Repentance

Would you please turn with me in your Bibles to Paul's second letter to the Corinthians will be looking tonight in verses nine through 11 of chapter 7 second Corinthians 7 verses nine through 11. I want to redo the context of this so will begin reading verse two second printing seven beginning at verse two. Make room in your hearts for us. We have wronged no one, we have corrupted no one, we have taken advantage of. No one I do not say this to condemn you for I said before that you're in our hearts to die together and to live together.

I am acting with great boldness toward you. I have great pride in you.

I am filled with comfort in all our affliction. I am overflowing with joy for even when we came into Macedonia. Our bodies had no rest, but we were afflicted at every turn fighting without fear within but God, who comforts the downcast, comforted us by the coming of Titus and not only by his coming, but also by the comfort with which he was comforted by you as he told us of your longing. Your morning, your zeal for me so that I rejoiced still more for even if I made you grieve with my letter. I do not regret it. Though I did regret it for I see that that letter grieved you though only for a while as it is.

I rejoice not because you were grieved, but because you were grieved into repenting for you felt a godly grief so that you suffered no loss through us for godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death foresee what earnestness this godly grief has produced in you but also what eagerness to clear yourselves, what indignation, what fear of what longing what's zeal, what punishment at every point you have proved yourselves innocent in the matter its prey together, Lord Jesus. Your call to us is a call to repent and believe the word tells us that repentance is a gift from God by your word tonight. Give us understanding of what it means to be truly repentant, grant us grace to live in genuine repentance. We pray in your precious name. Amen. It is been said that believers need to preach the gospel to themselves that we need to hear the good news on a daily basis, but we who hold to the orthodox teaching of the church know that every true believer is eternally secure in Christ, he will lose none of those. A father is given him. He will lead raise us up on that day so why should we need to hear the gospel every day that we need to hear the gospel, because as the hymn says, we are prone to wander, Lord, I feel it, prone to leave the God I love our tendency is to stray from the hope that we have in Christ in ways that it may be that we're giving into some sand yielding to temptation. I think more often the problem and are wondering from the path is that we go astray through some pattern of religiosity some Christianity that we've made ourselves and for those of us in the reformed tradition that we may wonder into a focus on doctrine and theology where we are careful with regard to theology and our knowledge of Scripture.

We should be but their inherent dangers knowledge puffs up for not careful, we can easily become prideful in our doctrine. We can drift away in get into the trap of putting our confidence in our file. Our theology and our knowledge more than in the gospel itself if others their Christianity is focused more on the feeling and emotion personal experience and our relationship with God should be deeply felt full of heartwarming emotion, but there's a danger there also. When the feelings fail. We tend to lose sight of the gospel. We been to know the rise of fear in our heart and our doubts begin to confuse us and we are tossed about and set adrift by the winds and the waves of daily life for many, the focus is needed on doctrine oral personal experience, but on performance, always striving to do right, of course, the danger here is twofold. We either failed to meet our own self-imposed standard or we proudly proclaimed that we've achieved some measure of righteousness more often than not comparing ourselves to someone that we judge to be inferior to us in morality when we inevitably fallen and come below that standard that we've set.

We either blame someone else for some circumstance that is out of our control or we tried every foreman try to make ourselves better. We going to pray more willing to read the Bible more than witness more and again we stray from the true gospel by trying to do our best work, rather than trusting in the finished work of Christ.

So we need to preach the gospel to ourselves, to preach it every day all day. We need to hear the call to return to Christ alone. He is the truth which fills sound doctrine is the peace that comes while the emotions he is the fulfillment of all righteousness, in whom the work is finished and the end of the law for those who put their trust in him, and whose through his merit stand justified before a holy judge.

Not only is the gospel call to return to Christ alone is also a call to put our trust in the word of God alone, to rest in his promises to rest in full assurance about what God has said. For example, Jesus said that he came from heaven to do the will of the father and he said that will is that he should lose none of those of the father had given him a raise him up on the last day so they all have eternal life again in his prayer in John 17. He says to the father. I kept them in your name which you have given me of guarded them and not one of them is been lost, Paul assures us that the good work God has begun in us.

