How Can I Forgive Myself?
by Gloria Copeland
Have you made a mistake for which you are having a hard time forgiving yourself? Have you allowed sin into your life, or have you never gotten completely free from it? Do you find yourself obsessing about the bad decisions you’ve made, wondering how you can fix them and keep from ever doing them again? Do you wonder, How can I possibly forgive myself?
There’s good news!
None of us has to respond to our mistakes in any of these ways. The truth is, no more than you or I could have earned the forgiveness and remission of our sin that Jesus provided at the cross, can we work ourselves out of sin today. Jesus set us free from the power of sin, and He intends for us to stay free!
If you’ve got sin in your life, confess it to the Lord and get rid of it. Stop it! Be willing to receive His forgiveness and forgive yourself.
Neither you nor I can know the number of times in our lives we have uttered the words, “Father, forgive me.” We do know, though, that when we ask for His mercy, we receive it when we say, “Lord, forgive me for that. I repent of it.” We receive His forgiveness by faith because we believe His Word that says, “But if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).
If you’ve sinned and asked the Lord to forgive you, then you must be willing to receive His forgiveness, and to forgive yourself. When you do that, you are free to move on with your life and not get tied down with the guilt that accompanies sin.
If you resist God’s mercy and forgiveness in the face of sin in your life, you restrict yourself from receiving all He has for you. You may find yourself stuck in an illness, or struggling financially, or unable to maintain healthy relationships, all because you resisted God’s willingness to set you completely free from sin!
As you are quick to repent, you stay open to receive God’s love, mercy and forgiveness. His will is that the flow of forgiveness and freedom continues on through you to those He brings into your life—from your family, friends and co-workers, to the cashier at the grocery store and those we minister alongside in church. He expects it to flow to everyone.
So if you are struggling to forgive yourself, take this to heart. Jesus paid the price for you to be free from sin. Forgive yourself right now and walk in the freedom Jesus died to give you.