The High Cost of Low Living
Repentance is an important topic that is often overlooked. Think about it; when was the last time you came to the Lord, sorrowful over your sin? Maybe you think to yourself, “I haven’t really committed any big sins.” Romans 3:23 assures us that we all fall short of His glory. Without repentance, we effectively mute the Guide of our souls; we turn off the voice of God.
Herod experienced this firsthand. When he succumbed to his wife’s request for the head of John the Baptist, he essentially looked grace in the face and turned it away. John was known for calling out to the masses, “Repent! For the Kingdom of God is near!” Taking his life from him, Herod silenced that voice calling for repentance and closed his ears to conviction.
Jesus was known for speaking to outcasts, prostitutes and the chief sinners. But when Herod inquired of Him, Jesus said nothing. Nothing! Why? Because that’s the price we pay for sin. Without repentance, there can be no forgiveness. Rather than repent and acknowledge his ways, Herod cut off the voice calling him to repent. We must not harden our hearts or turn our ears from the Holy Spirit. It is conviction that leads to repentance, which results in forgiveness. We only have to ask.
This is not a message of condemnation. On the contrary, it is a message of hope! God is calling to you! You are not disqualified from grace if you fail, fall or come up short. If that were the case, we would all be hopeless. But you cannot ignore the still small voice inviting you to change your ways. Repentance has a place in each of our lives. We must stay sensitive to the Holy Spirit, acknowledge our shortcomings, and trust in the Lord to guide our paths.
Is repentance new to you? That’s ok! A good place to start is praying Psalm 139:23-24:
Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts:
And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.
He will bring to light those things that need to be surrendered to Him. The time is now, friends! Repent, for the Kingdom of God is near. And more than ever before, we need Christians to submit to God, repent of their sins, and walk in the boldness that comes from being directed by the voice of the Almighty.
Do you hear that?
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