He will complete and Peter talks about the fact that our salvation is imperishable. It is For us in heaven. Those of us who by God's power are being guarded through faith for salvation limited to preach the gospel to ourselves because we wonder we stray from the path just as the gospel is the power of God for salvation. It is also the power of God that preserves and keeps and holds us up in the difficulties of life. It is the gospel that crushes our pride in our own knowledge, and religious abilities that delivers us from the shifting sands are emotions that reminds us that the best performance we have is just as filthy rags in God's sight. So we need to hear the gospel every day to be reminded that we are saved by grace alone, and it is not our own doing, it is God's work, a gift from him. That's good news.

But there's another aspect of the gospel that we might at first glance receive as bad news. This was pointed out this morning that the gospel is really twofold in this required response. We hear it from Jesus on lips first chapter of Mark's gospel when he says repent and believe time is fulfilled, the kingdom of God is at hand repent and believe in the gospel believe goes hand-in-hand with repentance.

There is no believe no faith without repentance, justice, faith is a gift from God by grace, so also is repentance a gift granted by God's grace. Jesus was not alone in this call to repentance is found throughout the entire New Testament beginning, even with the forerunner of Christ John the Baptist when he preached a baptism of repentance for the mission. Forgiveness of sins. Jesus first word of proclamation as we mentioned was repent. The disciples when they were sent out proclaimed that people should repent. On the day of Pentecost, Peter stood and preach the gospel and many were cut to the heart by the gospel is what must we do Peter said repent God's kindness. Paul says in Romans is meant to lead us to repentance.

Hebrews talks about repentance is foundational elementary gospel and in the revelation Jesus speaks to the churches in five of the seven churches. He says repent. We need to believe the gospel, and we need to repent before we go further, let me call your attention to some general observations with regard to the need for repentance. First of all, repentance. The need for repentance is universal applies to everyone we hear the declaration of our Lord himself.

In Luke 13, as was mentioned this morning. He says unless you repent you will all perish.

It's a universal requirement.

Paul in speaking to the man in Athens said that God commands all men everywhere to repent. No one is exempt.

This is a universal need. Secondly, the recognition of sin is necessary for repentance. One occasion Jesus was speaking the Pharisees and he said those who are sick, the ones who need the position.

Nothing will so that income to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance. We never come repentance until the Spirit of God convicts us and points to us. The fact that we are sinners we have wronged a holy God. Unless we know there's something wrong. We will seek a cooler has to be a recognition of sin before they can be repentance.

We began looking this morning at Psalm 51 verse three of that prayer. David says I acknowledge my transgressions. My sin is ever before me. Repentance is a universal requirement and recognizing sin is necessary for repentance.

Also, we need to realize that repentance is not just a single one time at once and done. Repentance is something that is an ongoing and continual attitude of the heart ritual and Robert said pastor mentioned his book this morning and one of his statements is this he says it's not enough to say I repented we must be able to say I am repentant. It's a continuing heart attitude.

The call of the gospel, in the words of Jesus is repent and believe in, just as our faith, our belief must be constant, so must our repentance be the need for repentance is universal recognition of sin is necessary for repentance and repentance must be an ongoing continual attitude of the heart to come down to the matter. Repentance itself.

Just what is true repentance.

Do we really understand this essential facet of the gospel. How do we know if our repentance is genuine limited began by sharing some misconceptions or misunderstandings with regard repented some things that are not true repentance, sorrow is not repentance. It is true that repentance often is accompanied by great sorrow, weeping and brokenness, but the two are not equal and there can be deep sorrow without any genuine repentance letter to the Hebrews points us to the example of Esau who, realizing the consequence of his despising his birthright found no chance to repent, though he sought it with tears. The apostle Paul wrote in the passage we read to the Corinthians godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation and worldly grief produces death see the problem with worldly sorrow is that it is self-centered motivated by selfishness and and driven by it's all about me. We are sorry we got call. Sorry we have to suffer the consequences of our sin.

Never hand. True repentance is driven by a love for God concern for his holiness in his name. The truly repentant person turns from his sin without being caught. He realizes how greatly he is offended, the Lord, and he knows what in the front is been to a holy God. Sorrow does not equal repentance. Another misconception about repentance arises from the practice of the Roman Catholic Church Sacrament called penance.

This is something that is practiced in the Roman and Eastern Orthodox churches. It includes confession and repentance and the priest when he hears confession then imposes penance.

He may give you a certain number of repetitions of the memory of the Hail Mary and or that our fathers, the problem is that penance can be performed in a wrote fashion without any real sense of true repentance truth is that to you. I can stack up every attempt at righteousness, for the rest of my life and all I would have God's side is a pile of filthy rags. Penance is not repentance. You know that approach is not limited to those churches that have formalized it in the sacrament. We as evangelicals sometimes practice something similar.

