Self Forgiveness

Self Forgiveness

By

Gary Primo

Oct. 9, 2019

Self forgiveness is what I see as one of the biggest obstacles to gaining salvation. When we come before Yahuwah and are baptized, He forgives ALL of our sins, not just some. Yet, some think their past sins were so bad and hurt so many that they are not worthy of forgiveness. Such an attitude could possibly lead one to abandon the faith altogether, which would be the one and only unpardonable offence.

Matt. 12,31 - Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against Yahuwah’s spirit shall not be forgiven unto men.

32 - And whosoever speaks a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaks against Yahuwah’s spirit, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come.

Mark 3,28 - Verily I say unto you, All sins shall be forgiven unto the sons of men, and blasphemies wherewith so ever they shall blaspheme:

29 - But he that shall blaspheme against Yahuwah’s spirit has never forgiveness, but is in danger of eternal damnation:

30 - Because they said, He has an unclean spirit.

The Jews accused Yahushua, the Only Begotten of Yahuwah, of having an unclean spirit. Not only was this a gross lie but it was also a very serious accusation against the Father Himself. This sin was unforgiveable and the Jews, indeed, paid a very heavy price for their actions.

Of course, it is not only our words but our actions that constitute unforgiveable sin. However, it is usually our words that lead to such action. So, we may begin speaking out against Yahuwah’s spirit and end up leaving off following after Him altogether. That is the ultimate unforgiveable sin.

Some time ago most of us witnessed the demise of the Worldwide Church of God. HWA had died and the new leadership virtually “sold’ the church into oblivion (something I believe was the work of the RCC, since Tkatch was formerly one). A number of splinter groups were formed which basically continued Armstrong’s legacy (no matter how flawed that was).

I have not kept in touch with many in the WCG, but I imagine there were some who left off seeking Yahuwah altogether just because they were disillusioned with the church. Others (like ourselves) continued seeking all truth and have been handsomely rewarded for our efforts. Whatever the result, it was a reflection of our attitude towards Yahuwah from the very beginning. With Yahuwah we cannot stick one toe in the water and claim to be all clean. There is a lifetime of work before us which we are duty bound to perform.

The slothful will always take the easy road and seek a church which they favour which they feel will do all the work of salvation for them. All they have to do is show up for services and try not to fall asleep. They accept every word their ministers tell them as if it were gospel. Yet Yahushua told us to do exactly the opposite – to test and prove all words spoken to us to verify whether they be true or false. This is to be done on a personal basis and is the main criteria to forming a meaningful and personal relationship with our Creator. Devoid of this personal relationship, no church can do anything for us. And, we have no one to blame but ourselves. We cannot blame the church but our own unrighteous attitudes.

Place blame where blame belongs. That is the first step in overcoming. Yes, we are to root out and put away all sin, and we are to both forgive others and ourselves if we are to overcome all sin. Do not allow any sin to stand between ourselves and salvation. Do not doubt Yahuwah’s great ability for forgiveness. Do not speak or act against His spirit at all – ever. All other sins are forgivable.

Most of us were drawn to seeking Yahuwah because of our “checkered” pasts. Some of our past sins can seem pretty bad to us and we cannot possibly see how anyone, especially Yahuwah, could forgive us. Yet, Yahuwah tells us that all sins are forgivable except the one unforgivable sin. Who are we to declare unforgivable what Yahuwah declares forgivable? We have no such authority. Such a mindset can easily lead to the one sin that is unforgivable.

The human race as a whole is heading headlong into oblivion. They have believed HaSatan’s lie over the word of Yahuwah. If we fail to forgive ourselves of any past sins, we deny the word of Yahuwah also. He said that all but one sin are forgivable. In not forgiving ourselves, we are calling Him a liar; and are, in fact, blaspheming the word of Elohim. Believe Yahuwah, brethren. All sin but the one are forgivable and Yahuwah has already forgiven us. Let then go!

As I have proclaimed before, the primary focus of my writings is to improve upon my own spiritual advancement, with the hope that my studies will benefit others also. So everything that I am saying about us is really about me and my person journey towards salvation. So, do not think for a moment that I am pointing the finger of blame elsewhere. Whenever we point the finger at someone else, there are always three fingers pointing back at ourselves. Before we judge others we must judge ourselves.

The following site lists 41 verses that pertain to self forgiveness. I will pick the ones (11) that are most pertinent and place them in chronological order.

https://www.openbible.info/topics/forgiving_self

Psalm 103:12 - As far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us.

As far as east is from west. Well, if one keeps going in either direction, they could go on indefinitely if one removes earth’s boundaries. That is how far Yahuwah removes our transgressions from us – clear out of sight, never to be seen again. Believe it and know that Yahuwah has forgiven you for ALL your trespasses. Now it is time to forgive yourself.

Isaiah 1:18 - Come now, let us reason together, says Yahuwah: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool.

Whatever our past was like, once we pledge our allegiance to Yahuwah (through baptism) we are forgiven EVERYTHING! Believe it! Live like you believe it.

Matthew 6:14-15 - For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

Forgiving others goes part and parcel with forgiving oneself. If one cannot forgive themselves for their discretions, it makes it that much easier to not forgive others. After all, why should they deserve forgiveness if you do not feel forgiven?

