I did a lot of dishonest things many years ago. I'm a Christian now and have tried to make things right with people, although some are dead and I can't. I donate a lot of money to the church and help the poor. Will I still be punished since I'm trying to make things right?


I commend you on your efforts to make things right with people. I did the same thing after I was born again. Donating money to your church and to the poor is both Scriptural and admirable - if it is done for the right reason.

However, it appears that you are giving money to appease God and cause Him to forgive your past life. This is impossible! Jesus died because we could not do enough good works to counteract the affects of our sin.

The Word of God tells us "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus" (Rom. 3:23-24, NKJ).

It is the blood of Jesus that makes us worthy of God and washes away all of our sins. If you accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior, every past sin you have ever committed is forgiven you, and you will never be punished for them.
...Giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light. He has delivered us from the power of darkness and translated us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins....

And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and irreproachable in His sight.
(Col. 1:12-14, 21-22 NKJ)
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