FORGIVENESS Everyone sins (Rom. 3:23).  None of us should.  When we do sin, we need       forgiveness; or our relationships will be  broken.  Sadly, many have the attitude that they don’t care.  Many of these are too proud and cannot admit that they have erred.  Their ego is so weak and they are so insecure that they would rather PRETEND everything is okay than be humble and work at making things right.  The game is played that they will deny (pretend) that they are weak or insecure.  The majority of humanity is living their lives this way.  It is difficult to help these who have such a large pride  problem to have them admit that they are like everybody else— flawed because of sin. Satan has these positive thinking  pretenders for the most part sealed with a closed (in denial) mindset.   Not Me!  Satan plays this game on multitudes of people.  People who have signs of heart disease or cancer often choose to be positive and live in denial until one day it is too late to do anything to help.   Signs are all around them, and they choose to ignore the problem.  The problem won’t go away without some action and the facing up to the issues before them.   The same is true regarding the subject of sin.  We sin against family    members.  We sin against one another in the church family.  We sin against others, and all these sins are ultimately against God.  You see, God is involved and cares about all He created in His image.  We often fail to see His perspective regarding the realities of life.  Unresolved issues do not just disappear.  They fester and get bigger.  With His help, God  wants us to take control or take charge of our own lives.  We CAN do better with His help! FORGIVENESS is the solution.  We both need it and need to give it to others   who do sin against us.  God through Christ has already made it clear that He wants to forgive.  He does forgive those who ASK (Mt. 7: 7).  Satan invites us to stonewall and stand firm in our pride.  Jesus wants us to process our hurt and our guilt.  He teaches us how to do this and experience the abundant life. By faith we need to learn that our understanding of forgiveness must begin and ultimately end at the cross where Jesus shed His blood; so in truth remission or forgiveness of sins could become a reality.   God wants us to live in good conscience with ourselves.  God wants to be gracious to us, and He wants us also to be gracious to  others when others sin against us. We become shriveled and dried up people when we feel like it is our ministry to keep count of others who sin against us.  Our forgiveness from God IS CONDITIONAL.  Consider what Jesus says in Matthew 6: 14-15.  “For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.  But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”  We are in control regarding whether God will forgive us.  The CONDITION is this.  IF we will forgive others then God will be able to forgive us, also.  IF we do not forgive   others, then our God will not be able to forgive us for our sins.  If we will practice what our God teaches, we will be able to be at peace with ourselves and God and those who even sin against us.  Blessed are the peacemakers. It gives us great peace to know in our heart that all sin issues before God are already resolved before the final judgment.  There will be no uncertainty regarding a last minute deal.  God gives the forgiving blessed assurance from Jeremiah 31:34 and Hebrews 8:12 by saying, “For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.”  What a blessing!   What a joy to know that because of the cross and my submissive and cooperative will, God on judgment day will be merciful to me and will have purposefully and rightly forgotten my sins and lawless deeds.   God’s forgiveness because of my repentance is both full and perfect and able to blot out my transgressions giving me refreshment in the    presence of my Lord (Ac. 3:19).   Let’s talk about being up-front with our sins.  Confession of our sins is   required.  “IF we CONFESS our sins, He (God) is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 Jn. 1:9).  We can’t let our ego   allow us to pretend or stonewall sin issues.  We have to be open and honest. Christians, if we have an open festering sin situation between ourselves and someone else, we are to take control of that situation and get it resolved so that it will not fester, poisoning us and possibly others as well.  Jesus says it this way, “IF you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar, and go you way.  First be  reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.” (Matthew 5:23, 24).   God’s people have no choice.  The Father has made the choice for His    children.  The issue of forgiveness is to be dealt with now before the Day of Judgment.  It was dealt with at the cross; but personally you and I must deal with this issue the Father’s way now.  In facing our sin issue and in spite of it, we will  ultimately be blessed.  Are you forgiving of others?  Then you can have forgiveness from God regarding your sins against Him.  Have you entered into your eternal   covenant relationship with the Father through the Son?