Forgiveness and Repentance

[Phil 1:21]

Ask yourself, what is the purpose of forgiveness between people? That will answer your question.

 

[jax5434]

Is repentance required for forgiveness? If someone sins against you, do they have to repent or at least admit their sin before you can forgive them? I encourage you to support your answer with reason, Scripture, and extra-Biblical sources.

I have heard different views on this over the years. The view that repentance is not required seems to emphasize a sort of therapeutic view of forgiveness--that it is meant to relieve oneself of a burden. The view that repentance is required seems to emphasize the renewal of a broken relationship. I still haven't made up my mind.

When seeking Gods forgiveness repentance is required. But your forgiving others does not depend on their repentance. Forgiving others, regardless of their repentance, is required of us. And it is for your benefit as much as theirs, what do you have to gain by hanging on to the hurt and anger?

Matthew 6:14-15
For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

 

[zippy2006]

Ask yourself, what is the purpose of forgiveness between people? That will answer your question.

I don't think it really helps answer the question. This is because the difference seems to lie precisely in differing conceptions of forgiveness, as I explicitly pointed out in the Original Post. At best it provides a new way to look at the question: "Why should we think that the purpose of forgiveness is x rather than y?"

Participants are much encouraged to give arguments of the form, "The purpose of forgiveness is such-and-such, therefore forgiveness [does or does not] require repentance."

 

[Blade]

Psalm 51"4 Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest."...is how I see this.

Remember when Peter said about knowing Jesus "NO I dont know Him" 3 times? We all notice how Jesus asked Peter 3 times do you love me. WE and I speak for myself at times.. want to believe just saying SORRY to God makes EVERYTHING about that problem.. ok now.. Truth yet..not.

Be it here or there.. we will go to them.. and make things right. Have to for love never thinks of it self..always others.

 

[Meowzltov]

Is repentance required for forgiveness? If someone sins against you, do they have to repent or at least admit their sin before you can forgive them? I encourage you to support your answer with reason, Scripture, and extra-Biblical sources.

I have heard different views on this over the years. The view that repentance is not required seems to emphasize a sort of therapeutic view of forgiveness--that it is meant to relieve oneself of a burden. The view that repentance is required seems to emphasize the renewal of a broken relationship. I still haven't made up my mind.

I didn't vote, because the truth is that there are two kinds of forgiveness: reconciliation, and letting go of the need for justice.

First of all, we are not talking about slights. Forget about slights. Don't be so gosh darn sensitive.

In reconciliation, you have to have repentance. Indeed, you have to know that they understand they hurt you, and they hurt because you hurt. Only then can a betrayal be mended.

But there will be times when there will be no repentance. Perhaps they believe they did no wrong. Or perhaps they don't care they did wrong. Perhaps they believe you deserved it, or that you were the one that did wrong. Whatever the case might be, if you hang on to your need for justice, they will only continue to hurt you. It will just eat up your soul a little at a time. What you can to is LET GO. It doesn't mean what they did was right. It simply means you have chosen to move on.

 

[Phil 1:21]

I don't think it really helps answer the question.

For some, it does. For others, it does not.

 

[zippy2006]

I didn't vote, because the truth is that there are two kinds of forgiveness: reconciliation, and letting go of the need for justice.

First of all, we are not talking about slights. Forget about slights. Don't be so gosh darn sensitive.

In reconciliation, you have to have repentance. Indeed, you have to know that they understand they hurt you, and they hurt because you hurt. Only then can a betrayal be mended.

But there will be times when there will be no repentance. Perhaps they believe they did no wrong. Or perhaps they don't care they did wrong. Perhaps they believe you deserved it, or that you were the one that did wrong. Whatever the case might be, if you hang on to your need for justice, they will only continue to hurt you. It will just eat up your soul a little at a time. What you can to is LET GO. It doesn't mean what they did was right. It simply means you have chosen to move on.

Great post. I was leaning in the same direction even before you posted this. Thanks for that distinction.

