I am very active on social media. Every few days I get a direct message that more or less conveys the same message. Let me explain. The person writing says that they have messed up so badly that there is no way that God could ever forgive them. This is, of course, a lie and what Satan wants you to believe. If you are truly sorry you can be forgiven no matter what you have done. The grace of God is greater than any sin.
What Satan wants
Satan wants to keep you from God and will use any means necessary to accomplish his mission. He uses our past against us and makes us think that we are too bad for God. I know I have fallen for this trap before, and chances are you have at one point or another.
Truth, lies, philosophy, wisdom
Our Lord says otherwise. Jesus died on the cross for our sin. He loves us that much! Saint Peter denied Jesus three times, and when he repented he was restored. He is our first pope and was the prince of the apostles. Looking at the lives of the Apostles and early church gives us a lot of hope.
The Prodigal Son
I encourage you to look at the parable of the prodigal son in Luke 15. The youngest son demands his share of the inheritance from his father. In essence he was telling his father, to his face, that he wanted him dead to get the money. This was scandalous then just as it would be now. He blew the money on a sinful lifestyle. When he ran out of money he worked with pigs. This made him unclean under Jewish law.
Merciful Father and the Prodigal Son, close up
When he was down and out, he came to his senses and realized the error of his ways. He decided to go home and try to become a servant in his fathers house. This didn’t happen. His father saw him, ran to him, embraced him, gave him a celebration for his return, and restored him to his place of honor.
That is what God does for us when we repent in the sacrament of reconciliation. We are restored no matter what we have done. Don’t believe the lie of Satan!
Saint quotes on Satan
“The devil does not bring sinners to hell with their eyes open: he first blinds them with the malice of their own sins. Before we fall into sin, the enemy labours to blind us, that we may not see the evil we do and the ruin we bring upon ourselves by offending God. After we commit sin, he seeks to make us dumb, that, through shame, we may conceal our guilt in confession.” — St. Alphonsus Liguori”The usual snare with which the devil catches the young is to fill them with shame when they are about to confess their sins. When he pushes them to commit sins, he removes all shame, as if there were nothing wrong with it, but when they are going to confession, he returns that shame magnified and tries to convince them that the priest will be shocked by their sins and will no longer think well of them. Thus the devil tries to drive souls to the brink of eternal damnation. Oh, how many lads does Satan steal from God, sometimes forever, by this trick.” — St. John Bosco
“It often happens that Satan will insidiously commune with you in your heart and say: “Think of the evil you have done; your soul is full of lawlessness, you are weighed down by many grievous sins.” Do not let him deceive you when he does this and do not be led to despair on the pretext that you are being humble. After gaining admission through the fall evil has the power to commune at all times with the soul, as man to man, and so to suggest sinful actions to it. You should answer it: “I have God’s written assurance, for He says: ‘I desire, not the sinner’s death, but that he should return through repentance and live’” (Ezek. 33:11). What was the purpose of His descent to earth except to save sinners, to bring light to those in darkness and life to the dead?” — St. Symeon Metaphrastis
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