True and False Repentance (Part 4 of 4)

“Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death.  See what this godly sorrow has produced in you: what earnestness, what eagerness to clear yourselves, what indignation, what alarm, what longing, what concern, what readiness to see justice done. At every point you have proved yourselves to be innocent in this matter.”  2 Corinthians 7:10-11  

In concluding this 4 part series on true and false repentance, the distinction between them is the difference between light and darkness.   Perhaps the simplest test to ask of yourself is this:  Are you ashamed to have any person talk with you about your sins?  If you are, all you have accomplished is to experience worldly sorrow, the effects of which are short lived and contrary to what you may think, act only to drive you further from Jesus and forgiveness, then you were before.  Why then do so many, who are still unrepentant sinners, get the idea that they have repented?  The only logical reason is that within the church in America there is a wholesale lack of instruction and discernment respecting true and false repentance. 

I. What true repentance is:

II. How it may be known:

III. What is false and counterfeit repentance:
IV. How it may be known: 

How will false repentance be known? 

1.    It leaves feelings unchanged:  the disposition to sin remains unbroken within the heart.  The feelings as to the nature of sin are not changed, but rather the individual still feels a desire for sin. He abstains from it, only from the dread of the consequences of it.

2.    It leads to hypocritical concealment: The individual who has exercised true repentance is willing to have it known what he has repented.  He who has only false repentance, resorts to excuses and lies to cover his sins, he will cover up his sins with a thousand apologies and excuses, trying to smooth them over, and minimize their enormity.  He commits one sin to cover up another.  Instead of that genuine, open-hearted breaking forth of honesty and frankness, you see a smooth-tongued, half-hearted mincing of words that is intended to answer the purpose of a confession, and yet to confess nothing.  He is ashamed to have anyone talk with him about his sins, his sorrow is only a worldly sorrow, and works only death.

3.    False repentance produces only a partial reformation of conduct:  The change that is produced by worldly sorrow only extends to those things of which he has been strongly convicted of.  The nature of his heart remains unchanged.  He will only avoid those cardinal sins, about which he has been humiliated by.  He has no desire to alter or even recognize the pervasiveness of the sinful life that he lives.   Overtime you will witness that he continually relapses into his old sins. The reason is, the disposition to sin is not gone, it is merely restrained by fear, and as soon as he has a hope and is in the church, he gets bolstered up so that his fears are allayed, you see him gradually wearing back, and presently returning to his old sins.  They love to call this ‘backsliding’, or something in that vein; but the truth is, they always loved their sin, and when the occasion offered, they returned to it.

4.    Lastly false repentance leads to a hardened heart:  The individual who has this type of repentance grows harder in proportion to the number of times he is sorrowful.   If he has strong feelings of conviction, and his heart does not break in response to his guilt, the fountains of those feeling dry up, and his heart more and more difficult to be reached.   Not so a true Christian, take a real Christian, one who has truly repented, and every time the truth bears down upon him, it crushes him before God and he becomes more mellow, more easily affected, excited and broken under God's word. His heart gets into the habit of going along with the convictions of his understanding, and he becomes as teachable and as a child born again.

True and False Repentance (Part 3 of 4)

“Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death.  See what this godly sorrow has produced in you: what earnestness, what eagerness to clear yourselves, what indignation, what alarm, what longing, what concern, what readiness to see justice done. At every point you have proved yourselves to be innocent in this matter.”  2 Corinthians 7:10-11  

Why do so many, who are simply filled with regret and remorse get the idea that they have repented? The only logical reason is that within the church in America there is a wholesale lack of instruction and discernment respecting true and false repentance. This is the third part of a four part series on repentance, touching on four aspects of repentance

I. What true repentance is:

II. How it may be known:

III. What is false and counterfeit repentance:

IV. How it may be known:

This is not difficult, yet so many of us seem intent on making it so. In America today even the clergy seem to have diluted repentance down to regret.  However, just because you call a sparrow an eagle does not make it so.  So what is false repentance?  False repentance is said to be worldly, the sorrow of the world, that is, it is sorrow for sin, arising from the worldly considerations and motives connected to your present life, or at most, has respect to his own happiness in a future world, and has no regard to the true nature of sin.

