Another great question.

It is very true that some of our sins have consequences that follow us around for the rest of our lives. Because of those ever-present consequences, it is next-to- impossible to forget the sin that caused them.

It is important to remember God’s promise:

"Repent and turn to God and your sins will be wiped away." (Acts 3:19)

When God forgives - and forgets - a sin, he has indeed "wiped it off his books." Jesus took the punishment for that sin. God forgives it the moment we repent. The eternal consequences have been removed and forgotten.

But we also need to remember that God has attached earthly consequences to our sin to remind us not to commit that sin again. These earthly consequences also remind those around us that the sin we committed is not something they should do. Consequences are actually a good thing - keeping us from getting into deeper trouble.

The problem comes when Satan, the "Father of Lies," (whose name means "Accuser") comes to you and accuses you with lies like "The reason you can’t forget that specific sin is because God can’t or won’t forgive that one." He tries to make you feel guilty all over again - even though the guilt was removed when you repented. He casts doubt on God’s ability to forgive. He casts doubt on whether or not you have been forgiven. He wants you to throw up your hands and say that you are going to just forget about God.

As someone said, "When Satan reminds you of your past, remind him of his future." Satan is a defeated enemy. He has lost the war, even though he still wages battles in your life. He does not have to succeed in making you feel unforgiven.

So, while you may not be able to forget the earthly consequences, you can forget about the eternal consequences. Those were wiped away the moment you repented.

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