“Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity:…” (Habakkuk 1:13 KJV)
The “Your” in this verse of Scripture is God. He hates sin and He does store up wrath against those that sin because He is so Holy. That said, He hates the sin; not the person. We know this because while we were His enemies and without hope in our sinful ways… It is then that Christ came to forgive us and save all those who choose to receive Him.
Even more so “ For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” (2 Corinthians 5:21 KJV)
When it comes down to it there is no sin Christ has not already paid for our deserved punishment except one; not receiving His forgiveness. Not received the pardon through Jesus Christ’s act of atonement is the one mortal sin because with out accepting the forgiveness provided through Christ on the cross, your sins will remain and you will be judged according to your sinful works. God sends no one to the judgement of death eternal. People who refuse such a gift from God as forgiveness have sealed their own eternal fate separated from the love of the God that created them. By choosing to not accept Christ you are forcing God to punish you when all He want sto do is save you!What a tragedy when we have such a loving God.
Just think about the main characters that God chose to include in the Bible for a moment who were all justified by faith and called righteous from God:
Moses:
He freed the Israelites from 400 years of slavery out of Egypt, parted the Red Sea and brought the people to a land already prepared, rich in everything. But Moses also killed a man out of anger. He murdered him for treating a Hebrew slave badly. None the less it was a sin to kill another. He was in a powerful position in Egypt, he could have sent him away to prison or worse. But instead out of anger he killed this man. Did God forgive him? YES.
The Apostle Paul:
His name was Saul before his conversion. He sought after Christians and killed them. He was present when Stephen was stoned to death for his faith in Christ. Later, Saul had an encounter with Jesus and he did a 180 degree turn in his life and became one of the great writers in the New Testament. Did God forgive him? Yes..He did! Paul wrote to Timothy:
“This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.”
(1 Timothy 1:15 KJV)
King David:
God saved him from the bear and he slew it with his own hands. He stood up for God and slew the Nephilim Giant Goliath and saved Israel. He became one of the best Rulers of Israel. But did you know that this same David also had an affair with one of his army soldier’s wife and when she became pregnant he sent the husband to the front lines to die to cover up his sin. Then David took her to himself. Adultery and murder. Did God forgive him? Oh yes. In fact, God calls David a man after His own heart! Because God likes this kind of behavior? NOT AT ALL! But David repented and in faith accepted God’s forgiveness. When you accept forgiveness of your sins through Christ and what He did at the cross – God does not even remember your sins anymore! Any of them past, present and future. He paid for them all with His blood and took our punishment for our sins. The Bible says he actually became sin for us!
“For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” (2 Corinthians 5:21 KJV)
“For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more.” (Hebrews 8:12 KJV)
The Apostle Matthew:
Matthew was a hated tax collector cheating people of money and then he encountered Christ.
Jesus forgave prostitutes, murders, adulterers. If you are a sinner (and you are!), Jesus can forgive you! Do not be deceived. God loves you even as you are a sinner and all heaven rejoices when a person becomes part of the Bride of Christ (Luke 15:10).
Don’t run from God. Run to Him and ask for forgiveness today. He is waiting and calling you home.