1. It is not founded on such a change of opinion as I have specified to belong to

true repentance, there has been no change in the mind in regards to sin.  As such the  change is not on fundamental points.

A person may see the evil consequences of sin in a worldly point of view, and it may fill him with anxiety. He may see that it will greatly affect his character, or endanger his life; that if some of his concealed conduct is found out, he would be disgraced, and this may fill him with fear and anguish, but it does not alter his conduct, his disposition, nor does it lead to any restitution to those whom he has sinned against.  It is very common for a person to have this kind of worldly sorrow, when some worldly consideration is at the bottom of it all.

2. False repentance is founded in selfishness.

It may be simply a strong feeling of regret, in the mind of the individual, that he has done what he has, because he sees the evil consequences of it to himself, because it makes him unhappy, or exposes him to the wrath of God, or injures his family or his friends, or because it produces some injury to himself in his lifetime or in eternity. All this is pure selfishness.  

He may feel remorse of conscience--biting, consuming REMORSE—and yet no true repentance. It may extend to fear--deep and dreadful fear--of the wrath of God and the pains of hell, and yet be purely selfish, and all the while there may be no such thing as a hearty abhorrence of sin, no change of conduct, no restitution, no altering of his character;  and no feelings of the heart going out after the convictions of the understanding, in regard to the infinite evil of sin.  You know this person, it might even be you, the person who regrets their sins, the one who feels deep sorrow and remorse for what he has done, but does not turn away from his choice, rather he tells you that God has forgiven him, while he fashions the noose around his neck  (so to speak).   

Judas regretted what he did, Judas felt deep sorrow and remorse for his betrayal of Jesus.  Judas hung himself in remorse.  But Judas was not repentant, and he took his sin with him into hell.   

True and False Repentance (Part 2 of 4)

“Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death.  See what this godly sorrow has produced in you: what earnestness, what eagerness to clear yourselves, what indignation, what alarm, what longing, what concern, what readiness to see justice done. At every point you have proved yourselves to be innocent in this matter.”  2 Corinthians 7:10-11  

Why do so many, who are still unrepentant sinners, get the idea that they have repented? The only logical reason is that within the church in America there is a wholesale lack of instruction and discernment respecting true and false repentance. This is the second part of a four part series on repentance, touching on four aspects of repentance

I. What true repentance is:

II. How it may be known:

III. What is false and counterfeit repentance:

IV. How it may be known:

II. How will true repentance be known? 

It is the purpose of this post to show you what are the works of true repentance, and to make it so clear to you, that you will know without any question whether you have repented or not. You must possess all 5 qualities below to have truthfully repentant, 4 out of 5 simply means that you are lying about the other 4.

1. If your repentance is genuine, there is in your mind a conscious change of views and feeling in regard to sin.  On this you will be just as conscious of this change of viewpoint as your are about any change of view and feelings on any other subject. Can you honestly say this? Do you know, that on this point there has been a fundamental change within you, that the old things are done away with and all things (meaning your viewpoint towards not only the sins you are guilty of, but all sin) have become new?

2. Where repentance is genuine, the disposition to repeat sin is gone.

If you have truly repented, you do not now love sin; you do not now abstain from it through fear, and to avoid punishment, but because you hate it.  How is this with you? Do you know that your predisposition to commit sin is gone?  Look at the sins you used to practice before you ‘repented’.  How do they appear to you now?  Do they look pleasant, or merely acceptable given the right ‘excuse’, would you be willing to commit them again or still, if you knew no one would know?  --If they do or you would, then you are only convicted. Your opinions of sin may be changed, but if your willingness remains to commit that sin remains, you are still an unrepentant sinner; and you are not forgiven, and you are right to fear the punishment that awaits.

