The Blessings of Repentance

Aim: To be true gospel penitents—by and through the grace of Christ.

Doctrine: Gospel repentance has a cathartic (cleansing) influence on the church. The lower we can go in bemoaning our sin (original and actual), the higher we will go in our experience of Christ.

Exegesis: The stages of soul-searching Christian repentance: we are to be serious about purging out known sin (v. 8b); we are to be sorrowful over our mismanaged values (v. 9); we are to be sincere in our redemptive self-evaluations (v. 10).

Further application: Why the blessings of repentance require godly remorse: because offenses against such a good God grieve the true saints, and this only finds relief in faith-filled sadness over sin.

Key verse: v. 10 ''Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.''