Friday, March 6, 2020

Being Sorry Is Only The First Step Of Repentance, Not The Last


Godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation…” —2 Corinthians 7:10

Being sorry for our sins is not enough.  Repentance means turning away from our sin, not merely being frustrated and sorry that we continue to sin.  Conviction of sin is a supernatural act of the Spirit of God that brings an awareness of the truth of our sin … all sin separates us from God.  But sin is to the sinner like drugs are to the drug addict.  As Christians we know that sin is not good. That it’s contrary to our new nature, but something drives us to want to cling to that sin. We may even ask God to forgive us, but really all we want is relief from the conviction and the consequences.  We have not abandoned what it is that draws us to that sin.  This is a spiritual struggle. (Ephesians 6:12)  Our struggle with sin manifests itself in our flesh – through physical actions and our thought life.  So it leads us to the question that Paul wrote in Romans 7 …  

I find then the principle that evil is present in me, the one who wants to do good. For I joyfully concur with the law of God in the inner man, but I see a different law in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin which is in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, on the one hand I myself with my mind am serving the law of God, but on the other, with my flesh the law of sin.” – Romans 7:21-25

The danger for us is that we can become complacent about the sins we struggle with.  Even accepting.  Giving in. Rationalizing their presence and persistence. Someone once said that to rationalize is to tell yourself “Rational Lies”. But that is not the life we have been called to.  When you come under the conviction of the Holy Spirit because of your sin, (John 16:8) don’t see it as a problem but as a blessing. A heavenly reminder that you are a child of God.

“ So ….. let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” – Hebrews 12:1-2

By Faith Alone By His Grace Alone And For His Glory Alone

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