Repentance

The reality of the ugliness, damage and offense of 

personal sin can be challenging to face. Sin is

easy to spot in others but painful to recognize in 

ourselves. We can resent Adam for his rebellion that

infected humanity, yet fail to personally admit the 

cost of our own failings. And while our sins are many,

the reality that our greatest offense is against God Himself does not always bear the weight it should

(Psalm 51:4). God loves sinners enough to allow the cost and consequences of personal sin to accomplish 

their intended purpose. God is being kind when He makes us face our sin so that we will seek

our Savior (Romans 2:4).

Jacob’s sons, (Genesis 42-45) found themselves in a series of events designed by God to unravel their

false security and expose their sin. The sins of their past and their suppressed guilt surfaced. God’s intent 

in revealing their sin was not to shackle them in hopelessness, but to set them free (2 Peter 3:9). In the 

same way, God lovingly reveals our sin. His Holy Spirit convicts us not just of our sinful nature, but of 

specific sin. We feel sorrow for the damage our sin has caused (2 Corinthians 7:10). In faith, we can 

honestly and openly confess our sin to God, who already knows everything about us. We believe that 

Jesus carried that sin on our behalf. God will forgive and deliver us from being held captive by sin. This 

process, known as repentance, is a healthy and wonderful ongoing posture in the life of a Christian.

We sometimes delay repentance until the pain of our sin becomes unbearable. To fail to repent

and to ignore the promptings of the Holy Spirit and God’s tender call to forsake sin is costly.

Sometimes we think that we can muster up strength to clean up the mess before we bring it to God.

To fail to repent from sin means we carry the guilt ourselves, when Jesus died to carry it for us. Daily life,

God’s Word and the Holy Spirit regularly surface specific sin we need to face. To fail to immediately turn

from sin prevents us from experiencing the deliverance Jesus won for us. Jesus rose from the grave,

victorious over sin and death, so we do not have to stay stuck in sin’s trap.

To regularly experience God’s cleansing and power to forsake sin creates a stream of joy and

gratitude to God. Though the believer will continue to struggle with sin until we die or Jesus returns,

we can see growth over time. Repentance is essential to spiritual growth. God lovingly reveals sin

and extends grace when we confess and turn from our sin. God hates sin, but He loves repentance, an

expression of His kindness. Do you recognize repentance as the wonderful grace of God? Run as fast

and often as you can into the healing arms of Jesus.