There's an initial vital need for honest confession and true repentance, and then an ongoing need for both in the life and walk of a believer. Along with saving faith, this is imperative for you and me! Do you really want a close righteous (not self-righteous) walk with the Lord? If so, getting real with God via confession and repentance is a must.
"..unless you repent you will all likewise perish" (Lk. 13:5).Do you do that? Do you agree with God's written Word (the Bible) about sin? About personal pet sins? This has to do with confession and turning away from it -- to God with thorough and brutal honesty. It's allowing God to forgive and instill within you a new hatred for it along with the power to avoid it. For decades the Church preached hot and heavy on this, "turn or burn stuff," so much so, that it was to the exclusion of other important balancing doctrines concerning the love and mercy of God. Many people ditched the body of Christ, growing tired of being afraid in church. Maybe in the decades as of late, the pendulum has swung too far in the other direction with so much preaching concerning God's cozy care that the message of true repentance has been excluded.
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| Photo by Jim Wilson |
We've heard so much on TV about lame "Cadillac faith", that "name it, claim it, blab it grab-it type of (erroneous) prosperity message, along with much on "self-esteem, self-improvement" (and who doesn't want God to improve them in their witness), and "P.M.A." and all the "blessings, as an end in themselves."
Have we forgotten reverence, and how to walk in the holy fear of God? Have we forgotten about the attached responsibilities that come with the blessings that God desires to bestow upon us? It's now time to preach what I call a refined-to-sound (biblical) repentance message. It's time for our country to come back to God and His Word. Yes, it's time for each one here to hang a full U-turn back to God ASAP. The days of carnality, distractions, cold and lukewarm living..of worldliness and other strange woke-weirdnesses is past. It's time set wokeness aside and properly wake up, to rightly mature in the word, to grow up walking with the Spirit's balance. We've got some world-changing (biblical evangelizing and disciplining) to do by God's power and directives.
WHAT IS GOD'S ATTITUDE TOWARD YOUR TRUE REPENTANCE?
According to His Word, true repentance is always followed by a new and lasting change of lifestyle.
"’But if a wicked man turns from all his sins which he has committed, keeps all My statutes, and does what is lawful and right, he shall surely live; he shall not die. None of the transgressions which he has committed shall be remembered against him; because of the righteousness which he has done, he shall live. Do I have any pleasure at all that the wicked should die?’ says the Lord GOD, ‘and not that he should turn from his ways and live?’”, “..Again, when a wicked man turns away from the wickedness which he committed and does what is lawful and right, he preserves himself alive. ‘Because he considers and turns away from all the transgressions which he committed, he shall surely live; he shall not die’" (Ezek. 18:21-23; 27-28).
Admit it and quit it for God's sake, yes, for His glory!
Q: In your own words, tell what is meant by the biblical term "repentance."
Q: In your own words, rephrase Ezekiel 18:21-23; 27-28.
REPENTANCE COMES BEFORE THE BLESSINGS OF GOD.
History records that when there have been valid national revivals, fervent preaching on repentance has been foremost..UNTIL IT WAS HAPPENING WITH INDIVIDUALS. Yes, these revivals began with true repentance and prayer because repentance is the preceding factor of every genuine, lasting, and deep experience with the Lord.
Q: In your own words, tell what is meant by the biblical term "repentance."
Q: In your own words, rephrase Ezekiel 18:21-23; 27-28.
REPENTANCE COMES BEFORE THE BLESSINGS OF GOD.
History records that when there have been valid national revivals, fervent preaching on repentance has been foremost..UNTIL IT WAS HAPPENING WITH INDIVIDUALS. Yes, these revivals began with true repentance and prayer because repentance is the preceding factor of every genuine, lasting, and deep experience with the Lord.
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| Photo by Angel Luciano |
Repentance is important because it is the first of the foundation stones God put in Hebrews 6:1,2.
REPENTANCE DOESN'T HAVE JUST A LITTLE BIT OF IMPORTANCE, IT IS OF MEGA IMPORTANCE!
The importance of repentance can not be over-emphasized. God stressed its importance by the place given it in the teachings of the Bible. Repentance is in the first words of:
John the Baptist -- "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!" (Matt. 3:2).
