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Repentance

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Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Dec 10, 1872

FromReview and Herald, Vol. 40, No. 26.

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Repentance.

By Joseph Clarke

“Repent ye; for the kingdom of Heaven is at hand.” Matt. 3: 2.
The doctrine of repentance is intimately connected with all the leading truths of God's word; and in order to fully understand the import of the above exhortation, we must have some knowledge of the nature of sin and of its remedy; we must have some knowledge of the holiness of God, and of the perpetuity of his law; and the more fully we understand the whole system of Bible truth, the more intelligent will be our conclusions, and the more thorough and lasting our repentance.
When John preached the doctrine of repentance from sin, he referred to the moral law of ten commands as the law which the people had broken by disobedience; and sin was transgression of that law.
When repentance was preached by our Lord (see Luke 24: 47), no new code of law had been promulgated, or enacted; nor any change made in the then existing decalogue; and when our Saviour spoke of repentance, all, both Jew and Gentile, both friends and opposers, understood alike that the decalogue was the great standard of human action.
When Peter, on the day of Pentecost (see Acts 2: 38), preached the doctrine of repentance, the New Testament was yet unwritten; and the life and doctrines of the Saviour were as yet unknown, except by a few persecuted followers; and the decalogue, or the moral law of ten precepts, was the only accepted standard of moral action. This great moral law was held up by the people of God from time immemorial; and the Jews, in all their intercourse with other nations, had (especially after the captivity) pointed with no little zeal (and perhaps with pride) to this perfect law, contrasting it with the fabulous system of paganism.
Peter, in preaching this doctrine at the feast of Pentecost, gave no notice to transgressors that this law of ten commands was in any way changed, modified, or disannulled; or that the position of the sinner was in any respect different, as to his guilt, from sinners in the previous dispensation; but that there was a new incentive to repentance, “for the promise is to you.” (See Acts 2: 39.)
Peter did not preach a change, even of the remedial plan; but clearly demonstrated that Jesus was the true Messiah, whom the ancients, both prophet and priest, and the wise and good of all ages, had long expected, and longed and prayed for.
In preaching the doctrine of repentance, the apostles left the moral law as the test of moral action; and the Old Testament was still, to them, more precious than before the appearing of the Messiah. Jesus, in opening his counsels to his disciples on the way to Emmaus, after his resurrection (see Luke 24: 26–32), appealed to the writings of the prophets. The apostle Paul did the same in his directions to Timothy (2 Tim. 3: 15–17), when he cited him to the Old Testament scriptures as the only means of salvation.
We would direct the sinner, who is anxious for a complete and thorough preparation for the day of Judgment, when the secrets of all hearts shall be made known, to a prayerful consideration of the great moral law of ten commands, as the perfect basis and test of moral action. The moral law, as given on Mount Sinai (Ex. 20: 3–17), is to test the acts of our sinful race; and if the transgressor of this law feels that he is such, and that he stands condemned at the bar of God, then he is in a position to be helped by the remedial system introduced after the fall (Gen. 3: 15). And by reference to Gen. 4: 4, it is plain that by Abel the plan of redemption was understood; and he offered the blood of beasts in anticipation of the blood shed on Calvary for the remission of sins; and although the plan of salvation was yet undeveloped in the days of Abel, when he offered the firstlings of his flock, yet it was the same as now; it was by repentance of past sins, and by faith in the coming Messiah, prefigured by the blood of beasts, that Abel and all the ancient worthies obtained a hope in the promises, and a faith in a final resurrection to eternal life.
To the sinner anxious for relief from the burden of sin, solicitous for a complete work of transformation, and a full assurance of faith, we would recommend an intelligent consideration of the decalogue, and a prayerful examination of the same, in the spirit recommended by our Saviour in his sermon on the mount (Matt. 5: 27–48). Let him candidly and honestly ask himself, Have I daily, and hourly, and conscientiously, kept the moral law as perfectly as here recommended in this sermon on the mount? Have I kept all the ten precepts, in the letter and spirit, as here set forth? If he has, there is no remedial system needed in his case. To him, a Saviour is unnecessary, except in the case of Adam's fall; and he need not fear but a way will be made for his salvation from the second death.
But no intelligent, candid man, will make this plea. All have sinned; and the convicted sinner would account it blasphemy to so conclude. No! he feels he is a sinner, and deserving of the wrath of God; and a careful consideration of the different requirements of the moral law will greatly help the seeker for light, and truth, and salvation. By a knowledge of these precepts, the transgressor is enlightened as to his guilt, and the very precepts he has broken are there clearly written by the finger of Jehovah. (Ex. 31: 18.)
