1:18 "Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool."
saiah 55:6-7 "Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call *ye upon him while he is near: 7 Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have
Matthew 11:28-30 "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."
This is how God describes those people to whom he promises his mercy (vv. 22-24).
Isaiah 43:22-24 "But thou hast not called upon me, O Jacob; but thou hast been weary of me, O Israel. 23 Thou hast not brought me the small cattle of thy burnt offerings; neither hast thou honoured me with thy sacrifices. I have not caused thee to serve with an offering, nor wearied thee with incense. 24 Thou hast bought me no sweet cane with money, neither hast thou filled me with the fat of thy sacrifices: but thou hast made me to serve with thy sins, thou hast wearied me with thine iniquities."
A. They were a prayerless people. – "Thou hast not called upon me."
Most likely they had said many prayers. They had repeated many forms of prayer. But no real prayer had ever come from their hearts to God. Their lips never breathed a living word to God.
NOTE: A prayerless heart is a Christless heart.Yet, the Lord God says to these prayerless, graceless souls – "I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions."
B. These people were men and women who despised God and his worship.
The Lord looked past their words and gestures to their hearts, and said – "Thou hast been weary of me, O Israel!" What a solemn charge! Yet, it is true of some in this house! God has set before you the means of grace, and you are weary of his blessings set before you!
Not only are these rich favors of heaven without attraction to you, they are wearisome things to you!
Yet, even to such people, God says, "I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions."
C. Notice their character again. There is no goodness in them. They are a thankless people – "Thou hast not brought me the small cattle of thy burnt offerings."
They had their herds and flocks multiplied many times over. But they paid no tribute of thanks to God, who had so bountifully blessed them. They did not even offer one of their small, sickly calves to him.
NOTE: Even the little chicken, when it takes a drink of God's water lifts its head toward heaven, as if to give God thanks.
NOTE: The tithe of the Old Testament law was instituted as a tribute to God, by which men were bound to acknowledge God's bounty toward them.
NOTE: Those men who show no true thanks to God are worse than brute beasts. All that we have, we owe to his bountiful hand.
Will we dare rob God of his lawful and just tribute? These people did. They were a thankless people. Yet, the Lord God was gracious still. He said to them – "I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions."
D. Again, these people were an utterly useless people – "Neither hast thou filled me with the fat of thy sacrifices…but thou hast made me to serve with thy sins."
It is well said that man was created in his chief end to glorify God. God made the sun, the moon, the stars, the beasts of the field, and the fish of the sea to honor his name. But there are many men and women, perhaps even some of you, who never give a thought, much less an effort, to the honor of God.
Most people live for themselves, only and altogether for themselves.
Yet, the Lord says to such useless sinners, "I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions."
E. Once more, the Lord describes the character of these men and women to whom he would be gracious – They were a people who wearied God. "Thou hast wearied me with thine iniquities."
They were religious people, very religious. But their religion was only a fig-leaf by which they endeavored to cover their sin and hide from God. As they sat in the sanctuary of God, year after year, they wearied him with their sins. Yet, the Lord says to these sinners, "I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions."
NOTE: The point I am making is this – The grace and mercy of God is for sinners.
I rejoice to tell you that our God is a God of mercy (Psa. 103:8-14).
Psalms 103:8-14 "The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy. 9 He will not always chide: neither will he keep his anger for ever. 10 He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. 11 For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him. 12 As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us. 13 Like as a father pitieth his children, so the LORD pitieth them that fear him. 14 For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust."
II. We have seen who those people are to whom God will be merciful. They are sinners. Now, WHAT IS MERCY'S GREAT DEED?
Mercy's great deed is the blessed forgiveness of sin. It is the glory of grace to forgive sin. It is the majesty of mercy to forgive sin. It is the character of God to forgive iniquity and transgression and sin (Ex. 34:5-7).
Exodus 34:5-7 "And the LORD descended in the cloud, and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the LORD. 6 And the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, 7 Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children's children, unto the third and to the fourth generation."
A. Our text speaks of A DIVINE FORGIVENESS.Psalms 103:3-4 "Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases; 4 Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies;"
B. This is A SURPRISING FORGIVENESS."I, even I!" The God against whom we have sinned, whose name we have blasphemed, whose law we have broken, the God whose grace we have despised is a God who forgives sin!
God charged our sins upon his Son Jesus Christ, and they shall never be charged upon us!
III. But God is holy, just, righteous, and true. He has said, "The soul that sinneth, it shall die." Therefore, this third question must be answered – HOW DOES GOD FORGIVE SIN?
God cannot forgive sin unless he can do so in a way that is honoring to his law and satisfying to his justice.
A. In order for a holy God to forgive sin four things must be done.
B. There is only one way for a holy and just God to forgive sin – God can only forgive sin through the obedience and sacrifice of an all-sufficient Substitute.
The Lord Jesus Christ is that Substitute! In him, and only in him is there forgiveness with God (Rom. 3:23-26; 1 John 1:7, 9).
Romans 3:23-26 "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; 24 Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: 25 Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; 26 To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus."
1 John 1:7 "But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin."
1 John 1:9 "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
IV. WHY DOES GOD FORGIVE SIN? "For mine own sake!"
The greatest honor and glory of God is his mercy, his holy, righteous, and just mercy in forgiving sin.
Psalms 106:8 "Nevertheless he saved them for his name's sake, that he might make his mighty power to be known."
Ezekiel 16:62-63 "And I will establish my covenant with thee; and thou shalt know that I am the LORD: 63 That thou mayest remember, and be confounded, and never open thy mouth any more because of thy shame, when I am pacified toward thee for all that thou hast done, saith the Lord GOD."
V. WHAT IS THE PROMISE WHICH GOD MAKES TO SINNERS WHOSE SINS ARE FORGIVEN BY HIM?
"I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions, and will not remember thy sins."
There are some things God cannot do!I do not mean that God is not aware of the fact that we have sinned. I mean that in so far as his law and justice are concerned, our sins do not exist; therefore, God cannot remember them.
A. He will never remember our sins so as to treat us any the less graciously because of them.
B. He will never remember our sins so as to bring them up and require payment for them while we live.
C. God will not remember our sins when we stand before Him in judgment – "I do not remember that, it is not in my book!" (Jer. 50:20).
Jeremiah 50:20 "In those days, and in that time, saith the LORD, the iniquity of Israel shall be sought for, and there shall be none; and the sins of Judah, and they shall not be found: for I will pardon them whom I reserve."
D. God will not remember our sins in the distribution of his heavenly crowns and gifts.
Application: 1. How can I obtain this blessed forgiveness of sin? (v. 26).Isaiah 43:26 "Put me in remembrance: let us plead together: declare thou, that thou mayest be justified."
2. What shall we do who have been forgiven?Psalms 130:3-4
"If thou, LORD, shouldest mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand? 4 But there is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared."
*