But will God still be as gracious and forgiving if we wantonly commit more serious sins? If we take a cue from the experiences of great men in Scriptures, it all depends on how we respond to God’s rebuke after. If we repent, forgiveness will come. This was the case of King Manasseh of Judah. The Bible tells us that he had done more evil than any other king in Judah. Because of these, God punished Manasseh. He brought in the army of Assyria and took Manasseh as prisoner, put a hook in his nose, bound him with bronze shackles and took him to Babylon. However, “in his distress he sought the favour of the Lord his God and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers” (2 Chro. 33:12). Lo and behold, God graciously forgave him of his sins and unfaithfulness. God was moved by Manasseh’s entreaties and restored him to his kingdom.
If we were the judge, we would have liked to see Manasseh suffer the consequences of his sins till his death. This was the same attitude of the prophet Jonah when it came to Nineveh’s sins. In his desire to see Nineveh destroyed because of their sins, Jonah refused to preach repentance to them. He said, “I knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity” (Jonah 4:2). Indeed, God forgives because of the following attributes that Jonah mentioned:
God is gracious. He knows our challenges and he longs to help. He said, “If my people would but listen to me, if Israel would follow my ways, how quickly would I subdue their enemies and turn my hand against their foes!” (Psalm 81:13-14). Even in the midst of difficulties when we tend to resist him, the Lord remains gracious. Through the prophet Isaiah, he said, “Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you; he rises to show you compassion. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him!” (Isa. 30:18).
God is compassionate. God is not unaware of our afflictions and has compassion on us. King David said, “As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him” (Psalm 103:13). But while God is compassionate, there are time when we feel so abandoned. We wonder if God has forgotten to be merciful to us and has withheld his compassion out of anger. Well, he does it for a reason but not to completely forsake us. He said, “For a brief moment I abandoned you, but with deep compassion I will bring you back” (Isa. 54:7).
God is slow to anger. He is not quick to punish but is patient in dealing with us. Knowing our frailty, he said, “I will not accuse forever, nor will I always be angry, for then the spirit of man would grow faint before me- the breath of man that I have created” (Isa. 57:16). If God will ever be angry, it will not last long. King David said, “For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime; weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning” (Psalm 30:5). In fact, he restrains his anger for the sake of the salvation of many.
God is abounding in love. God is sympathetic to our plight as his creation. He loves us so much that he does not want that anyone should perish. His love abounds to those who call and put their trust in him. Having experienced the abounding love of God, King David said, “You are forgiving and good, O Lord, abounding in love to all who call to you” (Psalm 86:5). The abounding love of God was fully manifested when he sent his Son Jesus Christ. The apostle Paul described such love this way: “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom. 5:8).
Will God ever forgive your sins? Yes – his awesome forgiveness is available only if we repent of our sins and turn from our wicked ways, just as King Manasseh did. Repent then and be saved. Hallelujah!