How can Priests/Pastors forgive sins?

Eloy Craft said:

The power to forgive sins was given to the Apostles by the resurrected Christ. It's not representative it's real power to forgive just as if the ordained person were Jesus Himself.. Jesus said "As the Father sent me, so I send you. Whatever Jesus said or did it was as if the Father was saying it or doing it. Same goes for the Apostles and those they lay hands on when it comes to forgiving sins on earth. The transmission of the Holy Spirit is the laying on of hands. The Bishops today were ordained by a man who was touched by the hand of a Bishop who was touch ed by a previous Bishop going all the way to a Bishop who was touched by the hands of an Apostle who received the Holy Spirit from the breath of Our Lord Himself . That's the transmission of the Holy Spirit that gives the power to forgive sins.


John 20, 19-23
19 When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” 20 After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. 21 Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” 22 When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”

Acts 8:17
Then Peter and John laid their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.

Acts 8:19
saying, “Give me also this power so that anyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.”

Acts 19:6
When Paul had laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied—

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Everyone who is saved has the Holy Spirit - if someone doesnt have the indwelling Holy Spirit they don't have Christ and won't find themselves in heaven in the end.

Your literally putting on a select few what is necesarily on the entire congregation.

JIMINZ said:

Then according to your professed belief above, all of those in Samaria became Bishops, because the received the Holy Spirit by the a lying on of hands?

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No, that is a misunderstanding of the transmission of the Holy Spirit. The holy Spirit is ordered not chaotic. As the Apostle Paul teaches the Holy Spirit is controled not chaotic. The Apostles were given the authority of Christ to build His Church and the Holy Spirit honors that authority. Obviously everyone baptized for the last 2ooo years aren't given the power to forgive sins. Order is a characteristic of the Holy Spirit

No man can forgive another mans sins, all sin are forgiven by the blood of Jesus. The bible tells us "if we confess our sins He (Jesus) is faithful and just to forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness". All that is required is an inner acknowledgement that we have done wrong, and a resolve to move away from sin. No man, priest or other can retain a sin we may commit, Jesus paid for all sins. Verses like “If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.” is referring to a person who sins against us, if we forgive a person so too will God, if we don't forgive a person, then God's correction will fall upon the person who sinned against us. But that "unforgiven" person when repentant can have forgiveness.

Priests don't forgive sins, Jesus does. Priests can only tell whether someone's sins are forgiven or not, based on the person's faith.

Hazelelponi said:

Everyone who is saved has the Holy Spirit - if someone doesnt have the indwelling Holy Spirit they don't have Christ and won't find themselves in heaven in the end.

Your literally putting on a select few what is necesarily on the entire congregation.

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Do you really think Jesus didn't have the power to decide what powers to give and not give? Why would you think Christ's church doesn't have that power to 'ordain' as well?

Saucy said:

No one has the ability to forgive your sins. Only Jesus.

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John 20:21-23
21 Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I send you.” 22 And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”

Fish14 said:

Priests don't forgive sins, Jesus does. Priests can only tell whether someone's sins are forgiven or not, based on the person's faith.

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Sorry that isn't the power Jesus breathed on the Apostles and then sent them into the world to do.

Oscarr said:

They can't. They are lying if they say they can. Only God can forgive sins. This was the problem they had with Jesus, because He forgave sins. They would not accept that He was God in the flesh. There is only one mediator between God and man, the Man Jesus Christ.

But... there is another type of forgiveness, where one person can forgive another. The Scripture says that if we don't forgive others for sinning against us, God will not forgive us.

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Obviously you dismiss this bit of scripture:

John 20:21-23
21 Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I send you.” 22 And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”

FutureAndAHope said:

No man can forgive another mans sins, all sin are forgiven by the blood of Jesus. The bible tells us "if we confess our sins He (Jesus) is faithful and just to forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness". All that is required is an inner acknowledgement that we have done wrong, and a resolve to move away from sin. No man, priest or other can retain a sin we may commit, Jesus paid for all sins. Verses like “If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.” is referring to a person who sins against us, if we forgive a person so too will God, if we don't forgive a person, then God's correction will fall upon the person who sinned against us. But that "unforgiven" person when repentant can have forgiveness.

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You interpret it to suit your own belief system.

It's amazing where some people like solar scripturists will take some things literally from the Bible when it suits and at other times dismiss it!

Hazelelponi said:

Everyone who is saved has the Holy Spirit - if someone doesnt have the indwelling Holy Spirit they don't have Christ and won't find themselves in heaven in the end.

Your literally putting on a select few what is necesarily on the entire congregation.

