Why Forgiveness Was Never the Finish Line

Jesus, Jesus. Hey, you are 514 Grace Church. We feel one name.

Jesus, Jesus.

514 Grace Church. We feel one name. Jesus, Jesus. We lift one name. Jesus. We stand as one. Jesus, Jesus. Yeah, you do it his way. When I say who, say you say Jesus. Who heals? Jesus. Who still breaks every yoke, every chain?

Jesus. Family of God, there is a truth that the Holy Spirit is restoring to his church in this hour. Not a new doctrine, but a neglected one. And before we go any further, I want to title this sermon. Remission versus forgiveness, the revelation that changes everything. A truth that the early church preached with clarity, conviction, and demonstrated power. Yet over generations, hear me, yet over generations, religion has diluted it into something less Potent and less transformative. The truth is, the difference between forgiveness of sins and the remissions of sins needs to be explained, and it needs to be taught on in great detail. We've preached forgiveness for so long, and it is in fact a beautiful thing. We've sung about forgiveness.

We have thanked God for forgiveness.

But Jesus, hear me, but Jesus did not command the church to preach forgiveness. He commanded us to preach repentance and remission of sins.

And whenever the church preaches something, hear me, Whenever the church preaches something less than what he instructed, we produce believers with less power, less liberty, and less understanding of what Christ accomplished on the cross at Calvary.

So we need to be clear, there is a distinct difference Between the forgiveness of sins and the remission of sins. Write that down. There is a distinct difference between the forgiveness of sins and the remission of sins.

Let's go to the foundation.

Luke chapter 24, verse 46 and 47, and it says this. When you get there, say amen. Luke chapter 24, verse 46 and 47.

It says, thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the 3rd day, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all the nations, beginning at Jerusalem. Hear me, notice what Jesus said must be preached. Repentance and remission of sins, not repentance and forgiveness of sins.

He didn't say preach repentance and forgiveness of sins.

He said repentance and remission of sins. There is a distinct difference, and it is not a minor difference that we can afford to ignore. We have to know that there is in fact a distinct difference. Forgiveness is glorious.

And it is. I'm sure many of you agree with me. I was forgiven of my sins. Many of us, all of us were forgiven of our sins.

But forgiveness is not the full gospel.

You can breathe. I know I dunked you just then, but forgiveness— I'm sorry, forgiveness is not the full gospel. I know that I'm turning over some sacred cows, and I know that some people are watching me online. They're going to probably even You may email us and say, what is he talking about? But hear me out, hear me out clearly.

Forgiveness is not the full gospel. Forgiveness means God pardons the offender. Remission means God has removed the offense itself.

Ah.

Do you see the difference?

Forgiveness deals With the person. But hear me, family, remission deals with the record. Forgiveness releases the sinner. Remission erases, eradicates the sin. Forgiveness says, I no longer hold this against you. But here, listen to what remission says. Remission says there is no record that it ever occurred.

Oh my goodness.

There is no record that it ever occurred.

Oh my goodness. Ah, isn't that beautiful?

Let me give language to this.

Hear me.

In the Greek, the word for remission is the word aphesis.

Aphesis.

You spell it A-P-H-E-S-I-S.

Aphesis, which means, hear me, which means release, dismissal, liberation.

And removal. It comes from a root meaning to cause something to depart so that it can never be brought back again. So that means sin no longer has control over our lives. We are more than conquerors. We are victorious through Christ Jesus who saved us. It is in fact this word is a legal term.

The word remission, or if you want to say the Greek word Ephesus, it is a legal term.

It is judicial.

Yes, it is a judicial term that you can find.

It is also covenantal.

It is a covenantal term as well.

It is the language of heaven's courtroom. Oh, how beautiful that is! It is the language of heaven's courtroom stamped with the authority of the blood of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Oh, how beautiful! Forgiveness can happen without remission.

Hear me, let me go very slowly on this. Forgiveness Forgiveness can happen without remission, but remission cannot happen without forgiveness.

