Will God forgive me?

That God delights in mercy has perpetual testimony in His Word; and a lovely instance of it is found in the Book of Micah. There you get the character of God, and the attitude of God towards a troubled people, beautifully expressed. Well may they exult in God's mercy and faithfulness, saying: "Who is a God like to thee, that pardons iniquity, and passes by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? He retains not his anger for ever, because he delights in mercy. He will turn again, he will have compassion upon us; he will subdue our iniquities; and thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea. Thou wilt perform the truth to Jacob, and the mercy to Abraham, which thou hast sworn to our fathers from the days of old" (Micah 7:18-20). What a thrill of joy goes through the heart to find that a holy God so delights in mercy. And if you are here this evening a wretched, good-for-nothing, undone sinner, understand that the Lord delights to meet you, and He will gladly show you mercy, pardon all your sins, and give you the knowledge of His forgiveness.

Do not delay to taste His mercy. If you owed me a ten-pound note, and you came to me and said that you were hard up and could not pay it, I might say, "Oh well, it can be paid later on." "But I shall never have it," you reply. "Then I shall just have to score off your debt," is my remark, and you go away and say, "He did not do it with very good grace." Well, that would be like me. But when God forgives a man his debt, his sins, He delights in it. He is rejoiced to meet a man trembling in his sins. His very nature thrills with joy in giving you the sense of His love, and He, receives and blesses you on the ground of righteousness. God has immense joy in blessing a man like me, on the ground of what His own dear Son has effected. "I will show mercy on whom I will show mercy," reveals the depth of the goodness of God's heart.

In such circumstances one's heart turns in all its helplessness to the One against whom all our sins have been committed. In Him is mercy, compassion, and love. And there is more. In Him is the matchless wisdom that has found a way whereby He can fully and frankly forgive the sinner, and yet retain the righteous consistency of His throne. That way is Christ, "whom God has set forth to be a propitiation (or mercy seat) through faith in His blood" (Rom. 3:25). If this is the character of Him with whom we have to do, let us away with both the pride that refuses to acknowledge its guilt, and the despair that feels its sins are too grievous to be forgiven. For some are afflicted with the one disease, and some with the other. Nearly nineteen hundred years ago Paul made proclamation in the Pisidian Antioch — "Be it known to you that through this Man is preached to you the forgiveness of sins" (Acts 13:38); and the proclamation has not yet been withdrawn by the God who authorised it. Such a welcome as the scapegrace of Luke 15 received on his return to his father is awaiting all who will return in true contrition to our God. The kiss of forgiveness and the ring of endless love are favours He delights to bestow.

Oh! sinner, sinner, — hear, believe! Thy days are few — thy last opportunity will soon come — delay not! Turn now, even now, to thy God and Saviour! Where sin abounds, grace much more abounds. In this, the day of God's wondrous grace, thy sins, however many, are all forgiven the moment thou hast faith in Jesus. Many prodigals, when feeling the bitterness of sin, after the pleasure is gone, would gladly return to their fathers' house on earth, but they are afraid of what would be said of them, and of the shame that would hang over them, and they cannot return. The assurance of a happy welcome and the past forgotten, would make them fly as on eagles' wings. But, oh! the thought of that disdainful look — that outside place, where the first was once enjoyed, wrings the heart, and seals its alienation. I would rather, it exclaims, die in my wretchedness, than submit to such humiliation! But now, my fellow sinner, listen — do listen to the pleadings of one who knows the bitterness of sin, and the sweetness of pardoning mercy. Things are not so with thy heavenly Father, nor with thy Father's house on high. Not only wouldst thou be welcomed, but thy Father in heaven would run to meet thee, and not one word would be said as to the past. The past, with every believer, is not only forgiven but forgotten. What a mercy! What a comfort to know it! The joy that fills the Father's heart on the return of the prodigal, fills all other hearts around Him. No disdainful looks would ever meet thee there — no outside place would ever be thine. Near and loved as Christ Himself — shining in His glory and beauty, and welcomed as a son of the Father, with all the dignities and honours which that love can bestow. But time, would fail, and paper and ink would be exhausted before they could write the glories of a child of God — of a sinner saved by sovereign grace.

