To answer this question, we need to see that there are TWO KINDS of forgiveness. There is JUDICIAL and RESTORATIVE FORGIVENESS. Let’s take a close look at each of them and I trust we will see that ANY SIN can be forgiven.

JUDICIAL FORGIVENESS is the forgiveness a sinner experiences when he/she “repents of their sins and believes on the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior.” The Apostle Paul preached this forgiveness in Acts 13:38-39, “Therefore let it be known to you, brethren, that through this Man is preached to you the FORGIVENESS OF SINS, and by Him everyone who believes is JUSTIFIED FROM ALL THINGS from the which you could not be justified by the law of Moses.” Paul was preaching to lost sinners who had never experienced God’s forgiveness. The Bible says that “Christ suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God” (1 Peter 3:18). The sinner who believes on Christ believes that their sins were “laid on Christ” (Isaiah 53:6) and that God then judged Him for their sins, as we see in verse 5, “But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes WE ARE HEALED.” The sinner who believes on Christ believes this and they heartily echo the words of 1 Peter 2:24, “who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having DIED TO SINS, might live for righteousness—BY WHOSE STRIPES WE ARE HEALED.” After Christ bore the wrath of God to pay for our sins “He said ‘it is finished’ and bowing His head, He gave up His spirit” (John 19:30). In other words, HE DIED. Paul also preached that “Christ died for our sins” (1 Corinthians 15:3). DEATH and JUDGMENT is the two-fold penalty of sin (see Romans 6:23 and Hebrews 9:27) and Christ was first JUDGED and then He DIED to pay for our sins so He could offer the sinner forgiveness. We call this “Judicial Forgiveness” because when we come to God initially, He is our JUDGE, but from that point on He is no longer our JUDGE; He is our heavenly FATHER and we are His CHILDREN (see John 1:12). This brings us to the next aspect of forgiveness.

RESTORATIVE FORGIVENESS is the forgiveness a child of God experiences when they sin and repent of their sin before their heavenly Father. We read of this in 1 John 1:9, “If we (children of God) confess our sins, He (God our Father) is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” We can experience this “Restoration Forgiveness” because the moment we confess a sin before our Father “He cleanses us from all unrighteousness” (through the Word of God…see Psalm 119:9 and Ephesians 5:25-26) which results in us being “RESTORED back into FELLOWSHIP with the Father and the Son.” Because we still have a sinful nature of sin dwelling in us (see Romans 7:13-20), we are still capable of committing sin. This immediately causes our fellowship with God to be broken, yet confession of that sin immediately restores fellowship with God. After David had sinned with Bathsheba, he became convicted of his sin of adultery and in Psalm 51 he CONFESSED his sin (51:1-4) and then he prayed “RESTORE to me the joy of Your salvation” (verse 12).

In summary, JUDICIAL FORGIVENESS is a “one-time event” that occurs the moment we repent of our sinful condition and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ who suffered and died for our sins so we could be “Judicially and Eternally forgiven.” God will never, as a JUDGE, bring up our sins again and judge us eternally for them. In other words, ALL OF OUR SINS are gone before His eyes: “As far as the east is from the west, so fa has He removed OUR TRANSGRESSIONS from us” (Psalm 103:12). “The blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from ALL SIN” (1 John 1:7).  RESTORATIVE FORGIVENESS occurs “every time we sin and confess that sin to God our Father.” No matter what sin we may commit, God is ready and willing to forgive us and cleanse us from that sin (by the Word of God), resulting in restored fellowship with our blessed Father and our Savior, Jesus Christ.  (DO)  (657.1)