Repentance: Complete or Incomplete

Now in those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” For this is the one referred to by Isaiah the prophet when he said,
“THE VOICE OF ONE CRYING IN THE WILDERNESS,
‘MAKE READY THE WAY OF THE LORD,
MAKE HIS PATHS STRAIGHT!’”
Now John himself had a garment of camel's hair and a leather belt around his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey. Then Jerusalem was going out to him, and all Judea and all the district around the Jordan; and they were being baptized by him in the Jordan River, as they confessed their sins. But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming for baptism, he said to them, “You brood of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Therefore bear fruit in keeping with repentance.”
Matthew 3:1-8

Sometimes repentance can seem a little like commercials in that there is no end. We come before God, confess our sins, express our desire for repentance - and find ourselves in exactly the same condition the next time we approach our Father. Biblical repentance means forsaking sin, not simply confessing it. To forsake is to leave behind, to abandon. We repent not just with our hearts but with our actions.

“Oh,” you say, “I wish it were that simple. How can I quit gossiping when I seem addicted to it?” To repent biblically, we must ask God to give us hatred of evil, to give us repentance (2 Tim. 2:24-26). God still hates sin - even in the Christian’s life. Sin is not just a mistake or a shortcoming or a fault; sin is rebellion against God for which Christ died. We possess power in the person of the Holy Spirit to conquer our sin. We can effectively repent of sin because of sin’s Slayer, Jesus Christ, empowers us. We are not left to our own devices, our own will power.

Is there a nagging area of disobedience in your life that you are unable to conquer? Face it as sin; count on God’s unequaled power each day; and preserve as Christ frees you moment by moment from its grip.

“...the kindness of God leads you to repentance.”
Romans 2:4