Asking for forgiveness

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JonJT

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Jan 7, 2008
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When we pray to the Lord and ask for forgiveness, must we name every sin we can remember committing, or is just acknowledging the fact that we are sinful and asking for forgiveness sufficient?
 

ForYou

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Jan 21, 2008
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This is a very good question,See John 1:9-10 If we claim we have no sin,we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. But if we confess our sins to him,he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness"God offers forgiveness when we own up to our sins,He allowed his own son to die on the cross to save us!!!But if you look at the verse,it says we must confess our sins,So does that mean confess them all,Some would argue God already knows our sins,so how come we just can't say can you forgive me of everything I have done,I personally think you can,But only when you do ask for forgiveness truly mean it, you keep doing it,it is pointless to keep asking for forgiveness,you should really be asking God to help you overcome the sins you have commitedReally I do not have all of the answers,but this is just some of my views,I will keep looking through my bible for answers
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Hope this helped a little-Duke-
 

JonJT

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This is a very good question,See John 1:9-10 If we claim we have no sin,we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. But if we confess our sins to him,he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness"God offers forgiveness when we own up to our sins,He allowed his own son to die on the cross to save us!!!But if you look at the verse,it says we must confess our sins,So does that mean confess them all,Some would argue God already knows our sins,so how come we just can't say can you forgive me of everything I have done,I personally think you can,But only when you do ask for forgiveness truly mean it, you keep doing it,it is pointless to keep asking for forgiveness,you should really be asking God to help you overcome the sins you have commitedReally I do not have all of the answers,but this is just some of my views,I will keep looking through my bible for answers
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Hope this helped a little-Duke-
Well right, continually sining and then asking for forgiveness is just as bad as sining and not acknowledging it. I do ask got for forgiveness and the ability to overcome my mad habits on a daily basis. And it's going well. I'm not committing the same sin over and over again every day. It's typically a different thing everyday. Or, it happens sparingly.My point is that we are only human and God knows this better than anyone. We cant escape sin even if we are saved as we are all still living in a body of flesh and blood. We still might have bad tendencies or relapse every once in a while. Are we required to required to acknowledge the sins we know of by name no matter how small? Or do we just need to acknowledge the fact that we are sinful and desire forgiveness for it?
 

ForYou

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Jan 21, 2008
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I would think,kind of read a little,That we would ask for forgiveness of all the sins we have comitted,if you can not remember everyone of them,but if you are praying to God and asking for forgiveness,on a daily basis then you should be able to remember your sins,Yes God does realize we are not perfect and we will fail,but the main fact is we ask for forgiveness through Christ our Lord
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ForYou

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Jan 21, 2008
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That is great JonJt,I am glad to hear christ has made a influence on your life and you try not to sin
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I think if you can remember your sins go ahead and admit to God what you have done,But asking for forgiveness and not knowing what you have done is pointless in my mind,but if you do have in mind what you have done that has gone against God,then asking just for forgiveness should be fine
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JonJT

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That is great JonJt,I am glad to hear christ has made a influence on your life and you try not to sin
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I think if you can remember your sins go ahead and admit to God what you have done,But asking for forgiveness and not knowing what you have done is pointless in my mind,but if you do have in mind what you have done that has gone against God,then asking just for forgiveness should be fine
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Thanks for the kind words!Well, here is how I see it. Not knowing what you have done is fine, but assuming that you then dont need to ask for forgiveness would imply that you feel you are without sin. That is impossible. I feel one needs to ask for forgiveness regardless of if you know. Im just not sure if you must list the sins you are aware of.
 
