167. Some signs that our sins have been forgiven (that is, put aside) are the following: we sense a pleasure in worshiping God for God's sake and in helping our neighbor for our neighbor's sake, which means in doing good for its own sake and in speaking truth for its own sake. We do not want credit for our caring or our faith. We reject and turn our backs on evils like enmity, hatred, vindictiveness, adultery, and even the very thoughts that go along with intentions in such directions.
In contrast, some signs that our sins have not been forgiven (that is, put aside) are the following: we worship God but not for God's sake, we help our neighbor but not for our neighbor's sake, which means that we do not do good for its own sake or speak truth for its own sake but for self-serving and worldly reasons. We want credit for what we do. We do not find evils like enmity, hatred, vindictiveness, and adultery at all distasteful, and entertain these evils in our thoughts with a complete lack of restraint.
