The Word of the Day for Thursday, May 30

Why We Should Not Take the Remission of Sins for Granted

The word of the day is “remission.” One temptation of the faithful is hardly ever mentioned. That shortcoming is to take the forgiveness of God for granted. When we do so, our over-confidence assumes that if we surrender to sin, God will indeed excuse us.

But that presumption of God’s mercy forgets a critical article of the Creed. In our reading of Acts 10:34-43, we find this essential element of our faith. There, in his sermon to the Gentile Cornelius and his household, Peter witnessed to the Risen Christ and that He is the one “ordained by God to be Judge of the living and the dead” (OSB vs. 42). It is only after the apostle has referred to the Judgment of Christ that he concludes: “… through His name, whoever believes in Him will receive the remission of sins” (OSB vs. 43). By this Word, we understand that repentance must come before the forgiveness of sin. We must earnestly seek God’s mercy in sincere contrition so that we will not be condemned when Christ comes to judge the world.

The Last Judgment and the Remission of Sins

Our reading returns to the story of the reception of the first Gentile to be baptized into the fellowship of faith. We have learned that the Holy Spirit brought Peter the Apostle and Cornelius the Roman Centurion together. In today’s passage, Peter launches into an oration as if this meeting were some diplomatic mission. He affirms what he has learned in the vision on the housetop: “In every nation whoever fears Him and works righteousness is accepted by Him [God]” (OSB vs. 35). Then the Apostle preaches the Crucifixion and Resurrection of Jesus Christ, the “Lord of All” (OSB vs. 36-42).

But Peter does not stop at this point. He affirms that the Almighty appointed Christ as “Judge of the living and the dead.” Note that this judgment includes every human person. In the light of this judgment, Peter offers the way of redemption from condemnation. He says that whoever believes in Him [Christ] will receive “remission of sins” (OSB vs. 43).

The Remission of Sins: A Central Theme in Luke/Acts

The term “remission” in Greek refers to letting sin go unpunished. It signifies the pardoning of transgressions as if they never happened (Strong’s #859, 48). Accordingly, at the Judgment, God will not condemn those who believe in Christ but, for His sake, will release them from the penalty of their wrongdoing.

This message that God will absolve sin is a repeated theme in Luke’s early church history. In Acts Chapter 3,  Peter urges, “Repent therefore and be converted that your sins may be blotted out” (OSB Acts 3:19). His promise is that the transgression of those who repent will be wiped away or canceled (Strong’s #1813) as debt is forgiven.

Moreover, in Acts Chapter 2, Peter finishes his sermon on Pentecost with the appeal, “Repent and be baptized… in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins” (OSB Acts 2:38). Later in Acts, Paul says that God called him to open the eyes of Jews and Gentiles alike so that they would turn from Satan’s power and receive the remission of sins and an “inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith…]” [i] (OBS Acts 26:18).

The Remission of Sins to Be Preached to All Nations

We even find the theme of the “remission of sins” at the end of the Gospel of Luke. At his Ascension, the Risen Christ outlined His mission to the apostles. He declared, “Thus it was written that it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead on the third day and that repentance and remission of sins be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem” (OSB Luke 24:46-47). Thus, the Lord teaches that the center of the Gospel that He sends the apostles to proclaim is the “remission of sins,” the same term that we have found in the preaching of Acts.

Our study concludes that the “remission of sins” lies at the heart of the Gospel. It is not a secondary belief to be mentioned once and left behind. But the pardon of trespasses is closely connected to the essential belief in Christ’s return to judge the living and the dead. By the pardon of sins, we are delivered from God’s condemnation at the Last Judgment. Thus, by the grace of forgiveness, we have the assurance of salvation.

For Reflection

How can we take the wiping away of our trespasses against God for granted when all the blessings of our redemption in Christ revolve around it? Instead of presuming on the pardon of the Holy God, let us heed the warning of St. Isaac the Syrian: “Our frail nature would not be strong enough if God’s justice were to rise up to take vengeance. Therefore, He always employs mercy since we are held by debt. But do not sin, O man, expecting you to repent; and do not succumb [to being overconfident] of forgiveness! Remember that death will not be delayed. Do not craftily seek means to draw nigh the pleasure of sin with a knavish mind! God is not mocked [Gal. 6:7). [If you think God will forgive you], affliction will overtake you suddenly, and when you cry out, He will not answer you” (Ascetical Homilies #64).

Therefore, if we are tempted to presume on the Lord’s pardon of our offenses against Him, let us call to mind that we must appear “before the dread Judgment seat” of Christ” (The Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom). And let us earnestly seek the remission of our sins that we might not be condemned but redeemed.

Notes

[i] The OSB translates as “receive forgiveness,” but the Greek term is remission, like the other verses mentioned.