Have you ever gone for a day, or even longer, without praying? I admit I have. Sometimes my schedule gets messed up if I am away from home or if something unexpected comes up, or maybe I’m just too tired before bed? How did Jesus pray all night and have energy to keep going the next day? Only God has the answer to that. Maybe I felt I was “ok” and that I didn’t need to pray to God that day. *Warning Warning!! Red flags all over the place!* Should there ever be a day where we do not take even a few moment to talk to God, to seek His comfort and wisdom? Have any of us lived a “perfect” day without need of repentance and forgiveness?
If we feel no need of repentance then we have no need of God and that is dangerous territory.
In both the old and new testaments, there is a great call to repentance. Remember you cannot accept Jesus as your savior if you don’t feel a need for a savior!
Jeremiah 8:6 “I listened and heard,
But they do not speak aright.
No man repented of his wickedness,
Saying, ‘What have I done?’
Everyone turned to his own course,
As the horse rushes into the battle.”
Job 42:5-6 “I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear,
But now my eye sees You.
6 Therefore I abhor myself,
And repent in dust and ashes.”
Job, unlike the people Jeremiah was speaking about, felt his need for God. He said he had seen God and now abhors (despises or hates) himself. Why? What had Job done wrong? After all, in order to repent, there needs to be a standard against which to compare yourself. As Christians, our truth, our standard, is contained in the Bible. What the Bible says is wicked is what we should consider wicked. The Jews in Jeremiah knew what they were doing but instead of repenting they turned a blind eye and did what they wanted to do. Job was not perfect but he was still “better” than his “friends” and yet standing before God he felt the need to “repent in dust and ashes.”
As Bettie said today that a pastor once told her, (Deidre paraphrase) “We have no need to compare ourselves to others but only to look to God.” In order to be true followers of Christ, we must repent, and yet our God is the God of love, mercy, and compassion. We may come boldy to the throne to receive forgiveness through the ministry of our Lord and Savior.
Psalm 51:17
The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit,
A broken and a contrite heart—
These, O God, You will not despise.
There is a difference between contrition or repentance and having a pity party. True repentance is feeling bad for what you did and not necessarily feeling bad for yourself. That doesn’t mean that you cannot wish your situation was different. Even Paul said he wished he didn’t have “these shackles.” But that doesn’t mean he was lamenting and bemoaning his situation. Instead he used whatever ways and methods he had to further the gospel mission.
Revelation 3:19 “As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent.”
You can repent in dust and ashes but you cannot stay there. True repentance requires a “change” in your attitude and/or behavior. What does being zealous mean? According to the dictionary zealous means “marked by fervent partisanship (allegiance) for a person, a cause, or an ideal; filled with or characterized by eager interest in pursuit of something.”
Acts 2:38
Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”
The Bible promises us that if we have sincere repentance that the Holy Spirit will be with us. What greater blessing could Jesus have left for us? Repent and accept the guidance of the Holy Spirit to live a life zealous for the cause of God. So what does it take to have sincere repentance? Prayer. Maybe a little, maybe a lot depending on the condition of your heart.
Your prayer life and the stubbornness of your heart are, in my mind, the greatest two factors determining how easy or hard repentance will be for you. Of course even Paul said in Romans 7:15 “For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do.” Our best intentions do not always result in the best actions. That is why, like Paul, we must come to God in prayer and ask for His help. Romans 7:24-25 “O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!”
Jesus will not only help us repent but will use our sincerity and changed heart as a catalyst for His work in us and through us to reach others and to be better witness for Him even in our own households. So sometimes you will need to bust out the ashes of repentance, remembering that repentance, forgiveness of yourself and others, and self denial are all essential parts of Christian life… and you don’t walk the path alone, He has already walked it, and is there for you if you will follow Him. So remember this week to take time to repent and receive the blessings promised to you including the indwelling of the Holy Spirit who will strengthen you day by day.