Shayla: Will God only forgive so many times then say no more?

 

Meforshim:

I know I’m running contrary to the common concept of grace as it is taught in the average culturally Christian church. However, I do not see any support in the Scriptures for the idea that God will forgive us ad infinitum ad nauseam regardless of what we do.

The primary passage quoted to support this bizarre belief is:

  • Luke 23:34 HCSB  [Then Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, because they do not know what they are doing."] And they divided His clothes and cast lots.

Let’s not even deal with the fact that many important manuscripts (Ě75 א1 B D* W Θ 070 579 1241 pc sys sa) lack verse 34. It is included in א*,2 (A) C D2 L Ψ 0250 Ë1,(13) 33 Ď lat syc,p,h, so let’s accept this as an authentic quote by the Messiah.

This was the occasion when the Perfect Lamb was dying to atone for the sins of all mankind! Of course, He had to forgive the act. He agreed to the Crucifixion voluntarily, knowing beforehand what was going to happen and did not seek to avoid it.

However, that forgiveness is not universally imputed. It is only when we repent of our sins, believe that the Messiah’s death was sufficient for our needs and take that free gift that it becomes useful to us (Mark 1:15; Acts 2:38; 3:19; 26:20).

Otherwise, we would have to go to the logical conclusion (which many do) that all humans will be universally saved. We know THAT’s not true because the same Master who said “forgive them, because they do not know what they are doing…” said,

  • Matthew 7:14 HCSB  How narrow is the gate and difficult the road that leads to life, and few find it.

Then we have Paul’s many admonitions to verify that we have not “fallen short” of the full knowledge of God; that we have not presumed upon His grace erroneously and to our own detriment. (Romans 11:21-22; 2 Corinthians 13:5)

And we have Paul’s clear teaching that those who are God’s children, if they persist in their sin, may get sick and even die (1 Corinthians 11:30)!

I teach and believe that the Scriptures are a unified whole; I believe that God’s immutability precludes Him from behaving one way in the Old Covenant and another in the New. The differences we see are not derived from a change of mind, but from a progressive revelation or from a change of behavior from humans.

Consider for instance the Ninevites. As a result of their sin, Yahweh Shaphat was going to destroy them and sent Jonah to warn them of their impending doom. When they repented of their sins, God relented from destroying them. Did God fundamentally change? No, His desire for justice and righteousness remained the same. When the Ninevites were in alignment with God’s desires, they were safe. When they ran against God’s holiness, they brought their destruction. They changed; God did not.

Because of God’s immutability, I believe (contrary to many “cultural Christians”) that the Old Covenant has many lessons for us. Let’s take your question and apply it to the case of Pharaoh. It says in Exodus 4:21 that God hardened Pharaoh’s heart. Scripturally speaking, “heart” is a broad term in Hebrew that generally indicates the inner person and his or her innate capabilities.

In this case, the will is clearly involved. It was Pharaoh’s intent to reject God’s command. This intent is mentioned often in Exodus 4:1-14, and the seventeen different references to it alternate between statements that God hardened Pharaoh’s heart (as here and in 7:3), descriptions that simply affirm that “Pharaoh’s heart became hard” (7:13; 8:19), and statements that “Pharaoh…hardened his [own] heart” (8:15, 32).

The critical issues are:

(1) whether or not Pharaoh operated as a free and responsible person in refusing Moses’ requests, or  

(2) whether or not he was caused to act against his own will by the action of God.

It is clear from the text and from the troubling phrase itself that Pharaoh was acting as a free and responsible person. When God said in v. 21 “I will harden his heart”, He was predicting the ultimate outcome.

Pharaoh began hardening his own heart (7:13, 22; 8:15, 19, 32; 9:7). He persisted in His ways despite clear warning from God through Moses. Finally he crossed the line and God’s patience ran out.

From that point, God began hardening Pharaoh’s heart (9:12; 10:1, 20:27). To say that God hardened Pharaoh’s heart (intent, will) indicates that God simply strengthened the intent to refuse Moses’ request which Pharaoh already had. Clearly, God did not cause Pharaoh to act against his own will. Thus, Pharaoh was responsible for his intent, even though God hardened him in it.

Because of these and many other biblical examples, I believe that though Hashem is a patient and merciful God, it would be unwise for us to PRESUME upon that grace. Upon examining numerous biblical instances, I must conclude that it is possible to cross the line while still in this life and no longer hear the prompting voice of the Holy Spirit.

  • Psalms 81:11-12 HCSB  "But My people did not listen to Me; Israel did not obey Me.  (12)  So I gave them over to their stubborn hearts to follow their own plans.
  • Romans 1:28 HCSB  And because they did not think it worthwhile to have God in their knowledge, God delivered them over to a worthless mind to do what is morally wrong.

I must leave you then with the conclusion drawn by the author of the book of Hebrews. Don’t wait and see how close to that line you can come. Repent today while you still can.

  • Hebrews 3:12-13 HCSB  Watch out, brothers, so that there won't be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart that departs from the living God.  (13)  But encourage each other daily, while it is still called today, so that none of you is hardened by sin's deception.