 

[zippy2006]

When seeking Gods forgiveness repentance is required. But your forgiving others does not depend on their repentance.

Why does God require repentance but not humans? Are humans more merciful than God?

 

[1213]

Is repentance required for forgiveness? If someone sins against you, do they have to repent or at least admit their sin before you can forgive them?

I don’t think it is necessary. But without repentance person probably continues to do wrong things and then the forgiveness is not very useful.

 

[jax5434]

Why does God require repentance but not humans? Are humans more merciful than God?

Why does God require repentance but not humans?

What I said (or intended to at least) is that we do not have to wait for someone to ask us for forgiveness before we forgive them. Certainly it would be nice if they did confess to us their transgression, but in truth, many never do. So rather than clinging to anger and bitterness it is better for us to forgive them anyway. Forgiving others is as much, perhaps more, for our benefit as theirs.

Repent means to turn away from. To ask for Gods forgiveness we must acknowledge our sin and turn away from it. We must admit that our actions were sinful. That is the requirement set by God to receive forgiveness from God. Forgiveness from God is a benefit for the sinner.


Remember also that all sin is sin against God. So even if someone does not acknowledge his sin against you he must confess and repent of it to God.

Are humans more merciful than God?

That would depend on how mercy is defined I suppose. Is it merciful to buy an addict his next fix, or to force him to go thru withdrawals to get clean? Your answer to that question will decide who you think is more merciful

God Bless
Jax

 

[hedrick]

I think there are two types of forgiveness.

One is for the person doing the forgiving. It gets rid of their own bitterness.

The other is real reconciliation.

The second typically requires the involvement of both parties. The first doesn't.

 

[GraceBro]

Is repentance required for forgiveness? If someone sins against you, do they have to repent or at least admit their sin before you can forgive them? I encourage you to support your answer with reason, Scripture, and extra-Biblical sources.

I have heard different views on this over the years. The view that repentance is not required seems to emphasize a sort of therapeutic view of forgiveness--that it is meant to relieve oneself of a burden. The view that repentance is required seems to emphasize the renewal of a broken relationship. I still haven't made up my mind.

No, we forgive because we have been forgiven. God is not counting our sins against us, so we don't count the sins of others against them.

"And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you (Ephesians 4:32)."

"...bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do (Colossians 3:13)."

"(Love) keeps no record of wrongs (1 Corinthians 13:6)."

http://www.livinggodministries.net/...rchive/audio_files/forgiveness_of_sins_12.mp3

 

[Meowzltov]

No, we forgive because we have been forgiven

It depends what kind of forgiveness you are talking about. If the one who hurt me isn't sorry, I can "let go of it," so to speak. That's a form of forgiveness. But it certainly isn't reconciliation. Reconciliation CANNOT occur for a betrayal unless the other repents. This is why God requires repentance from us in order to restore us to him.

 

[GraceBro]

It depends what kind of forgiveness you are talking about. If the one who hurt me isn't sorry, I can "let go of it," so to speak. That's a form of forgiveness. But it certainly isn't reconciliation. Reconciliation CANNOT occur for a betrayal unless the other repents. This is why God requires repentance from us in order to restore us to him.

I don't believe there are "kinds" of forgiveness. Forgiveness and reconciliation are two different things. Forgiveness cancels the debt. Reconciliation is believing that debt is canceled, so a relationship can be restored. You can have forgiveness apart from reconciliation. God has already forgiven us. Our part is do we believe it, so we can have a relationship with Him. The sin issue is over and God has reconciled us to Him. Unfortunately, many keep the sin issue alive and won't be reconciled to Him. (see 2 Corinthians 5:19-20)

 

[Meowzltov]

God has already forgiven us.

God has more than just let things go. I am reconciled to God, because of Christ's atoning death upon the cross.

 

[GraceBro]

Aside from the part about "atoning," I agree with you. The death on the Cross was a propitiation, not an atonement. One takes sins away. The other only covered sin. "And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world (1John 2:2). Merry Christmas.