The Importance of Repentance
Genesis 42:28 He said to his brothers, “My money has been put back; here it is in the mouth of my sack!” At this their hearts failed them, and they turned trembling to one another, saying, “What is this that God has done to us?” Genesis 43:7 They replied, “The man questioned us carefully about ourselves and our kindred, saying, ‘Is your father still alive? Do you have another brother?’ What we told him was in answer to these questions. Could we in any way know that he would say, ‘Bring your brother down’?”
Almost everyone who attended Sunday School as kids knows the story of Joseph and his brothers. His brothers were jealous of the love their father showed Joseph as “favorite”, and they threw him in a pit, took, and tore his coat of many colors and dipped it in blood, then gave it to their father and said a wild beast ate him. Joseph then was sold, by his brothers, to Egyptians to be a slave, and so on and so forth.
Later, it is apparent that the brothers had confessed their sin to their father Jacob (or Israel). But was there TRUE repentance?
The first verse above shows a guilty conscience in the brothers. This shows us that their sin still had a hold on them. There was no TRUE repentance. The next verse above shows us the 2nd time recorded of them lying to their father. They told him about how the ruler (which was Joseph) questioned them hard about their family. This is NOT TRUE. Genesis 42:12 He said to them, “No, it is the nakedness of the land that you have come to see.” 13 And they said, “We, your servants, are twelve brothers, the sons of one man in the land of Canaan, and behold, the youngest is this day with our father, and one is no more.” 14 But Joseph said to them, “It is as I said to you. You are spies.
Joseph didn’t ask them anything about who their family was, or who they had in their family, but accused them of being spies. The brothers were the ones who just came out and said who they had in their family. So… they lied to their father again. This again shows the hold that sin still had in them.
This is why repentance is so important! We can “confess and confess and confess” all we want, but until we absolutely turn from our sin, there will be no freedom from it.
I dealt with a pornography addiction for far to long before I truly repented from it. I “confessed” day and night that I had an addiction, but I always went right back to it.
First, it took a BEAUTIFUL SALVATION FROM JESUS CHRIST to show me my faults, then a true confession and turning away from that sin and giving my all to God.
By the way, I’m not saying you need to get saved every time you need to repent. That was just my testimony. But, I am saying that true repentance is important to have an everlasting freedom from sin.
Christmas
6 Now there is great gain in godliness with contentment, 7 for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. 8 But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content. 9 But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. 10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs. 1 Timothy 6:6-10
The world views Christmas very different from what it really is. It’s about “stuff, stuff ,stuff” and if they get “stuff” they want more “stuff”, and if they don’t get what they wanted, the sit, sulk, and pout because “she or he doesn’t love me”. Give me a break.
Christmas is about God becoming flesh as a newborn baby, coming into the world as a Savior! Rejoice people! We have salvation from death and the grave! Christ endured the cross for everyone who believes. Believe on Him and have eternal life! (John 3:16)
Don’t be content with just “stuff” people. The only thing you’ll have when you die is your relationship with Jesus Christ. You can’t take “stuff” with you to Heaven. Let Christmas be about Jesus, not what you got for Christmas, or what you didn’t get. Rejoice! We have a Savior!
-In the LIGHT
Nekoda Derouen
In Your Arms
verse 1
When I’m here all alone
When no one can watch me fall away
I keep saying, Lord lead me not,
Lead me not into temptation
chorus
Lord I need your touch
Lord I need you to hold me
In your arms
verse 2
Now I know
I can always count on you
And know I’m saying, hallowed be,
Hallowed be Your name
chorus
Lord I need your touch
Lord I need you to hold me
In your arms
bridge
Will you catch me when I fall?
Catch me when I fall
Will you hold me in your arms again?
