God’s Second Law of Pardon - Part Two
Acts 8:22
Having looked at two steps of restoration for the erring Christian in the first part of this lesson we will now look at a third step in greater detail.
Third, we must confess, just as John wrote to Christians, to experience God’s forgiveness - 1 Jn 1:9 “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Compare this to God’s first law of pardon where confession is commanded, but not confession of sins. Instead, confession is made concerning Jesus Christ - Ro 10:9-10 “because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.”; Ac 8:37 “And Philip said, If thou believest with all thy heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.”
Understanding the word “confess” is important here in these text. Coming from the Greek word homologeo “lit., to speak the same thing; to agree with, admit” - Vine. In regards to sin, it means to openly and honestly admit sin without hiding it or offering excuses for it – for example note Dan 9:4-6 “I prayed to the LORD my God and made confession, saying, "O Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, we have sinned and done wrong and acted wickedly and rebelled, turning aside from your commandments and rules. We have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, and to all the people of the land.”, 10-11 “and have not obeyed the voice of the LORD our God by walking in his laws, which he set before us by his servants the prophets. All Israel has transgressed your law and turned aside, refusing to obey your voice. And the curse and oath that are written in the Law of Moses the servant of God have been poured out upon us, because we have sinned against him.” , 15 “And now, O Lord our God, who brought your people out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand, and have made a name for yourself, as at this day, we have sinned, we have done wickedly.”
Confession of sins should be made continuously - for John literally wrote “If we keep confessing our sins...”, for both known and unknown sins - Psa 19:12 “Who can discern his errors? Declare me innocent from hidden faults.” Confession of sins should be made always to God, sometimes to each other - Ja 5:16 “Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.” -- So as the erring Christian prays, confession of sins should be made!
Simple is God’s second law of pardon: to repent and pray, confessing our sins! To encourage us to be diligent in taking advantage of this wonderful grace, consider now what God will do. God will be faithful as John promised in encouraging us to confess our sins - 1 Jn 1:9. This means He will be true to His promise. What promise? The promise found in the prophecy of the New Covenant! Found in Jeremiah, and repeated in Hebrews - Jer 31:31-34 ‘"Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, declares the LORD. But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, 'Know the LORD,' for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more."’; He 8:7-13 “For if that first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no occasion to look for a second. For he finds fault with them when he says: "Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will establish a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt. For they did not continue in my covenant, and so I showed no concern for them, declares the Lord. For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my laws into their minds, and write them on their hearts, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And they shall not teach, each one his neighbor and each one his brother, saying, 'Know the Lord,' for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest. For I will be merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more." In speaking of a new covenant, he makes the first one obsolete. And what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away.” “For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.” - He 8:12 -- Thus we have the assurance of God’s response!
God will be just, as John promised in encouraging us to confess our sins - 1 Jn 1:9. This means He will be righteous in forgiving our sins. How can this be? By virtue of the cleansing blood of Jesus! A cleansing alluded to earlier - 1 Jn 1:7 “But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.” So God can be both just and justifier of those who have faith in Christ - Ro 3:24-26 “and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.” -- Thus we have the basis for God’s response!
God will forgive and cleanse. He will “forgive us our sins” - 1 Jn 1:9. “The word ‘forgive’ describes the act of canceling a debt and the restoration of the debtor” - Kistemaker. No longer will the guilt of our sins be held against us! He will “cleanse us from all unrighteousness” - 1 Jn 1:9. “The word ‘cleanse’ refers to making the forgiven sinner holy so that he is able to have fellowship with God” - Kistemaker. The word “all” is reassuring; no sin is beyond God’s ability to forgive the penitent Christian who confesses their sin! -- Thus we have blessedness of God’s response!
With God’s second law of pardon, the Christian who repents, prays, and confesses will experience the continual cleansing of the blood of Christ and enjoy the blessedness of knowing your sins are forgiven! Why would any Christian hesitate to obey God’s second law of pardon...? You can have the same joy of salvation as when you were baptized into Christ! For you rise from prayer as cleansed from sin as when you arose from the watery grave! If you want to have the same joy, the same assurance of salvation, as that new babe in Christ who comes forth to a new life, then take advantage of “God’s Second Law Of Pardon”...!
“Seek the Lord while He may be found, Call upon Him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his way, And the unrighteous man his thoughts; Let him return to the Lord, And He will have mercy on him; And to our God, For He will abundantly pardon.” - Isa 55:6-7
