… because love covers over a multitude of sins.
Summary: Peter continues his thought on loving deeply by adding that love “covers over” sins. God models the power of love by forgiving our sin.
Hatred stirs up conflict, but love covers over all wrongs. (Proverbs 10:12)
Sin is like leprosy was to the Old Testament Hebrews. The one with leprosy was considered unclean. They could not come inside the camp. (Leviticus 13: 45-46)
What is the antidote to sin?
The antidote is Jesus. With a simple word, Jesus can make the unclean clean. (Matthew 8: 1-3)
And who is Jesus?
Isn’t Jesus God? (John 10:30) Isn’t God love? (1 John 4:8) Doesn’t it make sense, then, that the antidote to sin is love?
Which is easier to do? (1) Forgive sins when you hate a person, or (2) forgive sins if you love someone deeply?
If love makes it possible to forgive sins, one way to say that would be that “love covers over a multitude of sins.”
Application: Love each other deeply, because love makes it possible to forgive each other’s sins.
Food for Thought: Is love the only element needed for forgiveness, or is something else needed as well?
It was love that motivated Jesus to say from the cross “Father forgive them, for they do not know what they do.” Love does not only overlook an offense – at least in Jesus’ case it paid the price for the offense.
Rich,
Thank you! You are absolutely right. God has paid the price for our sin. The question that came to mind as I meditated on this passage had to do with repentance. Is repentance required for the formula to be complete? I find this a bit confusing because I cannot fully repent of all my offenses as I am not even aware of them all, yet God’s Word talks a lot about the need for repentance and the consequences of not repenting. Acts 11: 18 talks about the “repentance that leads to life.” It seems like an attitude of repentance is at least required for the formula of forgiveness to be complete.
Rich said what I was also thinking — in addition to love, isn’t confession needed for forgiveness? Jesus loves us in spite of who we can be and He paid the ultimate price for our sins and His love covers a multitude but we are called to come to Him and confess.
Thank you, Darla.
Yes, that makes sense to me. Confession and repentance are two sides of the same coin.
I am very interested in everyone’s thoughts on this topic. I am trying to look at this from a relational perspective. Just because someone is willing to forgive does not mean that the one being forgiven is willing to accept it. Confession/repentance is the mark of someone looking for forgiveness. In this world, that doesn’t mean that they will be forgiven, but with God we do find forgiveness.
Is love the only element needed for forgiveness, or is something else needed as well?
Three additional elements come to mind. Each intended to initiate actions by a person or persons needing forgiveness.
1.) A persons response in “repentance to sins revealed by the Holy Spirit.”:
A contrite heart, one in which the natural pride and self-sufficiency have been completely humbled by the consciousness of guilt.
1 John 1:9, If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
2.) “Faithful, obedient actions by one believer“ toward one or more believers intended to bring unity to the body of Christ.:
Luke 17:3-4, So watch yourselves. If your brother or sister sins against you, rebuke them; and if they repent, forgive them. 4 Even if they sin against you seven times in a day and seven times come back to you saying I repent, you must forgive them.
3.) Forgiveness we give to those who have committed an act against us and not asked for it.
When someone hurts you, you can hold on to anger, resentment and thoughts of revenge — or embrace forgiveness and move forward.
Luke 23:34, Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.
Acts 7:59-60, And as they were stoning Stephen, he called out, Lord, do not hold this sin against them. And when he had said this, he fell asleep.
Thank you, Ron.
You have added another element to the equation; rebuking. Making someone aware of sin. This is important. In John 9: 41-42 Jesus points out to the Pharisees, “If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin; but now that you claim you can see, your guilt remains.“
Thank you all for your input. This all gets me to thinking, can forgiveness take place without repentance? I am not talking theologically in this (I really wasn’t initially either, I was just marveling at Jesus’ forgiveness of sinful people) – is it wise to forgive someone who has hurt you who has not repented? Is there freedom in that? Since we have all been forgiven so much by the Lord, can we then forgive others lesser offenses with them asking for forgiveness? There are books written about this. I have read a couple. In case anyone is still checking in to the blog – curious what everyone thinks.
I meant can we forgive them lesser offenses without them asking for forgiveness
Rich,
Thank you for jumping back into the discussion! It has been interesting! Some thoughts:
Using God’s forgiveness as a model, I hope for complete forgiveness. I hope that the wrongs I have committed that I am unaware of or have forgotten about are forgiven.
