Forgiveness
De 29:20 | Jos. 24:19 | 2Ki 24:4 |
2Ch 7:14 | Ps 32:5, 51:4 | Jer. 36:3 |
Mt 6:14-15, 9:6, 18:15-17, 35 | Mr. 2:7 | Lu 17:3-4 |
Joh 20:23 | Col 3:13 | 1Jo 1:9 |
Heb 9:22 |
Since ALL sin is against God alone, only God can forgive sin. And his conditions for forgiveness are repentance from the heart and submission to his will (which, of course, starts with accepting Jesus as Lord and Savior). But what of the commands for people to forgive each other? God is our example: if the one who offended us repents and confesses his sin, we must forgive him. But our “forgiveness” is simply a decision to completely forget the sin done against us; as already mentioned, only God can truly forgive.