“. . . as far as sunrise is from sunset, he has separated us from our sins.”
Psalm 103:12 {MSG}

In working on this series, I put out a couple of requests asking people for their questions and concerns relating to forgiveness. Here’s one comment I received and I feel it’s in the heart of many others:

I struggle with wondering if *I* am really forgiven (by God) or is He going to punish me for something I’ve asked for forgiveness for?

Does anyone else struggle with these thoughts?

The first thing we need to realize is God knows all. Whether you ask Him for forgiveness or not . . . whether you admit it to Him or not . . . He already knows what you need to confess.

In 1 Chronicles 28:9, the Bible tells us He knows not only our actions, He knows our thoughts, and He even knows our hearts. Meaning, even if something doesn’t make it into our thoughts and played out in our actions, He already knows our heart-motives . . . that which is hidden deep down in there.

Nothing in all the world can be hidden from God.
Everything is clear and lies open before him,
and to him we must explain the way we have lived.
Hebrews 4:13 {NCV}

Which is why a frequent prayer has me asking God to purify my heart and bring to mind any ugly that might be hiding in there.

Search me, O God, and know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.
Point out anything in me that offends you,
and lead me along the path of everlasting life.
Psalm 139:23-24 {NCV}

Secondly, the Bible tells us God doesn’t punish us for sin. If we are believers in Christ Jesus and have repented of our sin, it’s gone. Our sins have been nailed on the cross with Jesus.

He does not punish us for all our sins;
he does not deal harshly with us, as we deserve.
Psalm 103:10 {NLT}

However . . . and if you’ll indulge me some wordiness here . . . there is a difference between punishment and discipline.

Discipline is derived from the word disciple. To train or instruct.

If sin continually remains in our lives and we don’t repent and turn from that sin, God may require His divine discipline. If He didn’t, He wouldn’t be a loving and concerned Father.

The Bible tells us in Hebrews 12:4-11 {MSG}:

In this all-out match against sin, others have suffered far worse than you,
to say nothing of what Jesus went through—all that bloodshed!
So don’t feel sorry for yourselves. Or have you forgotten how good parents
treat children, and that God regards you as his children?

My dear child, don’t shrug off God’s discipline,
but don’t be crushed by it either.
It’s the child he loves that he disciplines;
the child he embraces, he also corrects.

God is educating you; that’s why you must never drop out. He’s treating you as dear children.
This trouble you’re in isn’t punishment; it’s training, the normal experience of children.
Only irresponsible parents leave children to fend for themselves. Would you prefer an irresponsible God?
We respect our own parents for training and not spoiling us, so why not embrace God’s
training so we can truly live? While we were children, our parents did what seemed best to them.
But God is doing what is best for us, training us to live God’s holy best.
At the time, discipline isn’t much fun. It always feels like it’s going against the grain.
Later, of course, it pays off handsomely, for it’s the well-trained who find
themselves mature in their relationship with God.

All that to say . . . if you’re living a life of repeated sin and could care less what God thinks about it, you may find yourself under His discipline.

On the other hand, if you have asked for God’s forgiveness and are truly sorry for something you’ve done, Psalm 103:12 {MSG} says, “. . . as far as sunrise is from sunset, he has separated us from our sins.”

And don’t forget the verse we talked about a few days ago:

For the kind of sorrow God wants us to experience
leads us away from sin and results in salvation.
There’s no regret for that kind of sorrow.
But worldly sorrow, which lacks repentance,
results in spiritual death.
2 Corinthians 7:10 {NLT}

The Bible tells us story after story after story of God’s love and redemption. Many a prophet, king, and disciple sinned against God, yet as soon as they repented, God provided restoration in their lives.

The same is true for us today.

God loves us. With an unconditional, unending, unfathomable love. Nothing can ever separate us from God’s love.

But in all these things we are completely victorious through God who showed his love for us.
Yes, I am sure that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor ruling spirits, nothing now, nothing
in the future, no powers, nothing above us, nothing below us, nor anything else in the whole
world will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 8:37-39 {NCV}

Does God really forgive us? Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. And . . . YES!

And not only does He forgive us . . . it’s His desire to forgive us. He sent His very own Son to die so we could be forgiven, so we could live a forgiven life.

Thank you Father for your great love, sacrifice, and forgiveness. All of which we don’t deserve, yet through Your wondrous mercy and grace you make available to each of us . . . the least of these.

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{read 31 days of forgiveness from the beginning}