REPENTANCE AS OUR TRUEST PRAISE
Read Time: 5 min 38 sec
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“Is prayer your steering wheel or your spare tire?"
Corrie Ten Boom
THE GOOD STUFF
LENT DEVOTIONAL 04: REPENTANCE
The practice of repentance is absolutely central to our walk as followers of Jesus Christ. As we read about the ministry of John the Baptist, the central message of his preaching was “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matt. 3:2). And from the very beginning of Jesus’ ministry, the message was the same (Matt. 4:17).
"Metanoia" is the Greek word used in the New Testament that is translated as "repent," and it implies a changing of our mind, a reorientation, and turning of our lives away from sin and toward God. It can be helpful to think of three elements involved with repentance:
The first element is a genuine sorrow toward God on account of sin. Paul calls this Godly grief and contrasts it to worldly grief in 2 Corinthians 7:9-10 – “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.” Worldly grief is being sorry about the consequences of our sin, which is essentially very self-focused. Godly grief is a genuine sorrow toward God, recognizing that our sin is ultimately directed against our Heavenly Father.
The second element is a brokenness of our spirit on account of our sin. David gives us an amazing example of repentance in Psalm 51, and we see David’s brokenness in his words in verses 16&17 – “For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it; you will not be pleased with a burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.”
Finally, repentance involves a turning to God for rescue by submitting to His will. The reality is that we can be tempted to turn to things other than God for rescue, but Paul makes clear that our repentance must be directed toward God as recorded in Acts 20:21 – “testifying both to Jews and to Greeks of repentance toward God and of faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.”
C.S. Lewis provides a summary of repentance that has been helpful to me:
..this repentance, this willing submission to humiliation and a kind of death, is not something God demands of you before He will take you back and which He could let you off if He chose: It is simply a description of what going back to Him is like. If you ask God to take you back without it, you are really asking Him to let you go back without going back. It cannot happen.
-C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity
APPLICATION
What is an area of your life where you need to seek repentance? Though it is difficult, repentance is a freeing act.
Spend time reflecting and seeking repentance during the worship time tonight at 6pm on YouTube.
Mark Wiley | Executive Pastor
STORY
LOVING YOUR ASSASSIN
"Virginia Prodan knew defying the Romanian government in her work would eventually lead to consequences, but she didn’t know she would be held at gunpoint in her own law office. As scenarios ran through her head, knowing she couldn’t physically fight the man sent to kill her, Virginia displayed boldness in one of the most terrifying situations anyone could experience."
Check out this story from Watermark Church about the amazing testimony of Virginia Prodan, who when face-to-face with an assassin sent to kill her said, "I don’t like what you are doing, but God loves you and I choose to love you too."
STAFF PICKS
READ
Parenting: 14 Gospel Principles That Can Radically Change Your Family by Paul David Tripp
What is your calling as a parent? In this life-giving book, Paul Tripp offers parents more than a to-do list or even the latest parenting strategies and techniques. This book truly can change your family and your parenting not because of his brilliant arguments or list of parenting strategies, but his focus on bringing us back to a big-picture view of God's plan for us as parents.
KEY QUOTE: "Parenting is not a behavior-control mission. It is a heart-rescue mission." Parenting your family to love Jesus starts with our LOVE for Jesus as parents. We can tell our kids all about being a disciple of Christ, but they learn what a disciple looks like by watching us.
- Kevin Adams, Kids Ministry Director
LISTEN
The Gray Havens
My wife and I discovered this husband and wife duo a few years ago. They fill a space in Christian music that I wish were more common: story and art songs that explore the gospel and spirituality in subtle and unique ways. If you didn't already expect this from the name, references to Tolkien and C.S. Lewis abound. They write poetic, beautiful songs, and the imagery they create in their music resonates deeply with me. The album "She Waits" is probably some of their best work so far. The recently released "Autumn Sessions" are really cool, and the song "Far Kingdom" has a special place in my heart.
- Ethan Hardwick, Creative Media Director