The actions associated with obtaining faith in Christ are fully surrendering to him, forsaking sin, and asking forgiveness:
And again, believe that ye must repent of your sins and forsake them, and humble yourselves before God; and ask in sincerity of heart that he would forgive you; and now, if you believe all these things see that ye do them. (Mosiah 4:10)
Asking for forgiveness can’t be the first step in this process. Asking for forgiveness doesn’t change you. It doesn’t force you to abstain from sin, nor does it place you in a state where you can continue to sin without the previous consequences. Rather, forgiveness is a blank slate that allows you again to choose whether you will keep all of God’s commandments for the rest of your life.
Actual change must precede forgiveness. It is for this reason that repentance comes before baptism:
And he commandeth all men that they must repent, and be baptized in his name, having perfect faith in the Holy One of Israel, or they cannot be saved in the kingdom of God. (2 Nephi 9:23)
God’s forgiveness figuratively washes your garments clean:
Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. (Isaiah 1:18)
I say unto you, ye will know at that day that ye cannot be saved; for there can no man be saved except his garments are washed white; yea, his garments must be purified until they are cleansed from all stain, through the blood of him of whom it has been spoken by our fathers, who should come to redeem his people from their sins. (Alma 5:21)
However, God’s forgiveness does not prevent you from once again staining your garments through repeated sin.
People who have faith in Jesus not only obtain forgiveness, but they also abstain from future sin:
10 And these twelve ministers whom thou beholdest shall judge thy seed. And, behold, they are righteous forever; for because of <u>their faith in the Lamb of God their garments are made white in his blood.</u>
11 And the angel said unto me: Look! And I looked, and beheld three generations pass away in righteousness; and their garments <u>were white even like unto the Lamb of God. And the angel said</u> unto me: These are made white in the blood of the Lamb, because of their faith in him. (1 Nephi 12)
After this life, it will be impossible to lie to yourself about whether you have completely obeyed God or not:
27 Have ye walked, keeping yourselves blameless before God? Could ye say, if ye were called to die at this time, within yourselves, that ye have been sufficiently humble? That your garments have been cleansed and made white through the blood of Christ, who will come to redeem his people from their sins?
28 Behold, are ye stripped of pride? I say unto you, if ye are not ye are not prepared to meet God. Behold ye must prepare quickly; for the kingdom of heaven is soon at hand, and such an one hath not eternal life.
29 Behold, I say, is there one among you who is not stripped of envy? I say unto you that such an one is not prepared; and I would that he should prepare quickly, for the hour is close at hand, and he knoweth not when the time shall come; for such an one is not found guiltless.
30 And again I say unto you, is there one among you that doth make a mock of his brother, or that heapeth upon him persecutions?
31 Wo unto such an one, for he is not prepared, and the time is at hand that he must repent or he cannot be saved!
32 Yea, even wo unto all ye workers of iniquity; repent, repent, for the Lord God hath spoken it! (Alma 5)
It is “because of [our] faith in the Lamb of God [that our] garments are made white in his blood” and we become “righteous forever.” (1 Nephi 12:10) You don’t actually believe in Jesus if you don’t do what he says:
And [Jesus] said unto the children of men: Follow thou me. Wherefore, my beloved brethren, can we follow Jesus save we shall be willing to keep the commandments of the Father? (2 Nephi 31:10)
And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say? (Luke 6:46)
God has made us free to decide how to choose, and just as you were able to choose sin in the first place, you will remain free to choose to sin in the future:
Have ye walked, keeping yourselves blameless before God? Could ye say, if ye were called to die at this time, within yourselves, that ye have been sufficiently humble? That your garments have been cleansed and made white through the blood of Christ, who will come to redeem his people from their sins? (Alma 5:27)
If you recommit a sin at any future date, you stand in the same state as you were before you were forgiven:
And now, verily I say unto you, I, the Lord, will not lay any sin to your charge; go your ways and sin no more; but unto that soul who sinneth shall the former sins return, saith the Lord your God. (D&C 82:7)
As long as you re-stain your garments through choosing to sin, you cannot dwell with him:
And this I know, because the Lord hath said he dwelleth not in unholy temples, but in the hearts of the righteous doth he dwell; yea, and he has also said that the righteous shall sit down in his kingdom, to go no more out; but their garments should be made white through the blood of the Lamb. (Alma 34:36)
In order to retain the Lord’s forgiveness, you must continue to forsake all sin, all the time, and you can do this by retaining in remembrance God’s greatness, his goodness, his love for you, and your nothingness before him:
6 ...be diligent in keeping his commandments, and continue in <u>the faith even unto the end of his life, I mean the life of the mortal</u> body—
8 And this is the means whereby salvation cometh. And there is none other salvation save this which hath been spoken of; neither are there any conditions whereby man can be saved except the conditions which I have told you.
