“When God Takes the Trash Out”
Romans 4: 7-8
Pastor Steve N. Wagers
October 17. 2010
(1) WHY Forgiveness is ESSENTIAL
A) The Problem of Sin within Us
B) The Power of Sin over Us
(2) HOW Forgiveness is EXPERIENCED
A) A Repentant Heart
B) A Responsive Heart
(3) WHEN Forgiveness is EMBRACED
A) A Holiness that cannot be Mistaken
B) A Happiness that cannot be Matched
1) He Covers them Over
2) He Cancels them Out
3) He Carries them Away
There is a cemetery in Rochester, New York that has a most unusual grave. There is no name, no date of birth or death. The stone is unembellished by the sculptor's art. There is no epitaph, no fulsome eulogy. There is only one word:“FORGIVEN!”
I am glad that I have some good news for every person that may feel that they cannot get over their past.
God’s forgiveness is extended to you and can be experienced by you if you will only receive it by faith.
We read in our text:
(7-8) “Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered. 8 Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin.”
You ask me why I’m happy,
Well I’ll just tell you why;
Because, my sins are gone!
And when I meet the scoffers,
They ask me where they are,
I say, my sins are gone.
They’re underneath the blood of the Cross of Calvary;
As far removed as darkness is from dawn.
In the sea of God’s forgetfulness, that’s good enough for me.
Praise God, my sins are gone.”
Trash day at my house is Monday for lawn debris, and Thursday for household garbage. From the text we learn that God’s trash day took place over 2000 years ago at a place called Calvary, and takes place every day we appropriate His forgiveness. That’s what happens when God takes the trash out.
(1) WHY Forgiveness is ESSENTIAL
Why does a person need to be forgiven?
a) The PROBLEM of Sin WITHIN Us
(Romans 3: 10-18)
(10 As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: 11 There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. 12 They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. 13 Their throat is an open sepulchre; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips: 14 Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness: 15 Their feet are swift to shed blood: 16 Destruction and misery are in their ways: 17 And the way of peace have they not known: 18 There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
SIN IS AN INSIDE JOB
The HEART OF THE PROBLEM IS THE PROBLEM OF THE HEART
WE’RE NOT SINNERS BECAUSE WE SIN
WE SIN BECAUSE WE’RE SINNERS
(Psalm 51:5)
“Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me.”
You may be sitting there thinking “why is God so severe in dealing with sin?”
It is because sin is An Attack On God andsin is anAssault Against God! The consequence for committing sin is death.
{Ezekiel 18:4}
“The soul that sinneth, it shall die.”
{Romans 6:23}
“For the wages of sin is death.”
The Word Of God Uses Words To Describe Sin; such as “calamity”; “distress”; “adversity”; “grief”; “affliction”; “misery”; “sorrow”; “trouble”; “wretchedness”.
Man calls it an accident, God calls it an ABOMINATION
Man calls it a chance, God calls it a CHOICE
Man calls it a defect, God calls it a DEPRAVITY
Man calls it an error, God calls it an ENMITY
Man calls it a fascination, God calls it a FATALITY
Man calls it a luxury, God calls it a LEPROSY
Man calls it a mistake, God calls it a MADNESS
Man calls it a trifle, God calls it a TRAGEDY
Man calls it a weakness, God calls it a WILLFULNESS
Sociology calls it a “cultural lag.” Psychiatry calls it “emotional behavior.” Philosophy refers to it as “irrational thinking.” Humanism classifies it as “human weakness.” Marxism defines it as a “class struggle.” Psychology refers to it in terms of “psycho genes and gastric juices.”
The Freudian speaks of it as a “slip.” The politician refers to it as “inappropriate conduct.” The criminologist writes it off as “antisocial behavior.” The liberal theologians say that it is a “lack of social action.”
But, ladies and gentlemen, God says that it is SIN, and every person in this building has been diagnosed with the same condition. Everyone has lived in sin, or is living in sin. To say that we are not sinners who do not sin is to call God a liar, and that He cannot be.
Some are DOWN and OUT. Some are OUT and OUT. Some are IN and OUT. Everyone is ALL OUT and everyone is WAY OUT.
ALL OF US NEED TO BE FORGIVEN! No one has yet lived, except the Lord Jesus, who did not need the forgiveness of God!
B) The POWER of Sin OVER Us
In his book, "The Voyage of the Dawn Treader," C. S. Lewis tells about a boy named Eustace, who becomes a dragon. In order to become a little boy again, he must undergo a tremendous amount of pain as the dragon skin is peeled away and torn from him. Only after he endures this painful process is he truly transformed from a dragon back into a boy.