The reason I have hope for complete forgiveness is that I accept God’s claim that I am a sinner (Romans 3:23) and I have confessed to God that I am a sinner (1 John 1:9). For God’s part, “he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”
As I apply this to people who have sinned against me, I always strive to forgive whether they confess or not because of what Jesus taught in the parable of the unmerciful servant (Matthew 18: 21-35). Jesus concludes with this warning:
“This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”
What I have realized today, is the importance of rebuking the sinner (Luke 17:3). I have always thought of “rebuking” as a harsh word. If one is speaking from a position of authority to someone under that authority, a “rebuke” seems like an appropriate word. However speaking peer to peer, rebuke takes on a different meaning. For example, a parent can rightly rebuke their child, but if they have a dispute with their spouse, they should take a gentle approach.
In Matthew 7: 1-5, Jesus seems to be teaching us not to rebuke, but rather to look at our own faults instead. This is good advice, unless it is misapplied. (I think I have been guilty of misapplying it myself in the past.) In this passage Jesus talks about judging others which suggests judging someone under the law or a standard of some sort. In the case of a personal sin, there is no judging going on. Instead, there is hurt.
So if a person hurts me or causes offense, it is my responsibility to let them know, or to use the Biblical term, rebuke them.
In most cases, if someone says they have been hurt or offended, a Christian brother or sister is quick to apologize. When that happens it is easy to forgive.
What is challenging, is when a person takes offense at being rebuked. What happens then? Hopefully, reasonable people can work things out and come to a common understanding. Sometimes, however, people are unwilling to listen. In Romans 16:17 Paul says to “watch out” for people who create division. Then he adds, “Keep away from them.”
Paul reminds me of my mom when I was a kid. I have three younger brothers and we didn’t always get along. Sometimes (I know this will be hard to believe!) one of my brothers would try and start trouble by picking at me. My mom’s advice was always the same. She’d say, “Ignore him. He’ll get tired and go away.”
I know I’ve rambled a lot here, but I guess I’d sum it up this way:
We forgive because we have been forgiven.
For a peer relationship to be restored, we need to rebuke lovingly so that the problem can be addressed.
If there is repentance, forgiveness leads to a restored relationship.
If there is no repentance, then our only choice is to stay away to avoid further conflict, yet it is still our duty to forgive.
So there are two kinds of forgiveness. The forgiveness that releases the one who has caused offense, and forgiveness that releases the one who has been offended. Even if the one who has caused offense does not accept forgiveness, I need to forgive for my own sake before the Lord.
Thank you Jeff your not rambling.
Anytime! 🙂
Think so Jeff.
Ron
As I read this at 4am I didn’t have much to say but as i pondered about it and everyone’s response, then with everything going on in the world. I keep seeing signs ” without justice there will be no peace”. That’s how some people feel with what’s going on. Then comes to the point of the only person that can forgive is the victim of the actions, is how some feel. Then Jesus healed and forgave people of their sins and healed them. I ponder on this all and will continue to for some time. Thank you for gettin the wheels turning in my head.
In my past I would hold a grudge against anyone that offended me and seek ways to get even, or better yet hit them harder. After receiving Jesus I had a difficult time forgiving others because I didn’t believe they deserved it.
As time has gone by, I have focused on dieing to self and living for Christ, which brought me to His forgiving those who crucified Him. As I considered applying this to my life, two points came to my heart.
1.) He forgave them for what they were doing to Him. He was not giving them a pass on all sins they had committed, or would commit, which can only come from repentance and turning from all sin. He asked God to forgive them for what they were doing to Him right then.
2.) When I ask God to forgive others for what they do to me, I am freed of all hatred, anger, and thoughts of revenge, getting even with them for their offense against them. All of these emotions interfere with/prevent my continued relationship with God and I have allowed Satan to win. Forgiving them, allowing Jesus to act in me, I can move forward in my relationship with God, while they will answer to God for the condition of their heart.
Thanks, Ron!
I like how you involve God in the forgiving. What a powerful ally to have in a difficult process.
Thank you Ron, I will try to add that to me forgiving others for what they have done to me. Along with hating the sin, not the sinner.