11 And again I say unto you as I have said before, that as ye have come to the knowledge of the glory of God, or if ye have known of his goodness and have tasted of his love, and have received a remission of your sins, which causeth such exceedingly great joy in your souls, even so I would that ye should remember, and <u>always</u> retain in remembrance, the greatness of God, and your own nothingness, and his goodness and long-suffering towards you, unworthy creatures, and humble yourselves even in the depths of humility, calling on the name of the Lord daily, and <u>standing steadfastly in the faith of that which is to come...</u>
12 And behold, I say unto you that if ye do this ye shall always rejoice, and be filled with the love of God, and always retain a remission of your sins; and ye shall grow in the knowledge of the glory of him that created you, or in the knowledge of that which is just and true. (Mosiah 4)
14 Now I say unto you that ye must repent, and be born again; for the Spirit saith if ye are not born again ye cannot inherit the kingdom of heaven; therefore come and be baptized unto repentance, that ye may be washed from your sins, that ye may have faith on the Lamb of God, who taketh away the sins of the world, who is mighty to save and to cleanse from all unrighteousness.
15 Yea, I say unto you come and fear not, and lay aside _<u>every</u>_ <u>sin,</u> which easily doth beset you, which doth bind you down to destruction, yea, come and go forth, and show unto your God that ye are willing to repent of your sins and enter into a covenant with him to keep his commandments, and witness it unto him this day by going into the waters of baptism.
16 And whosoever doeth this, and keepeth the commandments of God from thenceforth, the same will remember that I say unto him, yea, he will remember that I have said unto him, he shall have eternal life, according to the testimony of the Holy Spirit, which testifieth in me. (Alma 7)
There is no point in obtaining forgiveness for past sins without first choosing to become the kind of person who will not repeat any of the past sins forgiven. It is only after you have decided to forsake your sins that you should cry to God to forgive you of your past sins:
O then ye unbelieving, turn ye unto the Lord; cry mightily unto the Father in the name of Jesus, that perhaps ye may be found spotless, pure, fair, and white, having been cleansed by the blood of the Lamb, at that great and last day. (Mormon 9:6)
Many will fall short in their attempts to obey all of God’s commandments after asking for forgiveness. The Lord’s mercy makes provision for this. As often as you repent, you will be forgiven:
Yea, and as often as my people repent will I forgive them their trespasses against me. (Mosiah 26:30)
However, any who willfully sin and die will carry their guilt eternally, as if Christ never came:
But remember that he that persists in his own carnal nature, and goes on in the ways of sin and rebellion against God, remaineth in his fallen state and the devil hath all power over him. Therefore, he is as though there was no redemption made, being an enemy to God; and also is the devil an enemy to God. (Mosiah 16:5)
But wo, wo unto him who knoweth that he rebelleth against God! For salvation cometh to none such except it be through repentance and faith on the Lord Jesus Christ. (Mosiah 3:12)
`And no unclean thing can enter into his kingdom; therefore nothing entereth into his rest save it be those who have washed their garments in my blood, because of their faith, and the repentance of all their sins, and their faithfulness unto the end. (3 Nephi 27:19)`
When it comes to obtaining forgiveness, the rules of the game, as it were, may seem unfair, given that all live for different lengths of time, all learn these things at different times, and all have different circumstances, but there is no unfairness with God. God is perfectly just, and provisions exist for every circumstance.
For example, those who choose to wait to obtain forgiveness for past sins just before they die have not cheated the system. They can never enjoy the joy, peace, and happiness that those who have lived a long life of dedication to God enjoy because the deathbed repentant can’t acquire a lifetime of experiences, lessons, and sacrifices in the short time they have. Likewise, those who die without the time or opportunities to live such a long life of discipleship are judged according to their circumstances.