Lewis concludes, "In much the same way, the sin we take on becomes such a part of us that it requires this same kind of painful ripping and tearing to set us free."
(Romans 3:9)
“What then? are we better than they? No, in no wise: for we have before proved both Jews and Gentiles, that they are all under sin.”
(Romans 3:23)
“For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.”
The truth of the matter is that, when it comes to sin, WE CAN’T HELP IT. Sinners are who we are; thus, sinning is what we do.
We lie, because we’re liars.
We steal, because we’re thieves.
We covet, because we’re coveters.
We fornicate, because we’re fornicators.
We drink, because we’re drunks.
We murder, because we’re murderers.
We blaspheme, because we’re blasphemers.
We cuss, because we’re cussers.
We sin, because we’re sinners.
J. Dwight Pentecost said, "The doctrine of depravity had to do, not with man's estimation of man, but with God's estimation of man. So widely accepted is that concept that we have come to feel there is so much in the worst of us that man is not so bad off after all. But, the scriptures do not measure man by man; they measure man by God who created him. The creature is measured by the Creator and is found wanting."
Sin DIRTIES the soul
Sin DOMINATES the mind
Sin DEPRESSES the heart
Sin DISEASES the body
Sin DEFILES the spirit
Sin DESTROYS the testimony
Sin DISGRACES the Lord
Sin turns happiness into heaviness
Sin turns satisfaction into sorrow
Sin turns joy into judgment
Sin turns blessings into bitterness
Sin turns delight into disappointment
I heard of a missionary whose wife was very fastidious. They moved into a small hut, and soon she noticed that the floor was filthy. The first thing the wife wanted to do was to scrub that floor, so she scrubbed and scrubbed but to no avail. She began to wonder if she would ever get the floor clean. Finally, somebody told her the problem. It was a dirt floor! The more she scrubbed the more dirt she stirred up.
It matters not how much we try to tidy up our lives, the more we scrub, the more sin is stirred up. The problem of sin within us is because of the power of sin over us.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer said, "At the moment, when lust takes control, God loses all reality. Satan does not fill us with hatred of God, but with forgetfulness of God. Hence, lust is conceived and sin is produced."
The reason why a person who is living in sin feels guilty is because THEY ARE GUILTY! They are guilty of forgetting God’s standard, and they are guilty of failing God’s standard.
We are being told that we need to adjust ourselves to our guilt. We don’t need to adjust ourselves to guilt –WE NEED TO ALLEVIATE OURSELVES FROM GUILT! We don’t need more information, reformation, or rehabilitation.
We need TRANSFORMATION and we need SALVATION!
(2)HOW Forgiveness is EXPERIENCED!
I think most all of us would agree that we share a common factor, and that is sin. We all have a sin problem within us, because of sin’s power over us. We can’t help it, because we are born that way.
Thus, we need to be forgiven. Forgiveness is essential for all of us. However, we cannot, and are not “forgiven” because of something we do. We can only be forgiven because God does something for us that we cannot do and that we do not deserve.
In order for one to experience forgiveness, there must be:
A) A REPENTANT Heart
The word “repentance” simply means,“To turn.” It means to turn from sin and turn to God. It means a “reorientation of thought.”
Here is what happens when you “repent”.
(You begin to hate the things God hates.)
(You begin to love the things God loves.)
Alan Redpath, once pastor of Moody Memorial Church in Chicago. looked to his congregation one morning and said:
“My fellow believers, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, I bid you, with all the love I have in my heart for you, either get right with God, or leave His house. Maybe some subtractions from the membership roll would be the first step toward victory in our church. I pray God that, whatever it may cost you in terms of personal humiliation before Him and before men, you will search out any Achan in your own life, and get right with God. Don’t bother about other people, what they may think, because the blessing of God is worth far more than human opinion. In the presence of the Lord Jesus give up your sin and claim the cleansing of His blood that this church can be what it was bought to be.”
REPENTANCE is turning your back completely on your old lifestyle; meaning that you have no desire to go back to living that way again.
By the way, there is a vast difference between being sorry for the act and being sorry because one is caught in the act.
(2 Cor. 7: 10)
“Godly sorrow worketh repentance…but the sorrow of the world worketh death.”
B) A RESPONSIVE Heart
We receive a classic OT illustration of what it takes to be declared righteous before God and be forgiven by God.
(2-3)
“For if Abraham were justified by works, he hath whereof to glory; but not before God. 3 For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness.”
The illustration is for our observation, but the application is for our obedience.
(4-5)
“Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt. But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.”
If one is trying to do enough things to earn a certain status of acceptance with God, Paul says that they are wasting their time.
The more a person works and behaves; they are only creating a bigger debt, because works can never merit grace.