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You are putting the Holy Spirit in a box. If one has the Holy spirit it MUST be like this. Not how Jesus structured things. He was specific about the power to fiorgive sins.

Matthew 16:17-19
17 And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jona! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. 18 And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the powers of death shall not prevail against it. 19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”

David Cabrera said:

It's a little confusing to me to understand the process. Can someone explain this?

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The practise is derived from Jesus' commission given to the apostles. Jesus said:

Eloy Craft said:

No, that is a misunderstanding of the transmission of the Holy Spirit. The holy Spirit is ordered not chaotic. As the Apostle Paul teaches the Holy Spirit is controled not chaotic. The Apostles were given the authority of Christ to build His Church and the Holy Spirit honors that authority. Obviously everyone baptized for the last 2ooo years aren't given the power to forgive sins. Order is a characteristic of the Holy Spirit

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.
Not from the way you stated it, that is why I asked, you weren't clear as to how, you have assumed we understand what your saying.

Fill in the blanks, it will then make more sense...... I hope.

Lost4words said:

Obviously you dismiss this bit of scripture:

John 20:21-23
21 Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I send you.” 22 And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”

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Ah! You have a point there! I can't argue with that!

JIMINZ said:

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Why do you believe there are two types of Forgiveness?

If I forgive someones sins, in the Name of Jesus aren't they forgives as much as if I pray for someones healing in his name?

Why would the specifics of what is done in the Name of Jesus matter?

Is there Scripture which Teaches us this truth about this other type of Forgiveness?

John 14:13,14
13) And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.
14) If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.

Where is the qualifier which says everything but Forgiving of sins?

If it's all done in His name!

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Two other good posters on this thread gave me Scriptures that prove their point that believers can pronounce forgiveness to someone who confesses and repents. They can do that through the indwelling Holy Spirit and representatives of Jesus. This is the first time in five years I have been proved wrong on this forum!!

David Cabrera said:

It's a little confusing to me to understand the process. Can someone explain this?

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They can't forgive sins. Only God ,through Jesus Christ can. Jesus forgives us of our sins, because He paid the price for them. He is and was sinless, he never sinned, He was a perfect sacrifice , He gave His own life so that we may be saved, He was crucified among criminals, sinners, even though He was perfect and did not deserve it, just so we can have what we do not deserve, forgiveness, everlasting life, to be brought to God through Him the Son of God. He came into the flesh and dwelt among us, and died for our sins on the cross, and rose from the dead on the 3rd day and lives again. So He paid it all, set us free. A man, who is a sinner himself even, who cannot even pay his own sin, could never pay or cleanse someone else of their sins. All who practice such things are wrong, and need repent because it is not of God, it is not of Christ, it goes against the bible, and is clearly wrong.

Nayte said:

They can't forgive sins. Only God ,through Jesus Christ can. Jesus forgives us of our sins, because He paid the price for them. He is and was sinless, he never sinned, He was a perfect sacrifice , He gave His own life so that we may be saved, He was crucified among criminals, sinners, even though He was perfect and did not deserve it, just so we can have what we do not deserve, forgiveness, everlasting life, to be brought to God through Him the Son of God. He came into the flesh and dwelt among us, and died for our sins on the cross, and rose from the dead on the 3rd day and lives again. So He paid it all, set us free. A man, who is a sinner himself even, who cannot even pay his own sin, could never pay or cleanse someone else of their sins. All who practice such things are wrong, and need repent because it is not of God, it is not of Christ, it goes against the bible, and is clearly wrong.

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Also, now seeing the above passages, I see what you all mean, but the thing is, that is still through Jesus, to be saved, you must accept Jesus, so the point is still the same, I thought the poster mean't can a man forgive another man of his sins? The answer is still no. Because even if you can in Jesus name, that is still by the power of God. So I guess if we said that, then it depends on the man? No man can forgive sins, and if the above passage means what you say, and what it seems, then no man can forgive sins without Jesus Christ still though right so yea lol

Oscarr said:

Two other good posters on this thread gave me Scriptures that prove their point that believers can pronounce forgiveness to someone who confesses and repents. They can do that through the indwelling Holy Spirit and representatives of Jesus. This is the first time in five years I have been proved wrong on this forum!!

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Also, here is something to greatly consider. I go with this for now until I pray on it. As you all should.

Question: "What is the correct interpretation of John 20:23?"

