Did Jesus ever say I Forgive you?

I struggle often with the subject of forgiveness. I earnestly desire to forgive, say I forgive, but notice differently when taking notice of feelings. With remembrance, ever being an instigator, my heart races, my face becomes flush, and my temper quickens as these old wounds are brought to my line of vision.

What helps me "let it go" is by asking God, as did Jesus, as did Stephen and others, to forgive them. I explain that as they, like we all shall, give an account of all our deeds, whether by thought, by word, or by action, let nothing of what was done, said, or thought of me be held to their charge. I explain to God, I do want to forgive, and am attempting to do my best, but just in case my efforts are not successful, I need God to be my back-up.

I understand this could be a reliance on the flesh, which I am working on. I just remind myself I have forgiven them even though it does not feel like it, and God knows of my effort.

But then I think of Jesus. Although I am not well versed in Bible matters, I feel my knowledge is at least average, especially for one that has not attended church for decades. My learning is through study and the internet, like now. To my knowledge, and correct me if I am wrong, Jesus never said, "I forgive you."

Please provide references of why I am wrong. Thanks in advance.

I forgot to mention that I study almost daily on the internet and watch a lot of preaching. I still am fed my daily bread even though I do not attend a building down the road or so, and I am on my ninth read-through of the KJV, of course.

Ok. I just learned this, a part that states, "If they repent."
Luk_17:3 Take heed to yourselves: If thy brother trespass against thee, rebuke him; and if he repent, forgive him.

Luk_17:4 And if he trespass against thee seven times in a day, and seven times in a day turn again to thee, saying, I repent; thou shalt forgive him.

You learn something new every day.

Hi Rich, you are correct, ~if~ someone repents and asks us to forgive them, forgive them we must, and that from the heart. The greatest difficulty (for me anyway) lies in the fact that the victims (those who are sinned against) are the ones who God expects/commands to initiate the process of forgiveness by "rebuking" the one(s) who sinned against them.

It's so much easier (and in many ways satisfying) for us to simply bury our heads so that we can continue to stew about/hate the person who hurt us and never have anything to do with them again. But that is clearly NOT what the Lord intends for us. Rather, He calls us to be His "peacemakers" .. Matthew 5:9, those who desire to do what is necessary to forgive and be reconciled with our brothers and sisters who have hurt us (and again, it all starts with us making sure that those who have hurt us know that they have done so).

When we do not follow the model that the Lord Jesus has laid out of us in Luke 17:3-4, then we may end up harboring anger, hatred and/or bitterness against the person(s) who sinned against us, and that in itself is sinful and, therefore, something that we will need to ask God to forgive us for.

At the very least, the ~world's~ version of "forgiveness" may allow US to feel better/feel better about ourselves (at least in the short run), but it does nothing for the one who sinned against us, the one who NEEDS to be forgiven (which, BTW, can oft times be a person who doesn't even realize that they've hurt us/sinned against us, and never will, unless we obey the Lord's command and tell them).

You may want to consider/remember this too, that it's God who wants us to be reconciled with Him and with each other while, on the other hand, it's Satan who causes division and wants to keep us apart.

God bless you!!

~Deut
p.s. - praying for/wanting the best for those who have sinned against us is helpful, and remembering who we truly are now (and in Whom all of our trust and hope rests) is as well, yes .. e.g. Lamentations 3:24.

No. But He did forgive other’s sins. Like Him, we forgive the sin, the debt held, not the one holding the debt. If the debt is forgiven it is no longer held against the debtor.

His death on the cross proclaims it

God made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that
in Him we might become the righteousness of God. 2 Cor 5:21

When you were dead in your trespasses and in the uncircumcision of your
sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our trespasses,
having canceled the debt ascribed to us in the decrees that stood against us.
He took it away, nailing it to the cross!

One last thing @RichGladden, here is one of my very favorite sermons by Dr. John MacArthur (which you can listen to and/or read for free online). It has a lot to say about this topic.

Happy Are the Peacemakers (gty.org)​

~Deut

Colossians 2:13-14

Thank you so much. I will watch it first thing tomorrow.