We try to assuage God's wrath by what we do about change of behavior we fall into some sand and then we turn over a new leaf. We start a new week.

Try harder to faithfully do the things we should we is if we could really gain God's favor by something that we do it it doesn't work that way doesn't penance is not repentance, and neither is changing our behavior change in the externals does not equal a changed heart.

Another trap we fall into is the idea that we can be repentant and defensive at the same time it started in the garden of Eden didn't hit 1 million is that woman you gave and now it was the serpent that we left 2.2 some reason why we did what we did. God years ago showed me that tendency. Mellow life early in our marriage. God used Livy to make me realize that it always had an explanation.

There was always a reason why did things I should do or say things I shouldn't say. True repentance means I take full responsibility for my sin and no excuses.

No finger-pointing though trying to shift blame is personal responsibility and another tactic we have is we like to do selective repentance aware comfortable with admitting what Jerry Bridges calls respectable sins, but we don't like to take time for the spirit to drive down to the root underneath the see the problem is that Phelan one point James says were guilty of all of it and true repentance is not selective.

All sin is included in CR problem is not so much what we do. Our problem is what we are. I sin because my center. I live because a liar I rage against my brother because I'm a murderer, belittle others because I'm a selfish, self-centered center circumstances did make me do it. I sin, because I'm a sinner before returning our text to consideration of what true repentance really is. Let's consider one final misunderstanding some wrongly think that repentance eliminates all the consequences of sin are surprised when they have to suffer the results of what they did is a true repentance does free us from the wrath of God that was poured out of his son in our place, but it doesn't mean that all the consequences in this life will be removed just because a drunk driver. Repentance doesn't restore the life child.

He ran over convicted felon doesn't get a get out of jail free card. Just because a repentance.

The repentance of a gossip doesn't restore the reputation of the one you slandered.

There are consequences when we sin and repentance doesn't necessarily remove them and eliminate them. In fact, true repentance often involves restitution will say more about that later on.

So what then is true repentance and how can we know that we've received this gift from God that it's genuine we have read the passage already from Paul's letter to the Corinthians, we found there that he and his commendation of the Corinthians notes that this is for believers. This letter is not to unbelievers. It's to the church. It's to the believers in Corinth and a Kayla but also to us and we put our trust in Christ alone for our eternal salvation returned from dead works to faith in God through Jesus Christ. We need to know and to live true repentance every day. Paul begins by expressing his joy over the fact that the Corinthians were grieved into repenting. He tells them that their grief was a godly grief, not a worldly grief. Not all sorrow leads to repentance. Whenever perfect biblical illustration of this. In two of Jesus disciples.

Peter denied his Lord three times and when the rooster crowed. He went out and wept bitterly in his repentance was genuine. He returned to the Lord and he was restored just as the Lord said he would be Judas. In contrast, was guilty of being a traitor to his Lord.

He also had a change of mind, but it was not genuine repentance.

It was repentance of the world that leads to death not to salvation. Judas went out and hanged himself and Paul commands the Roman the Corinthian church for their godly sorrow because it led to true repentance. And in verse 11. As we read he gives seven characteristics of the truly repentant by which we can test our own repentance process with some trepidation because my son informed me a few weeks back that his homiletics professor told me never preach lists, but if the text is a list he got me with a list so we're going to look at these words that Paul uses to describe what true, genuine repentance is all about.

And by then, we can then examine your own heart and make sure that we are rightly responding to the gospel with true, genuine repentance.

The first word he uses is that of earnestness.

How earnest are we regarding repentance of the word Paul uses here speaks of diligence and eagerness. We should be billing diligent in our repentance eager to repent need to be careful that we don't rush through repentance. I think sometimes we at we treat the matter. Far too lightly and we rush through a confession of sin without allowing spirit of God to drive us into the depths of the sin that will to rush over the surface of the outward behaviors and and not get down to the root problem.

For example, will we're okay with admitting that they were not as faithful in our stewardship is ability sometimes but we don't talk about the fact that the root is greed and covetousness. It's amazing you look through lists of sands in the New Testament many times that business of covetousness is listed along with things like murder and adultery in fornication, but we categorize sins knowingly. We have some that okay that just little things were not okay with the spirit of God driving us down into the root causes.

Paul connects coveting with lust. He said I didn't. I didn't know lost them to Lawson not covet.

