If there are key elements in Christianity, they are Christ’s death on the cross, forgiveness of sins, and His resurrection.

Saint Paul says in Colossians 2: 13-14,”You were dead because of your sins and because your sinful nature was not yet cut away. Then God made you alive with Christ, for he forgave ALL our sins.” (Bold type mine.) When Christ died for our sins on the cross, does that mean he gave us a clean slate. Does that mean our sins of the past, present, and future are erased?

Literally speaking, “all” means past, present and future sins. There is a lot disagreement about this. Most scholars agree that past sins are forgiven. That leaves the present and the future. The present is a point in time that will, in a split second become the past, although some people look at the present as meaning an hour, day, week, month, year, you name it. The way to forgiveness is the same. That leaves the question about forgiveness of future sins. Are future sins like speeding or parking tickets that never have to be paid in cash or by incarceration? Does it mean I have unlimited freedom to sin in the future? Of course not!

What this does mean, to me anyway, is that Christ gave us the opportunity to have our sins forgiven if we just come to Him and confess our sins and ask for redemption.

As Christ said to the adulteress, “go and sin no more.” When you go in prayer to the cross, confess your sins and ask forgiveness, you know your sins are forgiven. That does not mean you aren’t a sinner. A sinner, by definition, is one who has sinned. The name sticks, but now you are recovering from your sinful life.

Let’s consider the alcoholic. For any treatment to be effective, the person must admit to being an alcoholic. Then the alcoholic can follow the path to recovery through Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) or another treatment program. The person will still admit to you that he or she is an alcoholic, but now he/she uses the term “recovering alcoholic.”

Those of us who have sought redemption and have been forgiven are still sinners, but now we are “recovering sinners.” Unless we change our life patterns, we recognize we can slip easily into the sinful temptations. A Recovering Sinners’ path to recovery may include prayer, regular attendance and meaningful participation in one’s church, regularly meeting with others struggling with sinful addictions, and keeping the company of supportive associates in our work and social life, to name a few.

Like the alcoholic, we must have a sincere desire, even commitment to change our behavior to lead a Christ-like life.

With God’s help, knowledge of right and wrong can be indelibly etched on our conscience, a small voice that speaks to us when we consider sinful actions or pursue impure thoughts.

Am I wrong to say we have all sinned? I don’t think so! We are all recovering sinners. We try to lead sinless lives, and do you know what happens? The more we try, the more successful we become. Just believe in Christ and go the Him for forgiveness.
He is able to save completely those who come to God through him because he is at the right hand of God and is always interceding for us. (Romans 8:33-34, Hebrews 7:25)