This is a very controversial subject between the different denominations of Christianity because of different beliefs and interpretations of scriptures.
When we got born again, did God forgive all of our sins, – past, present, and future, or just our past sins before we became born again?
The majority of Christians believe it is only our past sins that are forgiven when we come to the Lord and any new sin would have to be brought to the cross, under the blood of Jesus, for forgiveness.2 Pet 1:9 is the verse this belief stands on. It says:
But whoever does not have them is near-sighted and blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their past sins. 2 Peter 1:9 (NIV2011)
When you read this verse by itself, it will mean just that: that it is your past sins only that was forgiven. However, we do not start conversations with the word “but”. So, We need to go back and read what is it that the people didn’t have to be called near-sighted and blind. I would advise you to read the whole chapter or even better the whole book to get the proper message within its context, as we don’t have enough time to do it on this show.
This verse, taken within context, is talking about showing the results of your salvation. (Philippians 2:12-13) Because you are now saved, you should start the process of being transformed into a better person every day as you are learning who you are now in Christ and acting upon that. And the people around you should see the result of your salvation through your new behavior.
A person who doesn’t exhibit the qualities listed in 2 Peter 1:5-8 is spiritually blind or near-sighted because he has forgotten the wonderful salvation that he received. He has forgotten that he was cleansed from all his past sinful life. He has forgotten that he is a new creation in Christ Jesus so he’s not acting accordingly. So if after you are saved, you do not develop the kind of characters mentioned in 2 Peter through life’s trouble, you are shortsighted and have forgotten what you have been saved from.
Your heart and mind are on things seen, not things unseen. You are probably still living like an unbeliever since there is no growth or change in you that can be seen by others. In a way, you have forgotten that you have been purged or cleansed from your past sins since you act the same as before you got born again. This is what 2 Pet 1:9 is saying.
Because of this statement in 2 Pet 1:9 that we have been forgiven of our past sins, some people have concluded that our future sins – that is the sins we commit after we are born again – are not covered or included at the cross. So, we have to confess them individually as they occur in order to stay saved. What does the Bible say about this?
First of all, it is not our sins that make us sinners. We were born this way with the original sin. We sin because we are sinners, not the other way round. Scriptures say we were sinful at birth, from the time we were conceived. (Psalm 51:5).
… All people were made sinners as the result of the disobedience of one man… Romans 5:19 (TEV)
The Bible does NOT say, he who stops sinning will have eternal life. It is he who believes in Jesus who is saved and has eternal life. And Jesus said in John 5:24 (NLT) that those who listen to his message and believe in God who sent him have eternal life. They will never be condemned for their sins, but they have already passed from death into life.
The sins referred to in this scripture are the ones you commit as a believer after you are born again because your past sins have been forgiven according to 2 Pet 1:9. Jesus is saying you will not be condemned or judged for these news sins because you believed in his message.
He is not saying that you are allowed to sin now that you are a believer. If you sin, the devil will get you, and sin is not godly at all. Besides, the Bible says that those who have the hope of salvation seek to purify themselves (1 John 3:3). This means a true believer should not have a desire to sin. Jesus is saying your sins as a believer will not prevent you from going to heaven because he paid for them already.
You have to realize that when Jesus died on the cross, all your sins were future sins. He paid for them before you committed them. The believers’ sins are not taken into account anymore. According to 2 Corinthians 5:19, God is no longer counting people’s sins against them. Read this in your own Bible or you will not believe me.
The moment you believe in Jesus Christ, you receive eternal life. ETERNAL life! If you could lose this life every time you sin, then it would have been called a temporary life. But NOOO, it is eternal. The only way for you to lose eternal life is by renouncing Jesus. Your sins cannot and will not take away eternal life from you. (John 5:24, 1 John 5:11-13) Why tell me I have eternal life when I can lose it if I sin? Either it is eternal life or it is not.
How can you have eternal life and be a sinner going to hell at the same time? Can a person be a little bit saved? 50%, 70%? Is that even doable? Does that make sense to anyone to be a little bit saved? If you can lose your salvation when you have unconfessed sins, then why does the bible talk about ETERNAL LIFE??? Shouldn’t the correct term be ‘temporal life” or ‘temporary life?
So, people who use 2 Pet 1:9 to say we have only been forgiven our past sins, they can only be correct when we consider all these scriptures that say our future sins don’t count anymore for salvation since God is not holding them against us because Jesus paid for them.
And I am being nice when I say this because the truth is these people are wrong in saying only our past sins are forgiven and we have to bring our new or future sins at the foot of the cross for forgiveness.
Here is why: No.1 As a sinner, you cannot approach God yourself. You will die. You need a high priest who must be sinless himself, to approach God on your behalf. Where are you going to find such a high priest on this planet?