3. Genuine repentance works a reformation of conduct.

This to be the idea chiefly intended in scripture, where it says "Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death...” 2 Corinthians 7:10  Godly sorrow produces a change of conduct.  What the Apostle Paul is speaking of was a change of mind that produces a change of conduct, ending in salvation. So again, let me ask you, are you really reformed?  Have you forsaken your sins? Or, are you practicing them still? Here is the big point in case you like so many in our society seem to want to overlook, anything that first begins as a sin, will always be a sin, it does not matter how long you do it, or even if you attempt to make it look right in man’s eyes; for example if you were to divorce your spouse for another woman that you have been having an affair with {Adultery} and then marry that woman a couple of years later, it remains Adultery, you are still a sinner. While you may have changed your mind, about your sin, if it has not brought a change of conduct, an actual reformation, it is not godly repentance, or such as God approves, merely worldly sorrow.

4. Repentance, when true and genuine, leads to confession and restitution. The thief has not repented, while he keeps the money he stole. He may have conviction, but no repentance. If he has repentance, he will go and give back the money and be willing to accept whatever the consequences are for his sin. If you have cheated anyone, and do not restore what you have taken unjustly; or if you have injured any one, and do not set about it to undo the wrong you have done, then your claim of repentance is a lie, you have not truly repented.  You may be convicted, you may feel worldly sorrow, but you do not have Godly sorrow within you as God demands before He will forgive of your sins.

5. True repentance is a permanent change of character and conduct.  Scripture says it is repentance unto salvation that leaves no regret.  What the apostle Paul means by that expression is that true repentance is a change so deep and fundamental that the person never changes back again?  What the scripture means is that repentance that will not be regretted, so thorough is the repentance, that there is no going back (there is no possibility of backsliding) the love of sin is truly abandoned. The individual, who has truly repented, has so changed his views and feelings that he will not change back again, or go back to the love of sin.  Keep this in mind, that the truly repentant sinner now exercises feelings and beliefs of which he will never regret. The scripture says it is "unto salvation." In other words his repentance goes with him all the way to heaven. The very reason why it ends in salvation is because it is such as will not be regretted.  True repentance is such a thorough change of feelings and beliefs that the individual who exercises it comes to hate sin that they will persevere, and not go and take back all his repentance and return to sin again.

True and False Repentance (Part 1 of 4)

"Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death" 2 Corinthians 7:10

Why do so many, who are still impenitent sinners, get the idea that they have repented? The only logical reason is that within the church in America there is a wholesale lack of instruction and discernment respecting true and false repentance. Thus I begin a short series on repentance, touching on four aspects of repentance

I. What true repentance is:

II. How it may be known:

III. What is false and counterfeit repentance:

IV. How it may be known:

I.              What is true repentance?

The short one paragraph definition of True Repentance would be that TRUE REPENTANCE involves a complete change of opinion on the nature of sin, and this change of opinion is followed by a corresponding change of feeling towards sin.  Feeling is the result of thought, not emotion; and when this change of opinion produces a corresponding change of feeling, if the opinion is right (as defined by God) and the feeling corresponds, this is true repentance.  The opinion now adopted, by the sinner would align with the opinion that God holds respecting sin.  Godly sorrow, such as God requires, must spring from such views of sin as God holds, nothing less.

First.  There must be a change of opinion in regard to sin.

To someone who truly repents, sin looks like a very different thing from what it does to someone who has not repented. Instead of looking like a thing that is desirable or fascinating, it looks the very opposite, it is repulsive and detestable, and she is astonished at herself that he ever could have desired such a thing.  She looks at her own conduct as perfectly hateful; she looks back upon it and exclaims, "How hateful, how detestable, how worthy of hell, such and such a thing was in me."

Impenitent sinners might look at sin and see that it will destroy them, because God will punish them for it. However, it appears so desirable. They love it. They roll it under their tongue, savor it in their mouth. If it could end in happiness, they never would think of abandoning it.