Forgiveness is included inside remission, but remission is not included inside forgiveness. A parent can forgive a child for breaking The window, but the broken glass still remains. A judge can forgive a crime and commute a sentence, but the record still exists in the system. That is forgiveness.

But hear me, hear me closely. I need you to listen. I know that I've said a lot, so just breathe. I'm listening. Just breathe.

But remission is when the record is expunged, erased.

Let's use some computer terminology. It is in fact deleted. It is removed.

There is no evidence that it ever existed. So completely removed that no legal accusation can be refiled, no case reopened, no guilt revisited, and no stain recovered. This is what Jesus authorized to be preached, not merely that God forgave sin, but that Jesus removed it and eradicated it and deleted it so that sin could no longer have Power and dominance over his children. Jesus removed it once and for all on Calvary when he said, "It is finished." Tetelestai. He said, "It is finished," but I'm not finished.

Why?

Because I live inside of you. Paul said to to live. It's for Christ, but to die is gain. Yes. Now we understand that sin has no power over us.

It is removed, eradicated.

That means now we understand why we can be more than conquerors through Christ Jesus. that loved us. Oh my goodness. This is what Jesus authorized to be preached. Ah, not just forgiveness only, ah, but the eradication of sin, the very thing that will try to control our lives and dominate us. This is why Jesus removed the sting of sin. Sin no longer has a sting. It can no longer harm us. We are victorious through Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, because in the courtroom of heaven, the blood of Christ satisfied the debt, and it said the payment is paid in full. This is what Jesus authorized to be preached, not merely that God forgave sin, but that Jesus removed it once and for all. The Old Covenant provided forgiveness, but never remission. The blood of bulls and goats could cover sin for a season, but it could not remove it. It could shield the sinner from judgment momentarily, but it could not wash the stain from the conscience conscience of this person, this individual. Hebrews chapter 10, verse 4 declares, for it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sins.

They could cover, but they could not cleanse. They covered, but they could not cleanse.

Christ's blood did what animal sacrifices could never do. Hebrews chapter 9, verse 12 says that Christ entered the holy place—

hear me—

once for all, having obtained eternal redemption.

Not temporary redemption. Did you hear me? Eternal redemption.

redemption, not probationary redemption, eternal redemption.

Yes, this eternal redemption that the Bible speaks of that is given to both you and I.

And here is where the revelation intensifies.

Jesus— hear me— Jesus High priestly ministry is not over who you used to be. His intercession and covenant is not with the old you.

He did not redeem the old creation. He did not. He crucified the old creation. This is why Paul talked about, uh, living is for Christ, but Die. Why? Dying to the flesh.

Ah, if you're gonna live for Christ, then you have to live for Christ.

Yet not I that liveth, but Christ Jesus that lives inside of me.

Jesus' high priestly ministry is not over who you used to be. His intercession and covenant is not with the old you. He did not redeem the old creation.

He crucified it. He is high priest over the new creation. You are a new creature. You have been regenerated. You are born of God, washed by blood, sealed by the Spirit, reconciled to the Father. When we approach God rehearsing the old identity, heaven is silent because God has no covenant with that version of you. That person died. This is what remission does.

This is what remission does.

Remission, it removes the sin so completely that God no longer engages with the believer based on the Adamic identity, but only through the identity of Christ. Let me illustrate this.

A young man once carried the shame of a mistake he made at 16 years of age.

For years, he believed God forgave him, but feared God still saw him through that failure. He lived forgiven, but still condemned. One day he learned that in Christ, his sin wasn't only forgiven, it was remitted, removed, expunged, destroyed. And when this truth became evident and alive inside of him, his prayer life changed. He stopped praying like a criminal seeking mercy and started praying like a son with access. He moved from begging God for grace to walking in the grace already given to him. He moved from outer court consciousness to the Holy of Holies access that God provides to him through and by the blood of Christ. That is the power of repentance.

