 |
||
|
Repentance unto life and salvation 1.
SOME of the elect are not converted until well on in life, having
continued in the state in which they were born, and having followed after
all kinds of evil cravings and pleasures. Then God's effectual call
reaches them and He gives them repentance leading on to life eternal. 2.
There is not a man on earth who does good and is without sin; and
the best of men, through the power and deceitfulness of their indwelling
corruptions and the strength of temptation, may commit great sins hateful
to God. Because of this, in the covenant of grace God has mercifully made
provision that believers who so sin and fall shall be restored, through
repentance, to salvation. 3.
The repentance that leads on to salvation is a gospel grace by
means of which a person who is caused by the Holy Spirit to feel the
manifold evils of sin is also caused by faith in Christ to humble himself
on account of sin. This humiliation is characterized by godly sorrow, a
detestation of the sin, and self-loathing. It is accompanied by prayer for
pardon and strength of grace, and also by a purpose and endeavor, in the
power supplied by the Spirit, to conduct himself in the sight of God with
the consistency of life that pleases Him. 4.
Because we carry about with us (as Scripture tells us) a 'body of
death' biased towards evil, repentance is to continue through the whole
course of our lives. Hence it is every man's duty to repent of each
particular sin of which he is conscious, and to do so with particular
care. 5.
In the covenant of grace God has made full provision for the
preservation of believers in a state of salvation, so that, although even
the smallest of sins deserves damnation, there is no sin so great that it
will bring damnation to them that repent. This renders the constant
preaching of repentance essential. [Previous Chapter] [Next Chapter]
|
||