We can know we struggle with keeping a record of wrongs, as Paul prohibits in 1 Cor. 13:5, when we can recall the long list of offenses pretty quickly when the opportunity for bringing it to light presents itself—“I can’t believe you did this again. You always do this and I can prove it—See page 432, section D, paragraph 17, for a list of all the times you have miserably failed in this identical area! You are a pathetic sinner and if you’re not there already, you’re quickly approaching a spot where there will be no hope for you!”
The question is: Has God ever dealt with us like that? The Omniscient one could present the most accurate and devastating list of our sins whenever he felt like it. Do we want God to open the record books that entail precise specificity in the quality AND quantity of our sin? We read from 2 Cor. 5 that God doesn’t count trespasses against those in Christ. Listen also to a couple of well-known passages from the Psalms—Ps. 103:11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; 12 as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us…Ps. 130:3 If you, O Lord, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand? 4 But with you there is forgiveness, that you may be feared.
So, God chooses to let sinners stand before him, covered by the righteousness of his Son, but we can’t stomach sinners standing in our presence! We know how those thoughts sound: “I went out of my way to serve you and maybe open the door of our home and our life and I thought we were friends and then you did this or said this. So, it just wouldn’t be right; it wouldn’t be fair to just let it go and NOT make a mental record of the offense that I can review whenever I need to feel justified in my bitter thoughts.” So you’re going to use this record book to prove that a sinner sins?? And furthermore, your record book is going to be the source of bringing forth perfect justice and your bitter unbelief is the means of carrying out this perfect justice?? This is the irrationality of keeping a record of wrongs.