Tag Archives: Repentance

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Come Clean

Reflect:
Psalm 51:1-19

“Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.” ~Psalm 51:10-12

It is hard to imagine the depth of David’s anguish as he came before the Lord carrying the guilt and shame of his unholy affair with Bathsheba. He had committed adultery, conspired to commit murder, executed a gifted and loyal soldier and manipulated people like pawns on a chess board to cover his tracks—but lived with an unbearable sickness of soul for the several months during which he managed to keep his dirty little secret hidden. (Psalm 32:3-4)

Then a courageous prophet named Nathan stood before David and stabbed the prophetic finger of truth into the king’s check. David was the most powerful man in the world, a man who held the power of life and death over people, even pesky little prophets, yet Nathan fearlessly confronted the king with this evil. And David repented. (II Samuel 12:13, Psalm 32:5) In David’s moving prayer of contrition before the Lord, which is what Psalm 51 really is, the broken king expressed to God a depth of shame and humility that revealed why, in spite of such a horrible sin, he was still a man after God’s heart.

This psalm provides a powerful case study in authentic repentance. David wasn’t wanting just to off-load his guilt by getting this sin off his chest. He wasn’t just attempting to get a pass by coming clean. He wasn’t just feeling sorry because he had finally been caught. Not at all! David recognized the utter horror of having offending a holy God. He realized the indescribable pain of having messed up the lives of people over whom he had just played God. He fully confessed his wicked act—and the wicked heart that had led to the act. (Psalm 51:5) By so doing, David cast himself upon God’s infinite mercy, recognizing that only then could he be granted a heart that was truly clean, tender to the Lord, and willing to do the things that God desired. (Psalm 51:10-13,17)

Yes, it’s hard to imagine David’s pain! Or is it? Have we not offended the Lord just as coldly and willingly as David? Have we not murdered, conspired, been willfully unfaithful and concealed sin before a holy God who demands holiness of us? Yes—we have! Not visibly, but certainly in our heart—in the inner, invisible, secret core of who we really are—which Jesus pointed out is just as offensive to a holy God and corrosive to our spirit as the physical act of sin. (Matthew 5:21-28)

This psalm of repentance isn’t really about David. It’s about you and me! Which means, in truth, we are in no less in need of the mercy and grace of Almighty God than this heartbroken king. And not only are we, too, in need of a God who will forgive all of our sins, but we are in desperate need of a merciful God who will create within us a clean heart and grant us a willingness to fully obey.

True repentance—what a grace! Only then can we know the deepest and best joy of all: The joy of our salvation! (Psalm 51:12, Psalm 32:1-2 NLT))

“Wherever there is a pulverized and penitent heart, there grace also is, and wherever there is a voluntary confession not gained by pressure, there love covereth a multitude of sins.” ~Menno Simons

Reflect and Apply: As you bring your sins before the Lord today, first reflect on I John 1:9, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”

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Come Clean

Essential 100—Read:
Psalm 51:1-19

“Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.” ~Psalm 51:10-12

It is hard to imagine the depth of David’s anguish as he came before the Lord carrying the guilt and shame of his unholy affair with Bathsheba. He had committed adultery, conspired to commit murder, executed a gifted and loyal soldier and manipulated people like pawns on a chess board to cover his tracks—but lived with an unbearable sickness of soul for the several months during which he managed to keep his dirty little secret hidden. (Psalm 32:3-4)

Then a courageous prophet named Nathan stood before David and stabbed the prophetic finger of truth into the king’s check. David was the most powerful man in the world, a man who held the power of life and death over people, even pesky little prophets, yet Nathan fearlessly confronted the king with this evil. And David repented. (II Samuel 12:13, Psalm 32:5) In David’s moving prayer of contrition before the Lord, which is what Psalm 51 really is, the broken king expressed to God a depth of shame and humility that revealed why, in spite of such a horrible sin, he was still a man after God’s heart.

This psalm provides a powerful case study in authentic repentance.  David wasn’t wanting just to off-load his guilt by getting this sin off his chest.  He wasn’t just attempting to get a pass by coming clean. He wasn’t just feeling sorry because he had finally been caught. Not at all! David recognized the utter horror of having offending a holy God. He realized the indescribable pain of having messed up the lives of people over whom he had just played God. He fully confessed his wicked act—and the wicked heart that had led to the act. (Psalm 51:5) By so doing, David cast himself upon God’s infinite mercy, recognizing that only then could he be granted a heart that was truly clean, tender to the Lord, and willing to do the things that God desired.   (Psalm 51:10-13,17)

Yes, it’s hard to imagine David’s pain!  Or is it?  Have we not offended the Lord just as coldly and willingly as David? Have we not murdered, conspired, been willfully unfaithful and concealed sin before a holy God who demands holiness of us?  Yes—we have! Not visibly, but certainly in our heart—in the inner, invisible, secret core of who we really are—which Jesus pointed out is just as offensive to a holy God and corrosive to our spirit as the physical act of sin. (Matthew 5:21-28)

This psalm of repentance isn’t really about David. It’s about you and me! Which means, in truth, we are in no less in need of the mercy and grace of Almighty God than this heartbroken king. And not only are we, too, in need of a God who will forgive all of our sins, but we are in desperate need of a merciful God who will create within us a clean heart and grant us a willingness to fully obey.