Jesus -- "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand" (Matt. 4:17).
Disciples -- "So they went out and preached that people should repent" (Mk. 6:12).
Peter -- "Then Peter said unto them, ‘Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost’" (Acts 2:38).
Paul -- "..they should repent, turn to God, and do works befitting repentance" (Acts 26:20).
Q: Does the fact that the word "repentance" appears so often in the Scriptures indicate its importance to you? It should. How many times does God need to repeat something before it does with you? If He says something twice I want to listen up. If He says something once, I want to say "Yes Lord".. in fact, with Jesus being my Helper I want those two words to be the motto of my whole life: "Yes Lord." Lord, by your Spirit and strong grace I always want to be quick to say "I am sorry, I repent" and mean it.
LET'S DAILY BE GETTING GOD'S PERSPECTIVE OF SIN.
In reading Isaiah's vision of God's glory (Isa. 6:1-5), Isaiah before everything else, recognizes His holiness. Then and only then, after Isaiah sees how the Lord is, does he recognize how unholy he himself is.
"So I said: ‘Woe is me, for I am undone! Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts.’" (Isa. 6:5).
The decision whether or not to repent has definite fallout. Perhaps this is best depicted in Proverbs 28:13 where God says...
"He who covers his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy."
Q: What did Isaiah recognize about himself when he gazed at the holiness of the Lord?
GOD CALLS EVERYONE TO REPENT FROM “SIN” AND “SINS.”
A. Adam sinned and humanity was plunged into rebellion against God. "Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned" (Rom. 5:12).
B. The heart of the problem is the problem of the heart--it's desperately wicked. Sinful actions are a result of the root problem, the sin nature that we inherited from Adam. "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Rom. 3:23).
The Bible nails it saying, “The heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked; Who can know it? I, the LORD, search the heart, I test the mind, Even to give every man according to his ways, According to the fruit of his doings." Jeremiah 17:9-10 nkjv
C. The results of sin are spiritual separation from God and death. "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Rom. 6:23).
C. The results of sin are spiritual separation from God and death. "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Rom. 6:23).
Hey, you know what, Kurt, I'll clean myself up and then come to Jesus Christ. BAD IDEA, COME AS YOU ARE WITH A WILLINGNESS TO COOPERATE WITH HIS SPIRIT AND WORD.
The ultimate Fisher of men and of women (that's Jesus) doesn't compromise with bait -- He first catches His fish and then He cleans them. And not en masse but one by one from the inside out. Then God uses us as soul-winners to love, to plant seeds, to reap! To win people to Christ one on one or one on more than one (but Jesus is the one who saves and He does that for us one by one by one).
Q: In your own words describe the difference between "sin nature" and "sins." Also, tell us how God is giving you a new hatred for sin.
GOD CALLS US TO REPENT FROM PRIDEFUL SELF-RIGHTEOUS RELIGIOUS ATTITUDES AND DEAD WORKS.
The Spirit calls us to repent of personal rebellion against Direct Authority and delegated authorities (sin).
TRUE REPENTANCE IS HONESTY IN ITS FINEST MOMENT.
1. This attitude is one of sorrow for having committed a hurtful deed against our first love and his will for our life. "For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted.." (2 Cor. 7:10).
2. King David, the second king of Israel, illustrated this principle. David's adultery with Bathsheba led him to set up Uriah's death. When God sent Nathan the prophet to approach David about his sin, David repented (2 Sam. 12:13). So great was David's repentance that he described it in Psalm 51 for the whole world to read. Saul came into power fast and easily and lacked character. David came into power slow and hard so to speak and he gained character. Due to pride, Saul wanted to hide sin and look good. Due to humility, David wanted to deal with sin and face the consequences.
TRUE REPENTANCE PRODUCES FRUIT - REAL CHANGE.
A. There's a godly sorrow for sin.
"Now I rejoice, not that you were made sorry, but that your sorrow led to repentance. For you were made sorry in a godly manner, that you might suffer loss from us in nothing. For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death" (2 Cor. 7:9,10).
