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 God
tells men they must repent in order to be saved (LUK.13:3;
ACT.17:30, e.g.). Some say this is the hardest command to obey.
I don’t know whether they refer to changing the mind (heart)
or changing a practice, but suspect the latter. The man who
would alter his life-style without altering his attitude faces
an almost impossible task. On the other hand, changing the will
not only helps, it almost assures the outward change.
But,
as the starting point of repentance is not changing externals,
neither is it in the changing of the mind, though both are vital
to true repentance. Even behind these there must be godly
sorrow, the seed of character alteration. "For godly sorrow
worketh repentance..." (2 COR. 7:10). Such sorrow is as
necessary as the repentance it produces. Only the contrite
heart is changeable, and even then its sorrow must be of the
"godly sort" (2 Cor. 7:11). Not all sorrow that
pervades and influences the heart is godly. Paul writes of a
sorrow that is "of the world" and which "worketh
death" (2 COR. 7:10). Worldly sorrow does not accomplish
godly ends. Sinners may be genuinely sorry for their wrong-doing
and for the shame and disgrace it has brought to them and their
family WITHOUT BEING PROPERLY CONCERNED ABOUT SINNING AGAINST
GOD!! They may confess and lament their sins, even "come
forward" in tears — but without Godly Grief! Their
response is not Godward; it is not in reference to God;
it is not out of regard for God; therefore, it is not approved
of God. Only godly sorrow can change man’s heart and life in
the way that is "unto salvation."
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In
commenting on godly sorrow, Albert Barnes says this term
"shows the exact nature of that sorrow which is connected
with a return to God." (Barnes on the NT, 2CO.-GAL.).
He continues by showing it to be the kind of sorrow approved by
God; the kind which is exercised toward God in view of sin; and
the kind which leads to God in seeking forgiveness. Joseph saw a
connection between sin and God that all men need to see. When
tempted, he asks: "How then can I do this great wickedness
and sin against God?" (GEN. 39:9). David came to see
sin as Joseph had seen it and his prayer in PSA.51: plainly
indicates his godly sorrow. No man partakes of the divine nature
while being indifferent to sin. "The fear of the Lord is to
hate evil..." (PRO.8:13). The God we sin against is the One
we are to love above all. He so loved us that He gave His Son to
save us from sin (JOH.3:16). The cross shows the magnitude of
sin — but it shows the magnitude of God’s love as well.
Learning of both helps one to come to that godly sorrow that
works repentance — a repentance, as Paul says, that
"bringeth no regret".
How
true! The godly sorrow and all that it leads to — the changed
mind, the reformed life, the salvation — has never brought
regret to a single soul! Reams have been written about the
regrets of men, but the first sentence is yet to be written of
any regret in turning to God. Where is the man who was ever
sorry for having been reconciled to God or having served Him too
faithfully or too long? You’ll never find such a man — and
you’ll never be one either! Dan S. Shipley
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