No.2 This High Priest, will have to find the blood of a human being to be sacrificed for your new sins. This human being must meet all the criteria like Jesus as a perfect lamb of God; one of it being he must be sinless, and he will have to be willing to sacrifice his life for your sins. Where are you going to find such a human being on this planet? I am saying this because there is no forgiveness of sin without the shedding of blood. (Hebrews 9:22)
So, if all your sins, past, present and future, were not covered by the one sacrifice of Jesus on the cross 2000 years ago, you are in big trouble because Jesus is not coming to die again. He did it once for all and that’s it. (Hebrews 7:27, 1 Peter 3:18, Romans 6:10).
In Hebrews 9, we are told that Jesus dealt with the sin issue once and for all, that is why when he comes back, he is not going to deal with sin anymore (Hebrews 9:26-28). If Jesus is not dealing with the sin issue anymore, why are we? And how are we doing it without Jesus being involved?
Every sin requires the death of an innocent and perfect human life for it to be forgiveness. This thing of going to God personally and verbally to ask for forgiveness of new sins without the proper sacrifice is not biblical.
In light of this, I submit to you that when Peter said they forgot that they were forgiven of their past sins, he probably meant that they forgot that they were delivered from their past sinful lives.
Scriptures cannot contradict themselves. We cannot have so many verses saying on one side that we are forgiven of all sins and then have only one verse on the other side (2 Pet 1:9) saying it was only our past sins. We cannot develop a doctrine based on only one scripture. We have to have at least 2 or 3 witnesses to establish a matter. (2 Corinthians 13:1). I have given you plenty.
The other point I have to make here is, the sins Jesus paid for were not just the believers’ sins; he paid for the sins of the whole world. He paid even for the sins of people who are not saved. (1 John 2:2, 1 Timothy 4:10).
Now, please answer this question for me: which part of the world’s sins did he forgive: past, present, future? The world refers to unbelievers; people who have not accepted Jesus as their Lord and Saviour. They have never repented for anything or asked forgiveness for that matter. So, which parts of their sins are forgiven? Obviously all of their sins are forgiven. So, if they are completely forgiven as non-saved people, why is it that you as a believer, only your past sins are forgiven? Who seems to have the better deal here? It makes no sense at all unless we believers are also forgiven for all of our sins.
The next question is our mind now is, if the world’s sins are totally forgiven just like us believers, why are they still lost then? Why are they going to hell when all their sins have been forgiven? That is because there is ONLY ONE sin that sends people to hell, it is the sin of not accepting Jesus as our Lord and Saviour (John 16:9). Also, Jesus is the ONLY way to heaven. If you reject him, how will you get to heaven? Do you know where heaven is? Do you know what type of transport will get you there? No. No one knows. That is why Jesus is coming back to takes us there. He is the way to Heaven.
Jesus cannot make this choice for us because it will go against our free will. The Holy Spirit is only convicting the world of the sin of not accepting Jesus because all of their other sins have been forgiven already. (John 3:16-18).
No.1 People who are not born again are not saved. Even though they have all their sins forgiven, there is one sin that is separating them from God and that is the sin of not accepting Jesus as their Lord and Saviour.
So I am not saying that everybody will go to heaven because Jesus has paid for everybody’s sin. Only those who accept him will go to heaven because he is the only way to heaven. (John 14:6)
No.2 What about 1 John 1:9? This verse says that if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
Let me ask you this: how many times, logically, can a person be forgiven from ALL unrighteousness? If you confess your sins to the Lord, this verse is saying God is faithful and just to forgive you your sins and purify you from ALL unrighteousness.
How can you come back again to ask for another forgiveness when ALL was forgiven? If you only take into account your past sins, then remember John 5:24 and 2 Corinthians 5:19. They both say, once you believe in Christ, your sins will not be counted against you anymore.
I personally believe that 1 John 1:9 is addressing people who are not saved yet but because they keep the law or they live a good moral life, they think they don’t have sin in them and therefore don’t need to confess anything. They think they will go to heaven when they die because they are good people. They don’t understand that they were born sinners and they need a totally brand new spirit to go the heaven. (2 Corinthians 5:17).
That is why John told them in verse 8 (1 John 1:8) that they are deceiving themselves thinking they have no sin and truth is not in them.
On the other hand, believers who sin should make things right with the people they sinned against. This is seeking horizontal righteousness (right standing between man and man). They should apologize and repent, meaning, change their way, and live right. If they don’t, according to Romans 6:16, they are opening the door to the devil and he will destroy them. But they will not lose their salvation, which is vertical righteousness (right standing of man with God).
John 5:24 NLT
The devil goes about like a roaring lion seeking believers that he can steal from, destroy, and kill. If he is seeking is because he cannot destroy every believer; it is only those who open the door to the devil through sin that he can devour.
So when a believer repents from his sins, he closes the door to the devil. This is totally different from asking for forgiveness from God in order to go to heaven. This is about you acknowledging that you did something wrong and seeking to make things right with the people you have wronged.
