A recurrent theme in Christian circles is repentance and that’s because it’s a recurrent theme in Scripture. There’s probably not a book in the whole Bible that doesn’t either mention it, hint at it or allegorise it. It seems it’s now often characterised by many churches as just being sorry for what you’ve done, but that doesn’t go far enough. 

In Jeremiah 17:9, we see that ‘The heart is deceitful above all things, and it is exceedingly corrupt: who can know it?’ (ASV). We can repent all day, every day of the sins we’ve committed, but unless we understand that we have to repent of who we are, not just of what we’ve done, we won’t really get it. We won’t deeply feel the need to turn around and go the opposite direction from our own way and begin walking in the way of God. 

We collectively and individually do think and say a lot of terrible things, but those aren’t just bad deeds, they come from the blackness of our hearts. We are enemies and haters of God, which originate in our dark souls. We have to come to the point through the leading of the Holy Spirit where we realise this is what repentance is – a deep understanding of who we really are and who God really is, and only then can we grasp the significance of what repentance means – and where it leads. 

First published on 1 October 2024, at www.gemsofgodsgrace.wordpress.com a personal blog which is not sponsored by Grace Communion International.

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