During the question-and-answer session of a panel discussion on forgiveness, a gentleman with tears in his voice asked, “How can you have reconciliation with someone who murdered your whole family in front of you?” This daunting question raised an important matter of the heart. How can one forgive and be reconciled in the face of such radical evil?
There is a longing in the human experience to receive the mercy and forgiveness of God, while, at the same time, there can be a reticence to offer that same grace when offended, especially if the offense is deemed too severe. The inscrutable tension between forgiveness and the justice of God is at the heart of the gospel. For it is God, who on the one hand is rich in mercy, showing the immeasurable riches of His grace to us who were dead in our trespasses (Eph. 2:4-8), and, at the same time, is the one who will hold everyone accountable for the things they have done in life, including unconfessed offenses toward others (Eccl. 12:14; 2 Cor. 5:10). Thankfully, in His dealings with His children, God always operates from a place of justice and righteousness (Ps. 33:5; 89:14). As His children, the people of God must learn from God how to receive and show mercy in ways consistent with their experience with the Lord (Ps. 18:25; 97:10).
For Christians the cross is where the ultimate source of forgiveness and the eternal principle of God’s justice merge. From the heart of God, the seemingly unanswerable question surveyed above receives a theological answer and a heart-transforming offer to allow both forgiveness and the justice of God to have their proper place in reconciliation (Ps. 85).
God’s Character, Forgiveness, and Justice
The Bible acknowledges the gravity of forgiveness by developing a wholistic picture that captures the offense’s physical, emotional, and spiritual aspects (Ps. 38:1-14) that necessitate (1) forgiveness, (2) the remedy that addresses the offense, and (3) outcomes whose goal is reconciliation (Ps. 51). It does this through various terms and images that show sins (Gen. 18:20; 1 John 3:4), debts (Matt. 6:12; Col. 2:14), or transgressions (Gen. 50:17; Lev. 16:16; Rom. 5:14) being forgiven (Matt. 6:12), lifted away (Ex. 32:32), wiped clean (Ps. 51:1), covered (Ps. 32:1), ransomed (Ps. 69:18; Rev. 5:9), atoned for (Lev. 4:20), appeased (Gen. 32:20), passed over (Ex. 12:13), and restored (Lev. 5:15; 2 Cor. 13:9, 11). Scripture stresses divine and human forgiveness, which have different yet interconnected processes and goals (2 Cor. 2:5-11).
God’s forgiveness is not based on the merit or worthiness of the offender or offended. God’s forgiveness is based solely on His character of love, justice, grace, and mercy (Ex. 34:6, 7; Dan. 9:18; Mal. 3:6). As God’s character is central to the act of forgiveness, it is experienced within His abiding presence and not in isolation. So humans cannot conjure up a forgiving heart or offer forgiveness in a way that can lead to true redemption without the impetus of divine grace (Col. 3:13). It is from God that forgiveness is expressed and experienced (Ps. 130:4).
Moreover, not only is God’s forgiveness unmerited, but God’s wrath is justified against sin and sinners (Rom. 1:18; 5:9-11). This raises the concern of justice. If fallen humanity does not warrant mercy but wrath, forgiveness’s central quality deals with God’s justice. How does God maintain His faithfulness to His justice and righteousness in the face of human depravity and rebellion while showing mercy to the offender and comfort to the afflicted? (Cf. Ps. 9:12, 13; 10:12; 22:24.)
The blood of Jesus expunges the record, taking the offense upon Himself, offering a healing salve, and working to restore what has been broken.
At the cross the wrath of God against sin and the mercy of God for sinners meet, and divine justice is both satisfied and saving in its intent (Eph. 2:16). Divine retribution is demanded by the offense. For the believer the offense receives its just due in the sacrifice of Christ (Rom. 8:1-4). In this way God can be just in holding to His standard of perfect righteousness and the justifier of sinners who do not deserve but eternally benefit from His grace and mercy (Rom. 3:21-31; Eph. 2:1-10). In this way the prayerful and humble offer of forgiveness to others recognizes that wrath has been addressed in what Christ has done on the cross and ultimately through His mediatorial work as our high priest (Rom. 5:9-11; Rev. 15:1). This does not dissipate the hurt one experiences, but it does provide freedom from Satan’s spirit of resentment and acrimony. In human terms we cannot mitigate justice in a way that will provide the internal or eternal recompense that leads to peace (cf. Col. 1:20). Forgiveness then includes both the interpersonal effects as well as God’s dealings in restorative justice before He visits retributive justice.
Forgiveness, Justice, and Recompense
Through Jesus’ death on our behalf and God’s grace, human forgiveness offers release on the part of the offended party, understanding that the payment for the debt the offense brings from the offender primarily rests in God’s hands. Sometimes the hurt, the long-term effects, or the eternal ramifications are so overwhelming that no human reparation could bring a complete sense of justice to the matter. While the hope may be that the offender recognizes the offense, confesses, and repents of the sin, forgiveness cannot depend on the offender’s action (Matt. 5:38-42; Rom. 12:17). Having said that, I realize it is crucial to acknowledge that God is not indifferent to the hurt and pain experienced by any of His children. He wants His children to live knowing that they do not need to have a vengeful heart, because God’s ultimate goal is to redeem and restore what has been broken (Rom. 12:19; 1 Tim. 2:4). Yet the cry of the heart may even be amplified, as the offender may seem to flourish in spite of committing offenses with no seeming accountability, which can be extremely distressing (Ps. 94:3). The psalmist admonishes the faithful not to fret because of evildoers, as they will eventually face their sins if unconfessed and unrepented (Ps. 37:4, 5; Rom. 12:19).
