Total Forgiveness: "forgiveness not just for ourselves but for the whole of creation"
I John 2:2 “He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.”
For many of us we think of Jesus as our own little savior and that all we need to ask for forgiveness for is our own personal sins. The problem with this kind of belief is two fold. The first is when we see Jesus, repentance, and forgiveness in this manner than we can also see being a Christian as our own personal and private journey. Before we know we have made following Jesus into another by product of our individualized society. If we read the story of the early church it is obvious that although our faith is very personal it is never private. We cannot be a Christian alone. We cannot sit in front of the tv on Sunday mornings (or whenever); watch a church service and then claim to be a follower of Christ. One of the fundamental qualities of being a follower of Jesus is to journey with fellow travelers within a community of faith. We understand this when we understand that Jesus just didn’t come to forgive our own personal sins but He came to forgive the sins of the world as well. God doesn’t just want to redeem our own personal lives; God wants to redeem every part of creation. The second problem with a belief that Jesus is just our own personal savior and that we only need to ask for forgiveness of our own personal sins is that we fail to see our responsibility for all of sin in the world. Remember the garden; who ate the fruit? Who brought sin into the world? It was us; it was humanity. We are responsible for sin in the world. All of the violence; injustice; poverty; oppression; pollution; etc; we are responsible for these sins; not anybody else. As the author tells us that Jesus came not only to forgive us but the sins of the world, the author is claiming that Jesus Christ is forgiving us of the total rebellion; He is forgiving us of all the effects of bringing sin into the world. He forgives us because we are responsible. Today I am reminded that I cannot travel this journey alone but I am meant to journey with others as I participate in God’s redemptive plan for the world. I am also reminded today that I am responsible for the sin of the world and giving in to any temptation to pass the buck only solidifies the sin that is present in my life. I am responsible; therefore, I ask for forgiveness for the sins of my life and the sins of the world because my guilt rests in both. I am thankful today for God’s atoning sacrifice in Jesus Christ that frees me from the penalty of sin (in my life and the world) and invites me into a new way of living; a way of life that I believe is the best possible way to live.
Lord, thank you today for the reminder that I cannot live this life alone. Thank you for being contrary to the culture I reside in and pointing to a greater truth that is present in the world. Father, continue to bring others into my life that we may journey together in following you and joining you in the total redemption of the world. Thank you for helping me see my part in the whole sin of the world. Forgive us Lord for the ways in which we have turned your creation into a world infected with the disease of sin. Thanks for being our great physician that doesn’t just seek to heal our own lives but is concerned about the healing of all of creation. Help me to live today as a person who has been freed and as a person who is invited to join you in loving the whole world to heaven. Thank you for the invitation! Amen!
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