Unbelievers need to repent of their immorality; religious people need to repent of their morality; both need the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Monergism
Evangelical repentance is ... a gracious principle and habit implanted in the soul by the Spirit of Christ, in the exercise of which a regenerate and believing sinner, deeply sensible of the exceeding sinfulness and just demerit of his innumerable sins is truly humbled and grieved before the Lord, on account of the sinfulness and hurtfulness of them. He feels bitter remorse, unfeigned sorrow, and deep self-abhorrence for the aggravated transgressions of his life, and the deep depravity of his nature; chiefly, because by all his innumerable provocations he has dishonoured an infinitely holy and gracious God, transgressed a law which is "holy, and just, and good," and defiled, deformed, and even destroyed his own precious soul. This godly sorrow for sin and this holy abhorrence of it arise from a spiritual discovery of pardoning mercy with God in Christ, and from the exercise of trusting in His mercy. And these feelings and exercises are always accompanied by an unfeigned love of universal holiness, and by fixed resolutions and endeavours to turn from all iniquity to God and to walk before him in newness of life. Such, in general is the nature of that evangelical repentance, to the habit and exercise of which the Lord Jesus calls sinners who hear the Gospel."
- John Colquhoun
1. Repentance is taking full responsibility for the sin
2. Repentance is turning from the idol we serve to the true God
What do we mean by idols? How does that tie into sin? Sin is not just a transgression of a law of God. It involves a turning from God in unbelief and turning to something else as a "god". When I sin I am saying to God, "I do not trust you. I do not believe your way is good and best. I do not believe you are wise." In place of the true God I worship pleasure, a lover, a lie, my money, a career advancement, my reputation etc. We cannot worship God and sin. we cannot sin without worshiping idols. Deep in the heart of man there is a powerful pull of idolatry. We want to worship this other god because of the pleasure it brings us. That love for sin and out false lover can actually keep us from repentance.
- Mark Lauterbach - The Transforming Community 142-144
| Title |
Notes |
The Doctrine of Repentance  |
Thomas Watson |
All of Life is Repentance  |
Tim Keller (pdf) |
Repentance: Roman Catholicism, American Evangelicalism & Lutheranism  |
Chart - Issues, Etc. |
Here Comes the Judge  |
Michael S. Horton |
The Logic and Lyric of Contrition  |
Robert C. Roberts |
Faith and Repentance - Gifts of God or the Fruits of Free Will  |
Sam Storms |
Repentance: According to 2 Corinthians 7:11  |
John Calvin |
Directions for Hating Sin  |
Richard Baxter |
Calling and Repentance  |
Abraham Kuyper |
Great Quotes on Repentance  |
Grace Gems site |
Repentance Unto Life (Spurgeon)  |
Charles Koelsch MP3 |
What is Repentance?  |
Steve Brown MP3 |
Of Repentance unto Life  |
Gordon Clark MP3 |
The Way Up is the Way Down: Repentance  |
Steve Childres MP3 |
Preaching for Repentance  |
Paul Gardner MP3 |
When Is Saving Repentance Impossible?  |
John Piper MP3 |
The Prophets Speak: True Repentance  |
David Ellis MP3 |
Repentance, Baptism & The Gift of the Holy Spirit  |
Ned Stonehouse |
Repentance Unto Life  |
Charles Spurgeon |
Biblical Repentance:The Need of This Hour  |
L.R. Shelton, Jr. |
The Unrepenting Repenter  |
Jim Elliff |
The Change of Mind  |
Jim Elliff |
How Repentance is Given  |
Charles Spurgeon |
True Repentance  |
Jay Wegter |
Phoney Repentance  |
Roger Ellsworth |
Of Repentance Unto Life and Salvation  |
London Baptist Confession 1677/89 |
True and False Repentance  |
John Calvin |
Biblical Repentance: The Need of This Hour  |
L.R. Shelton, Jr. |
“What is repentance unto life?”  |
James Fisher (1753) - The Shorter Catechism Explained (Q87) |
Of Repentance unto Life  |
Robert Shaw |
Repentance  |
A.W. Pink |
The Gospel and Repentance  |
William Webster |
When Is Saving Repentance Impossible?  |
John Piper |
What Is the Fruit That Befits Repentance?  |
John Piper |
John the Baptist and the Brood of Vipers  |
John Piper |
The Good End of Godly Regret  |
John Piper |
Repentance, Forgiveness, and the Gift of the Spirit  |
John Piper |
Serving the Lord with Humility, Tears, and Trials  |
John Piper |
The Lordship of Christ: True Repentance  |
James A. Stewart |
Repentance and Conversion  |
George Whitefield |
Faith--Spiritual Knowledge--Seeking--True Repentance  |
John Newton |
The Backslider Characterized; Or, The Evil And Danger Of Defection Described.  |
Ebenezer Erskine |
The Need and Nature of Conversion  |
Charles Spurgeon |
Faith and Repentance Inseparable  |
Charles Spurgeon |
The New Nature  |
Charles Spurgeon |
The Doctrine of Repenance  |
E.C. Wines |
Repentance  |
P.G. Mathew |
A Call to Repentance  |
Bob Deffinbaugh |
Repentance  |
R.L. Dabney |
Of Repentance unto Life  |
Westminster Confession of Faith |
Does God Love the Sinner and Hate Only His Sin?  |
John H. Gerstner |
A Public Call to Repentance  |
Richard Bennett |
What's Wrong With Preaching Today?  |
Al Martin |
Understanding the Lordship Controversy  |
J.I. Packer |
God's Part and Man's Part in Salvation  |
John G. Reisinger |
Judgments, A Call to Repentance  |
James Henley Thornwell |
Accepting Christ  |
I.C. Herendeen |
The Conviction of Sin  |
Robert Murray M'Cheyne |
Repent or Perish  |
A.W. Pink |
Phony Repentance, Abundant Mercy  |
Roger Ellsworth - from The Story of Elijah: Standing for God. One of the major problems of the church today is ‘phoney repentance’. Multitudes have walked down the aisle, mouthed the right words, and joined the church only to become ‘inactive members’. |
Conviction for Sin  |
Gardiner Spring |
Repentance  |
J. C. Ryle |
The Difference Between True and Counterfeit Repentance  |
John Colquhoun |
The Blessed Mourners  |
Brian Schwertley |
Sorrow Unto Life  |
Tom Gibson (mp3) - 2 Corinthians 7:8-11 |
Sorrow for Sin  |
Samuel Rutherford |
Can a Believer Repent? (.pdf)  |
Geoff Ashley |
A Call to Repentance (.pdf)  |
Paul David Washer |
Repenting of our Good Works  |
Thomas Watson & Joseph Alleine |
Repentance: The Fruit of Revival (.pdf)  |
John Richard de Witt, Reformation & Revival 1:2 (Spring 1992): 83-96. |
The Reformers on the Necessity for Repentance and Works  |
William Webster |
The Danger of Delaying Repentance (.pdf)  |
Thomas Boston |
Two Essential Things (.pdf)  |
C.H. Spurgeon - repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ."..Acts 20:21 |
Faith & Repentance  |
Charles Hodge |
The Doctrine of Repentance (.pdf)  |
Thomas Watson |