To the sinner seeking for repentance and eternal life, we recommend the careful study of the decalogue as of the greatest importance; for, falling short of this, his repentance may be partial, or in many instances, delusive. To fail in the work of repentance, to fall short of a thorough work, will in all probability result in failure; for none are so hard to reach as those who have at some past time, as they believe, repented of sin, and yet have very slack and imperfect views of God's requirements.
The audience to whom Jesus and his followers, and his forerunner, John the Baptist, addressed themselves, were well informed as to the law of God. It is true that the Pharisees had loaded the people with unmeaning and traditional observances; but Jesus cleared the subject from this mist and darkness, and brought out the noble and elevating features of the moral law, and sealed the imperishable document by saying, “I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill.” (Matt. 5: 17.)
We have been thus emphatic upon this subject, because there is a tendency at the present time to render indefinite the law of God. Some modify, some expunge, the same, and many classes of religionists do mutually work to this end; consequently, conversions at the present day are often spurious, because the work of repentance is misunderstood. And here we warn those who seek for eternal life, against all that class of religious teachers who in any way modify, change, or expunge, any one, or all, of the ten precepts. All such are dangerous leaders, blind leaders of the blind.
But let us beware of a controversial spirit. Let all our labors and prayers have this for their end: The salvation of our own and others' souls, and the glory of God; how shall I obtain eternal life? how shall I save my own soul, and that of my neighbor? how shall I best please and honor God, and recommend his truth to all with whom I associate?
But again we address the sinner who would not only understand the work of repentance, but would carry out the same in practice. Having studied this perfect law, you find yourself condemned and guilty; your past life rises up before you in all its deformity; you feel that you have no claim upon the justice of God; you cannot say to him, I have done justice and truth, and in my heart and life I am pure. No;but you cry with the publican, God be merciful to me a sinner. And now let me assure you that the more deeply you feel that you are a sinner, the more intelligently and feelingly you realize this, the more likely you will be to find the favor of God and pardon through the mercy of Jesus Christ. The law is your school-master to bring you to Christ. It chastises and corrects you. The Holy Spirit takes this law, and sets it home to your soul, showing you which part or parts of it you have most fearfully broken. You are struck with the majesty and purity of this law; and while it awes and subdues you, it also convicts and humbles you. At the same time, you see its necessity, that without such a law the universe would only be a universal wreck, morally and socially. Thus you feel that you would rather perish forever than to see this law destroyed, or changed in any particular.
In this state of mind, you humbly approach the Majesty of Heaven, and say with the publican, God be merciful to me a sinner. You lay down all rebellious feelings, and evil thoughts. Satan, all this while, will seek to lead your mind astray. He will suggest all the blasphemous thoughts he imagines you will possibly accept; but remember that most evil of all is the suggestion that the law of God has relaxed in its strictness, or changed in its requirements, or that it has been erased.
No! those characters, cut by the finger of Jehovah in the marble tables, remain there still. No change in those precepts! They remain forever. Precious commandments! Precious hand that cut them in the rock! Noble the heart that conceived them! Glorious art thou, Creator of Heaven and earth.
Dear reader, to what conclusion are we brought by this course of reasoning? Is it not that those who deny the perpetuity of the law of God have not even taken the first steps in repentance, and sorrow for sin? unless we charitably hope that the principles of some are better than their opinions, an exception we have sometimes allowed.
But, dear reader, let me warn you not to err in opinions. Even these, if wrong, may yet lead you upon the grounds of Giant Despair, or into some fatal snare or pit in the valley of the shadow of death.
We linger long in the vicinity of the law of God before we proceed far in the work of repentance, because this is an age of lawlessness, and the pulpits of the popular churches are almost silent, if not wrong, upon this subject; and the change made in the priesthood by the Saviour's coming, changing it from the tribe of Levi to the person of Jesus Christ, transferring it from the earthly to the heavenly sanctuary, and with this change also changing, or rather altogether abolishing the temple service, is carried now to a dangerous extreme, and expressions made by the New-Testament writers, relating to the abolishing of this ceremonial law, are interpreted to mean an erasure of the moral law also.
Beware of this dangerous avalanche of religious opinion, sweeping in its course all that is good and precious, leaving a moral ruin behind. If you would have a repentance that shall be lasting, and unto life eternal, revere and love the moral law; make it your school-master, to bring you to Christ, and to call you to him. Jesus is then your refuge and your strength.
Having spoken of the work of the law, let us now look at the work of the Spirit of God. Jesus says, I will send the Comforter. He shall lead you into all truth. He speaks of him as the Spirit of truth (John 16: 7–15). Please read these verses and you will find the work of the Spirit in influencing the human heart in the direction toward repentance.
