Taking the First Step

Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline; therefore be zealous and repent.

–Revelation 3:19

What does genuine repentance look like? First, true repentance should never be confused with grief. You can be grieved about your sin without turning away from your sin. Second, true repentance never leaves a residue of regret. When you turn around, you’ll feel relief, not regret.

Third, true repentance is a gift from God. In 2 Timothy 2:25, Paul said, “[Correct] those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth.” Your ability to come back to God is a gift from Him. Think about the prodigal son. After months or even years in the far country, Luke 15:17 says the son finally came to his senses, which implies that he had been out of his mind. It made no sense for the son of a wealthy landowner to be in the far country feeding pigs. In the same way, it makes no sense for us to be estranged from the One who created us, loves us the most, and wants nothing but good for us. The only way we will ever come to our senses is by an act of grace that allows us to see things as they really are. Repentance is a gift from God.

Finally, true repentance results in definitive action. After the prodigal came to his senses, he made a plan: “I will get up and go to my father, and will say to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in your sight; I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me as one of your hired men’” (vv. 18–19). Think about what his plan entailed: he had to quit his job, make travel arrangements, write a speech, and prepare for his family to be anything but friendly. But he was willing to do those things because he was sick and tired of living in the far country.

Do you have a sense that all is not right between you and God? Can you see how God has sent crises into your life to get your attention? Are you ready to come home? For you, the first step might be breaking off an immoral relationship. It might be quitting a job that has become an idol in your life. It might be saying no to an addiction. It might be spending five minutes reading the Bible even though you have no desire to do so.

If you’re willing to learn from the reproofs God has sent into your life, if you’re willing to make a U-turn and starting heading toward God then, like the prodigal son, you’re going to find a surprise awaiting you at the end of the journey.

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Today’s devotion is adapted from “The Journey Home” by Dr. Robert Jeffress, 2009.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. www.lockman.org.