Sinners do not see why God threatens sin with such terrible punishment. They

love it so much themselves, that they cannot see why God should look at it in such

a light as to think it worthy of everlasting punishment.  When they are strongly

convicted, they see it differently, and as opinion is concerned, they see it in the same light as a true Christian does, then they only want a corresponding change of feeling to become Christians.

Many a sinner sees their relation to God to be such that they deserve eternal death, but her heart does not go with her opinions.  This is the case with the devil and wicked in hell.  Therefore; a change of opinion is indispensable to true repentance, and always precedes it. The heart never goes out to God in true repentance without a previous change of opinion.  There may be a change of opinion without repentance, but no genuine repentance without a change of opinion.

The unrepentant sinner has almost no right ideas, even so far as this life is concerned, respecting the sin. Suppose she admits in theory that sin deserves eternal death, she does not believe it. If she believed it, it would be impossible for her to remain an unrepentant sinner.  She is deceived, if she supposes that she honestly holds such an opinion that sin deserves the wrath of God forever. However the truly convicted sinner has no more doubt of this than she has of the existence of God. She sees clearly that as a simple matter of fact, sin must deserve everlasting punishment from God.

Secondly.   In true repentance there must be a corresponding change of feeling.

The individual who truly repents, not only sees sin as detestable, vile and worthy of abhorrence, but she genuinely hates it in her heart.  A person may see sin to be hurtful and abominable, yet her heart loves it, desires it and clings to it (you know the person who says adultery is a sin, yet keeps doing it). But when she truly repents, she reels backwards in repulsion of it and renounces it.

The individual who truly repents feels sin as it is.  When she views sin in its tendencies, it awakens a vehement desire to stop it, and to save people from their sins, and roll back the tide of death.  When the Christian sets her mind on this, just as if she saw all the people taking poison which she knew would destroy them; she lifts up her voice to warn them to BEWARE.

She has not only an intellectual conviction that sin deserves everlasting punishment, but she feels that it would be right, reasonable, and just for God to condemn her to eternal death, that so far from finding fault with the sentence of the law that condemns her, she thinks it the wonder of heaven, a wonder of wonders, if God would forgive her.  Instead of thinking it hard, or severe, or unkind of God, that unrepentant sinners are allowed to sent themselves to hell, she is full of adoring wonder that she is not sent to hell herself.  It is the last thing in the world she would think to complain of, that all sinners are not saved, but, it is a wonder of mercy that the entire world is not damned.  And when she thinks of such a sinner's as herself being saved, she feels a sense of gratitude that she never knew anything until she was a Christian.

Examined Christian Faith 'Getting Out of the Hole' 2.5 What is Christainity

All this leaves us with a frightening alternative.  Either the man I have been writing about was and is exactly who He said He is, or he is a lunatic.  It seems obvious to everyone that he is not a lunatic, so however strange, unlikely or terrifying it may seem, one is left with the inescapable conclusion that He was and is God.  God in-fact ahs landed on this enemy-occupied planet in human form. 

But why?  What was the purpose of it?  What did He come here to do?  To teach us, to correct our view on numerous, far and wide ranging issues.  However, you can not escape the current that runs through the New Testament, that always there is the discussion about something different - about His death and His rising again.   Christians believe that the primary point of the story of Jesus lies right here.  The main reason He came to earth was to suffer and to be killed and in the process His death somehow gave us a fresh start.  His death put us right with God once again.  

Christians believe that the death of Christ is that one moment in human history that something absolutely unimaginable from outside the universe shows through into our world.  We struggle with trying to picture the atoms of which our world is constructed, how can we possibility grasp and picture something like this?  We can not possibility understand it, and that is exactly the point, if we could then it would show that it was not what it professes to be – the inconceivable, the one thing that wasn’t created, the thing beyond nature and our universe, striking down into a broken world like a bolt of lightening.  But we do not have to understand it fully, just as I eat dinner every night without fully understanding how that food nourishes me.  A person can accept what Christ has done without knowing how all of it works.  How His death, gave me a fresh start with God.  