Answer: In John 20:23, Jesus tells His disciples, “If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven." The very core of the gospel message is the truth that the way someone has their sins forgiven is by having faith in Jesus Christ as his or her Lord and Savior. In Acts 10:43-44, when Peter was sharing the gospel, he said, “Everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.” First John 5:1-5 tells us only he who believes in Jesus will overcome the world. Luke 5:20says, “When Jesus saw their faith, He said ‘Friend, your sins are forgiven.’” Colossians 2:13-14 says Jesus forgave all our sins. All these passages confirm that Jesus is the one who forgives sin, and He forgives all of our sins. If we have had genuine faith in Him, someone else cannot later decide we are not forgiven one sin or another. So, what exactly did Jesus mean in John 20:23?

Only God can forgive sins, and Christ, being God, has the power to do so as well, but He never communicated any such power to His disciples, nor did they ever assume any such power to themselves. The key to understanding the meaning of John 20:23 lies in the previous two verses: “Again Jesus said, ‘Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.’ And with that he breathed on them and said, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit.’” He sent them, as He is sending us, to bring the good news of the way to salvation and heaven to the whole world. Jesus was leaving the earth physically but promised God would be with them in the person of the Holy Spirit living in them. As they proclaimed the gospel, they could honestly tell people who believed in that message that their sins were forgiven, and they could honestly tell people that did not believe in the message that their sins were not forgiven and that they stand condemned in God’s eyes. Jesus said, “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on him” (John 3:36).

Nayte said:

Also, here is something to greatly consider. I go with this for now until I pray on it. As you all should.

Question: "What is the correct interpretation of John 20:23?"

Answer: In John 20:23, Jesus tells His disciples, “If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven." The very core of the gospel message is the truth that the way someone has their sins forgiven is by having faith in Jesus Christ as his or her Lord and Savior. In Acts 10:43-44, when Peter was sharing the gospel, he said, “Everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.” First John 5:1-5 tells us only he who believes in Jesus will overcome the world. Luke 5:20says, “When Jesus saw their faith, He said ‘Friend, your sins are forgiven.’” Colossians 2:13-14 says Jesus forgave all our sins. All these passages confirm that Jesus is the one who forgives sin, and He forgives all of our sins. If we have had genuine faith in Him, someone else cannot later decide we are not forgiven one sin or another. So, what exactly did Jesus mean in John 20:23?

Only God can forgive sins, and Christ, being God, has the power to do so as well, but He never communicated any such power to His disciples, nor did they ever assume any such power to themselves. The key to understanding the meaning of John 20:23 lies in the previous two verses: “Again Jesus said, ‘Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.’ And with that he breathed on them and said, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit.’” He sent them, as He is sending us, to bring the good news of the way to salvation and heaven to the whole world. Jesus was leaving the earth physically but promised God would be with them in the person of the Holy Spirit living in them. As they proclaimed the gospel, they could honestly tell people who believed in that message that their sins were forgiven, and they could honestly tell people that did not believe in the message that their sins were not forgiven and that they stand condemned in God’s eyes. Jesus said, “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on him” (John 3:36).

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So does that sound like, since Jesus was physically leaving earth, He gave the Holy Spirit to them, and Jesus was forgiving sins while on earth presently, and then He gave them the Spirit of truth, and now they see people getting forgiven for their sins, through accepting Christ and receiving the Holy Spirit , therefore they are forgiven by receiving it, just the same as they were forgiven when Jesus said they were when He was there, but He departed because He gave His life up. You get what I mean?

This is the older form (Greek origin - though we use it in the OCA as well) of the Orthodox rite of confession after the penitent confesses his / her sins:

May God Who pardoned David through Nathan the Prophet when he confessed his sins, Peter who wept bitterly for his denial, the Harlot weeping at His feet, the Publican and the Prodigal;
May our same Merciful God forgive you all things, through me a sinner, both in this world and in the world to come, and set you uncondemned before His terrible Judgment Seat. (In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit...)

Now, having no further care for the sins which you have confessed, depart in peace; knowing that your sins are as far from you as the east is from the West.

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The wording is important, as the priest is a witness - a sacramental act in which God has given the power of absolution to his successors - but it is God who forgives our sins.

https://oca.org/questions/sacramentconfession/confessing-in-the-presence-of-a-priest

As the article above states:

“We do not confess ‘to’ the priest; rather, we confess to God “in the presence of” the priest who, as the prayer before Confession clearly states, is God’s ‘witness’ and who, having witnessed our confession of sins offers pastoral advice on how we can better our lives and overcome the very things we can confess. Just as one would not attempt to diagnose, much less cure, one’s own physical ailments, so too one should not attempt to diagnose, much less cure, one’s own spiritual ailments.”