B. There's a full confession of sin.
”For I acknowledge my transgressions and my sin is always before me”, ”Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me” (Ps. 51:3, &10 Always see the whole context).
C. There's a full forsaking of sin.
"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new" (2 Cor. 5:17).
D. There's full restitution to the person negatively affected by your sin.
"Then Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, "Look, Lord, I give half of my goods to the poor; and if I have taken anything from anyone by false accusation, I restore fourfold" (Luke 19:8).
Q: In your own words describe the difference between "sin nature" and "sins." Also, tell us how God is giving you a new hatred for sin.
GOD CALLS US TO REPENT FROM PRIDEFUL SELF-RIGHTEOUS RELIGIOUS ATTITUDES AND DEAD WORKS.
The Spirit calls us to repent of personal rebellion against Direct Authority and delegated authorities (sin).
In Hebrews 6:1, it describes our repentance as being from "dead works." Dead works are our own attempts to reach God apart from the power of the Holy Spirit. When we commit our lives to Jesus, we repent of sin along with all known and unknown sins. We turn from all dead works and stop trusting in our own religious efforts (good works) to save us. We trust solely in the finished work of Christ on the cross for our eternal benefit. We obtain the righteousness of God freely, when we put on Christ after repentance from all self-righteousness.
WHAT IS THE REASON FOR REPENTANCE?
A. Repentance is the requirement of God. "Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent" (Acts 17:30; also see 20:21 along with 26:20).
B. The first prayer that God hears will express repentance because repentance is the first move toward real conversion. "Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord.." (Acts 3:19).
Q: What are a couple good reasons for the sinner repenting?
TRUE REPENTANCE IS A GIFT FROM GOD, NO CHARGE.
A. God grants the gift of repentance. "..Then God has also granted to the Gentiles repentance to life" (Acts 11:18).
God will convict us and prompt us to repent after we sin and we should come forward with it immediately, not sweeping it under the rug with a cover-up sin. "And the LORD said, 'My Spirit shall not strive with man forever, for he is indeed flesh..'" (Gen. 6:3).
REPENTANCE AND THEN FREE FORGIVENESS COME BY CONFIDENTLY ASKING GOD FOR BOTH.
Those who have sinned and go to God will always find open arms and mercy. They can confess sin, ask for repentance and cleansing, and then simply receive full forgiveness without doing any penance or any type of self-flagellation or harm. God desires His children, therefore He desires to grant them repentance and a thorough washing.
"So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. If a son asks for bread from any father among you, will he give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent instead of a fish? Or if he asks for an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!” ~ Jesus (Lk. 11:9-13).
B. People today have no repentance coming forth because they forget to, are too embarrassed to, or are too pridefully-rebellious to simply ask for it. Could there be other reasons? Perhaps so.
"..yet you do not have because you do not ask" (James 4:2).
GOD HAS ALREADY GIVEN FULL PROVISION FOR SINS THROUGH HIS ONLY SON JESUS ON THE CROSS AT CALVARY!
And God has made provision for all your "sins" that are committed after your "sin" was forgiven too. When Jesus died on the Cross it was for sins that you hadn't yet committed. After being delivered from sin -- I'm talking about a one-time experience at the time of conversion (at the time of inner regeneration from God) when our sin is buried in the depths of the sea of God's forgetfulness. We then are to return to Him for cleansing every time we sin again (even though we do our best not to). Yes, I'd say that is real good, return often, confess often. When you blow it, run back to Christ. Don't let it become a habit of of your life. As reborn Christians, the trajectory of our life is towards holiness, not towards what our fleshly nature demands.
WHAT IS THE REASON FOR REPENTANCE?
A. Repentance is the requirement of God. "Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent" (Acts 17:30; also see 20:21 along with 26:20).
B. The first prayer that God hears will express repentance because repentance is the first move toward real conversion. "Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord.." (Acts 3:19).
Q: What are a couple good reasons for the sinner repenting?
TRUE REPENTANCE IS A GIFT FROM GOD, NO CHARGE.
A. God grants the gift of repentance. "..Then God has also granted to the Gentiles repentance to life" (Acts 11:18).
God will convict us and prompt us to repent after we sin and we should come forward with it immediately, not sweeping it under the rug with a cover-up sin. "And the LORD said, 'My Spirit shall not strive with man forever, for he is indeed flesh..'" (Gen. 6:3).
