“Spread out your right hand to give you my pledge of allegiance,” ‘Amr bin Al-‘As said to the Prophet (peace be upon him).

But when the Prophet (peace be upon him) spread out his hand, ‘Amr withdrew his.

The Prophet (peace be upon him) asked:

“What is wrong with you O ‘Amr?”

‘Amr said: “I want to place a condition.”

The Prophet (peace be upon him) asked:

“What condition do you want to place?”

‘Amr said, “That I be forgiven.”

The Prophet (peace be upon him) said:

“Do you not know that Islam wipes away whatever (sin) was before it?” (Muslim)

The words of the Prophet (peace be upon him) open wide the gates of hope, lifting off the shoulders the heavy load of a past which reverts have lived away from their Lord, running their lives without His Guidance.

It dissipates with the relief of knowing that the moment they embrace Islam, they return as sinless as on the day they were born, no matter how grievous their sin may have been.

God is endlessly generous, ready and responding before being called on, giving before being asked, forgiving before being begged for forgiveness, and showing mercy before being prayed to for mercy.

Before God created the creation, He wrote in a Book with Him above the Throne:

“Verily, My Mercy overcomes My Anger.” (Al-Bukhari)

Such is our Lord. {God wishes that (you repent and) He accepts your repentance.} (4:27)

Even if a human has spent a score of years in error or wasted his life in sin and immorality, once he repents and gives up sins, before rising to his feet he is not only forgiven, but loved by God.

{Truly, God loves those who turn unto Him in repentance and loves those who purify themselves.} (2:222)

God’s Happiness in a sinner returning to Him – although He is beyond need of any of His creatures – surpasses that felt by a traveler in the wilderness who comes close to dying, having lost all his provisions, and suddenly finds them. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said:

“God is happier with the repentance of His slave when he repents to Him than you would be if you were riding in a desert, and your mount carrying all your food and drink escaped from you. You despaired of finding it. You found a tree and lay in its shade, having lost hope of ever finding it, and suddenly found the mount standing in front of you. You take hold of its reins, and out of your intense joy, you say, ‘O God, You are my slave, and I am your lord,’ making this mistake out of extreme joy.’” (Muslim)

Without any mediation, God is willing to forgive all sins. In a hadith Qudsi (revelation from God in the Prophet’s words), God says:

“O son of Adam, as long as you call upon Me and put your hope in Me, I will forgive whatever you have done, and I will not mind.

O son of Adam, even if your sins were to reach the clouds of the sky, then you were to seek My Forgiveness, I would forgive you, and I will not mind.

O son of Adam, if you were to come to me with an earth full of sins, and you were to meet Me not associating anything with Me, I would come to you with an earthful of forgiveness.” (Ahmad)

This is not all. He also changes sins into good deeds.

{Except for those who repent, believe, and do righteous deeds. For them God will replace their bad deeds with good deeds, and God is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.} (25:70)

“Did you embrace Islam?” the Prophet (peace be upon him) asked.

The old man answered:

“As for me, I testify that there is no god but God, alone with no partner or associate, and that Muhammad is His servant and Messenger.”

The Prophet (peace be upon him) said:

“If you are so, God will forgive you and will replace your evil deeds with good deeds.”

The old man asked:

“Even my betrayals and immoral actions?”

The Prophet (peace be upon him) answered:

“Even your betrayals and immoral actions.”

The man old hurried away, glorifying God and declaring His Oneness. (Ahmad)

A deluge of God’s Grace will be given for little or no effort on man’s part except accepting guidance and turning back from sin. By God’s Grace, bad actions and sayings before Islam are changed into good deeds, and disobedience into obedience – Shirk (associating others with God in His Divinity or worship) is replaced with belief, killing with forbearance, and adultery with chastity.

A man came to the Prophet (peace be upon him) and said:

“O Messenger of God, we were people of Jahiliyyah (people living in a pre-Islamic time of ignorance) and idolism. We used to kill our children. I had a daughter who, when she started to perceive, called to me one day. She always became happy when I called her to me. She followed me. I walked until I came to a well not far from my people. I took hold of her hand and threw her into the well. The last thing I heard her saying was, ‘O my father! O my father!’”

The Messenger of God (peace be upon him) cried until his tears trickled heavily down his face. A man among those who were sitting with him said:

“You have grieved the Messenger of God.”

The Messenger of God (peace be upon him) said to him:

“Stop. He is asking about what distresses him.”

He (peace be upon him) then said:

“Repeat to me your story.”

The man repeated it, and the Prophet (peace be upon him) cried again until his tears trickled down from his eyes over his beard. He (peace be upon him) then said:

“God has forgiven the people of Jahiliyyah for whatever (sins) they committed (before becoming Muslims). Continue working (righteously).” [1]

In Islam, no sin is beyond God’s Forgiveness and Mercy that embraces everything.

{Say, “O My servants who have transgressed against themselves (by sinning), do not despair of God’s Mercy. Indeed, God forgives all sins. Indeed, it is He who is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.”} (39:53)

The Messenger of God (peace be upon him) said:

“Your Lord is Most Merciful. Whoever intends to perform a good deed and does not do it, it will be recorded for him as a good deed. If he performs it, it will be recorded for him as ten good deeds, up to seven hundred, up to multifold.

Whoever intends to commit a bad deed, but does not do it, it will be recorded for him as a good deed. If he commits it, it will be recorded for him as one (sin), unless God erases it. Only those who deserve destruction (by bold insistence on sin) God will destroy.” (Musnad Ahmad)