In different ways, the Holy Spirit moves upon the minds of men; but the test of sin, the moral law, is, and always has been, the same. The spirit of this law is written more or less legibly upon every human heart. This rule of moral rectitude is the only code ever promulgated, which is only ten brief precepts, and comprehends the whole scope of human action. And no crime was ever committed, less or greater, which was outside of this perfect law. All sin and crime, possible and practicable, come within the scope of these moral precepts.
Therefore, the Spirit of God never has abandoned, and never will abandon, the moral law, as the basis of action; and from the frequent and honorable mention made by the New-Testament writers, we may infer that the Spirit of God, taking of the things of God, and so impressing them upon their minds, has forever settled this matter, and established the moral law as the rule, and confirmed the same to all generations of the human race.
The doctrine of repentance is so intimately connected with the Christian life, in all its developments, that it should never be lost sight of; for so fallible is man, that the most mature and settled Christians have at times to recur practically to this principle. Errors and sins should be carefully noted and remembered, and compared with the perfect test; and wherever there is the least tendency to swerve from a direct line of truth and perfection, repentance must immediately follow, or the Spirit will be grieved; and if wrong is indulged, or lightly thought of, and sin is practiced, the good Spirit will finally depart, unless there is a return.
Repentance is a deep and lasting sorrow for sin, arising from a sense of its hateful and disgusting nature, and its tendency to alienate us from God. It mourns in secret places over all heart evils, and strives to overcome them. It incites the sinner to deep humility and self-abasement before God, and cries with the convicted, sinful king David, Create in me a clean heart, O God. And we may say that the sinner who is deeply repentant will always find the 51st psalm to be the language of his heart; and if any one has got so far in the Christian life as to never need the language of this psalm in his own case, his case is an exception to the general rule.
Repentance, when genuine, is in all cases attended by a greater or less degree of contrition for sin; and by conviction, we mean the feeling that David had when he wrote this psalm. The frequent use of this psalm also tends to generate and carry forward the work of repentance in the hearts of such as read the Bible with a view to become right in the sight of God. And the frequent and prayerful perusal of the word of God will always deepen and render permanent the work of repentance in the soul.
Repentance, when genuine, leaves its impress indelibly upon the heart. No Christian forgets for a moment the fact that he is rescued from destruction, a brand plucked from the fire, and that a recurrence to old sins endangers the loss of the soul. He dreads sin as a child dreads the fire. He feels that sin has been the ruin of the race, and that the least approach to it is offensive to God, and that the Spirit of God will not dwell long in the corrupt, and unkept, unwashed, unfortified heart.
Repentance, when genuine, leads to progress in the Christian life. It leads to watchfulness, and it sets a guard over the thoughts, and intents, and motives of action. It frequently asks the heart in which it finds a welcome, How dost thou reason? and decide? and why? Dost thou harbor thoughts selfish and low? Dost thou pass by desires and passions in thy heart that thou wouldst blush to speak in the presence of angels? Repentance, when genuine, keeps up in the heart a constant watch, and repents of and abhors as much the sinful thought as the sinful word or act.
Such being, in brief, the work of repentance, it is clear that it makes men honorable and pure, honest and noble, careful, watchful, and sincere; it draws out the heart after God and holy things, and delights in the law of God after the inward man; and of course, if the inward man is holy and pure, the outward conduct will be elevated and pure; and, at the same time, will be humble, and free from egotism, assumption, and selfishness. It makes the man agreeable and useful to his fellow-men, and causes him to imitate the divine Pattern, who went about doing good to all.
The work of repentance, when genuine, causes man to revere the law and the Law-giver, the Bible and its Author; it causes him to love God, and his work, and his people; it generates and fosters benevolence and disinterestedness, and frees the heart from prejudice and bigotry, and sets free the reasoning powers, because it clears them from the mists and clouds of unbelief, and places full confidence in the revealed word of God, in its true sense, free from fanciful and traditional influences.
Such being the work of true repentance, justification follows, as a matter of course, “justification by faith;” for faith in God and his word has led and prepared the way all along for repentance. Doubts and unbelief obstruct the work and progress of true repentance; therefore faith led the way, and love accompanied faith, and these in a greater or less degree preceding repentance, increased to a perceptible flame upon the action of genuine repentance; and this producing works, immediately produced joy in the Holy Ghost, which is the evidence of justification by faith; and these experiences continued in a life of holiness lead to higher degrees of advancement in the divine life.
He who denies the above principles, and claims to enjoy religion, while living in violation of the same, may at least fear lest his repentance has been spurious, or has been of no lasting benefit, like the seed sown upon ground unfit for cultivation. The prayer of all should be that Satan may not be able to deceive us or lead us astray.
JOSEPH CLARKE.