Prayer of Repentance
by Suzanne Benner
One kind of prayer that is easy to neglect because it is difficult do, is a prayer of repentance. Yet the Bible reminds us that sin which we refuse to confess or acknowledge is a barrier between us and God.
“If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened??? (Psalm 66:18).
“He who conceals his sins does not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them finds mercy??? (Proverbs 28:13).
Although admitting our bad attitudes, destructive behaviour and wrong reactions to God is painful, we have a wonderful guarantee from God. He has promised that regardless of the deeds we have done, if we confess, He will forgive. Period. End of story.
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).
That promise is what makes the onerous task of confession possible.
God forgives us, not because we deserve it, but because of His unfailing love for us.
David provides an excellent example of a prayer of repentance for us to follow:
“Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your unfailing love; according to Your great compassion blot out my transgressions. Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me. Against You, You only, have I sinned and done what is evil in Your sight, so that You are proved right when You speak and justified when You judge??? (Psalm 51:1-4).
Recognizing and admitting that the wrong things we do are against God isn’t easy, but amazing forgiveness and freedom await all who pray a prayer of repentance.
About the Author: This devotional was written by Suzanne Benner. Learn more about Suzanne: http://www.talk.thelife.com/authors/suzanne-benner/
Going Deeper
1. Consider these questions: How have you experienced the barrier that sin puts up between you and God? Why did David think his sin was against God? Do you have a story to share of the release God has brought to your life through confession?
2. Comment on the devotional blog. Interact with others who are reading today’s devotional. Visit http://talk.thelife.com/ and double click on “Comment” (just under the devotional title).
3. Chat: Join us for a 15-minute chat at 10:30 am Eastern, 7:30 am Pacific: http://www.christianwomentoday.com/chat
4. Further Bible study on repentance and God’s power: http://www.journeyofjoy.com/biblestudies/study3.html
Copyright
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10 Responses to “Prayer of Repentance”
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Joe read Romans 6:14-15 especially on Amplified Bible…the verse answers your question!
be blessed!
Joe: Being born again is to live according to the Word of God. To love God with all you might and to love your neighbour as yourself. Hence with this basic knowledge we cant do whatever we want, but we have guidance from the Holy Spirit who will let you know when you are going astray and need to change direction. However we are human and weak, hence we sometime sin knowingly and sometimes we dont realise until later…but in all circumstances we can repent, and faithfully know we are forgiven. To answer your question no we dont have green light but we have the grace and mercy of forgiveness whenever we fail..instead of condeming and judging ourselves…The beauty is we have a choice to do good and be rewarded with blessings or do bad and suffer heartache, pain, fear etc… being born again you know where your peace of mind is and where you can get it…through Jesus Christ.
Terri:
If Christ has paid for all our sins and we are forgiven when “we were born again”, doesn’t that imply that whatever we do in life – good or bad is immaterial since it’s all been forgiven? Do we get the green light to follow our insticts and do as we please without any consideration for consequences?
Joe
The truth is, we are still sinners and will always battle with sin in our lives because we are inwardly bent towards sin. That is the reason God says in His Word that we need to confess our sins and rely on His promise to cleanse us:
“Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, ‘I will confess my transgressions to the LORD’ – and you forgave the guilt of my sin??? (Psalm 32:5).
“Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective??? (James 5:16).
“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness??? (1 John 1:9).
“There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1).
Jane, if you are a follower of Jesus Christ, all your past, present and future sins were forgiven when you were born again. That is a done deal! YOU are forgiven! That Good News doesn’t cause us to go and sin more; on the contrary, it is so wonderful that we don’t want to sin. Confession of our sins as believers is for our benefit – to keep the fellowship with Him as close as possible.
As far as confessing to your ex, I would ask the Lord to direct there. If it would benefit your ex to know what you did, then you probably need to. If it is going to cause him more pain for no reason, then you probably don’t need to. If it is going to affect the fellowship or working relationship you now have with him now, you probably need to. You have confessed to God and now you have confessed to the Body (“confess your faults one to another and pray for each other so that you may be healed” – note, confession heals us). Now the Spirit must lead you to the next step.
“Lord,please give Jane the answers she needs.”
Hi,
I have a question. I committed 2 sins against my boyfriend of 5 yrs. This were committed out of betrayal feelings I was experiencing at that moment. He betrayed me so many times by his lieing and cheating and yet I exercised the spirit of forgiveness and took him back. We broke up just last sunday. I confess to God the sins I committed against him but I did not confess to him. He works in the same office floor as me. Will God still forgive me if I did not confess my sin to my boyfriend? Pls help?
Thks
Praise be to God for this day and for the devotion that we need in our midst all the days of our lives. We do need to repent everytime we know we have sinned, like we say something that is not true or negative to someone, or we have a bad thought (they just pop up!!) the minute we know something is wrong we are to repent and seek God’s mercy and forgiveness…Only God knows when we sin even when our friends, family or close people dont realise it…but God knows and our inner man also and we ourselves feel it!
God bless us all…
I have just started getting these devotionals.
We are looking for a church to attend and I have become so hungry.
How we often need to be reminded to repent and ask God to forgive us of our sins…we go along and think everything is okay when in actuality we mess up everyday.
I am so thankful for God’s grace.
One of the greatest methods Satan uses to separate us from God is shame, or poor self esteem. He likes to whisper in our ear that we will never be able to live up to God’s expectations of us. Praise God that he sent Jesus to be our atoning sacrifice once and for all, so that we may confess to Him all of our shortcomings, and receive the glorious grace He gives freely to us! All we have to do is to repent, and ask Him to help renew us through his Holy Spirit. We will never be “good enough”, as Satan says, by our own strength, but because of the Holy Spirit living inside of us, “all things are possible.” How awesome to think that Jesus is at the right hand of God, interceding for us! Glory to His name!
I look forward to these email devotionals every day. They have most always coincided with what God has been speaking to me through independent study of His word.
Thank you,
beverly nichols