Forgiving and Forgetting...

What about this matter of forgiving and forgetting? Are we required to forget the wrong things others have done to us? That’s not what the Bible teaches. I suggested earlier that not even God does that. You may have raised your eyebrow in doubt about that statement, but it’s true.

The Bible doesn’t say that He forgets our sins. It says that He chooses not to remember them.

Although many may think the two are the same thing, they aren’t. To forget means just that. It means we have no ability to recall the forgotten thing.

How could we possibly do that with some of the terrible hurts we’ve suffered in life? It’s not possible. What we can do though, is not to remember (a choice). There’s a big difference.

What does it mean to remember? Look at the word itself. It is comprised of two parts: re- and member. Re- is a prefix that means “to return to a previous condition” or “the repetition of a previous action.” The word member means “one of a group; one that belongs, a part of the body.”

So, the accurate and literal meaning of the word "remember" is to return something to a previous condition by making it belong to or join again with something. If I cut off my finger, the doctor may be able to re-member it if I get it to him in time. The Bible doesn’t say God forgets our sins. It says He no longer remembers them. He does not re-attach (re-member) us to the previous sins we have been forgiven of. People sometimes talk about the Sea of Forgetfulness, but that phrase is not in the Bible.

The idea was taken from Scripture, and it is found in Micah 7:19, where it says, “He will again have compassion on us; He will tread our iniquities under foot. Yes, you will cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.” That’s probably where the idea of a Sea of Forgetfulness comes from, but note that’s not what the Bible says. It says He will separate our sins from us forever. He doesn’t forget, but he doesn’t remember (reattach) them to us either.

In other words, He will forever refuse to join us in our past sins that have been forgiven. So God doesn’t forget, He just chooses not to re-member and remind us of our past that has been dealt with and forgiven.