Matthew 18:21-22 - Then Peter came up and said to him, “Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” Yahushua said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy times seven.

If a brother has offended us, realizes his transgression and seeks our forgiveness, we are to forgive him/her immediately and never bring up the subject again. That is what Yahuwah does when we seek His forgiveness. That is what we are to do when someone seeks our forgiveness. It comes part and parcel with being forgiven.

Luke 6:37 - Judge not, and you shall not be judged: condemn not, and you shall not be condemned: forgive, and you shall be forgiven:

38 - Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that you mete withal it shall be measured to you again.

Judge not! Condemn not! Forgive! Give! This is the criteria for gaining salvation. The first two we are to refrain from. The second two we are to give freely without reservation.

We all know the story of the man who owed the king money and was forgiven his debt by the king. Then he turned around and had a man who owed him money imprisoned.

Matt. 18:23 - Therefore is the kingdom of heaven likened unto a certain king, which would take account of his servants.

24 - And when he had begun to reckon, one was brought unto him, which owed him ten thousand talents.

25 - But forasmuch as he had not to pay, his lord commanded him to be sold, and his wife, and children, and all that he had, and payment to be made.

26 - The servant therefore fell down, and worshipped him, saying, Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay thee all.

27 - Then the lord of that servant was moved with compassion, and loosed him, and forgave him the debt.

28 - But the same servant went out, and found one of his fellow servants, which owed him an hundred pence: and he laid hands on him, and took him by the throat, saying, Pay me that you owe.

29 - And his fellow servant fell down at his feet, and besought him, saying, Have patience with me, and I will pay you all.

30 - And he would not: but went and cast him into prison, till he should pay the debt.

31 - So when his fellow servants saw what was done, they were very sorry, and came and told unto their lord all that was done.

32 - Then his lord, after that he had called him, said unto him, O you wicked servant, I forgave you all that debt, because you desired me:

33 - Should not you also have had compassion on thy fellow servant, even as I had pity on you?

This man was considered wicked indeed. So will we be considered wicked if after all that Yahuwah forgave us for, we turn around and refuse to forgive those who owe us a debt.

2 Corinthians 5:17 - Therefore, if anyone is in HaMashiyack, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

When we emerge from the water at baptism, we are a new creation. Not only literally, but figuratively also! Our old self has disappeared and a new life begins within a new body. Our old self is dead. We are starting over with a clean slate. Our past sins have been forgiven; therefore, they no longer exist. We are as newborn babies, beginning a new life, free from sin.

Phil. 3:11 - If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead.

12 - Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of HaMashiyack Yahushua.

13 - Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,

14 - I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of Elohim in HaMashiyack Yahushua.

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Yes, we have indeed received a high calling. If given such a calling by an earthly king, we would take it most seriously out of fear of imprisonment or execution. Should we not fear Yahuwah, the one with the power of eternal life, even more than any human king? We cannot change the past, but we can create our own future – one that has a very happy ending..

Hebrews 9:13-15 - For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the sprinkling of defiled persons with the ashes of a heifer, sanctify for the purification of the flesh,

14 - how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to Elohim, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living Elohim.

15 - Therefore he is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, since a death has occurred that redeems them from the transgressions committed under the first covenant.

The Levitical sacrificial system was only intended to serve us until Yahushua came. His sacrifice more than covered any benefit of animal sacrifice. Our old self is dead. Our new self should be totally dedicated to serving Elohim. Under the old covenant, there was no promise of an eternal inheritance. None of that was possible apart from Yahushua’s sacrifice, So, until that time there was no promise of eternal inheritance. There could not be, since there was not yet a redeemer.

1 John 1:9 - If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Before Yahuwah can forgive us we need to want to be forgiven. When we do, Yahuwah cleanses us from all our previous sins. We start over with a completely blank sheet.

1 John 3:19-20 - By this we shall know that we are of the truth and reassure our heart before him; for whenever our heart condemns us, Elohim is greater than our heart, and he knows everything.

Our own hearts are likely more judgemental than Yahuwah is. Of course, judging is a natural human tendency. We judge the actions of others almost immediately and even share our judgements with others. If Yahuwah has forgiven us, who can condemn us? No one, not even ourselves!

Conclusion

So, there we go, refusing to forgive ourselves is the equivalent of doubting Yahuwah and therefore blaspheming His righteous spirit. We are, in fact, saying that Yahuwah’s words are not true. He does not forgive all sins. And it could possibly lead to the worst outcome of all – leaving off following Yahuwah altogether.

This special season of the year is the perfect time to reflect on any past sins one might be hanging onto and FORGIVE OURSELVES. We have already been forgiven them by Yahuwah. Let them go!

If we are at all worried concerning our spiritual growth, or lack thereof, this might be the cause. As long as we harbour any doubts concerning Yahuwah’s word, we are blaspheming His spirit. This must stop immediately – RIGHT NOW!

This is a very serious impediment to our spiritual goals. Refusing to forgive ones self is a sin in itself and will hamper our efforts to succeed. For those who are nearing the end of their personal race, picture that finish line in plain sight and within your grasp. Yahushua proved that His Father’s words were indeed righteous and true. Therefore, believe Yahuwah.

Yahuwah Bless

G.P.