sf1003 - God Calls His People To Repent (Malachi 3 7)
Malachi 3:7
Introduction
When God’s people have sinned, He offers two choices…
Repent or Perish.
Repentance is required before we can experience the forgiveness and healing of revival!
To repent, we must change our minds, hearts, and wills.
Summary Statements
There is a connection between our sin and what is happening to us.
God wants His people to return to a love relationship with Him.
God’s discipline, turning to substitutes, and/or failure to obey God indicates a spiritual problem. These all indicate that our hearts have shifted.
Sin is serious, and we must treat it as we would a serious wound.
Pride may be the first and greatest barrier to revival.
God looks not only on our outward actions; He also looks on our hearts.
After repentance, joy returns to worship.
1A. God’s Call to Repentance
1B. We need to make the connection between our sin and what is happening to us. (2 Chronicle 6:24, 26, 28, 36-39)
God judges His people through…
Ø Defeat by an enemy
Ø Natural disasters; drought, famine, blight, mildew, insect plagues
Ø Illness and plagues
He judges us because we sin against Him.
God’s discipline is progressive.
2B. We need to understand and meet God’s requirements for revival (2 Chronicles 7:13-14).
1. Humble yourselves
2. Pray
3. Seek God’s face
4. Turn from your wicked ways
God promises to hear, forgive and heal.
3B. We know we need revival when the following are true.
1. God’s discipline indicates a sin problem.
2. We have turned to or accepted substitutes for God indicating a spiritual problem.
3. We disobey or fail to obey God’s commands.
These indicate our hearts have shifted and our love relationship with God is not right.
4B. By the time we respond to His call, God already has everything planned for revival (Jeremiah 29:4, 11-14).
God has planned for our best.
God simply requires that we call on Him (Deuteronomy 30:19-20).
2A. God’s Requirements for Repentance
Repentance is a grace of God’s Spirit whereby a sinner is inwardly humbled and visibly reformed. (Thomas Watson)
1B. We must recognize the seriousness of sin (Jeremiah 6:13-16).
Sin is serious, and we must treat it as we would a serious wound.
2B. True repentance means change.
You can’t repent and remain the same.
Ezekiel 8:18 "Therefore I also will act in fury. My eye will not spare nor will I have pity; and though they cry in My ears with a loud voice, I will not hear them."
Why our prayers seem powerless
Isaiah 1:15 When you spread out your hands, I will hide My eyes from you; Even though you make many prayers, I will not hear. Your hands are full of blood.
Hebrews 4:16 Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
A change of mind
“Metaknowa” a total change of mind
Psalm 51:3 For I acknowledge my transgressions, And my sin is always before me.
To “confess” means to agree with God about my sin. To no longer make rationalizations about my sin, no more excuses about why I sin.
A change of emotions
2 Corinthians 7:10 For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death.
The “sorrow of the world” is sorrow for the consequences our sins produce.
Godly sorrow is when we realize our sin breaks God’s heart and then it breaks our heart. We must mourn over our sin and experience brokenness.
Isaiah 53:5 But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed.
Anytime there is flippancy about sin, repentance hasn’t taken place in our lives.
Psalm 51:17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, A broken and a contrite heart -- These, O God, You will not despise.
A change in direction
If you keep going back to the sin, then you have not truly been broken over your sin and repented. You will have a new desire takes place when you truly repent. You will have a hunger in your heart to walk with the Father.
3B. True repentance is granted by God
Repentance requires radical action!
True repentance is not generated by the flesh. It is granted by God.
2 Timothy 2:25 in humility correcting those who are in opposition, if God perhaps will grant them repentance, so that they may know the truth,
Acts 11:18 When they heard these things they became silent; and they glorified God, saying, "Then God has also granted to the Gentiles repentance to life."
Anytime our love for the Lord grows cold, a change is needed.
God commands us to repent!
Acts 17:30 Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent
2 Peter 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.
4B. True repentance is often missed.
Some repent in outward actions and not in the heart.
Our love of sin remains.
