How to receive God’s forgiveness

When God forgave David for adultery and murder, he wrote, “Oh, what joy for those whose disobedience is forgiven, whose sin is put out of sight! Yes, what joy for those whose record the Lord has cleared of guilt, whose lives are lived in complete honesty! When I refused to confess my sin, my body wasted away, and I groaned all day long. Day and night your hand of discipline was heavy on me. My strength evaporated like water in the summer heat. Finally, I confessed my sins to you and stopped trying to hide my guilt. I said…‘I will confess my rebellion to the Lord.’ And you forgave me! All my guilt is gone” (vv. 1-5 NLT). Unconfessed, unforgiven sin will make you miserable. But after you’ve acknowledged it and received God’s forgiveness, you shouldn’t continue to feel miserable. So why do we feel miserable? Many times it’s because of how we were raised. We grew up hearing words like, “I hope you feel bad about what you’ve done!” or “Shame on you!” And if our offense was great, like wrecking the family car, we may even have been put on probation! In other words, we’re programmed for long-term guilt. The good news is, God’s forgiveness doesn’t work that way. The moment that brings conviction and confession of sin also brings cleansing of sin and leads to restored confidence before God. Don’t let Satan keep condemning you. Refuse to walk around feeling guilty and ashamed. Today say with the psalmist, “You forgave me! All my guilt is gone.” Now go out and live freely, confidently, and with joy!