This first post in my new blog THINKING IN THE SPIRIT, could
well have been entered in WATCHING IN PRAYER, which I plan to continue to post
every other week. That will not be the case with most of the posts in this
blog. However, I am approaching even this similar entry from a different
perspective and intent.
And as I finished writing this entry, I decided that because
the segments were so short my readers would be tempted to skip over them too
quickly. These are profound truths even though they can be written briefly
and are not difficult to understand. So, I will divide them into three shorter
blog posts on this subject.
The first of Martin Luther's 95 Theses read, "All of
life is repentance."
We may tend to dread repentance and avoid it at all cost.
But that is a wrong view of repentance. Repentance is a relief in the light of
the gospel. And it leads to a life of freedom and satisfaction.
Look at this powerful prayer of David in Psalm 139.
"Search me O God
and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any
grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting."
Searching the Dependence of Your
Heart
One of the primary reasons we need God to help us search our
hearts is that we fall away from depending on Him for righteousness, meaning
and fulfillment. I can avoid examining my heart because I don’t want to admit my
weakness and failings. This ignores the source of my righteousness.
The Hebrew word for thoughts here refers to anxious
thoughts. If I am depending on my own goodness to be sufficient, I will be
stressed to my limit. But we depend on the sacrifice of Jesus for our
righteousness. We come to God in the purifying power of His blood. And we
depend upon Him for our purpose, dignity and fulfillment in our lives.
It is a wonderful relief to repent of finding our righteousness
and fulfillment in ourselves. Repentance does not just turn from lying, but from
the motivation that thinks I need to bolster my position, hide my weaknesses or
gain respect.
What are you depending on that needs the relief of
repentance?
