Forgiveness=GONE!

About a million years ago (in exaggerated time), C.I. Scofield wrote that the Bible concept of forgiveness was that "the sinner was separated from his sin."
I was reminded of how that actually works today when I was reading Matthew in Greek (yes, I still do that), and I came to the passage that says that Jesus entered Peter's house (Matthew 8), and Peter's mother-in-law was lying in bed with a fever...

14 And when Jesus had come into Peter's house, he saw his wife's mother lying [down], and sick with a fever.
15 And he touched her hand, and the fever left her: and she got up, and ministered to them.

That little expression, "The fever left her," uses very similar words as Jesus' words to the paralytic in Mark 2:5: "Son, your sins have been forgiven you..."

The Greek word is "aphiemi," and the essence of its meaning is to "send away, or leave." This is a concept that sometimes is completely forgotten when we think of God forgiving us.  It doesn't just mean, "God grudgingly lets us out of punishment, but He never forgets what we did," it means,
"God sends our evil deeds to another place, and disconnects us from them." They are no longer ours. They have left us, just as the fever left Peter's mother-in-law.
The price for this marvellous gift?
Believe. Believe in Jesus Christ and His Father.  That's it. Nothing more, nothing less.
"Forgiven" means YOUR sins are past history, disconnected from you.

Funny what happens when...

I ask. Seek. Knock.
Jesus said, "Ask and you shall receive; seek and you shall find; knock and it shall be opened to you." I read this today for the manyth time (I don't know how many--thousands?), and it struck me all over again what a cool invitation this is. It's an invitation to believe Him, to believe IN Him, and to believe in the good things He desires for us.
Ask. But don't stop; seek; but don't stop; knock; but don't stop;
Then He says,
"For the Asker receives, the Seeker finds, and the Knocker finds open doors."
If there is any greater invitation to view our relationship with God as full of opportunity, and react in faith, I don't know what it is.
I was particularly struck by this passage because I need it right now.  I NEED to know that my prayers are heard, and that persistence is the best evidence I can give that I believe Him; I NEED to know that I'll find if I just keep on seeking, and the open door will appear as I knock.
Why do I need to know this? Because I'm like everyone else.  Things don't always go as planned. Surprises happen, and they are not always good ones.  I need to know that during times of stress and strain, He actually responds.
What's most instructive is the emphasis Jesus gives on "keeping on..." He doesn't really just say, "Ask;" He says, "Keep asking." And then He says, "The person who keeps asking receives," and so on.
So go ahead. Ask. Seek. Knock. Believe Him.  He means to do good things for you.
He loves you.