He Forgets

"It is I who sweep away your transgressions for My own sake and remember your sins no more." Isaiah 43:25

God does not keep a record of our sins in order to use them against us. Rather, He forgives and loves us even as we suffer through the consequences of our sins.

I was thanking the Father today for His mercy. I began listing the sins He'd forgiven. One by one I thanked God for forgiving my stumbles and tumbles. My motives were pure and my heart was thankful, but my understanding of God was wrong. It was when I used the word "remember" that it hit me. . . .

God doesn't just forgive, He forgets. He erases the board. He destroys the evidence. He burns the microfilm. He clears the computer. . . .

No, He doesn't remember. But I do, you do. You still remember. You're like me. You still remember what you did before you changed. In the cellar of your heart lurk the ghosts of yesterday's sins. Sins you've confessed; errors of which you've repented; damage you've done your best to repair.

And though you're a different person, the ghosts still linger. Though you've locked the basement door, they still haunt you. They float to meet you, spooking your soul and robbing your joy. With wordless whispers they remind you of moments when you forgot whose child you were. . . .

Poltergeists from yesterday's pitfalls. Spiteful specters that slyly suggest, "Are you really forgiven? Sure God forgets most of our mistakes, but do you think He could actually forget the time you. . . "

. . . Was God exaggerating when He said He would cast our sins as far as the east is from the west? Do you actually believe He would make a statement like "I will not hold their iniquities against them" and then rub our noses in them whenever we ask for help?. . .

You see, God is either the God of perfect grace. . . or He is not God. Grace forgets. Period. he who is perfect love cannot hold grudges. If He does, then He isn't perfect love. And if He isn't perfect love, you might as well put this book down and go fishing, because both of us are chasing fairy tales.

But I believe in His loving forgetfulness. And I believe He has a graciously terrible memory.
(From God Came Near by Max Lucado)

Have you ever had a scab that you just couldn't stop picking? Just about the time it starts to heal, you're tempted to dig at it and start the process all over again. Sometimes it's the same with our sins. We know that god has forgiven us, but we keep dredging it up over and over again. Next time you're plagued by a past sin you've confessed, remember Jeremiah 31:34: "I will forgive their wrongdoing and never again remember their sin." And let that wound heal.

Because of Jesus' perfect sacrifice, God forgets our sins. Jesus paid the penalty for sins. We must no longer feel guilty for sins that God forgave.

Lord, You are so merciful. Thank You for not only forgiving my sins, but also forgetting them. Amen.