REPENTANCE AND THEN FREE FORGIVENESS COME BY CONFIDENTLY ASKING GOD FOR BOTH.
Those who have sinned and go to God will always find open arms and mercy. They can confess sin, ask for repentance and cleansing, and then simply receive full forgiveness without doing any penance or any type of self-flagellation or harm. God desires His children, therefore He desires to grant them repentance and a thorough washing.
"So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. If a son asks for bread from any father among you, will he give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent instead of a fish? Or if he asks for an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!” ~ Jesus (Lk. 11:9-13).
B. People today have no repentance coming forth because they forget to, are too embarrassed to, or are too pridefully-rebellious to simply ask for it. Could there be other reasons? Perhaps so.
"..yet you do not have because you do not ask" (James 4:2).
GOD HAS ALREADY GIVEN FULL PROVISION FOR SINS THROUGH HIS ONLY SON JESUS ON THE CROSS AT CALVARY!
And God has made provision for all your "sins" that are committed after your "sin" was forgiven too. When Jesus died on the Cross it was for sins that you hadn't yet committed. After being delivered from sin -- I'm talking about a one-time experience at the time of conversion (at the time of inner regeneration from God) when our sin is buried in the depths of the sea of God's forgetfulness. We then are to return to Him for cleansing every time we sin again (even though we do our best not to). Yes, I'd say that is real good, return often, confess often. When you blow it, run back to Christ. Don't let it become a habit of of your life. As reborn Christians, the trajectory of our life is towards holiness, not towards what our fleshly nature demands.
We were born to walk in victory! Repentance from daily sins is to be a habit of life for the purpose of keeping our communication lines open and the oppressive guilt off our backs (See 1 John 1:9). Man (and women) when created simply weren't designed to bear any guilt upon them. Let the guilt and shame go to God via confession and full-ditching of that junk.
A. Jesus was tempted in every way that we are, yet He was without sin. "For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin" (Hebrews 4:15).
If a person sins, God has already taken care of that sin when that person repents. "My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous" (1 Jn. 2:1).
THERE IS A DIFFERENCE BETWEEN TRUE AND FALSE REPENTANCE.
There is a godly sort of sorrow that leads to true repentance and there is a worldly sort, a sorrow leading to a false form of repentance.
FALSE REPENTANCE, WHAT'S THAT?
This is the attitude of "Oh man, I feel so sorry that I got caught."
2. This is the sorrow of the world that worketh death. "For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death." (2 Cor. 7:10).
Saul, the first king of Israel, is a good example of false repentance. Check him out after he was commanded by his spiritual authority to destroy the Amalekites. He didn't obey Authority (God) or his delegated authority but came up with a lame religious excuse, and still he wanted to look good to his constituents. When cornered by the prophet, he did finally admit his sin, but his motives were all wrong, tainted with selfishness.
He didn't even care that he hurt the heart of God, (see 1 Sam. 15:30). It is interesting to note that after God told Saul to destroy the Amalekites and he disobeyed, the Amalekites were the ones to kill Saul in battle. So it is with us New Testament believers, if we refuse to take care of our sin, our sin will take care of us!
A. Jesus was tempted in every way that we are, yet He was without sin. "For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin" (Hebrews 4:15).
If a person sins, God has already taken care of that sin when that person repents. "My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous" (1 Jn. 2:1).
THERE IS A DIFFERENCE BETWEEN TRUE AND FALSE REPENTANCE.
There is a godly sort of sorrow that leads to true repentance and there is a worldly sort, a sorrow leading to a false form of repentance.
FALSE REPENTANCE, WHAT'S THAT?
This is the attitude of "Oh man, I feel so sorry that I got caught."
2. This is the sorrow of the world that worketh death. "For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death." (2 Cor. 7:10).
Saul, the first king of Israel, is a good example of false repentance. Check him out after he was commanded by his spiritual authority to destroy the Amalekites. He didn't obey Authority (God) or his delegated authority but came up with a lame religious excuse, and still he wanted to look good to his constituents. When cornered by the prophet, he did finally admit his sin, but his motives were all wrong, tainted with selfishness.
