This BLog is for my new friend Keith. Now Keith and I have very differing views on things but, I think we are both trying to see where the other is coming from. So at his suggestion, this blog has been created to let others know what I believe it means to be forgiven.
We can look at forgivness from many angles. One would be from a biblical stand point.
In the bible we are told to forgive others their trespassess as the Lord has forgiven ours.
You have to look at the sacrifices made by our savior to atone for our sins. Not just at his crucifiction but also at his prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane.
In the book of Mathew 26:36-39
Then cometh Jesus with them unto a place called gethsemane, and saith unto the disciples sit ye here while I go and pray yonder.
And he took with him peter and the two sons of zebedee and began to be sorrowful and very heavy.
Then saith he unto them, my soul is exceddingly sorrowful, even unto death tarry ye here and watch with me.
and he went a little further, and fell on his face ,and prayed saying, O my father if it be possible let this cup pass from me nevertheless not as I will but as thou Wilt.
We also know that as the Lord prayed and took upon the sins of the world in the Garden of Gethsemane that he bled from every pore in his body. He felt every pain that we would ever experience both physically and emotionally.What a great sacrifice to make.
Now back to the subject of forgiveness. The savior took upon himself the sins of all mankind. Not just the rich or poor, The old or young nor did he discriminate in any other way.
So if Jesus Christ gives forgiveness to all who ask it of him who am I to deny forgiveness to anyone? By denying forgiveness to someone that is placing yourself above Jesus.
Is it okay to say I forgive you but i'll never forget what you've done?
As far as I am concerned absolutly not!
Our heavenly Father has promised us that as we seek repentance for our sins they will be blotted out in heaven. To me that means they will no longer be remembered by our heavenly father.So we too must give forgiveness in the same manner.
While talking about the repentance process I would also like to reference scripture from the Book Of Mormon.
3 nephi 30:2
Turn all ye gentiles from your wicked ways and repent of your evil doings of your lying and decievings and of your whoredoms and of your secret abominations and your idoltries and of your murders and your priestcrafts and your envings and your strifes and from all your wickedness and abomonations and come unto me and be baptized in my name that ye may recieve a remission of your sins and be filled with the holy ghost. that ye may be numbered with my people who are of the house of isreal,
With all this said you may be asking yourself , what does it mean to ask for and receive forgiveness from our heavenly father.
To me it means that as I sin (because all of us do) We go to our heavenly father and with a sincere heart and with true sorrow for the sin we have commited we ask for forgiveness. Then we try as hard as we can not to commit that sin again. Does that mean we never will? unfortunatly no not neccessarily however, we can go back and again ask for forgiveness. What I mean by that is Heavenly father and only heavenly father knows the true intent of our heart. He knows if we feel real sorrow for what we have done. Real sorrow is true repentance. Then each week we are lucky enough to partake of the sacrament. This is when we drink of the water and eat the bread that represents the blood and flesh of Jesus Christ.
When you partake of the sacrament the only thing that you should be thinking about is the sacrifice Jesus Christ made for us. And his love for us and your love for him. Partaking of the sacrament also gives us the opportunity to renew the baptismal covenents we have made.
So let me end this by saying that we all must ask forgiveness but salvation is a gift that is offered to ALL. Only we can control our relationship with our Heavenly Father but please know that as we show true repentance for our sins, ask forgiveness and forsake our sins we are forgiven.Then it is up to us to keep our hearts close to God and to do all we can to follow the commandments and make ourselves better people each day.
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11 comments:
Sorry, Michelle. I just saw this post. Thanks for following my suggestion on the new post. I'll reply as soon as I get a chance.
Michelle, thanks for your patience. We've had a crazy weekend. Check out my blog for more information.
Now, back to the topic at hand. You stated, "Only we can control our relationship with our Heavenly Father but please know that as we show true repentance for our sins, ask forgiveness and forsake our sins we are forgiven."
Does this mean that you are not forgiven for "unrepented" sins? In other words, can someone be forgiven without repentance?
I'd also like to hear your definition of repentance.
When you are baptized all your sins are washed away. You are for a short time perfect and with out sin. Now of course since we are human that does not last long so we should have daily prayer to ask forgiveness of our sins.I personally think it is important to ask forgiveness shortly after you have transgressed so that it is not forgotten. understand, my husband and i pray together each morning before he leaves for work then my children and I pray for their safety and well being each day before thay go to school, then there is personal prayer atleast once a day sometimes more and then we have family prayer before bed each evening, so there really is no excuse for me not to spend some of that time asking my heavenly father to forgive me as well as seeking his help and guidance in all we do. I'm sure that having a ministry yourself that you are well aware of what im talking aabout:-) no matter our beliefs we all need his guidance i think we can agree on that.I'm going to quote from the bible dictionary as far as my description of repentance. I'm not trying to take the easy way out however it accuratly describes what i feel repentance is "since we are born into conditions of mortality, repentance comes to mean a turning of the heart and will to God, and a renunciation of sin to which we are naturally inclined. Without this there can be no progress in the things of the souls salvation, for all accountable persons are stained by sin, and must be cleansed to enter into the kingdom of heaven. Repentance is not optional for salvation; it is a commandment of God." So I would guess that we probably do not have to ask for forgiveness for each sin individually. Is that what your asking? but as far as being forgiven without repentance, no. You should have a broken heart and contrite spirit when asking for our lords forgiveness. Whats your opinion on this issue?
What about repeating sin? If you repent, can you just do the sin again and repent later?
When you ask forgiveness you can't already have the intention of repeating that sin again. for example if i ask forgiveness for say bearing false witness i can't ask it with the intention of commiting that sin again. thats not to say that i won't commit the sin again but i must ask with true sorrow and without already having the intention to do it again.
Michelle, what would you say if I told you that the LDS Church teaches that The Lord cannot forgive us in our sins; he can only save us from our abandoned sins?
I would say that is common sense.If you are still in your sins then you haven't forsaken them.
And if you have not forsaken your sins, then you are unforgiven (according to Mormonism). That is why I say that I have never met a Mormon who knows they are forgiven. If they are still in the process of repenting, then they are unforgiven.
keith,
it really seems as though your making this way more difficult than it has to be. either you don't understand what i'm saying to you or you are just trying to aggravate me and get a good laugh at my expense.
I do believe that i have been forgiven you understand our belief on this all wrong.
people commit new sins everyday or they at time commit the same sins even though when they first repented of that sin they were sorrowful and had no intention of repeating that sin so you once again ask for forgiveness.
i've been more than forthcoming on my beliefs I think it only fair that if you do not agree with my take on being forgiven that you tell me what is your belief on forgiveness?
Sorry for the delay. We've had a busy week.
I have to admit that I am surprised by your answer and tone. I would never try to get a laugh at your expense. I don't think I am making this topic difficult at all. I see it pretty straight forward.
If you cannot be forgiven until you have forsaken a certain sin, and you have not forsaken the sin, then you are unforgiven. The fact that you still sin means that you have not forsaken that sin. This being the case, I have never met a Mormon who knows they are forgiven because they are still in the process of repenting.
Do you understand what I am getting at?
Keith, I apologize if my tone seemed harsh. I was aggravated that i'm having a hard time communicating exactly what i mean.
I take it that you are looking at forgiveness from the viewpoint of once we have asked forgiveness for our sins we should not have to ask again.That it's a one shot deal.Once we are saved everything is forgiven.
I too know my sins have been forgiven however I also believe that as we sin we must again seek forgiveness. And i'll ask again because its apparent we do not have the same view on forgiveness. what do you believe forgiveness is?
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