True repentance—what a grace! Only then can we know the deepest and best joy of all: The joy of our salvation! (Psalm 51:12, Psalm 32:1-2 NLT))

“Wherever there is a pulverized and penitent heart, there grace also is, and wherever there is a voluntary confession not gained by pressure, there love covereth a multitude of sins.” ~Menno Simons

Reflect and Apply: As you bring your sins before the Lord today, first reflect on I John 1:9, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”

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The Proof Is In The Pudding

Read: Luke 3

When the crowds came to John for baptism, he said, “You brood of snakes! Who warned you to flee God’s coming wrath? Prove by the way you live that you have repented of your sins and turned to God.” (Luke 3:7-8, NLT)

One thing about John the Baptist—he was certainly no dispenser of cheap grace.  Nor was he too concerned with being seeker sensitive.  He was a preacher of repentance, and when people came looking for forgiveness of their sins, John forced them to show proof of their spiritual sincerity.  Mr. Warm-and-Fuzzy, that John guy!

Actually, as tough as he was, John was doing people a huge favor.  That’s because, no matter how you sliced it, the catalyst for reconciliation with God was authentic repentance.  It still is! You cannot get right with God, be in a loving relationship with him, and live under his blessing without first having come to grips with your sinfulness through genuine, Biblical repentance.  That’s why John made such a big deal about it.

Repentance is not simply an expression of regret over a wrong and a request to be forgiven for the offense, as many think. It is that, but it is more.  Repentance is a change of direction that involves our heart (godly sorrow), our words (confession) and especially our behavior (righteous living). Repentance is not so much a noun, it is a verb—an action word, and the action it requires is three-fold:

First, in our understanding, it involves the knowledge of our sin that leads to a change of mind. Not a wishy-washy, double-mindedness, but a rational intellectual growth that our previous mindset was dead wrong and must be replaced by new and right thinking. In other words, the first step in true repentance involves rational awareness of wrongdoing and recognition that spiritual cleansing and behavioral change is required.

Second, true repentance involves our emotions.  We must feel what our mind recognizes.  We must feel the pain, disappointment and sorrow of offending God, and not just sorrow for getting caught. The fear of being exposed and the fear of punishment are motivations that only lead to inauthentic repentance—which is no repentance at all.

And third, true repentance involves appropriate action that springs from what our mind recognizes and what our heart feels.  In fact, the word repentance—it is “metanoia” in the original Greek text of the New Testament—means a change of course; literally a 180-degree shift in our thinking and in our behavior. There is nothing like changed and consistent behavior to powerfully communicate authentic repentance before God.

Or, as John would says, when it comes to true repentance, the proof is in the pudding:

“Prove by the way you live that you have repented of your sins and turned to God.”

What If God Took Over?

Re-read Luke 3:10-14.  Several different groups of people came to John asking what they must do to demonstrate genuine repentance.  What action step did John assign to each group?  What action step do you need to take to demonstrate repentance before God?  (Remember, you cannot earn your salvation, but you are certainly called to give effort to it!)

 

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Can Your Salvation Pass Divine Inspection?

Read: Mark 1

“The time promised by God has come at last!” Jesus announced. “The Kingdom of God is near! Repent of your sins and believe the Good News!” (Mark 1:15)

Most surveys today reveal a high percentage — consistently within the 80-90% range — of Americans who believe in God, claim Christianity as their faith, think that the Bible is God’s Word, and are sure they will go to heaven when they die. Yet even the causal observer of both the Bible and American society can plainly see the huge disconnect between true Christianity and current culture.

So what explains this critical disconnect? I think it is due to a fundamental misunderstanding of what it means to be saved. Many people assume that if you were born in America, or if you were raised in a church-going family, even a “CEO” family—a “Christmas and Easter Only” home—that you are automatically Christian. Others assume if you simply claim Christianity as your faith, then you are Christian.

Both assumptions are fatally flawed. In fact, any assumption that doesn’t recognize the salvation equation Jesus provided is flawed. There is one way, and only one way, to salvation: Repent and believe the gospel!

Both repentance and belief are two essential sides to the same salvation coin. Salvation begins with repentance. To repent does not simply mean to feel sorrowful for your wrong, remorseful that you got caught or fearful that you will be punished. Biblical repentance means to recognize that you have offended a holy God, experience Godly sorrow over both your sinfulness and offensiveness before God (II Corinthians 7:10) , confess the sinfulness to God (I John 1:9), and—this is a critical part—make a 180-degree turn in the path you are on so that both your current behavior and the overall pattern of your life are now moving in a direction that purposefully and joyfully honors God (Matthew 3:8).

Biblical belief is more than just intellectual acknowledgement of a truth. It is placing faith in the truth of the gospel. And like repentance, this kind of faith/belief requires an alignment of head, heart, and hands—or intellect, passion, and behavior (see Matthew 22:37-39)—so that the entirety of one’s life becomes God-focused, God-directed, and God-dependent. True belief means to so align one’s life that there is no sensible explanation for it without the existence of the God who has called that life into loving, intimate relationship with himself.

Using those definitions of Biblical repentance and belief as a spiritual plumb-line, I have a strong suspicion that the spiritual foundation on which so many Americans are erecting their house of faith would not meet the Divine Inspector’s building code.

Be that as it may, the most important thing at this moment is that Jesus has called you to eternal life. And here is the question of questions: Have you followed his equation—repent and believed in his gospel?

“Either sin is with you, lying on your shoulders, or it is lying on Christ, the Lamb of God. Now if it is lying on your back, you are lost; but if it is resting on Christ, you are free, and you will be saved. Now choose what you want.” ~Martin Luther

What If God Took Over?

Offer this prayer:  “Jesus, I turn my life over to you.  Cleanse me from every sin and forgive my fundamental sinfulness. I invite you to live in my heart as Lord and Savior.  I believe in your gospel.  I place saving faith in you, trusting that you have saved me by your grace.  Thank you for granting me the gift of eternal life.”