John 20:21-23 “Again Jesus said, ‘Peace be with you!’ As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.’ And with that he breathed on them and said, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.’”

Delivering this message is a sobering responsibility. This is not something we get to apply any way we want. These words are the difference between life and death, heaven and hell.

That is why Jesus said, “As the Father has sent me, so I am sending you.” All through his earthly ministry, Jesus did not make his choices or live his life any way he wanted. Everything he did was in line with the heavenly Father who sent him. Even when it meant suffering, pain, and death, Jesus bowed to his Father’s will.

That is just how he sends us out with the power to promise forgiveness. We are to be careful not to announce forgiveness unless he would be announcing forgiveness, too. We are to be careful not to withhold forgiveness, unless clear unrepentance shows us that he would warn the person that they were rejecting God’s grace.

Jesus himself made these bold statements. We thrill to hear him say to the paralytic, the sinful woman who anointed his feet, and others, “Your sins are forgiven.” But we tremble and take warning when we hear him say to his enemies after he healed the man born blind, “Your guilt remains.”

This is a hard assignment. After all, Jesus could see through human hearts. All we can see is what people say or do. But as an added assurance, he also “breathed on them and said, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit.’” Our Savior hasn’t left this vital work to good luck. He doesn’t cross his fingers and hope we get it right. Through faith he has given us the gift of the Holy Spirit. In his word we have the Holy Spirit to guide us as we apply forgiveness or warn people that they have rejected and lost it. The Spirit’s guiding role is another indication of the importance our Lord assigns to this task. 

When we see how important he considers forgiveness, doesn’t that give us peace? Like the disciples, in our own way we have denied him, deserted him, or disbelieved his words. But when he brings us back, what peace in knowing that forgiveness is what his life and work were all about. We still hear him say “I forgive you” through the lips of his disciples today.