Jeremiah 31:34 “For I will be merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more”
I find myself often saying that sin casts a long shadow.
Part of sin’s appeal is that it hides the after taste. That’s clear right from the very first sin in the Garden of Eden. The serpent presents the attractiveness of sin, ‘you’ll be wise’, ‘you will be like God’ and then comes the outright lie, ‘you shall not surely die’. There is the immediacy of what sin offers, that fleeting pleasure, the instant gratification that overwhelms and so sin is indulged in but the hook that kills is hidden.
There can also be the tragic misapplication of the gospel where sin can be indulged in because in Christ there is forgiveness. Paul gives this argument very short change in Romans 6:1 – “What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means!” Certainly not and absolutely not. When we understand the gospel truly this should be unthinkable.
The wonder of the gospel is that there is grace to cover all my sin. That if we confess our sins, because God is faithful and just, he will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9). There is forgiveness full and free, cleansing, and adoption into God’s family. There is justification being declared right with God, being clothed in Jesus’ righteousness. There is sanctification, we are set apart by Christ, we are saints but we are also being progressively set apart.
It has often been said that the salvation from sin that we enjoy has three tenses: We are saved from the penalty for sin; we are being delivered from sin’s power; we one day ultimately will be saved and delivered from the presence of sin. A day is coming where there will be no more mourning, no more repenting, no more grieving after sin. God will wipe every tear from our eye: there will be joy and no sorrow and no regrets. But we are not there yet. However, Christ’s resurrection has inaugurated a new age – it has begun – it is now, but it is also not yet.
Confessed sin in Christ is forgiven sin. The Bible tells us that our sin has been cast into the depths of the sea (Micah 7:9), it is as far as the east is from the west (Psalm 103:12), it is put behind his back (Isaiah 38:17) and to quote the hymn – “my sin not in part but the whole is nailed to his cross and I bear it no more praise the Lord, praise the Lord O my Soul”.
All of this is wonderfully true but the memory of our sin hasn’t been removed. King David sinned terribly and was brought to wonderful repentance. He met a preacher who got under his skin and exposed his sin. David’s heart was cracked open and he breaks his heart before God in repentance. Psalm 32 and 51 show us what biblical repentance look like. He grasps something of the joy of forgiveness and restoration.
However, the story of the rest of David’s reign is of having to live with the consequences of his sin. He is forgiven, he is restored, he is put right with God again but in another way nothing is the same ever again. David experienced that sin casts a long shadow.
Many of us live with the consequences of past sin. Sometimes those sins are not even ours but we live with the shadow of them.
When I was 14 I climbed out of a window on a school trip and slipped, the window latch went into my thigh and ripped it open. I had 6 stitches and it took a few weeks to heal. I made a full recovery and was able to play sport and even climb out of windows again. There is no pain from the injury however when I wear shorts you can still notice the scar, the memory of it still makes me wince. It is a little bit like that with sin, full recovery, the issue has been dealt with but the scar remains. Gloriously, one day we look forward to the day when even the scars will be removed. What a day that will be. The scar tissue of sin will one day be gone.
I think that as we understand that sin does have consequences, even for those who are in Christ, this does two things.
Firstly, it should make us wary of sin – sin might be sweet to the taste, but the Bible is honest that it gives fleeting pleasures and there is a bitter aftertaste. It is one of the reasons why we want and pray that our covenant children come to trust Christ from their earliest days, that they might be spared the pain of sin that some of us have experienced.
Secondly, it should give us a longing for the not yet. The land of no regrets, where the ghosts of our past won’t haunt us, where guilt won’t rise up to attack us. When Christ comes again he will usher in a new age where even the memory of sin will be removed.
I suspect as you read this you are painfully aware of your sin and it’s important to remember that what we cannot forget, God will not remember. In Hebrews 8:12 and Jeremiah 31:34 we are told by God – “For I will be merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more”. In Isaiah 43:25 he says “I am he who blots out your transgressions for my own sake, and I will not remember your sins”.
God is Omniscient – all knowing – there is nothing he does not know and yet when it comes to his children’s sin, he remembers it no more. The blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sin, it is blotted out. God sees it no more.
We can so easily be paralysed by our past and guilt but we need to preach to ourselves this gospel. My sin has been dealt with, it has been paid for for, it has been removed.
The devil will come as the accuser of the brethren again and again to bring discouragement, reminding us of our sin, trying to drag us down. But we need to go back to the cross reminding ourselves that Christ has made an end of all my sin.
Bowed down, beneath a load of sin,
By Satan sorely pressed,
By wars without, and fears within,
I come to Thee for rest.
Be Thou my shield and hiding place,
That, sheltered near Thy side,
I may my fierce accuser face,
And tell him Thou hast died.
See clearly what sin does. Do not despair, don’t allow yourself to be overwhelmed by your guilt. Enjoy what Christ offers you today, look back to his cross and look forward to his coming.
Your Minister and Friend,
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