If you know that what you’re about to do is wrong and you think that you will just ask for forgiveness later, will God forgive you?

Wow! Great question! And it’s also a very complicated question with an equally complex answer. The Apostle Paul talks about this very subject in the book of Romans, Chapter 6. The whole chapter is devoted to us being dead to sin but alive in Christ and that we are no longer slaves to sin but slaves to righteousness. The subject is so critical that Paul writes, “What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means!” (Romans 6:1) And he later repeats himself when he says, “What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means!” (Romans 6:15)

What Paul is saying is that just because God will forgive you doesn’t give you the excuse to commit the sin, especially when you know it’s wrong. It all has to do with your heart. Are you truly sorry? Are you truly repentant? Or do you think because you know God forgives sins, you’ll be okay?

Let’s look at another very important scripture verse that deals specifically with this: it’s Hebrews 10:26-27. It says, “If we keep deliberately sinning after we have received the knowledge of truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God.”

God does not take this stuff lightly. If you know it’s wrong and you intentionally do it because you think by asking for forgiveness later you’ll be forgiven, God says there is no sacrifice for that. You must truly be sorry and never do it again. Only God knows your heart. But, when He knows you are truly sorry and that you won’t do it again and that you were silly for thinking you could do it and expecting forgiveness … believe it or not, then God will forgive you! He knows you are sincere in your apology.

Do you have to like everyone to go to Heaven?

The simple answer is no, you don’t have to like everyone in order to go to Heaven. God does tell us to, “Love your neighbor as you would yourself.” (Matthew 22:39) But, even that isn’t a requirement to get into Heaven.

Honestly, there is only one way to get to Heaven and the great thing about it is that it doesn’t involve you or me having to be good! The truth is: Jesus is the only way to Heaven. He makes this quite clear in John 14:6, when He says, “I am the truth, the way and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” It’s not about being good because we can never be “good enough.” It’s about being forgiven and being saved through the grace of Jesus Christ.

It’s not about liking people but, really, isn’t it easier to like people than to hate people?

How do we repent? And where?

You asked, “How do we repent?” and “Where?” In order to understand how we repent, we need to know what it means to repent. In the easiest terms, to repent means to change the direction you are going in regards to sin (doing bad things). It means making a complete 180-degree turn and walking the other way. It is an action verb, which means you have to do it. It is not something that is done to you. So, to repent from your sins means to turn away from them completely and to walk the other way.

But, here’s the best part! When you repent your sins and accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior, do you know what gift you receive? Peter, one of Jesus’ disciples, said it in Acts 2:38 when he said, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” Do you know what that means??? It means that when you repent and turn away from sin, you don’t do it alone. The power of the Holy Spirit has been given to you through Jesus Christ! And remember what it says in Philippians 4:13, “I can do everything through Him who gives me strength.”

As far as your question regarding “where” you repent…you repent in your heart through prayer. You can do that anywhere. You can do it in the privacy of your bedroom, or in church, or with your family or with a group of your friends. It doesn’t matter as long as you’re sincere. God knows your heart and He loves you so much! He loves you so much that He gave His one and only Son to die for you so that you can have eternal life! Is that awesome or what??? And this is what is so wonderful about God…He didn’t wait for you, or me, to become good or perfect before He sent His Son down here. Romans 5:8 says that, “While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

You don’t have to be perfect for God to love you. You don’t even have to be good. God loves you no matter what! But, guess what? Good people don’t go to Heaven. Forgiven and saved people do. And in order to receive God’s forgiveness, you must repent your sins. Just stop doing them and purposefully walk away from them. It’s hard…I know! But, “I can do everything through Him that gives me strength.”