Blessed Repentance
Repentance Sermon
This was adapted from a sermon I gave at Pleasant Ridge Christian Church in Greensboro NC, on 9/24/2023.
Repentance is a big topic when you look at it. In fact, yesterday, I took a quick look on Amazon for books on repentance. There were plenty of books out there written on just this subject. One book had 12 sermons that Charles Spurgeon had written on the topic. This will not be a deep dive into the subject, but we will address some of the items.
Before we go too far into the subject of repentance, let’s talk briefly about Confession. When we confess, we are admitting that we did something. You can confess to doing good things as well as bad. For example, when we have dinners here at the church we attend, someone may ask who made the banana pudding? They are asking because the banana pudding here is really good, and someone else will then confess that they made it.
Meanwhile, confession could be for a bad thing. We have seen politicians go on T.V. to confess that they did something wrong. Interestingly enough it is almost always after they have been caught. Still, that does not just go for politicians. Many confessions have been volunteered after others have already discovered what happened.
Confessions can also be very shallow. You may have heard someone at some point say, “Yep, I did that. I am that kind of person. What can you do?” That kind of comment can often leave the hearer thinking of answers to that question that are best left in the recesses of the mind.
For Christians, confession is bigger than that. First of all, no matter what we have done we know the Lord has already seen it. It is not really a matter of getting caught afterwards. We were caught during the event. So, when we confess it really is different. God sees things as they happen.
Repentance runs hand in hand with Confession. We are to Confess our Sins, and to Repent from them.
So, what does it really mean to repent? In the Bible, the word repent means to change one’s mind. It also means to change one’s actions. It is a process of refocusing our heart from the sin that we have done, and placing our focus on God.
Think of it this way. If I walked up to a friend, waited for him to look at me, and then punched him in the face, afterwards it would be hard for me to convince him that I didn’t do it. He would have seen it as it was happening. I could lie about it to other people, but my friend would know. I could deny it, but the knowledge of what I did would still be there. It would create a divide in our friendship. I could finally confess that I had done it, and at least I would have admitted it. Yet, there would still be that shadow. Those types of shadows become larger and larger with time. With time you start trying to avoid the other person, until you drift apart.
Likewise, when we sin, God sees it. He knows the impact. As Christians, we usually know that we have done wrong. If we continue with our sin or we try to ignore it, the sin starts to create a divide. We start to push God away. He is there available for us, but we start distancing ourselves from Him.
That is why with Christian’s, confession is followed by blessed repentance. Confession is a statement where you admit the wrong that was done; repentance is saying, “I want to change this, and I need your help.” Imagine the scenario I mentioned earlier. What if I went up to my friend and said, “I did hit you, and I know that I shouldn’t have. I am truly sorry. I was frustrated about something, and I took it out on you. I know I was wrong, and I have to get control of this. I have started taking anger management classes. But what I want to know from you is how I can fix our friendship.”
Is that better than simply saying, “Yep, I hit you. I guess I get that way sometimes. I guess it was wrong.”
I have had a job of some kind for the last 50 years, from my first job mopping floors in the Black Hills Cafe at 13 in Newcastle, Wyoming, until now working in my current position. I have been a supervisor for 30 of those years. One thing I have discovered over the years is that when you make a mistake, it is best not to hide it. You are far better off going to your boss and letting him or her know what happened. But when you go to talk to your boss, have a plan for resolution to the problem when you approach them.
So, when we approach God, we do not just say I messed up. What can I say? I am weak. Say, “Father, I am sorry for what I did. I ask for your forgiveness. I want to take steps to avoid being in that situation again. Please give me the strength to make the right decisions.” Be ready to make the changes in your life that need to be done.
When a person first dedicates their life to Christ, we accept him as our savior. In the book of John we read the words of Jesus as he says, “For God so loved the world that he sent his one and only son. So, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” John 3:16 through 17 (NIV). Before we became believers, we were destined for destruction. We had sin in us. It is like a disease that is in our blood. It comes naturally. Some people believe that there are other really bad people out there, but they are not like them. But we all have it in us.
Jesus said, if you break the least of the commandments it is as if you have broken them all. We can look at it as if sin is the most toxic poison imaginable. Whether you put a drop of the poison in your drinking glass of water or you fill your glass completely full of the poison, the results are the same. Sin will destroy us either way.
But, God gave us the cure, and it is really simple. We must believe that Jesus was sent to save us, but we have to accept that we need saving. What are we being saved from? Sin! So, we have to accept that we have sinned.
Now, a new Christian really won’t understand all of the tenets of sin, but that is ok. We can study God’s word for a lifetime and never understand it all. In fact, I am looking forward to the time that I can sit and talk with the apostles, prophets, and Jesus about the things I do not understand. Still, where one drop of poison in your glass can kill you, one drop of faith can destroy the poison. Confessing our sins and seeking Jesus is worth celebrating. Jesus is our living Savior. Amen?
Ok. So, our sins were washed away when we became Christians. We are forgiven. That means we can do whatever we like. Right?
Well, no. Now, we must live by a different standard. If we are really grateful for the gift of salvation, then we should live a life that is pleasing to the savior.
Yet, once we have become Christians, we still stumble. People often think that Christians think they are soooo Holy. That Christians think they are better than others. It has been my experience that the opposite is true of Bible believing Christians. First of all, to even become a Christian you must accept that you need Jesus, because you are a mess. After all, why would you need a savior, unless you need saving. Second, we are still living in a world of temptation and sin, and Christians are still human. We stumble too.
I have had conversations with Christians who have said to me, “I wonder what people in church would think about me if they knew the thoughts that go through my head. I sometimes think of some really bad things.” Maybe you have had that same thought. Well, it is tough being human, and as Christians we have to fight those thoughts. Remember, the enemy is still trying to trip you up. He loves to see Christians stumble.
That is where blessed repentance comes in. As believing Christians, we can come to God through Jesus, and ask for forgiveness, and guidance, and seek ways to avoid the opportunities of sin.
My wife, Marilyn, gave me a great analogy of repentance for believing Christians. In the upper room at the last supper, Jesus started washing the feet of the apostles. When he got to Peter, Peter at first did not want Jesus to wash his feet. But Jesus said, “Unless I wash you, you have no part with me”.
Peter responded, “Then Lord, not just my feet but my hands and my head as well.”
Jesus replied, “A person who has had a bath needs only to wash his feet; his whole body is clean….
When we first believed, we were cleansed. As believers, repentance takes care of the part of our life that needs washing. As Christians, you may mess up, but it does not mean you are not saved. We are a work in progress.
What are the blessings of Repentance? First, repentance brings us closer to God. Yes, God is with us all of the time, but repentance starts to change our thinking. We start thinking about the things that break God’s heart about our lives. We start asking ourselves how can I be a better servant for our loving Father.
Another blessing is that others will start seeing the change in our lives. Our views will become less self-centered. We will become God focused, and remember that God so loved the world. For God, All Souls Count. When we as Christians focus in this way, racism, elitism, politics, and other things that divide us will start to fade. Friends and family will begin seeing us start to become more loving people.
Finally, repentance shows that we truly believe in the gift of the cross, and that we need Jesus.
So, be happy. Yes, we have messed up, but God is great and Holy. We are blessed by the fact that we can come to God, the Creator of the Universe, the great and Holy King, and seek his forgiveness, guidance, and blessings. Yes, it means we have to turn from our sin, but that is a small price to pay to be blessed by the great I Am. Remember God loves each of us, and he wants to see all of us succeed in our walk with Christ.
Amen.
Have a blessed day,
Layman Ray
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