Many people regret doing all kinds of things in their lives, but regrets, or feeling bad, for something we’ve done only fuels our emotions and does not accomplish what the Lord wants for our lives. Emotions are very untrustworthy. They can put us on a roller coaster ride, so to speak, changing at any given moment. I am afraid that many people experience these emotional feelings in church. A good part of what goes on in church can stir all kinds of emotions, either good or bad.
Regret and repentance are not the same nor do they mean the same thing. You can feel some of the same emotions when you regret something or when you repent of the same things. You can feel remorse, you can weep and be heartbroken, but the difference is, if you only regret you will more than likely continue to do whatever it was you did. If you repent you will try very hard not to do what you did because repentance means to take a 180 degree turn and walk away vowing not to repeat the incident. Regret brings forth worldly sorrow, repentance brings about godly sorrow.
When I was doing the horrible things I was doing before I was truly committed to the Lord, I regretted many of the things I had done. Many days I woke up with a hangover and said I would never do it again just to find myself continuing in the same pattern of life. It seemed like I was powerless to stop the cycle I was in. I am convinced that without the relationship I have with Christ I would still be in that same lifestyle, if I were still alive. Praise God I have been set free, but I don’t think I would be where I am today if all I did was regret the lifestyle I was in. And I definitely wouldn’t be sitting here typing this lesson to help and encourage others that read it.
I think two good examples of what I am saying would be Peter and Judas. Peter denied the Lord three times and this is what is says he did after those denials, it says in Matthew 26:75, “Immediately the rooster crowed, then Peter remembered the words Jesus had spoken, before the rooster crows you will deny me three times. And he went outside and wept bitterly.”
Judas on the other hand betrayed the Lord and this is what the Word says about his response, it is found in Mathew 27:4, “I have sinned, he said, for I have betrayed innocent blood. What is that to us, they replied, that’s your responsibility.” This was Judas’ response to what they said, it is in verse 5, “So Judas threw the money into the temple and left. Then he went away and hanged himself.” Taken from the NIV Bible. I think Peter had godly sorrow and repented while Judas seemed to have only worldly regret. The outcome was so much different, Peter found forgiveness while Judas’ remorse, or regret, ended in him taking his life.
This is a very serious subject so don’t take it lightly. The Word says in 2 Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.”
Be sure that you are not just on an emotional high. Truly repent of your sins by turning away from them and tell the Lord you are truly sorry for your sins then ask the Lord to be the Lord of your life and to forgive you of your sins, and let the rejoicing begin in heaven! Praise God!
Have a great day. And get in the habit of thanking and praising the Lord.
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