All people are sinners who are lost and need to be found and find forgiveness. We see Jesus seeking and saving all kind of sinners.

There is the respectable sinner, Nicodemus, and showing him his need of a radical rebirth of the Spirit (John 3:3-5).

There is the brazen sinner, a Samaritan woman of multiple marriages and affairs, and offering her the lasting satisfaction she had sought so long but in vain (John 4).

There is the financial crook, Zacchaeus, and offering what such a social outcast would never have dared to hope, that the great teacher would come to his house (Luke 19:7). There is the sexual sinner, who first quietly but forcefully indicated to her Pharisaical accusers their own sinfulness to such effect that they shrank away ashamed, and then told that woman that she was not to think of herself as condemned but to go and sin no more (John 8:1-11).

There is the sick sinner, who when presented to him, he went straight to the man's deepest needs, and said, 'Your sins are forgiven' (Mark 2:5) He incurred the charge of blasphemy from the Pharisees, for only God and not man had authority to forgive sins.

How was he able to forgive sins? He could only seek and save the lost through forgiveness of their sins by what he would do in bearing the sin of the world by his atoning sacrifice on the Cross. Only by doing so could he remit sins with such confidence and authority. That is why the 'sinners' thronged to hear him. It is why the harlots and the tax-collectors responded. They had no hope of forgiveness in Judaism. They were the unwashed, the unclean, like all the poor, the lame, the blind and the needy. They could never be righteous on their own merits.

Jesus told the parable of the Pharisee and the tax-collector (Luke 18:10-14). The man who acknowledged that he was a sinner in need of God's mercy went down to his house justified, forgiven, saved, rather than the man who boasted of his good works. The problem of the Pharisee was his sense of self-sufficiency, who clearly thinks there is nothing God needs to do for him - he is righteous, not a sinner. He is not lost, so does not need to be saved. Jesus said, "I have come not to call the righteous, but sinners." (Mark 2:17) Salvation is the gift of God, not the accomplishment of man.

How does forgiveness save us? Forgiveness implies the conviction of our need for forgiveness. The prerequisite to our acceptance of forgiveness is confession of sin, and desire to amend our ways. We are painfully aware of our failings, and our need to be saved from our sins and their consequences. We are also aware of the cost of our forgiveness. We see the suffering of Christ on the Cross, where he suffered and died for our sins. That suffering is indicative of the suffering of God - the pain that our sins inflicted upon God. We can never be self-righteous again. We can never give excuses for our failings. We can never lord it over others, judge them, and be condescending to them or think of ourselves more highly than we ought. There can be nothing but humility in our attitude to others. We can never be proud or arrogant or think that we are better than others. We can only be saved if we accept that we are lost without Jesus coming to seek and to save us. As we receive his forgiveness, we embody that forgiveness in our self-discernment.

The story of the anointing of Jesus (Luke 7:36-50) and the parable of the Unforgiving Servant (Matthew 18:23-35) teaches us that those who are forgiven by God must be transformed by that forgiveness into people who embody forgiveness and repentance throughout their lives. In the one story the sign of forgiven-ness is the ability to show great love; in the other the failure to forgive others heightens the judgment to which the person is subject. In both cases, it is assumed that God's forgiveness should occasion a repentance, a turning, that marks people's new life with and in Christ and results in their showing love to others. (Greg Jones, Embodying Forgiveness, p.162)

You cannot say that you are saved from judgment by being forgiven by God and refuse forgiveness to others. You cannot say that you are saved and forgiven and hate others for what they have done to you or your loved ones. You cannot believe that you are saved and forgiven and not love others. Jesus said, "He who has been forgiven little loves little." (Luke 7:47) When you realize how much you have been forgiven, you will love much. Salvation results in generosity to others. When Jesus comes to your house and dwells in and with you, you will want to respond as did Zacchaeus: "Look, Lord. Here and now I give half my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount." (Luke 19:8)

The Christian who professes to be saved, and is forgiven by inviting Jesus into his heart, and yet lives a mean, selfish, judgmental life has obviously not understood his need to embody forgiveness in his life. Salvation changes you. Nicodemus accompanied Joseph of Arimathea in taking down the body of Jesus from the Cross and wrapping it with spices in strips of linen (John 19:39, 40). The Samaritan woman told her neighbors, "Come, see a man who told me everything I ever, did." (John 4:29) The woman taken in adultery went away to sin no more. The paralytic got up, took his mat, and walked out in full view of everyone. (Mark 2:12) How could he not be grateful and generous?

Do you see yourself as a sinner in need of forgiveness, lost in need of being found? Or do you think of yourself as not needing forgiveness, that you are self-sufficient and that there is nothing God needs to do for you, that you are righteous and not a sinner? Do you think of yourself as saved and forgiven by Jesus? Do you realize the cost of your forgiveness? How do you embody forgiveness in your relationship with others? How much do you love others? How has being forgiven changed you? Are you grateful and generous?

Salvation occurs when Jesus comes to our house. We can never be the same again. A pardoned man or woman is saved from divine judgment. He is restored to the presence of God. Should we not fall on our knees and be thankful, and live out the rest of our lives in humble gratitude and loyal service?

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