He didn't even care that he hurt the heart of God, (see 1 Sam. 15:30). It is interesting to note that after God told Saul to destroy the Amalekites and he disobeyed, the Amalekites were the ones to kill Saul in battle. So it is with us New Testament believers, if we refuse to take care of our sin, our sin will take care of us!
TRUE REPENTANCE IS HONESTY IN ITS FINEST MOMENT.
1. This attitude is one of sorrow for having committed a hurtful deed against our first love and his will for our life. "For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted.." (2 Cor. 7:10).
2. King David, the second king of Israel, illustrated this principle. David's adultery with Bathsheba led him to set up Uriah's death. When God sent Nathan the prophet to approach David about his sin, David repented (2 Sam. 12:13). So great was David's repentance that he described it in Psalm 51 for the whole world to read. Saul came into power fast and easily and lacked character. David came into power slow and hard so to speak and he gained character. Due to pride, Saul wanted to hide sin and look good. Due to humility, David wanted to deal with sin and face the consequences.
TRUE REPENTANCE PRODUCES FRUIT - REAL CHANGE.
A. There's a godly sorrow for sin.
"Now I rejoice, not that you were made sorry, but that your sorrow led to repentance. For you were made sorry in a godly manner, that you might suffer loss from us in nothing. For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death" (2 Cor. 7:9,10).
B. There's a full confession of sin.
”For I acknowledge my transgressions and my sin is always before me”, ”Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me” (Ps. 51:3, &10 Always see the whole context).
C. There's a full forsaking of sin.
"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new" (2 Cor. 5:17).
D. There's full restitution to the person negatively affected by your sin.
"Then Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, "Look, Lord, I give half of my goods to the poor; and if I have taken anything from anyone by false accusation, I restore fourfold" (Luke 19:8).
God’s free forgiveness of sinful human beings (after there's been honest confession, true repentance, biblical faith) and the forgiveness that human beings should extend toward each other is imperative. But these are not two separate, unrelated issues of forgiveness; rather, they are vitally linked together. We are forgiven. Then we enjoy intimacy with God and day-to-day cleansing. These are dependent on our forgiveness of others (Matthew 6:12), and our forgiveness of others is to be patterned on and an example of God’s forgiveness of us (Ephesians 4:32; Colossians 3:13).
Here are some key guidelines for godly forgiveness:
- acknowledge the fact of evil (Romans 12:9)
- leave vengeance to the Lord (verse 19)
- leave no room for bitterness, revenge, grudges, or retaliation
- have a heart ready to forgive at a moment’s notice
- trust God to give you the ability to overcome evil with good, even to love and feed an enemy (verses 20–21)
- remember that God has instituted governing authorities, and part of their God-given role is to be “God’s servants, agents of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer” (Romans 13:4). One reason you don’t have to avenge yourself is that God has authorized government to provide justice.
- acknowledge the fact of evil (Romans 12:9)
- leave vengeance to the Lord (verse 19)
- leave no room for bitterness, revenge, grudges, or retaliation
- have a heart ready to forgive at a moment’s notice
- trust God to give you the ability to overcome evil with good, even to love and feed an enemy (verses 20–21)
- remember that God has instituted governing authorities, and part of their God-given role is to be “God’s servants, agents of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer” (Romans 13:4). One reason you don’t have to avenge yourself is that God has authorized government to provide justice.
What is cheap grace--is there such a thing?
Get Right in the Light or get Left in the Dark.
Look around you today, I respectfully challenge you to repent and live rapture-ready.
Q: I never want to line up with the accusers of the brethren (the devil, demons and their puffed-up religious gang) pointing a judgmental finger at people. We are called to be fruit inspectors, to judge righteously (judge ourselves first and situations too), to wisely evaluate holding to real facts. We want to win people and see others gently (lovingly) restored in the faith. Please explain in your own words about the four fruits of repentance. Have you ever gotten distracted and wandered away?
Have you taken a stride from your Master's side? Come back to Him. By faith have you gotten right with God through Christ yet? Come right now, don't put repentance off.