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Gary North wrote an interesting collection of essays in his "An Economic Commentary on Matthew", which he distributes for free on his freebooks (.) org. It's part of his 35+ year effort to write a commentary on the bible, verse by verse, from the perspective of a Calvinist economist. It's not for the fainthearted.Anyway, in the part where he discusses the Lord's Prayer, his analysis on forgiveness is that you don't have to go searching for each and every wrong you've ever done. For one thing, you won't be able to remember them all. What you have to do is to be willing to apologize to God for specific things, as a token for the things that you're less specific about. The rest of the things that you're not specifically asking for constitutes a debt that you can't afford to pay.He gets really deep in the part where it talks about debts and debtors. North says that the trick to forgiveness, according to Jesus, is forgiving others. He is saying that God will forgive you just as well as you're forgiving others. If you're asking for unconditional forgiveness, for no other reason than the fact that you're asking it, then you can forgive others for just as small a reason.Again, you don't have to forgive everyone everything -- you won't be able to remember it all -- but to the general level of how you yourself want to be forgiven.Where I think you get into trouble is if you've done wrong, and you're not willing to ask forgiveness; or if someone else has wronged you and you're not willing to forgive.It's an interesting way of looking at the Bible, and I don't necessarily buy into all of North's interpretations. You may want to read it for yourself and evaluate from your own context.
 

Dunamite

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Nov 15, 2007
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This is a very good question,See John 1:9-10 If we claim we have no sin,we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. But if we confess our sins to him,he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness"God offers forgiveness when we own up to our sins,He allowed his own son to die on the cross to save us!!!But if you look at the verse,it says we must confess our sins,So does that mean confess them all,Some would argue God already knows our sins,so how come we just can't say can you forgive me of everything I have done,I personally think you can,But only when you do ask for forgiveness truly mean it, you keep doing it,it is pointless to keep asking for forgiveness,you should really be asking God to help you overcome the sins you have commitedReally I do not have all of the answers,but this is just some of my views,I will keep looking through my bible for answers
smile.gif
Hope this helped a little-Duke-
Actually it is 1 John, not the gospel of John. Not to be picky. It is probably a typo. Since you brought up 1 John I will speak about it, since it is very much on my heart. It speaks to us in this age. Undoubtedly, there are many people whom you (used generally) may know who would benefit from reading this book. It is about worldliness and superficiality.The problem is that many people delude themselves with respect to sin and also with respect to salvation. John is talking about authenticity here. He is using contrast to make his point. He talks about light vs. darkness and true Christians vs. counterfeits. He writes about being worldly and Antichrists who are in the church now. He talks about sin also.The main points that he wants to make is to shun the world and its ways and to walk always in the light. He says that genuine Christians are obedient to God and show love toward others.What separates authentic Christians from the counterfeits, who call themselves Christian but aren't, is the same for John as for James in James 2. Real Christians live out their faith by putting their actions behind their words. Actions do not save us, but are outward signs of the inward work of the Holy Spirit. Without these outward signs, we have to wonder about the degree of commitment we have. In other words, simple faith is not enough. Saving faith is sincere. It results in action and change.So if you wonder whether you are truly saved, look at your actions. Do they show obedience to God and sacrificial love toward others? If not then you may be fooling yourself.You can fool yourself, but never God. We have to be careful about judging others based on outward signs. John tell us to pray for others who sin. He tell us not to feel guilty about our salvation because God looks past the obvious and knows our heart.Salvation is not a destination, but a process. We are all somewhere along a road that takes a lifetime. What separates us from God, is that he knows the beginning and the end. A person may not be living as they are called now, but may change. That is why we should never lose hope or judge others based on a snapshot of a moment in time of our lives or theirs.Christians are not perfect, just forgiven. It was a bumper sticker I once saw. We would be good to remember it. Perfection comes at the end, not now. This is not to excuse sin, but to place it into perspective. We had best remember this in our dealings with others. Nobody is perfect and if you think that you are without sin then as John says, you are fooling yourself, and on the road to ruin.Jesus said in Matthew 7: 1 "Do not judge, or you too will be judged. 2 For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. 3 "Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? 4 How can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye.This is a warning about self-righteous behavior that can result in people who call themselves Christian. They have a severe problem not only with respect to being judgmental, but also their unloving attitude. This is telling in light of what John says. Later he says, 21 "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?' 23 Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!'Not everyone who calls him "Lord" will be saved. They knew him, but he did not know them. Salvation is founded on a relationship. It goes both ways. James 1: 22 Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. 23Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror 24and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. James says that it has to penetrate your heart and move you to act. Mere listening is not enough.In chapter 2 James writes: 19 You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.Believing in God is not enough. It is knowing God and him knowing you in return. It is based on sincerity, truth and reciprocity. Jesus will take those given into his care and not lose a single one. You job is to receive what he offers and to put it into action in your heart. This will transform you and the world.Jesus said:John 10: 27 "My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. 28I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand. 29My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all[d]; no one can snatch them out of my Father's hand. 30I and the Father are one."Notice all of the action here. Faith is not passive. Christians know Jesus' voice. Earlier he says that he knows them and they know him. We hear. We follow. Actions.John goes through this in greater depth in 1 John. God knows your sins. There is no guilt in bringing them before him. The danger is not in confession, but denial. Sometimes naming the sin helps to give it up. It is something to be given up. Lay your burdens at his feet. It is an act of worship and surrender. If you cannot remember your specific sins, then you need be humble and just allow God to work in you. The Holy Spirit convicts us of wrong doing. More of him in our lives is a good thing. Ask him to help you with this.Blessings,Dunamite
 

