The Package of Forgiveness

Matthew 1:21 (AMP) - She will give birth to a Son, and you shall name Him Jesus (The LORD is salvation), for He will save His people from their sins.

John 1:29 (AMP) - The next day he saw Jesus coming to him and said, "Look! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!"

Luke 2:11 (AMP) - For this day in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord (the Messiah).

Introduction

Every gift has a purpose, and no gift Jesus brought was accidental. His birth wasn't just the beginning of His story, it was the beginning of your freedom.

The angels didn't say, "Unto you is born a coach." "Unto you is born an advisor." "Unto you is born a therapist."

They said, "Unto you is born a SAVIOR."

A Savior presupposes sin. A Savior presupposes bondage. A Savior presupposes guilt.

So from the moment Jesus arrived in the manger, His mission was clear: He came to take away what you could never get rid of on your own.

Forgiveness Was in the Package From Day One

The cross didn't create forgiveness, the manger introduced it.

The baby born in Bethlehem was already carrying:

• Your shame
• Your guilt
• Your failures
• Your past
• Your secret sins
• Your repeated struggles

The Lamb wasn't chosen at Calvary, the Lamb was chosen before Mary ever conceived. The manger was the starting point of the mission, not the plan B of heaven.

When Jesus was born, forgiveness was born. When Jesus entered the world, mercy entered with Him. When Jesus showed up, guilt started losing its hold.

Forgiveness Is Complete, Not Partial

Some people forgive like receipts, they keep a copy for themselves.

But when God forgives you, He doesn't store it, study it, or save it.

Psalm 103:12 - As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us.

East and west never meet. That means:

• Your forgiven sin will never find you
• Your forgiven failure will never return
• Your forgiven mistake will never be held against you

Jesus doesn't do partial forgiveness. There's no "mostly clean" in heaven. There's no "90% forgiven." When God says forgiven, He means forgiven.

You are not on spiritual probation, you are declared righteous.

Forgiveness Restores What Shame Destroyed

Sin doesn't just break rules, it breaks people.

Shame:

• Silences confidence
• Distorts identity
• Suffocates purpose
• Freezes spiritual growth
• Convinces you God is angry
• Tells you you've gone too far

But Jesus didn't come to patch up your shame, He came to remove it.

The Package of Forgiveness Restores:

Your Relationship with God

You don't have to hide like Adam. You don't have to run like Jonah. You don't have to pretend like Saul. Jesus restores access.

Your Identity

You are not what you did. You are who He calls you. Forgiveness gives you a new name: Redeemed.

Your Future

Forgiveness doesn't rewrite the past, it rewrites the impact of the past. Your future is no longer chained to what happened behind you.

What Began in a Manger Was Finished at a Cross

The manger was the introduction. The cross was the conclusion. The empty tomb was the confirmation.

Jesus did not die to make you forgivable, He died because you were already loved.

Calvary was the completion of what Bethlehem began. The package was delivered in the manger but opened fully at the cross.

The gift was wrapped in swaddling clothes, but finished wrapped in grave clothes.

And when He left the grave clothes behind, He left your guilt behind too.

He traded your stains for His righteousness.

How to Live in the Package of Forgiveness

1. Stop Rehearsing What God Has Already Released

Don't resurrect what God buried.

Isaiah 43:18-19 (AMP) - Do not remember the former things or ponder the things of the past. Listen carefully, I am about to do a new thing, now it will spring forth; will you not be aware of it? I will even put a road in the wilderness, rivers in the desert.

Forget about what's happened, don't keep going over old history.

Micah 7:19 (AMP) - He shall again have compassion on us; He will subdue and tread underfoot our wickedness, destroying sin's power. Yes, You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea.

2 Corinthians 5:17 (AMP) - Therefore if anyone is in Christ, grafted in, joined to Him by faith in Him as Savior, he is a new creature, reborn and renewed by the Holy Spirit; the old things, the previous moral and spiritual condition, have passed away. Behold, new things have come because spiritual awakening brings a new life.

Anyone united with the Messiah gets a fresh start, is created new. The old life is gone; a new life emerges! All this comes from the God who settled the relationship between us and Him and then called us to settle our relationships with each other. God put the world square with Himself through the Messiah, giving the world a fresh start by offering forgiveness of sins.

2. Forgive Yourself

You can't walk in freedom if you keep chaining yourself.

Romans 8:1 (AMP) - Therefore there is now no condemnation, no guilty verdict, no punishment, for those who are in Christ Jesus who believe in Him as personal Lord and Savior.

3. Trust God's Faithfulness to Forgive

1 John 1:9 (AMP) - If we freely admit that we have sinned and confess our sins, He is faithful and just, true to His own nature and promises, and will forgive our sins and cleanse us continually from all unrighteousness, our wrongdoing, everything not in conformity with His will and purpose.

4. Forgive Others

Forgiven people become forgiving people.

Ephesians 4:32 (AMP) - Be kind and helpful to one another, tender-hearted, compassionate, understanding, forgiving one another readily and freely, just as God in Christ also forgave you.

5. Walk Boldly

Guilt makes you timid; grace makes you confident.

Hebrews 4:16 (AMP) - Therefore let us with privilege approach the throne of grace, that is, the throne of God's gracious favor, with confidence and without fear, so that we may receive mercy for our failures and find His amazing grace to help in time of need, an appropriate blessing, coming just at the right moment.

6. Start Fresh

Every day is a new mercy, not an old reminder.

Lamentations 3:22-23 (AMP) - It is because of the Lord's lovingkindnesses that we are not consumed, because His tender compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great and beyond measure is Your faithfulness.

7. Press Forward

Philippians 3:13-14 (AMP) - Brothers and sisters, I do not consider that I have made it my own yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the heavenly prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

The Package Is for You

Forgiveness is not a reward for good behavior, it's a gift for broken people.

Jesus didn't come for perfect people, He came for the guilty, the bound, the ashamed, the lost, the struggling.

He came for you.

You didn't earn this gift. You simply receive it.

Discussion Questions

1. Understanding the Savior's Mission: The sermon emphasizes that Jesus came as a Savior, which "presupposes sin, bondage, and guilt." How does recognizing Jesus primarily as Savior (rather than teacher, advisor, or example) change the way you approach Him with your struggles and failures?
2. Complete vs. Partial Forgiveness: The message declares that God's forgiveness is complete, "as far as the east is from the west", with no "90% forgiven" or spiritual probation. What past mistake or sin do you find yourself still holding onto, even though God has already released it? What would it look like for you to truly believe you're "declared righteous" rather than "mostly clean"?
3. What Shame Has Destroyed: The sermon lists several things shame does, it silences confidence, distorts identity, suffocates purpose, and freezes spiritual growth. Which of these effects of shame do you most recognize in your own life? How might accepting God's complete forgiveness begin to restore what shame has destroyed?
4. From Forgiven to Forgiving: One of the seven applications is "Forgive others. Forgiven people become forgiving people." Who in your life do you need to extend forgiveness to, and what's been holding you back? How does understanding the completeness of God's forgiveness toward you motivate you to forgive others?
5. Living in Freedom: The sermon gives seven practical ways to live in the package of forgiveness, from stopping the rehearsal of released sins to pressing forward. Which of these seven steps is most challenging for you right now, and what's one concrete action you can take this week to begin walking in that freedom? How would your daily life look different if you truly lived as someone who is fully forgiven?