I would say that forgiveness is more of a state of mind rather than an emotion. You can forgive someone without feeling like they’re forgiven.

Forgiven people don’t have their wrongdoings counted against them. In other words, if you want to forgive someone then don’t factor in that thing they said or did when you interact with them. Treat them like they have no debt to you.

Yes, He did. See Matthew 9:2 and corresponding passages.

People do abuse others in ways that are very sad, sometimes in ways that are obviously wrong and sometimes in subtle wrong ways. But if it makes you angry at least you are angry at the wrong. Nevertheless healing is in overcoming and being made whole. Jesus, cares so much that he can make a wounded person whole.

It is much easier to forgive others when we realize God has forgiven us. "And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses; "

Stephen was an amazing example of forgiveness. They stoned him wrongfully, but he asked God to not lay the sin to their charge. That seems to have been something that Jesus approved of quite a bit because Stephen saw Jesus standing at that time. I think that is pretty special - Jesus standing at that time.

More Jesus saying forgiveness examples:

"And when he saw their faith, he said unto him, Man, thy sins are forgiven thee"

"And he said unto her, Thy sins are forgiven."

IMO sometimes forgiveness is simply not allowing that person to become your enemy.
Praying for that person ....staying humble....wishing no ill will.... keeps a heart from hardening .

Matthew 9:
1Jesus got into a boat, crossed over, and came to His own town. 2Just then some men broughta to Him a paralytic lying on a mat. When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, “Take courage, son; your sins are forgiven.”

3On seeing this, some of the scribes said to themselves, “This man is blaspheming!”

4But Jesus knew what they were thinking and said, “Why do you harbor evil in your hearts? 5Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk?’ 6But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins...” Then He said to the paralytic, “Get up, pick up your mat, and go home.” 7And the man got up and went home.

8When the crowds saw this, they were filled with awe and glorified God, who had given such authority to men.

Luke 7
48Then Jesus said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”

49But those at the table began to say to themselves, “Who is this who even forgives sins?”

Also Mark 2:6

While Jesus did not say the exact words, "I forgive you", that is exactly what He meant and that is how those listening understood it.

For the best advice ever on how to deal with unforgiveness, read this article:

https://www.christianlife.org.au/can-you-forgive-from-your-heart

It's quite long but it can change your life.

Jesus came under the direction of His Father ------He said and did what his Father told Him to do and say -----
-----Jesus did nothing on His own accord -------Sin is the only thing that has to be forgiven -----Jesus had permission from His Father to forgive sins to heal people to Glorify His Father -----and that is scriptural ------Matthew 9:6

Without the forgiveness of sins there could be No Healing done


Maybe understanding what sin encompasses will help you -- ---so by saying your sins are forgiven he is saying ----My Father forgives you -----


https://christiananswers.net/dictionary/sin.html
What is sin?
also known as: disobedience of God’s commands/laws, wickedness, evil, iniquity, perversity, turning away from what is right and good, transgression, wrongdoing, unrighteousness


Source: https://bible.knowing-jesus.com/phrases/Your-Sins-are-Forgiven-You
7 occurrences in 25 translations
'

Your Sins are Forgiven You' in the Bible

Matt 9:2
Tools
Behold, they brought to him a man who was paralyzed, lying on a bed. Jesus, seeing their faith, said to the paralytic, "Son, cheer up! Your sins are forgiven you."

WEB, MKJV, ANDERSON
Verse Concepts
Matt 9:5
Tools
For which is easier? To say, Your sins are forgiven you, or to say, Arise and walk!

MKJV
Verse Concepts
Mrk 2:5
Tools
Jesus, seeing their faith, said to the paralytic, "Son, your sins are forgiven you."

WEB, ANDERSON, NHEB
Verse Concepts
Mrk 2:9
Tools
Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, Your sins are forgiven you; or to say, Arise, and take up your cot and walk?