Jon-Marc

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Jun 8, 2007
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When we pray to the Lord and ask for forgiveness, must we name every sin we can remember committing, or is just acknowledging the fact that we are sinful and asking for forgiveness sufficient?
I can't possibly remember every sin I've committed. What about when you're first saved? Can anyone who has been in the world for a long time remember every sin they committed. Like the Publican mentioned in the Bible, all that's necessary is to admit to God that one has sinned and ask for forgiveness. All that Publican said was "God, be merciful to me, a sinner." He didn't mention any sins, or at least none are recorded. God knows what they all are, for nothing is hidden from Him..
 

eternalarcadia

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Nov 15, 2007
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Hey JonJT. God is all-knowing and knows what your going to ask for before you even ask it. Therefore, when we come to him, he already knows all of our sins, it's just up to us to acknowledge that we have sinned.
 

Jon-Marc

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Hey JonJT. God is all-knowing and knows what your going to ask for before you even ask it. Therefore, when we come to him, he already knows all of our sins, it's just up to us to acknowledge that we have sinned.
Look at Adam and Eve. God asked "Where art thou?" Not because He didn't know, but to give them the chance to own up to their sin. Unfortunately, Adam blamed Eve (and God); Eve blamed the serpent, and the serpent didn't have a leg to stand on.
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He knows but is waiting for us to say, "Lord, I have sinned."
 

Franklin

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Dec 28, 2007
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Grace! The Lord is not looking for a life of perfection, but a heart of change. Come to Him tell Him "Lord I have sinned, please forgive me, and by Your Spirit change me" Little more is required. This is a matter of the heart, not a checklist. We don't list each sin, and assume a new element of forgiveness is traded for that sin... We accept His forgiveness based on His grace, mercy and cross... This is all done with a heart of faith
 

waynemlj

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Feb 8, 2008
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Hi JonJT,You can ask for general forgiveness of sin because we know that Jesus died for all our sins.Having said that, our aim is to respond to the Holy Spirit whose work it is to convict our hearts about our sins, especially a sin that we might not see. So when you become aware suddenly of a specific sin, that's the time to confess (admit) to God that you have committed that sin and want to be cleansed of it completely.Psalm 32:5, "I acknowledged my sin to you,and did not cover my iniquity;I said. 'I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,'and you forgave my sin."It's too easy for us to just make a sweeping general confession and slide over sin that might be very harmful in our relationship to our Lord.Therefore, I recommend that we confess a specific sin when we see it come up in our relationships with others or just in our secret sinful thoughts.waynemlj
 

zozephin

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Apr 4, 2008
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Dear JonJT,God knows everything we do ,He follow us ,He watch us,He protect us...The point is to put the pray in our life and it is very good to ask forgiveness, cause we must prove to God that our pneumatic education grows up every day we trust Him..He loves us and He wants to love Him...Take care...