Does God Still Love You When You’ve Been Living in Sin?
Q: “How can I know I’m saved after a lifetime of sin?”
Jesus promises to accept all who come to Him (John 6:37), and He has already taken all of our sins on Himself (Isaiah 53:6; John 1:29). So no sin, and no amount of sin, is too much for Him to forgive. The important thing is to make sure of your salvation - call on Jesus and confess that you are a sinner in need of His forgiveness. Trust in His sacrifice for you and let Him have control in your life (Romans 10:9-13; Luke 18:13; Matthew 10:39).
Once we are saved, we can know that we are His children and He will continue working in us to make us more like Him. That involves discipline (Hebrews 12:5-11), but He disciplines in love and He is faithful to complete the work He began in us (Philippians 1:6). We are sealed by the Spirit and have an inheritance in heaven (Ephesians 1:13-14; 1 Peter 1:2-5).
Still, we might have to deal with personal feelings of shame and regret. It's important to move on from the past and focus on the future, as Paul did (Philippians 3:13-14). Even though we have all sinned, God removes our sins as far as east is from west and does not hold them against us (Psalm 103:8-14; Hebrews 8:12). He wants us to come boldly to the throne of grace (Hebrews 4:16).Because of God's mercy and grace, we are free from the past and can move forward, making the most of our time by serving God for the rest of our lives.
Q: “I’m repentant but keep falling into the same sin. Does Jesus still accept me?”
When you said "I am repentant," it sounds like you mean it's a sin that isn't intentional but something you're slipping into without thinking. It's possible to slip into sinful habits without consciously choosing to disobey God. If there is conscious temptation, meditate on the truth that obeying God is always worth it (Matthew 10:39; Romans 6:21). Or if your habit is accidentally reacting to triggering situations, think ahead and plan a better reaction- for example, if you catch yourself speaking in anger, write out a better response ahead of time.
For overcoming sin and strengthening your walk with God in general, it's important to spend time with God every day in prayer, surrender, worship, and carefully reading His Word; separate yourself from influences that might distract you from Jesus; and find support from a community of spiritually mature believers (Galatians 6:1; Hebrews 3:13).
As you are also questioning Jesus' acceptance of you, the following verses can be reassuring: Psalm 30:5; Psalm 51:17; Psalm 103:8-14; Lamentations 3:22-23; Micah 7:18; and 1 John 1:9. God wants you to find freedom and assurance of His love for you!