We sometimes excuse our anger we say go, what I got. Just go ahead and say it. I get it off my chest is over and done with no recognized fact that many times, that anger is just the fruit of a router bitterness. We hold against God against others so early serious earnest in this matter of repentance. Would you be willing to take the time for the spirit of God to reveal the root of your sin in your heart root that produces the ugly fruit truly repentant person is diligent, earnest and eager to be absolutely right with the Lord that this overarching characteristic of eagerness and diligence then is followed by six other words that fill out our understanding of what true repentance looks like a Paul there in verse 11 says see you look behold what earnestness is godly grief has produced in you but also what eagerness to clear yourselves. The Greek word there and in the Greek text where it was translated but also it's actually repeated six times Paul says not just this overall diligence in earnestness, but also this, but also this, but also this is likely just pressing on to show them all the fruits that accompany their genuine repentance not just earnestness but also eagerness to clear yourselves. The truly repentant are deeply concerned for God's glory for his name for his reputation and they are eager to clear themselves, not for self-justification. But in an attempt to make sure that there is absolutely nothing in their life that brings reproach on the Lord when someone accuses us of sin is our repentance so complete that we stand firm in knowing that we are clear before God. There is no sin, we still hold onto the next tacit Paul gives us is this word indignation. The idea here is one that we are a person who has this kind of indignation is filled with a hatred for sin at any point when Sanders manifested grieves the heart of this person.

The truly repentant person. This is so opposed to sand that it causes sorrow whenever he sees sin in himself or another's. There is an awareness of God's holiness and his glory that any sin causes grief.

We can always tell how genuine our repentance is by our reaction to sin in our life. Do I really love every sin is there an immediate indignation in my heart when sin appears in the July tolerate some sands and let them remain. Do I recognize the sin of any kind has no place in the life of the believer are immediate immediate reaction should be to run to the father and plead for his mercy and for his grace to cleanse the temple and fill it with his glory. You know if if you tolerate clutter and disorder in your home and pretty soon you won't even notice when something new is added to the mass and over time it gets to the point where vermin can move move in and take up residence.

You won't even notice that the home is swept and clean and in order slightest disruption is immediately seen and that's how to be in our spiritual life. We should be practicing such continual repentance before God that the first step off the path is immediately recognized in, and we are filled with indignation and anger toward sin. It also means that we welcome reproof, and instruction. We are eager to clear ourselves of every sin and many times we are not aware until God uses a brother sister to pointed out sources blind spots as places where we are unaware of our need of repentance does repentance produce that kind of indignation, anger toward sin so that we are immediately reacting against it, not just passing it off as a little problem mistake next word. Paul gives us is the word fear. Not sure when I first know that and what what is that mean it doesn't spell out fear of what the one thing that I think is true is that true repentance produces a fear of the deceitfulness of sin. When our repentance is deep and thorough. We realize how insidious how crafty sin is we come to know that without great care and diligence. Sin will creep in and take up residence and multiply. That's why, in the letter to the Hebrews. We are told that we should exhort one another every day, lest any be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin that we need to hear the gospel call to repent. Every day we need to do it. We need true repentance that produces fear of sin's power to deceive, to kill and to destroy. Have you ever given attention to the way sin progresses the way our heart becomes hardened more and more hardened and tolerating things.

It before we did not.

If you allow one sand becomes too quickly becomes for an pretty soon there. Such a hardness of heart, such as seared conscience that nothing really moves you. Remember that the first chapter of Romans where Paul gives us that spiral downward. It begins with a simple failure to honor God or give thanks and then pretty soon that becomes a foolishness of idolatry and then it's on to sexual perversion and total depravity of mind and then he lists some 20 expressions that we get involved in even without a fear of the consequence of death and he says of these things is that those who practice these things are recognize that God's judgment is that those who commit these things are guilty of death. And yet, not only do them but have pleasure in those who do so we need to be very careful that we are not caught up in this spiral downward. We need to preach the gospel to ourselves every day so that we are not deceived by sin, by the way those 20 some sands that he lists there we we think that's the bottom of the barrel, we know what's included in the bottom of the barrel.

Things like gossip and boasting and being disobedient to parents back to the text we find the word longing will have longings and desires. Things that move us to pursue the things we long for some of our longings are God-given desire for food for water longing for love and acceptance that Jesus talked about our legitimate needs. In the sermon on the Mount and he said you you have these needs, but you're not to be anxious because the father Artie knows what your needs are before you even asking the command is seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness truly repentant person has right priorities. He puts the kingdom of God and his righteousness ahead of everything else we need to ask ourselves what what do I long for. How fervent is my longing for the things of God. I love King James translations what I grew up with and it's kind of ingrained in me but I love their translation of this word here.