However, the less a person works and believes, they are responding to God’s only requirement for forgiveness, and that is the finished, atoning work of Christ.
Are you need of forgiveness today? Are you carrying around an immense load of guilt, shame, or condemnation for something in your past? Do you want to be freely forgiven? Would you like to be fully forgiven? Do you want to be finally forgiven?
Look at it again.
(4-5)
“Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt. But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.”
STOP TRYING
START TRUSTING
You want to experience forgiveness? Then come to God on His terms. Agree and accept who He is and what He says. Respond to God in repentance and faith, believing that Christ died the “godly for the ungodly,” the just for the unjust,” and the debt has already been paid, all you need to do is get your ticket stamped.
When you sinned, you created a debt that must be paid. No matter how much you do to try to un-do, or re-do that act, you can never repay the debt.
Religion says that you must do something to make amends for your sin. Turn over a new leaf, implement 12 steps, or just do better. Christianity shows that you don’t have to do anything, because everything has already been done.
You cannot AMEND what can only be ATONED
All you have to do to experience it, is come to Him with a repentant heart, and a responsive heart.
(3)WHEN Forgiveness is EMBRACED!
Once you repent of your sin and confess your sins to God; realizing that you cannot overcome your sins unless you have God to help you - only then can you be forgiven.
At that moment an amazing transaction takes place. At that moment, God takes the trash of your sin out. You exchange your guilt and embrace God’s grace. You exchange your filth and embrace God’s forgiveness. You exchange your rags and embrace God’s righteousness. At that moment, you embrace:
A) A HOLINESS that cannot be MISTAKEN
(5-6)
“But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness. “Even as David also describeth the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputeth righteousness without works.”
I call your attention to 2 words:
(5)-“justifieth”
(5-6)-“righteousness”
What happens when a person comes clean before God? They walk away cleansed by God. The word “justifieth” speaks of a pardon. When you come to God with a repentant/responsive heart, ask God to forgive you, cleanse you, and wash you, you receive a legal pardon and are justified. It is “JUST-AS-IF-ID-NEVER-SINNED”
The word “righteousness” speaks of a position. When God forgives you, He takes your rags of rebellion and wraps you in a robe of righteousness. He takes your shame and gives you a new name. He takes your failures and gives you His forgiveness.
He no longer sees your sin; He only sees His Son. Thus, once you are robed in the righteousness of God’s Son, you are given a holiness that cannot be mistaken.
William Cowper suffered from severe bouts of depression, and thinking that life wasn’t worth living, attempted to take his life on 3 different occasions. However, each time he tried to kill himself, something always happened to prevent it.
After his last attempt, he thought to himself, “I am such a failure. I can’t even succeed in killing myself.” He was walking by a mission while a service was in progress. He heard the singing and rejoicing inside and stopped just outside the door to listen.
It was then that he heard a man get up and tell that God loves us so much that He sent Jesus to die for us. That night, William Cowper gave his heart and life to the Lord Jesus Christ.
In later years, a man who wanted to bleed to death wrote the words:
There is a fountain filled with blood
Drawn from Immanuel’s veins;
And sinners plunge beneath that flood,
Lose all their guilty stains.
Embracing God’s forgiveness not only gives us a holiness that cannot be mistaken, but:
B) A HAPPINESS that cannot be MATCHED
(7-8)
“Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered. 8 Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin.”
The word “blessed” is the Greek word makarios. It is used 50 times in the NT and more than ½ those times the word is used to speak of exuberance, or extreme happiness. When used in the form of an adjective, as in the text, it could literally be read, “Oh, how happy!”
What happens to the person who embraces forgiveness? We could read it:
“Oh how happy are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered. Oh, how happy is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin.”
What is it that creates such happiness in the heart of a forgiven person? It has to do with what God does with the sin of the forgiven.
1) He COVERS them UP
The word “covered” means “concealed.” God takes the most shameful life that has been struggling with the filth of sin, and covers them with the precious blood of Jesus Christ.
Then, when God the Father sees that person, He sees them through the blood of Jesus Christ. He only sees the Blood; He cannot see the sins because they are covered.
2) He CANCELS them OUT
(8) “Impute”
The word is an accounting term. It literally means, “To take an inventory.”
When one comes to God in repentance and faith, confesses their sin, asking for God’s forgiveness, God cancels them out. Once it’s forgiven, God goes back to take an inventory, but the forgiven sin is now missing from the list. It is a lost item, never to be recovered again.
3) He CARRIES them AWAY
(7) “Forgiven”
The Greek word is aphiemi. It literally means, “To send forth, or send away.” When sin is forgiven, God immediately sends it away. Where does He send it?