Many times during my Christian life I have heard believers talk about forgiveness. One sentiment I have heard is that we need to forgive and forget. People sometimes say that we just need to forgive the sinning brother, even if he does not ask for forgiveness. Other times, people point out that if someone has wronged us, we need to act as if it never happened. If, for example, the other person stole from you, you should not demand restitution. If you forgive someone, you cannot ask them to make things right. You cannot hold them accountable, or you are not really forgiving them. Lately, I have very much appreciated how Free Grace folks are challenging some of these views.
Conversations on the topic in recent years have reminded me that forgiveness does not mean there are no consequences for the sin that was committed. While this concept is taught in the NT, it is also demonstrated in the OT. It is how God has always dealt with His people.
We see this in Leviticus 6:1-7. The Lord tells Moses what a Jew should do if he steals something from a neighbor, or if, through negligence, he loses something that belongs to another. He is to admit—confess—the sin and make a sin offering at the tabernacle. No doubt, many would say that such a confession of sin is sufficient. Nothing more should be required of the man who sinned. Let’s forgive and forget. But the Lord does not have that attitude. The man was also to pay back the amount stolen from his neighbor, plus 20%.In other words, according to Leviticus, if a Jew had sinned against someone when it came to issues of property, it was not enough to simply confess that sin if he wanted to restore his fellowship with God and his neighbor. He had to make restitution. He even needed to add a 20% tip to the amount he had stolen.
From what I understand, Zacchaeus had these verses in mind when he encountered the Lord in Luke 19:1-10. As a tax collector, Zacchaeus had stolen from many people. After he became a believer, he wanted to confess his sins. He wanted to obey the Lord and have fellowship with Him. It was not enough to confess all the wrong he had done.
He knew he needed to make restitution. But he goes above and beyond the call of duty. He did not simply return what he had stolen. He did not add only 20%. He would return what he had taken, plus 400%. The Lord does not tell him to “forget it.” He praises Zacchaeus for his desire to make things right.
What I like about Zacchaeus is that he didn’t tell the people he had defrauded that he had stolen from them, and that they just needed to forgive and forget. That would have been a good deal for Zacchaeus! How convenient. He didn’t say, “The Lord has forgiven me, and you just need to get over it!”
Whether we are talking about Leviticus 6 in the OT or Luke 19 in the NT, a principle is in play. Forgiveness of sins does not mean there are no consequences for those sins. I have always felt that when a person has sinned and does not want to make things right when he can, he is not really interested in forgiveness. He wants to have his cake and eat it, too.
There is a lot of unbiblical teaching about forgiveness. Moses’ instruction in Leviticus 6 and Zacchaeus’ example in Luke 19 should remind us to follow the teachings of the Scriptures rather than tradition.
