Scripture’s Beautiful Imagery of the Forgiveness of Sins (Watson)

One of the wonderful aspects of Holy Scripture is how it doesn't just tell us truth in propositional form. It gives us metaphors, stories, imagery, and vivid examples of truth. Specifically, I'm thinking about the forgiveness of sins. The Bible plainly says that God forgives sins when we confess them to him (e.g. Ps. 32:5). …

Love Covers All Transgressions: Monday Meditation (Luther)

One of my favorite Proverbs is found in 10:12: Hatred stirs up strife, but love covers all transgressions. (NASB) Martin Luther had some helpful reflections on this wonderful verse. This is a good Monday meditation! Where hatred and enmity dwell in the heart, they must inevitably stir up strife and bring misfortune. Animosity cannot restrain …

Biblical Imagery on the Forgiveness of Sins (Watson)

There are quite a few different ways the Bible talks about the forgiveness of sins. For one example, Psalm 103:12 says, "...As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us" (NIV). I've always been comforted by the different imagery Scripture uses to explain the forgiveness of sins. …

Remembering (Forgetting?) the Sins of My Youth (Boice)

In Psalm 25:7 David prayed this: "[LORD], do not remember the sins of my youth or my transgressions" (NASB) [חַטֹּ֤אות נְעוּרַ֨י וּפְשָׁעַ֗י אַל־תִּ֫זְכֹּ֥ר]. Obviously David was thinking about the sins he had committed as a boy - maybe when he was a teenager. He's basically asking the Lord to forgive his past sins. This is …

Pray Hard, For You Are Quite A Sinner (Luther)

The following paragraph is from a famous letter of Martin Luther to Phillip Melanchthon.  I've posted it on this blog before, but it's worth doing again.  This letter shows two things: 1) Luther well understood Rome's unbiblical doctrines [note the "imaginary" language below] and 2) he understood the gospel clearly. If you are a preacher of …