God longs to forgive sinners! But in the minds of many people, this thought seems too good to be true. Countless sermons have been preached to convince guilt-ridden individuals that it is true. Many of these sermons emphasize that God not only forgives the sinner but also forgets the sin. I’ve often said it myself, never doubting its soundness.

Then one Sunday I heard a sermon that revolutionized my thinking. The speaker caught my attention when he said, “The idea that God forgets my sins isn’t very reassuring to me. After all, what if He suddenly remembered? In any case, only imperfection can forget, and God is perfect.”

As I was questioning the biblical basis for such statements, the pastor read Hebrews 8:12, “Their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.” Then he said, “God doesn’t say He’ll forget our sins—He says He’ll remember them no more! His promise not to remember them ever again is stronger than saying He’ll forget them. Now that reassures me!”

Do you worry that there are certain sins you’ll be punished for someday? Because Christ died for all our sins (1 Cor. 15:3), God promises to forgive us and never bring up our sin again (Ps. 103:12).  — Joanie Yoder