1 John 4:8
God is Infinite LOVE
8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.
Matthew 6:9-13
The LORD's Prayer
9 “This, then, is how you should pray:
“‘Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
10 your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us today our daily bread.
12 And forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13 And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.’
Luke 7:44-47
One Who Forgives Little Loves Little
44 Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45 You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. 46 You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. 47 Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven—as her great love has shown. But whoever has been forgiven little loves little.”
Matthew 9:12-13
Jesus Came for Sinners
12 On hearing this, Jesus said, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. 13 But go and learn what this means: 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice.' For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners."
John 3:16-17
God Sent Jesus to Save the World
16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.
1 Peter 2:22-24
Jesus Died on the Cross for Our Sins
22 "He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth. 23 " When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. 24 Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly. "He himself bore our sins" in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; "by his wounds you have been healed."
Matthew 18:21-22
Always be Forgiving
21 Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?”
22 Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.
Matthew 22:37-40
Two Greatest Commandments
37 Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
Jesus did many great things while He was on earth...One of those things He did was to teach us about prayer, and He gives us the LORD's Prayer, His Prayer...He also would later die on the cross for sinners...And His death on the cross is a central part of those who follow Jesus, and is related to one of the verses in His Prayer...As He died on the cross, a broken and bleeding Messiah did not retaliate or make any threats to those who nailed Him to the cross...But He allowed Himself to die on the cross for us...He could at any time taken Himself off and away from the cross...He also teaches us that the Two Greatest Commandments are all about LOVE...And so, we must learn from Him...We must learn these great things...
Jesus said in the LORD's Prayer that we should ask our Father in heaven to forgive us...Then we are to forgive others, just as our Father has forgiven us...He also teaches us He came to earth for sinners and to save sinners...Rich or poor, talented or untalented, good or bad -He died for each of our sins...Now to believe that He died for my sins, I must first believe that I sin...If I believe that I do not sin, then He did not come for me, and I do not need Him...And I do not need forgiven of anything...But once I realize that I do sin and have sinned I need His forgiveness...And God is always forgiving...To put it another way, I and my friends sin often, then God and His Son are constantly forgiving us...
This is one of the great things the cross teaches...The cross is about forgiving and about LOVE...There is this two-pronged forgiveness message Jesus has on the cross for us...He forgave me of my sins, when He died on the cross...But also, He wants me to forgive others -and the cross represents this too...In His teachings about LOVE, He teaches us that forgiveness is much like love...We must be able to forgive to love and keep love...Love involves giving and taking, and forgiveness allows giving and taking...We cannot just receive love, without giving love -that is not love...And we cannot take His forgiveness from His death, and not be willing to forgive others...The first great commandment God loves me, and is willing to have His Son die on the cross for me, which allows me to be forgiven...To always love my neighbor and him love me, I need to learn better and more about forgiveness, and so must he...Forgiveness and love are very much related...Both forgiveness, like love, involves two people...One may actually need the attribute of being able to forgive to have the ability to love...Love and forgiveness often work together...And when we realize this, then we better understand that He died on the cross and forgives everyone of their sins (even though He had not sinned)...Then we can picture this Infinite LOVE, He is...And then we see that He and His Father have an infinite amount of forgiveness in Them to forgive all of mankind...So we then better understand that when we learn how to forgive often and a lot, we learn how to love more and love better...
Forgiveness, how great a word, and how Great Thou Art...The act of forgiving is one of the attributes of an Almighty, LOVING, and gracious God...We must trust in the cross of Jesus and His death, because that is what saves us from our sins...He died on the cross, so that we might be forgiven and have eternal life and go to heaven if we believe in Him and the One who sent Him...He died on the cross for us, so that we might be forever with Him in His Kingdom...