Can the one who repents from grave sins be equal in rank with Allah to one who has never committed them at all?

Allah the Almighty created creation for His worship and commanded them to repent if they committed a sin, promising them the fullest reward for it. No matter how great the sins, sincere repentance erases what came before it, and Allah replaces bad deeds with good deeds and raises ranks. Allah Almighty said: (Except those who repent, believe, and do righteous deeds; for those, Allah will change their evil deeds into good deeds. And Allah is ever Forgiving and Merciful.) [Al-Furqan: 70]. Allah rejoices at the repentance of His servant more intensely than the joy of one who finds his lost possession, as stated in the Hadith. Repentance is a sign of its great status with Allah, and it is among the noblest acts of worship. One who repents returns to a state more complete than before the sin. The Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) are the best example of this; they were in polytheism and disbelief, but when they repented, they became the best of creation. Repentance forgives sins and raises ranks. Sheikh Al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah said: "Sins diminish faith, but when a servant repents, Allah loves him, and his rank may be elevated by repentance." One who repents sincerely may rise to a higher rank than he was before the sin, and his state after repentance may be better than his state before it. The proof for this is the Hadith of the man whose minor sins are shown to him, and his bad deeds are replaced with good ones, and he then asks to see his major sins. Ibn al-Qayyim said: The penitent may return to his former rank, or higher, or lower, and this depends on the state of the penitent after repentance, his diligence, resolve, and caution. So, whoever repents sincerely, feels remorse, abandons disobedience, keeps company with the righteous, and remains steadfast until death, Allah will forgive him and replace his bad deeds with good deeds, and his state will be better and more complete than one who did not commit a major sin but did not hasten in obedience as this penitent did.