Tuesday, September 2, 2014

Praying for the Heart - a Repentant Heart



Praying for a Repentant Heart

True repentance involves both conviction and confession. Conviction without confession is guilt, but it is the confession that takes away the guilt.

Repentance comes from realizing your own sin and the need to make things right. David wrote Psalm 51 after the prophet Nathan confronted him about his sin with Bathsheba. David named it what it was—sin, transgression, and iniquity. He was admitting what he did. He called it what it was and did not excuse it by using a word like mistake, slip-up, or something else to reduce the severity of the offense.


David realized that his sin was against the Lord. (Psalm 51:4) He knew what delights God’s heart – truthfulness, being honest about our sin, not blaming others or excusing it. Then he asked for cleaning, to be washed. Then that repentance opened the way to restored joy. The relationship was restored and David was praising God.

Our repentance should come from a broken spirit, as we realize what happens as a result of our sin. God will not despise us.

David is called a man after God’s own heart. Yes, he sinned—but it is his repentant heart, his grief over his sin that set him apart as a man after God’s own heart. In our experience, too, repentance leads to a changed heart.

A repentant heart see God’s holiness and his own sin and knows that all he can do is repent. It is through humble confession that the relationship is restored.



Do you see God as holy? Do you understand how our sin breaks our relationship with God and others? Be assured that God delights to hear our confession.

Don't miss the others in this series.

Beth
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