Digging For Truth : Repentance (Separate page) New

Grievously had the children of Israel “sinned against the Lord their God, ... and wrought wicked things.” “They would not hear, but ... rejected His statutes, and His covenant that He made with their fathers, and His testimonies which He testified against them.” It was because they had “left all the commandments of the Lord their God, and made them molten images, even two calves, and made a grove, and worshiped all the host of heaven, and served Baal,” and refused steadfastly to repent, that the Lord “afflicted them, and delivered them into the hand of spoilers, until He had cast them out of His sight,” in harmony with the plain warnings He had sent them “by all His servants the prophets.” Prophets and Kings, page 291.4 Read entire Chapter 23

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As the disciples waited for the fulfillment of the promise, they humbled their hearts in true repentance and confessed their unbelief. {Quoted in LDE} As they called to remembrance the words that Christ had spoken to them before His death they understood more fully their meaning. Truths which had passed from their memory were again brought to their minds, and these they repeated to one another. They reproached themselves for their misapprehension of the Saviour. Like a procession, scene after scene of His wonderful life passed before them. As they meditated upon His pure, holy life they felt that no toil would be too hard, no sacrifice too great, if only they could bear witness in their lives to the loveliness of Christ's character. Oh, if they could but have the past three years to live over, they thought, how differently they would act! If they could only see the Master again, how earnestly they would strive to show Him how deeply they loved Him, and how sincerely they sorrowed for having ever grieved Him by a word or an act of unbelief! But they were comforted by the thought that they were forgiven. And they determined that, so far as possible, they would atone for their unbelief by bravely confessing Him before the world. { AA 36.1 } also { LDE 184.2 }

A revival of true godliness among us is the greatest and most urgent of all our needs. To seek this should be our first work. There must be earnest effort to obtain the blessing of the Lord, not because God is not willing to bestow His blessing upon us, but because we are unprepared to receive it. Our heavenly Father is more willing to give His Holy Spirit to them that ask Him, than are earthly parents to give good gifts to their children. But it is our work, by confession, humiliation, repentance, and earnest prayer, to fulfill the conditions upon which God has promised to grant us His blessing. A revival need be expected only in answer to prayer. While the people are so destitute of God's Holy spirit, they cannot appreciate the preaching of the Word; but when the Spirit's power touches their hearts, then the discourses given will not be without effect. Guided by the teachings of God's Word, with the manifestation of His Spirit, in the exercise of sound discretion, those who attend our meetings will gain a precious experience, and returning home, will be prepared to exert a healthful influence. {1SM 121.1} {RH, March 22, 1887 par. 1}

Sins that have not been repented of and forsaken will not be pardoned and blotted out of the books of record, but will stand to witness against the sinner in the day of God. He may have committed his evil deeds in the light of day or in the darkness of night; but they were open and manifest before Him with whom we have to do. Angels of God witnessed each sin and registered it in the unerring records. Sin may be concealed, denied, covered up from father, mother, wife, children, and associates; no one but the guilty actors may cherish the least suspicion of the wrong; but it is laid bare before the intelligences of heaven. The darkness of the darkest night, the secrecy of all deceptive arts, is not sufficient to veil one thought from the knowledge of the Eternal. God has an exact record of every unjust account and every unfair dealing. He is not deceived by appearances of piety. He makes no mistakes in His estimation of character. Men may be deceived by those who are corrupt in heart, but God pierces all disguises and reads the inner life. Great Controversy, page 486.2 Read entire chapter 28

These wise men acknowledged a mysterious power accompanying the ark -- a power which they had no wisdom to meet. Yet they did not counsel the people to turn from their idolatry to serve the Lord. They still hated the God of Israel, though compelled by overwhelming judgments to submit to His authority. Thus sinners may be convinced by the judgments of God that it is in vain to contend against Him. They may be compelled to submit to His power, while at heart they rebel against His control. Such submission cannot save the sinner. The heart must be yielded to God -- must be subdued by divine grace -- before man's repentance can be accepted. Patriarchs and Prophets, page 587.3

The second year of famine passed, and still the pitiless heavens gave no sign of rain. Drought and famine continued their devastation throughout the kingdom. Fathers and mothers, powerless to relieve the sufferings of their children, were forced to see them die. Yet still apostate Israel refused to humble their hearts before God and continued to murmur against the man by whose word these terrible judgments had been brought upon them. They seemed unable to discern in their suffering and distress a call to repentance, a divine interposition to save them from taking the fatal step beyond the boundary of Heaven’s forgiveness. Prophets and Kings, page 127.1 Read entire Chapter 9

Scoffers pointed to the things of nature, -- to the unvarying succession of the seasons, to the blue skies that had never poured out rain, to the green fields refreshed by the soft dews of night,-- and they cried out: "Doth he not speak parables?" In contempt they declared the preacher of righteousness [Noah] to be a wild enthusiast; and they went on, more eager in their pursuit of pleasure, more intent upon their evil ways, than before. But their unbelief did not hinder the predicted event. God bore long with their wickedness, giving them ample opportunity for repentance; but at the appointed time His judgments were visited upon the rejecters of His mercy. Great Controversy, page 338.1 Read entire Chapter 18

Those who choose as their criterion a fellow being, liable to err, liable to apostatize, looking to erring man for guidance, will be left to follow their pernicious ways, and by them the truth will be evil spoken of. Making flesh their arm, they will lead others astray. And when men fall into errors, and reveal plainly the spirit they are of, let them alone, if after following the directions Christ has given, you fail to bring them to repentance. Do not clasp hands with them, giving them high places of responsibility. When you do this, the Lord is ashamed of you, because you call evil good and good evil. Many a man has been destroyed by being flattered and upheld in a wrong course of action. {Ms1-1905.7} Read entire Manuscript

The office of the Holy Spirit is distinctly specified in the words of Christ: "When He is come, He will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment." John 16:8. It is the Holy Spirit that convicts of sin. If the sinner responds to the quickening influence of the Spirit, he will be brought to repentance and aroused to the importance of obeying the divine requirements. {AA 52.2} Read entire Chapter 4

Had the profession of the Jewish leaders been genuine, they would have received John's testimony and accepted Jesus as the Messiah. But they did not show the fruits of repentance and righteousness. The very ones whom they despised were pressing into the kingdom of God before them. {COL 278.3}

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