I am a sinner: will God accept me?

“If you knew what I’ve done, you’d know God could never accept me.” Many people say this, or something like it, silently. Some carry guilt from the past: violence, infidelity, abortion, addiction, theft, abandoning their children, crimes, or whole lives lived far from God. Others feel they have failed so many times that they no longer have the right to come back. If you are asking, “I am a sinner; will God accept me?”, the Gospel’s answer is surprising and freeing: Jesus came precisely for sinners.

“This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.”

1 Timothy 1:15

We are all sinners

The first thing the Bible says is that you are not alone in your condition. “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). There is no category of good people who deserve God and another of bad people who don’t. We all need grace. Some sins are more visible or harmful than others, but none of us can stand before God on our own merits.

Far from being bad news, this puts all of us in the same place: at the foot of the cross, in need of mercy. And there God’s mercy is available to all.

Jesus came for sinners

One of the most frequent criticisms of Jesus was that he kept company with sinners. He ate with tax collectors, regarded as traitors and thieves; he let a woman of bad reputation touch him; he talked with a Samaritan woman who had had five husbands. When the religious were scandalised, Jesus replied:

“When Jesus heard it, he saith unto them, They that are whole have no need of the physician, but they that are sick: I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”

Mark 2:17

If you feel sick in soul, you are exactly in the condition Jesus came to heal. Your sin does not disqualify you from coming to Christ; it is precisely the reason you need him.

Stories of sinners accepted

Zacchaeus was a chief tax collector and rich, probably from overcharging his own people. Jesus stopped under the tree he had climbed and said: “to day I must abide at thy house.” The encounter transformed Zacchaeus, who restored fourfold what he had taken and gave half his goods to the poor. Jesus concluded: “the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10).

The sinful woman came into a Pharisee’s house, wept at Jesus’ feet, wiped them with her hair and anointed them with ointment. While the host judged her, Jesus said: “Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much” (Luke 7:47).

The woman taken in adultery was brought to Jesus to be stoned. Jesus told her accusers: “He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.” One by one they left. Then he said to her: “Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more” (John 8:7-11).

Peter denied Jesus three times and was restored. Paul persecuted the Church and consented to the death of believers, and became an apostle. He called himself “the chief of sinners” and said God showed him mercy to display his longsuffering to all who would believe (1 Timothy 1:16).

David committed adultery and ordered the death of an innocent man. When confronted, he repented and wrote Psalm 51: “Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness.” God forgave him.

The running father

In the parable of the prodigal son (Luke 15), the younger son wasted his inheritance with riotous living. When he decided to return, he prepared a speech: “I am no more worthy to be called thy son: make me as one of thy hired servants.” But the father, seeing him from afar, ran, embraced him and kissed him before he could finish. He gave him the best robe, a ring and shoes, and threw a feast.

Jesus told this story to show us what God is like. He does not wait with folded arms to punish you; he runs to meet you. He does not receive you as an employee on probation, but as a restored son.

Is there any sin God cannot forgive?

The blood of Christ is enough to cleanse any sin we repent of. “The blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin” (1 John 1:7). “Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow” (Isaiah 1:18).

Jesus spoke of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit as a sin that has no forgiveness (Mark 3:28-29). Many Christians understand this as a conscious, persistent and final rejection of the Spirit’s work that leads to Christ, that is, a final refusal to repent. So if you feel a desire to return to God and your sin grieves you, that very unease is a sign that the Spirit is at work in you. Whoever fears having committed that sin usually has not.

Accepted as you are, but not left as you are

God accepts you as you are when you come to him in repentance and faith. You don’t need to fix your life first to be worthy. But his love does not leave you the same. Just as Zacchaeus changed his way of living, and Jesus told the woman “go, and sin no more”, God’s grace both forgives and transforms us. After listing various sins, Paul wrote to the Corinthians: “And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God” (1 Corinthians 6:11).

Change does not come by your willpower, but by the work of the Holy Spirit. There will be struggles and falls, but God promises to complete the good work he begins (Philippians 1:6).

What to do with guilt

Confess it to God: “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). Receive forgiveness by faith: rely not on your feelings but on God’s promise. Make amends where you can: ask forgiveness of those you hurt and make restitution where possible, wisely. Face legal consequences: if you have committed crimes, God’s forgiveness does not remove responsibility before the law, but he walks with you through that process. Seek support: a pastor, priest or Christian counsellor can help you walk in freedom. Stop condemning yourself: “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1).

“He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him. As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.”

Psalm 103:10-12

Grace is not permission to sin

Some ask: if God forgives everything, can I keep living as I please? Paul answered firmly: “Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid” (Romans 6:1-2). Whoever has experienced forgiving love does not want to keep hurting God or others. Grace does not push us into sin; it frees us from its power and gives us a new desire to please God.

Your past does not define your future

God does not see you only for what you were, but for what he can do with you. Rahab, a woman with a difficult past, became part of the Messiah’s genealogy. Matthew, a tax collector, wrote a gospel. Peter, who denied Jesus, preached at Pentecost and three thousand believed. In God’s hands your story can become a testimony that helps others who today feel they have no hope.

If you take this step today, don’t keep it secret: tell a trusted believer or write to us. We will pray with you.

Interesting facts

Prayer

Lord Jesus, I am a sinner. You know everything I have done, even what no one else knows. I come without excuses or merits, with a heart that needs your mercy. I believe you died for my sins and rose again. Cleanse me with your blood, forgive me and receive me as your child. Thank you that you do not turn away anyone who comes to you. Transform my life by your Holy Spirit, and help me live in the freedom of your grace. Amen.