Anxious reader, do you — can you still hesitate as to the forgiveness of your sins? Christ has suffered for sins. God preaches remission of sins. He pledges His own word on the point. "To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believes in him shall receive remission of sins." What more would you have? How can you any longer doubt or delay? What are you waiting for? You have Christ's finished work and God's faithful word. Surely these ought to satisfy your heart and tranquilize your mind. Do then let us entreat you to accept the full and everlasting remission of all your sins. Receive into your heart the sweet tidings of divine love and mercy, and go on your way rejoicing. Hear the voice of a risen Saviour, speaking from the throne of the majesty in the heavens, and assuring you that your sins are all forgiven. Let those soothing accents from the very mouth of God Himself, fall In their enfranchising power upon your troubled spirit, "Your sins and iniquities will I remember no more." If God thus speaks to me; if He so assures me that He will no more remember my sins, should I not be fully and for ever satisfied? Why should I go on doubting and reasoning when God has spoken? What can give certainty but the word of God that lives and abides for ever? It is the only ground of certainty; and no power of earth or hell, human or diabolical, can ever shake it. The finished work of Christ and the faithful word of God are the basis and the authority of full forgiveness of sins.

There is a condition necessary to forgiveness, and that is repentance. That is, indeed the principle of divine forgiveness. There is no forgiveness with God except through repentance. It is very evident that one who trespasses, and who is not repentant, has no desire for forgiveness, is not in the right spirit to receive it. Repentance is the moral foundation on which forgiveness can be rightly given and rightly received.

The psalmist feels the need for God's mercy so deeply that he cries to Him without intermission — "all day long," He longs for rejoicing rather than depression, realizing such joy can be found only in God. and he has good reason to lift up his soul to Him. For he knows the Lord is good and ready to forgive (v. 4). This being true, he has every reason to count on God's abundant mercy, which is available to all who call on Him (v. 5).

"I cried by reason of my distress unto Jehovah, and He answered me; out of the belly of Sheol cried I: Thou heardest my voice." Yes, wonder of wonders, God is ever ready to hear, and ever ready to forgive. The cloud and the darkness are all on our side: our God has not changed. One can but watch with adoring wonder to see the patience and wisdom of God in dealing with His erring servant. Time and again He gave him warning and opportunity to cry to Him for pardon and help. God does not give him up, even when the sight of death itself will not force him to yield. This God is our God; how much better for us to fall at His feet and pour out the whole story of our sin and failure, and cry to Him for mercy and forgiveness. We will surely find that, like the writer of Psalm 116 (who had found trouble and sorrow), we too, may exclaim with adoring wonder, "I love the Lord, for He hath heard my voice and my supplications; for He hath inclined His ear unto me, and I will call upon Him during all my days." (Ps. 116:1-2)

What an illustration of "repentance and remission of sins!" It is ever thus. It is the joy of the heart of God to forgive us our sins. He delights in causing the full tide of His pardoning love to flow into the broken and contrite heart.

The gospel of God is a call to men to repent, which means turn and return; thus the prodigal repented when he arose to go to his father — God offers an eternal forgiveness to all men, it is this that is proclaimed in the gospel, but those only who repent receive this priceless boon. Repentance is a turning to God from the sinful way, because it is realised that it is the way of death, and that God is other than He is supposed to be, that He is not as men have imagined Him, a hard master, an almighty tyrant out of whose presence they had better keep as long as they may, but that He is full of tender pity, that He calls them to come to Him from their wanderings, and will welcome them when they come with the kiss of forgiveness. He gave His only begotten Son to judgment and death that He might do this righteously — that He might be a just God and a Saviour, and of such value are the souls of men in His sight, that He rejoices over every one that repents.

But what is repentance? How many a one has been perplexed about this, through lack of simplicity, and, it may be, from defective teaching. Now, repentance is a judging of one's self and of one's ways, and a turning from them. A change of mind? Yes. About whom or what? About God? No; about myself and my ways. But that is not all. The Scripture insists on works worthy of repentance. Fruit worthy of it is to be produced. An example of it Jeremiah prophetically describes, in language which in a future day Ephraim will make use of: "I have surely heard Ephraim bemoaning himself thus: Thou hast chastised me, and I was chastised, as a bullock unaccustomed to the yoke: turn Thou me, and I shall be turned: for Thou art the Lord my God. Surely after that I was turned, I repented; and after that I was instructed, I smote upon my thigh: I was ashamed, yea, even confounded, because I did bear the reproach of my youth." And what is the answer on God's part? "Is Ephraim my dear son? is he a pleasant child? for since I spake against him, I do earnestly remember him still; therefore My bowels are troubled for him: I will surely have mercy upon him, says the Lord" (Jeremiah 31:18-20).