How often do you lie awake at night thinking about someone who has wronged you? How often do you know you need forgiveness from another person, but you’re scared to ask for it? How often do you wonder if God can forgive what you’ve done? Giving and asking for forgiveness can be some of the most difficult things we ever do, but if we are going to thrive in our personal relationships—especially in marriage—we have to learn how to do both. What is a two-way street in marriage, however, is a one-way street when it comes to our relationship with God. God, who never sins and is perfect in every conceivable way, never needs our forgiveness; but we need his forgiveness for our rebellion against him.

Many of the Psalms speak to this very need. Take Psalm 85 for example. This Psalm begins with a reflection on God’s forgiveness and restoration of his people. “LORD, you were favorable to your land; you restored the fortunes of Jacob. You forgave the iniquity of your people; you covered all their sin. You withdrew all your wrath; you turned from your anger” (Ps. 85:1–3). Based on instances of God’s forgiveness in the past, the psalmist then pleads for that same forgiveness and restoration in his day: “Restore us again, O God of our salvation… Show us your steadfast love, O LORD, and grant us your salvation” (4, 7). You and I are in the same position as the psalmist. We look back through the pages of Scripture and we see God’s mercy and patience with his wayward people. And we, like this psalmist, ask God to pour out the same forgiveness and restoration in our days and in our lives. But sometimes we still have a nagging question in the back of our minds, “Can God really forgive me?”

But Psalm 85 doesn’t leave us wondering about how God will respond to our pleas for forgiveness. “Let me hear what God the LORD will speak, for he will speak peace to his people, his saints… Surely his salvation is near to those who fear him…” (8–9). Looking back on Psalm 85 from this side of the cross, we now know why God’s people can have this confidence in his forgiveness. Jesus died on the cross and endured the punishment that you and I deserved. He paid the debt that we owed! He washes us clean from our sins and forgives us over and over again! The cross shows us the depths of God’s love and the heights of his mercy. We can be confident in God’s forgiveness, not because we deserve it (we don’t and we never will!) but because in the act of giving his Son as the sacrifice for our sins, he showed just how great his love is for us. So if you ever wonder, “Can God forgive me?” just remember that he has already given his Son to die for you. And chances are, someone you know needs to hear that God can forgive them of their sins and free them from the guilt they live in. So this week, tell them about our forgiving and gracious God.