Remission. Family, hear me, hear me, hear me clearly.

Remission gives you permanent access to God without shame. Yes, you that are watching me, remission gives you permanent access to God without shame. You don't press into the presence You begin in the presence because remission brought you inside the veil. This is why the enemy fights this revelation. If the believer only accepts forgiveness, they remain grateful yet timid. But when they understand remission, they become bold as a lion. If sin still exists in your record, condemnation has a This is why remission silences the voice of the enemy to tell you that you're no longer who you used to be. When he tries to remind you of who you used to be, say, that's no longer me. That man is dead. He died in Christ. He was buried in Christ. Now I am a new man.

I'm a new woman. I'm a new creature. I'm a new creation in Christ Jesus. But you now understand remission and you become bold.

If sin still exists in your record, condemnation does in fact have a voice. But if the record is gone, accusation has no legal grounds over you any longer. You are liberated. You are free. There is no chains of bondage holding you. You have the power that is spoken of in the book of Acts chapter 1, where the Bible says that the Spirit of God showed up and he gave them power.

What did he empower them to do?

To become witnesses.

Of who? Christ Jesus.

Why?

Because the sin has been removed and now you have a voice.

But if the record is gone, accusation has no legal grounds any longer.

Romans 8:1 becomes a living reality.

There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, not because God ignores sin, but because Christ erased it.

Let me give a brief analogy.

Forgiveness is like a prison warden unlocking the cell and saying, you are free to go. Remission is the government expunging the crime so that nowhere in the system, the court, the city, the state, or federal government, does your name appear as someone who ever committed a crime. Now you can walk into any courtroom and boldly declare, I have no case pending, no debt owed, no record against me. That is what the blood of Jesus accomplished in the courtroom of heaven when the accuser of the brethren came before God and God said, there is no record.

Why?

Because The record was expunged by the blood of Christ. And remission is no, is not weak or fragile.

It is not weak or fragile. Hebrews 9:12 calls it eternal redemption.

Eternal means uninterrupted, irrevocable, irreversible.

It cannot be undone. It cannot be undone. Are you listening to me? It cannot be undone. Yes.

Irreversible.

It cannot be undone by human failure. You can't blow this.

There's nothing on this planet that is more powerful than the blood of Jesus. No failure, not by satanic accusation, not by religious guilt. It cannot supersede or overcome the blood of Christ.

This does not give us permission. I need to be clear about this. This does not give us permission to sin.

It gives us power not to sin.

The one who truly understands remission does not run towards sin.

They run away from it because they understand the value of the liberty purchased for them.

Let me close this portion with a truth. Hear me. Remission is not God excusing what you did. Let me say that again. Remission is not God excusing what you did.

It is God crucifying what you were.

He didn't excuse your sin.

He executed it. He didn't overlook it. He overruled it.

Pray with me. Father, thank you for the remission of sins, for expunging my record.

God, I thank you for the grace of Christ, and I thank you, Lord God, that yes, we are forgiven, but we have our sins removed, expunged, overruled. There is no history. There is no record of sin.

Having dominance over my life.

Therefore, I am liberated.

I am empowered.

I am free. My thoughts are free. I no longer have sin consciousness because it is removed, eradicated.

And God, I thank you for delivering me. Thank you for blessing me. Thank you for keeping me.

Amen.

In Jesus' name we pray. And everyone said amen. Thank you for watching. Do me a favor, follow us on all of our social media platforms. And I pray that this word of God bless you. Family, thank you for attending service today. We don't take your attendance for granted. I know that we were, uh, we went a little bit over, but thank you for being patient and hearing the message. God bless every single one of you, and thank you for tuning in. Continue to follow us 514 Grace Church. Follow us on our social media platforms. Follow us on our webpage, www.514gracechurch.org. Once again, family, thank you. Thank you for being here. Thank you for being on time. Thank you for your giving. Thank you for your sacrifice. God bless every single one of you in Jesus' name.

Amen.