Call it vehement desire. What is it that I vehemently desire in my life. How much time and energy do I give to Christ kingdom every day when life comes to a halt when when circumstances pull you up short when longing fills your heart. Do you see God in those moments does his kingdom and righteousness occupy your mind will over a year ago. All of us were kinda jerked up partly when all of a sudden this covert thing hit and suddenly businesses were closed. Jobs were lost. We had to stay home start wearing masks and all kinds of crazy things went on and you know I suspect that many of us spend a lot more time in our minds and hearts, railing against authority than we did seeking God's kingdom and his righteousness. How many of us took the extra time being forced to stay at home to deepen our relationships within the home with our spouse and their children. How many did we use that time to dig into the word of God and to seek God's face and say, God, what are you doing, what I'm I supposed to learn in all this. So. True repentance produces all longing for God above everything else we need to be gripped by a fervent longing of vehement desire for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, the kind of fervor that characterizes truly repentant people.

In fact, the very next word Paul uses here is this word zeal we all know what it's like to be around someone who has just come to know Lord and then saved out of the depravity and the just the dramatic sin hold of sin in their life and they're so excited, and they want to do everything to serve the Lord and to tell others about him that this is is a very strong word. This word zeal. Think about how the early church had this zeal of the Lord how they gathered with other believers on a daily basis and they serve each other, even to the point of selling their possessions and their lands to meet needs, how they faced persecution would not turn away from proclaiming the gospel. They turn the world upside down. Truth is too many of us have bought into the idea that zeal and fervor for Christ is just extremism and fanaticism and we don't want to be ridiculed and ostracized and so we are content to be secret disciples like a Stealth bomber moving through the world. Paul says the Corinthian believers demonstrate the earnestness of their repentance with great zeal should be a part of normal Christianity is evidence of true repentance. One final characteristic of true repentance and will be through with this list. The word is a little difficult to translate the ESV uses the word punishment King James says revenge the translations instead of binging of wrong or eagerness a readiness to see justice done. I think the idea is that truly repentant people are eager to do whatever they can to make right what they've done wrong is a desire to make restitution if at all possible. See true repentance is not just a change of mind about the sand commitment to turn from it is also a willingness to make right what we've done in the wrong in the past that is wrong. There is a need for restitution and we seek to do what we can to do that to make that restitution. This need is made clear in the Old Testament where one who becomes aware of wrong they committed is required to make restitution even add 1/5 part two. It so that there's restitution we we need to have the attitude that Samuel had remember when the Israelites called for Keenan Samuel was instructed by God to give them what they're asking for it came to the end of his ministry and he gathered all the people before him. He said okay bear witness against me what I done wrong anybody imagine standing up for everybody that you ever known that you've ever had interaction with his okay here I am bear witness what I done anything I done and you haven't tried to make it right. We need to have that attitude of doing everything we can to set right the wrongs that we've done so as we close, we need to ask ourselves the question, am I truly repentant, not because I've achieved achieved a level repentance. But because God in his grace, just as he's given me faith has given me the gift of repentance, something God grants, but we have ways of knowing if that's true in our lives is their interests and earnestness and diligence in eagerness to turn from sin to the Lord, but eager to deal with sin in my life & not just the ones that I think are necessary to correspond with indignation toward every sin in my life.

Do I fear the deceitfulness of sin run from temptation is in the longing of my heart. First and foremost to seek the kingdom, the righteousness of God was zealous for the gospel made every effort to write all my wrongs. This is this is heavy stuff is not real, uplifting and joyful, but with all of God's commands.

There's always the promise and God has said that when we repent and turn from sand and run to him. He liked the product of the prodigal's father will run to us with open arms receive some shower us with blessing's promises that if we confess our sins if we agree with him about our sin, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness was pretty, have mercy upon the old God, according to thy lovingkindness.

According to the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions, wash me thoroughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin, frog knowledge, my transgressions and my sin is ever before me against the, the only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight, create in me a clean heart old God, and renew a right spirit within me, cast me not away from my presence and take not thy Holy Spirit from the restore unto me the joy of thy salvation, and uphold me with thy free spirit, we pray in the precious name of Jesus and