Lesson 8 – Confession and Forgiveness

1) How does God feel about forgiving our sins?

Micah 7:18-19 “Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and
passeth by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? He retaineth not
his anger for ever, because he ___________ in mercy.”

Psalm 86:5 “For thou, Lord, art good, and ______ to forgive; and
_________ in mercy unto all them that call upon thee.”

John 6:37 “All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that
______ __ ___ I will in no wise cast out.”

NOTE: God is not some vengeful being that withholds forgiveness. The teaching
that God is looking down from above with an evil eye and on the edge of his seat
to annihilate sinners is a teaching that finds its origin in the mind of Satan.
However, God is on the edge of his seat, desiring to forgive the repentant sinner.
Jesus is the friend of sinners; He never refused anyone who sought Him.

2) In Heaven, will God remember our sins?

Hebrews 8:12 “For I will be ________ to their unrighteousness, and their

____ and their ___________ will I remember __ ______.”

Isaiah 43:25 “I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine
own sake, and will not _________ thy sins.”

NOTE: When we see Jesus one day face to face, we can look into His eyes
knowing that He does not remember our sins. It is an amazing theme of
contemplation and meditation: God, who is omniscient, and yet He will forget
our sins. He is omnisciently forgetful.

3) When will God ultimately remove the record of sin?

Acts 3:19 “Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be
_______ ____, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of
the Lord;”

NOTE: One day the record of sin will be completely blotted out. This took place
once a year in the setting of the earthly sanctuary in Old Testament times. The
earthly sanctuary stood as a type for Jesus Christ, but it also typified the Heavenly
Sanctuary. During the Day of Atonement, which happened on a yearly basis, the
repentant sinner would have his record of sin removed from the sanctuary. This
will also take place in the sanctuary in heaven one day. We will delve into this
matter further in a future study.
4) What do we have to do in order to obtain the forgiveness of God?

1 John 1:9 “__ we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to ______ us our
sins, and to cleanse us from ___ unrighteousness.”

NOTE: It is a wonderful thing to realize that we, as sinners, do not have to

perform wearisome pilgrimages, or perform painful penances in order to secure
the forgiveness of God. All we need to do is confess our sins to God, and we
have the word of God as our assurance that He will forgive and He will cleanse us
from all unrighteousness.

5) What word picture does God use to describe our sinful condition?

Isaiah 44:22 “I have ______ out, as a ____ _____, and, as a _____, thy sins:
return unto me; for I have redeemed thee.”

NOTE: God describes our sins as a thick cloud and this is a very accurate picture
of our sins. Sometimes when we think of our sinful condition it is difficult to find
hope beyond the clouds. God can easily dispel the thick clouds of our sins when
we confess them to His listening ear.

6) What does forgiveness bring with it?

Psalm 32:1 “_________ is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is

________.”

NOTE: Another word for blessedness is happiness. Today people are looking for
happiness in many different places. But true forgiveness brings true happiness.

7) What are the conditions for the forgiveness of sin?

Isaiah 55:7 “Let the wicked _______ his way, and the unrighteous man his
thoughts: and let him _______ unto the LORD, and he will have ______ upon
him; and to our God, for he will abundantly _________.”

NOTE: There are several steps in forgiveness. The first step is being willing to
forsake the life of sin. It is not enough just to say, “Forgive me, Lord”, and then
continue living the life of sin. When a person is truly converted they receive what
the Bible calls a “new heart.” This means that the life a converted person lives is
different than his old way of living. Can a converted person ever make a mistake?
Of course! It is like a baby learning to walk. There will be setbacks from time to
time, but the person will be willing to confess their sin and keep growing in their
Christian life.

8) Can God forgive those who are stubborn and rebellious?

 Nehemiah 9:17 “And refused to obey, neither were mindful of thy wonders
that thou didst among them; but hardened their necks, and in their rebellion
appointed a captain to return to their bondage: but thou art a God _____ to
pardon, gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and
________ _____ ____.”

Ecclesiastes 8:11 “Because sentence against an evil work is not executed

_________, therefore the heart of the sons of men is ____ ___ in them to do
evil.”

NOTE: It is so wonderful to realize that our God is kind and compassionate.

Even when His people rebel against Him, God does not forsake them. He bears
long with sinners, and shows His great love by not executing justice immediately.
He realizes our frame, that we are only dust. But, on the flip side we should
exercise great caution in presuming upon the forgiveness of God. When we
presume upon His mercy we are playing right into the strategy of Satan. Because
when we continue in known sin the heart becomes harder and the voice of the
Holy Spirit becomes fainter and fainter. The best time to confess and forsake our
sins is the moment in which God convicts us on those sins.

9) Why is God so willing to forgive?

Colossians 1:14 “In whom we have redemption through his ________, even
the forgiveness of sins:”

NOTE: Forgiveness is rooted in the very character of God. God is forgiving not
because He feels like forgiving, but because forgiveness in inherent in His very
nature.

10) Is the forgiveness that God offers partial in nature?

Psalm 103:3 “Who forgives ____ ______ iniquities…”

Luke 7:47 “Wherefore I say unto thee, Her sins, which are _____, are
___________;”

NOTE: With God forgiveness is not partial, but it is full and complete. The devil
often will try to drive us to be discouraged and depressed, but we can have the
assurance that even though our sins, which are many, are forgiven.

11) How do people that have been forgiven treat others?

Ephesians 4:32 “And be ye _____ one to another, _________, __________ one

another, even as God for Christ's sake hath _________ you.”

NOTE: What does a Christian do when someone offends him/her? A Christian

does not try to take revenge, or hold grudges. If a person is truly forgiven, they
will forgive. If they don’t forgive, their salvation experience with Jesus is in
serious jeopardy. Why does a Christian forgive? A Christian is one who has
Jesus living within and will “walk even as He walked”. (1 John 2:6) Jesus
forgives sinners, and as Christians we also should be willing to forgive others who
hurt us.

IS IT YOUR DESIRE…

To ask Jesus to give you full and complete forgiveness and to ask Him for the
willingness to forgive others. Yes or No