True Repentance

Title: True Repentance

Illustration:

Text: Hosea 14:1-5 “Return, O Israel, to the Lord your God, for you have stumbled because of your iniquity. Take with you words and return to the Lord; say to him, “Take away all iniquity; accept what is good, and we will pay with bulls the vows of our lips. Assyria shall not save us; we will not ride on horses; and we will say no more, ‘Our God,’ to the work of our hands. In you the orphan finds mercy.” I will heal their apostasy; I will love them freely, for my anger has turned from them. I will be like the dew to Israel; he shall blossom like the lily; he shall take root like the trees of Lebanon;”

Turning away from

Return O Israel, to the lord...

Return means to turn away or turn to (in order to turn to God, we must turn away)

Acts 2:38 “And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”

2 timothy 2:19 “But God’s firm foundation stands, bearing this seal: “The Lord knows those who are his,” and, “Let everyone who names the name of the Lord depart from iniquity.””

A. Your Sins

you have stumbled because of your iniquity...

iniquity- to do wrong, to twist or to be bent

“sin is a twisting/ perverting of God’s ways for our pleasure”

i. Many types of sin to turn away from: Fornication, Pornography & Lust, homosexuality, drunkenness, lying, stealing, murder & hatred, jealously & envy,

1 Corinthians 6:9–10 “Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.”

confession is key!

Romans 10:9 “because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”

300 Quotations for Preachers

“The confession of evil works is the beginning of good works.”

Ex: Peace after confession to my Pastor

but your words have to have weight! not like Catholics! God is not into lip service!

the question is … Do you agree with God about your sin?

300 Quotations for Preachers from the Early Church Let Us Not Be Ashamed to Confess Sin

Let us then not be ashamed to confess our sins unto the Lord. There is indeed shame when each makes known his sins, but that shame, as it were, ploughs his land, removes the ever-recurring brambles, prunes the thorns, and gives life to the fruits that he believed were dead

ii. For the Christian: Unbelief & the lack of faith (Oh you of little faith), gluttony, gossip, Pride, bitterness , un-forgiveness, anger, covetousness

How have you treated you wife, husband, kids lately? how about your boss, coworkers?

Revelation 2:4-5 “But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent.”

Confess and forsake your sins

B. Your way-

Assyria shall not save us, we shall not ride horses...

They were trusting in Assyria for help rather than God

Proverbs 14:12 “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death.”

are you trusting in the worlds way? psalm 1

1 Peter 5:5-6 “Likewise, you who are younger, be subject to the elders. Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you,”

C. Your Gods-

and we will say no more, “our God,” to the work of our hands...

The God’s that you have created to worship

1st commandment You shall have no other God’s before me

Exodus 20:2-3 ““I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. “You shall have no other gods before me.”

What’s Your God? Who do you worship?

The holy spirit’s conviction

The need for holy spirit conviction John 16:7-8 “Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you. And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment:”

Ex: Appendicitis

D. Results of true Repentance

i. Healing

I will heal their apostasy...

This is a promise from God!

Heal means cure or to mend or to make whole

heal corruption/sickness of sin

Isaiah 1:18 ““Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool.”

begins to reverse the effects of sin

Heal broken relationship between your and God

develop a heart of repentance

Psalm 51:10-11 “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me.” perfect picture of repentance

2 Corinthians 13:5 “Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you fail to meet the test!”

ex: Felipe found he had some cancer Pulps during a routing medical check up for prostate cancer