ROY - D&C 58:42 says when the Lord forgives you he no longer
remembers it. I seem to remember that one of the
Prophets said that he remembered it"Against" you no
more. Memembers of our HP class said that he simplely
forgot the sin. Please help.
JOEL - D&C 58:42 says:
"Behold, he who has repented of his sins, the same is
forgiven, and I, the Lord, remember them no more."
This promise is also found in Jeremiah:
"For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will
remember their sin no more." (Jer. 31:34.)
Is it possible for God to literally forget something?
It would seem to contradict His omnipotent and/or
omniscient character. But then again perhaps because
He is omnipotent He has a way of completely removing
it from His mind, so it is as if it never existed in
the first place. I don't know. Some have suggested
that the language used in such scriptures is meant to
be understood metaphorically; that it is another way
of saying that if we repent God will no longer hold us
liable for the sin.
Your memory is correct. President Gordon B. Hnckley
did say the following:
"Eternal vigilance is the price of eternal
development. Occasionally we may stumble. I thank the
Lord for the great principle of repentance and
forgiveness. When we drop the ball, when we make a
mistake, there is held out to us the word of the Lord
that he will forgive our sins and remember them no
more against us. But somehow we are prone to remember
them against ourselves." ("Don't Drop the Ball,"
Ensign, November 1994, p. 48.)
So perhaps God does not literally forget the sin, the
same as a mortal might forget something, but He is
able to either willfully block it out of His mind or
at least He will not use it against us come judgment
day. Whatever it means, the results are the same; our
repented sins will not impede our salvation.