Question: How do I know that God has really forgiven me of the wrong things I’ve done? I ask Him for forgiveness every time I pray. I want to make sure that I’m forgiven so I can enter heaven when I die.
Answer: The Bible, God’s words to us, proves that when you ask Him for forgiveness the first time, you are forgiven! You don’t have to keep asking in order to stay forgiven.
You were dead because of your sins and because your sinful nature was not yet cut away. Then God made you alive with Christ, for He forgave all our sins, having cleared the record of the charges against us and took it away by mailing it to the cross.
Colossians 2:14-15
The scriptures explain that all people have a conscience that tells them when they have done wrong. (Romans 2:12-16) Many times, even though we have asked God to forgive us, our human insecurity still causes us to fear. When you believe God’s biblical message concerning forgiveness, then you can truly believe, from that point on, that He has wiped your record clean. Jesus paid the penalty for your sins by shedding His blood on the cross. Remember that Jesus died once, and He needs to take no other action. Jesus said, “It is finished!” (John 19:30) You ask once and are forgiven!
For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is His love toward those who fear Him; as far as the east is from the west, this far has He removed our sins from us.
Psalm 103:11-12
In our world today, some who profess to be followers of Jesus Christ ignore their sin and justify it by claiming that the Bible contains sections that are not true, for some reason, or need to be updated for modern times. However, God warns that He does not change in His standards for men and women. To ignore those standards AND lead others to sin can result in eternal disaster.
If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar, and His word is not really in us.
I John 1:8-10
Do you want to make sure you are right with God so that you will be promoted to heaven the moment you pass from this life? Pray:
Dear God, thank you for accepting me into your family. I ask you to forgive my sins because I trust that Jesus paid off my sin debt with His death. Please come into my life to lead me. I believe the inerrancy of your Word, the Bible – your Truth! I believe that you died on the cross to save me and were resurrected from the dead. Thank you for all that you have done and are doing for me! Amen.