MKJV, SAWYER
Verse Concepts
Luk 5:20
Tools
When Jesus saw their [active] faith [springing from confidence in Him], He said, “Man, your sins are forgiven.”

AM, LEB, HCSB, WEB, NASB, KJ2000, MKJV, SAWYER, ANDERSON, WORRELL, MOFFATT, COMMON, MNT, MACE, NHEB, more
Verse Concepts
Luk 5:23
Tools
Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’?

AM, LEB, HCSB, WEB, MKJV, SAWYER, ANDERSON, WORRELL, COMMON, MACE, NHEB
Verse Concepts
1 John 2:12
Tools
I write unto you, little children, because your sins are forgiven you for his name's sake.

KJV, ASV, DARBY, WEB, WNT, WBS, KJ2000, MSTC, MKJV, DIAGLOTT, COMMON, MACE, WESLEY, WORSLEY, HAWEIS, more

I understand all of this. My point was saying, "Your sins are forgiven." and "I forgive your sins" is not entirely the same thing. To suggest such, in my opinion, requires inference, and that leads to winds of doctrine. Does it not?

Jesus couldn't say --I forgive your sins because on His own he could not forgive any sins ------He had to have permission from His Father to Forgive Sins ------so He had to say --Your Sins Are Forgiven --

The whole point of the Father allowing Jesus to forgive sins was for healing purposes only which Glorified the Father and made people see and understand that Jesus was the sent Messiah -----this was important for the events that were coming with Jesus shedding His Blood for the remission of all sin and for His death on the Cross to defeat death ---

The New Covenant, Grace is ALL ABOUT forgiveness!

Bible verses related to Forgiveness from the King James Version (KJV) by Relevance

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Mark 11:25 - And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.

Ephesians 4:32 - And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.

Matthew 6:15 - But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

1 John 1:9 - If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Matthew 18:21-22 - Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times? (Read More...)

Matthew 6:14-15 - For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: (Read More...)

James 5:16 - Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

Luke 6:27 - But I say unto you which hear, Love your enemies, do good to them which hate you,

Luke 6:37 - Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven:

Colossians 3:13 - Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.

Psalms 103:10-14 - He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. (Read More...)

1 Corinthians 10:13 - There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.

Proverbs 10:12 - Hatred stirreth up strifes: but love covereth all sins.

It says Jesus had AUTHORITY -----if Jesus was able to forgive sins Himself ----he wouldn't need to have AUTHORITY --

meaning of authority in Greek

Strong's Concordance
exousiazó: to exercise authority over
I am ruled, am held under authority.
having authority to act; "empowered

And

You are taking this scripture you quote out of context ------as in Matthew Chapter 27 ---Jesus is crucified --and that carries on in Chapter 28 -----so Jesus has been resurrected -------

Matthew 27
The Burial of Jesus
57 As evening approached, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who had himself become a disciple of Jesus. 58 Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus’ body, and Pilate ordered that it be given to him. 59 Joseph took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, 60 and placed it in his own new tomb that he had cut out of the rock. He rolled a big stone in front of the entrance to the tomb and went away. 61 Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting there opposite the tomb.

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So in Chapter 28 ---he is appearing to the disciples in His new Body ------- and now has the authority to send them out to make more Disciples -----

your Verse here Verse 18 ------
18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.

Matthew 28
The Great Commission
16 Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. 17 When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted.

18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.

19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

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Jesus was sent to earth by his Father ---and did what His Father told Him to do and say what His Father told Him to say --He did His Fathers Will not His will ----

John 5:19 ESV
So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise.

This is the scripture in Context --John 5

19 Jesus gave them this answer: “Very truly I tell you, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does. 20 For the Father loves the Son and shows him all he does. Yes, and he will show him even greater works than these, so that you will be amazed. 21 For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Son gives life to whom he is pleased to give it. 22 Moreover, the Father judges no one, but has entrusted all judgment to the Son, 23 that all may honor the Son just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father, who sent him.

John 14:10
Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works.

This is this Scripture in Context--John 14

9 Jesus answered: “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?

10 Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work.

11 Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the works themselves.

12 Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.

13 And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it