Psalm 51:16-17 For You do not desire sacrifice, or else I would give it; You do not delight in burnt offering. 17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, A broken and a contrite heart -- These, O God, You will not despise.
Joel 2:13 So rend your heart, and not your garments; Return to the LORD your God, For He is gracious and merciful, Slow to anger, and of great kindness; And He relents from doing harm.
Our heart must be broken over our sin!
Some repent for fear of consequences instead of hatred of sin.
Ezekiel 36:31 "Then you will remember your evil ways and your deeds that were not good; and you will loathe yourselves in your own sight, for your iniquities and your abominations.
Some repent to please others instead of God.
Psalm 51:4 Against You, You only, have I sinned, And done this evil in Your sight -- That You may be found just when You speak, And blameless when You judge.
Some repent so generally that it is not real repentance - Real repentance is real specific!
Some repent of some things but not others.
Psalm 119:128 Therefore all Your precepts concerning all things I consider to be right; I hate every false way.
Revelation 3:19 "As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent.
Ø “Zealous” means to desire eagerly.
5B. True repentance is a way of life.
Be aware of anything that is in my life that causes me to go away form God.
I need to learn to recognize sin when it comes.
6B. True repentance is both private and corporate.
Private/personal sin should be repented of privately.
Corporate sin involves the church universal and local:
Ø Divorce, apathy, complacency, lack of love for the lost, immodest dress, not seeking straying sheep, not having the anointing of God on lessons and sermon, worldly habits and actions.
7B. True Repentance is both vertical and horizontal
Vertical – all sin is an affront to God!
Psalm 51:4 Against You, You only, have I sinned, And done this evil in Your sight -- That You may be found just when You speak, And blameless when You judge.
Horizontal – when our sin has wronged others, we must ask for their forgiveness.
Rule of confession: confession only goes as far as the effects and knowledge of your sin.
8B. True repentance results in joy.
Psalm 85:6 Will You not revive us again, That Your people may rejoice in You?
Nehemiah 8:17 So the whole assembly of those who had returned from the captivity made booths and sat under the booths; for since the days of Joshua the son of Nun until that day the children of Israel had not done so. And there was very great gladness.
3A. Barriers to Repentance
1B. We do not think we need to repent.
Revelation 3:17 Because you say, I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing' -- and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked --
2B. We think that it is easy to repent.
We think that it is nothing more than saying a prayer and asking God to forgive us.
3B. We presume upon God’s mercy.
Because of God’s great mercy, we presume that we may go on in sin and that God will forgive us whenever we wish.
4B. We think that repentance is too difficult.
Repentance is seen as a tedious thing that requires much effort. We “would rather go sleeping to hell than weeping to heaven: (Thomas Watson).
5B. We love our sin.
Delighting in sin hardens the heart, True repentance requires that we grieve over our sin.
6B. We believe that repentance will rob us of our joy.
We confuse happiness and fun with joy.
“It does not crucify but clarify our joy” (Watson).
Romans 14:17 for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.
“Repentance does not take away a Christian’s music but raises it a note higher and makes it sweeter.” (Watson)
7B. We believe that we cannot be forgiven.
We must remember that mercy rejoices over justice. God’s anger is not so hot but mercy can cool it, nor so sharp but mercy can sweeten it.
8B. We fear what men may think and say about us.
9B. Love of the world.
1 John 2:15 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
Application
Is God disciplining you? Your family? Your church?
Ask God if there are any idols of the heart that must be put away.
Pray through David’s prayer of repentance in Psalm 51. Repent and return to your love relationship with the Lord. What fruit of repentance does He want you to show?
1. Is God disciplining you? Your family? Your church?
2. Ask God if there are any idols of the heart that must be put away.
3. Pray through David’s prayer of repentance in Psalm 51. Repent and return to your love relationship with the Lord. What fruit of repentance does He want you to show?
4. Can you identify a time when your church disobeyed what God wanted?
5. Can you pinpoint ways your church has departed from God and turned to substitutes for Him?
6. Has your church dealt with known sin int the church in the way God commands?
7. Has your church sinned in a way that requires restitution? Perhaps to a former pastor or staff member or in some transactions?