Sermon on the Mount #28 Our Father Delights in Mercy

God's forgiveness is His promise to immediately remove and bury the guilt and punishment of sin that separates you as a sinner from Himself when you trust in Christ alone (Hebrews 8:12; Acts 13:38-39). God's forgiveness is not a feeling; it is a promise that is realized in the court of heaven. Thus, your assurance of God's forgiveness must be anchored in God's promise, not on how you feel from day to day.
God's forgiveness is not a partial forgiveness, but a complete and total forgiveness of all sins—past, present, and future ("having forgiven you all trespasses" Colossians 2:13).
This amazing forgiveness is full and free—free to you who trust Him, and yet so costly to the sinless Son of God who suffered the just punishment of His Father for all His beloved elect. God's forgiveness is not your ticket to live in sin. It is rather your ticket to live in loving obedience to the One who set you free.
We considered God's judicial forgiveness (His justifying forgiveness) last Lord's Day, but today we return to our text in Matthew 6:12 to consider God's fatherly forgiveness (His sanctifying forgiveness). This is the second main point from last week's sermon.