I am confused. Why does Forgiveness goes with repentance?

Question

I am reading this book by sam keen and he has a chapter and basically it is saying "Forgiveness goes with repentance" and vice versa. It says that repenting is the greates achievement. I've read this section a billion times and I still don;t understand.
why does Forgiveness goes with repentance.?

Answer 1

you see, if you forgive other people, then in a way you are also forgiven for your faults. because you accept the faults of others and forgive them of it, it is like someone else could forgive you of your own offenses against them.

repentance is the greatest achievement, as it takes a lot of humility and self-reflection to understand the word's true meaning and live it out. in order to repent, one must be sincerely sorry for their faults and their wrong actions. there is a saying "it is better to find at least one fault in ourselves than to find a thousand in others". this proves the point of repentance. when we repent, we acknowledge we did something wrong and that we should be sorry for it.

both repentance and forgiveness go hand in hand. when one forgives, one is also repenting as it shows the mercy of the person and therefore, shows that they are, in essence, good. though it may not necessarily point to a "clean slate", one can say that if you forgive, you are working towards that goal of becoming clean again by doing good. at the same time, you free others of their "evil" or wrongdoing. when one forgives, one also learns the true nature of repentance, because it teaches us what it takes to be truly deserving of forgiveness (in other words, being repentant). repentance is also needed in order to be forgiven.

basically, you just have to relate the two rules of:
1. "do unto others what you want others to do unto you" and
2. "forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us"

these truths can be reworded in whichever way you want, and i think these are truths that can be found in almost any theistic religion.

both repentance and forgiveness are part of the cycle of sin and forgiveness. :D

Answer 2

To repent is to turn away from a sin. So for you to forgive yourself for doing wrong, you must repent of it to be true to yourself. As for forgiving others, repentance could be turning away from holding on to anger, resentment, and hurt. Forgiveness that you receive - I don't know how repentance would work into that situation. But I hope I helped a bit; here's some biblical references that may help. The bible says you can't be forgiven unless you forgive. Repentance is like acknowledging you have sinned and are a sinner, confessing your sins. For if you say you have not sinned, you make Jesus a liar and you are not a believer.

Answer 3

Repentance is not just saying we're sorry. Repentance is "returning", which means turning around and going the right direction.

Forgiveness is the restoration of a relationship that occurs when the beloved come together.

So your question is sort of like asking how getting to your destination goes with following the directions.

Answer 4

Is it not simply this... that unless one repents, he/she does not deserve to be forgiven? Forgiveness or Mercy is earned through repentance. Forgiving someone who is not repentant would almost be an act of sin in itself, as it amounts to encouraging a sinner who has no intention of turning away from the sinful ways.

Answer 5

Some of the answers already have stated correctly what the point is.

However, here you can read the reason behind it from the Bible:
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Isaiah 55:7, Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; and let him return unto Jehovah, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. (ASV)

Ezekiel 33:14-16 14Again, when I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; if he turn from his sin, and do that which is lawful and right; 15if the wicked restore the pledge, give again that which he had taken by robbery, walk in the statutes of life, committing no iniquity; he shall surely live, he shall not die. 16None of his sins that he hath committed shall be remembered against him: he hath done that which is lawful and right; he shall surely live.
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As you can see forgiveness can only be accorded after God sees that the person is truly repentant and produces works of repentance as Ezekiel stated.

These portions in Isaiah and Ezekiel are very good reading enlightening us about this subject.

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It is important to state that forgiveness does not exclude punishment from the sin if it is serious enough as David's sin and subsequent punishment adequately demonstrates.

Answer 6

To repent is to promise that a thing will never happen again and to keep that promise
in knowing that you are sincere about your repentance than forgiveness is possible.

Answer 7

In my opinion if you do not repent your own transgressions how can you forgive or for that matter expect forgiveness if you do not repent what you have done.