Let me ask you a question: If God didn’t want to forgive you, but wanted you to carry your burden of guilt the rest of your life, would He have sent His only Son into the world to die for you? No, of course not.

In other words, God doesn’t hate you; He loves you! It’s true that He hates our sin – because He knows what it does to us (and to others). But God doesn’t hate you. In fact, He loves you so much that He wants to forgive you and make you part of His family forever. The Bible says, “How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!” (1 John 3:1).

How can you know – really know – that God will forgive you? The key is to understand what Christ has already done for you. When Jesus Christ died on the cross, all our sins – every one of them – were placed on Him, and He took the judgment that we deserved. He was without sin – but all our sins were transferred to Him, and He died in our place.

What must you do? First, turn to Christ and confess your sins to Him. Then trust Him alone for your salvation and receive Him by faith into your heart and life. The Bible says, “The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23).