Forgiveness is not deliverance! These two are totally separate and distinct experiences when properly understood. It would be best if they are experienced one right after the other but receiving forgiveness from God is not the same thing as experiencing deliverance by God. A believer can be forgiven for an act of sin and yet not find deliverance in regard to an action, attitude, or thought process. To be sure, both forgiveness and deliverance have their foundation in the finished work of Christ. Forgiveness cleanses of sin, but only faith in the Cross brings on the delivering power of the Holy Spirit that frees us from every evil desire. Only this aspect of the grace of God can deliver us from the weight and sins that so easily beset us. Grace is available, not just to bring cleansing, but grace is also available to bring liberty. Like the Psalmist I cry, “Oh Lord, thank you for forgiving me but I still need you to ‘create in me a clean heart!’” Only a creator can create! Only God can transform the heart. This is true deliverance. Deliverance is experienced when God, as a result of properly placed faith, removes the clinging vines of the fall from my inward being. “Lord, work in me today!”
Psalm 51:10 - Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.
Loren Larson
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