Offering forgiveness can also be difficult, because the nature of the offense can range from relatively minor to extremely damaging effects, and even though the gravity and scope may be different, the same call to forgive without reserve is given in all of these situations (Matt. 18:21, 22).
This also raises questions concerning justice. In Scripture, when dealing with the approach to reconciliation, God set up an atonement system that addressed offenses in a way that accounted for motivations, including inadvertence, omission, and intentionality (Lev. 4:20). This included giving time for the recognition of the fault (Lev. 4:13; Acts 17:30). The wise man, Solomon, acknowledges, “Because the sentence against an evil deed is not executed speedily, the heart of the children of man is fully set to do evil” (Eccl. 8:11).1 Indeed, when the ungodly commit wrongs against the righteous, it is typically in defiance, with no concern for consequences or the pain caused (Ps. 10:6, 11, 13; Isa. 26:10; Rom. 2:4). That the wicked do wickedly is expected (Dan. 12:10). But the hurt and pain can feel even worse when the offense is done by a fellow believer or a loved one (Ps. 41:9; 55:12-14). Even though it may seem and feel different, in both cases the offense creates the same problem and need for reconciliation, which may include some act of making amends to another for damage inflicted or crime perpetrated (Ex. 22:1; Luke 19:1-10).
The problem created by the offense and its need to be resolved should be seen as necessitating justice. When justice is in view, forgiveness is not a matter of worthiness. When wrongs are committed by or against the righteous, they often appeal to God’s just intervention (Ps. 7:3-11; 35:24; 43:1; Rev. 15:3; 19:1, 2). Justice encompasses not only culpability and accountability but also the opportunity for restitution and redemption even in the face of radical evil (2 Kings 21:1-18; 2 Chron. 33:10-13).
Moreover, the apostle Paul states clearly that forgiveness was offered to believers while they were the offenders against God (Rom. 5:8). So justice renders forgiveness necessary and possible because what the offended are asked of God is to show the same grace that was shown to them in God’s just acts, and God gives this counsel to those who would be like Him (Ex. 34:9; Matt. 6:14, 15; Luke 7:44-48; cf. Matt. 5:44-48). When God offers forgiveness, He does not record them in a kind of register of crimes or in our memory and hold on to them and use them against the forgiven (Ps. 130:3; Micah 7:18-20; 1 Cor. 13:5). Rather, the blood of Jesus expunges the record, taking the offense upon Himself, offering a healing salve, and working to restore what has been broken. The goal then of the justice of God in the process of forgiveness is reconciliation (2 Cor. 5:17-6:1). This goal is so central to walking with God that He commands us to seek reconciliation before offering our worship to Him (Matt. 5:23-25).
When describing the removal of an inappropriate offense in this way, the removal does not condone the behavior or suggest approval for the offense.2 In fact, the wise man continues: “Though a sinner does evil a hundred times and prolongs his life, yet I know that it will be well with those who fear God, because they fear before him. But it will not be well with the wicked” (Eccl. 8:12). Divine justice may not be swift, but it is certain. How it is experienced depends on how the offender relates to God’s work of justice. God’s omniscience knows how to, when to, and to what extent to render justice in the process of forgiveness. The delay of punishment is not evidence of divine indifference, but rather is designed to elicit confession and repentance that He is working toward, which is an expression of justice (Luke 18:1-8; Acts 5:30-32).
Praying for Justice
The persistent posture of a prayerful heart helps the petitioner “turn away from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it” (Ps. 34:14). By praying for justice, we leave the process for redemption, restitution, and resolution in God’s hands. Prayer gives God full access to our hearts in ways that enable reconciliation in the face of radical evil. This is what the justice of God through the gospel of Jesus Christ does. Its transforming work can turn murderers into missionaries (Gal. 1:11-24) and skeptics into believers (John 3; 19:38-42). And at the cross the love of God, seen in the forgiveness and justice that only God could mingle, turned a rebel into a man redeemed (Luke 23:32-43).3
Likewise, when we prayerfully surrender to Jesus, His justice exhibited on Calvary extends to purifying our consciences from the dead works of sin, which includes our desire for vengeance or our reticence to forgive. Ultimately, Jesus gave Himself for us to empower us to zealously seek to do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with Him (Titus 2:14; Micah 6:8).
1 Biblical quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
2 J. David Stark, “Forgiveness,” Lexham Theological Wordbook (Bellingham, Wash.: Lexham Press, 2014).
3 See Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages (Mountain View, Calif.: Pacific Press Pub. Assn., 1898, 1940), pp. 750, 751.