We are told that Christ suffered, was tortured and killed for us, that His death has washed our sins away if we believe and obey; that by dying He disabled death itself.  That is Christianity.  But if God was prepared to let us off, why didn’t he just do it?  What possible point could there be in punishing an innocent person instead?  I can’t see any, if you think of punishment in the sense of police –court- prison sense.  On the other hand, if you think of it more as a debt, there is a huge point in a person who has assets paying it on behalf of someone who does not.  

This is just my viewpoint, my picture of how this works.  Think of it like this, a person who has gotten themselves into a hole, usually needs a friend to get them out.  That is exactly the sort of hole that we got ourselves into.  We tried to set up ourselves; we behave as if we belong to ourselves.  In short, we are not a creature who needs improvement, but instead we are rebels who must lie down our arms.  This is where it gets tough, laying down your arms, surrendering, saying you are sorry, admitting you are on the wrong track and are ready to start over again from the ground floor – that, that is the only way out of the hole we have dug.  This process is what Christians call repentance. 

Let’s be perfectly clear, repentance is no fun at all, surrendering your will to His will, shifting your direction into full speed astern is much, much, much harder than merely saying “I’m sorry”.  It means unlearning all the self-conceit and self-will that we have trained ourselves into, it means killing part of yourself, undergoing a kind of death.  In fact, it takes a very good man to repent, and that’s the catch; only a bad person needs to repent, and only a good person can repent perfectly.  The worst you are, the more you need it, and the less you can do it.  The only person who could do it perfectly would be a perfect person- and he would not need it.  

Keep in mind that repentance is not something God demands of you before He will take you back, it is simply a description of what going back to Him is like.  If you ask God to take you back without repentance, what you are really asking Him is to let you go back without going back.  It can not happen, no matter how much you what to pretend it does. 

The same badness that makes us need repentance so much is exactly what makes us unable to do it.  Can we do it if God helps us?  Yes, but we need God to lend us a little of His reasoning power, a little of His love.  God loves and reasons and holds our hands while we do it.  We need God’s help in order to do something that God, in His own nature never does, to surrender, to suffer, to submit, to die.  Nothing in God’s nature corresponds to this process at all.  So the one road we need God’s leadership most of all is the road that God, in His own nature has never walked.  God can only share what He has: this thing in Hi sown nature, He does not have. 

But suppose God became a man, suppose that our human nature which can suffer and die was combined with God’s nature in one person- then that person could help us.  He could help us, He could surrender His will and suffer and die, because He was man, but because he was also God, He could do it perfectly.  Thus you and I can go through this process only if God does it in us.   Just as our thinking can succeed because it is a drop out of the ocean of his intelligence, we can not share God’s dying unless God dies; and He can not die except by becoming a man.  That is the sense in which He pays our debt and suffers for us what He Himself need not suffer. 

I have heard some say that Jesus had an unfair advantage, that His suffering and death must have been easy for him as He was God and knew the outcome.   That the perfect submission, the perfect suffering, the perfect death were not only easier to Jesus because He was God, but were possible because He was God.  If that is correct or not I do not know, but what I do know is that if I am drowning in the ocean and a man who is on a jet ski offers me a hand which will save my life, I will not shout at him “No, it’s not fair!  You have an advantage; you’re on a jet ski”.  The only reason why he can be any use to me is precisely because He has an advantage.  Who will you look to, if not to one that is stronger than yourself?

Like I said this is my own way at viewing what Christians call the ‘Atonement’.  But it is really only a picture; do not mistake it for the thing itself.  And if it does not help you, just dismiss it. 

A great resource to add to your library is "Unless I See... Is There Enough Evidence to Believe?"  by   Patrick Zukeran