Repentance (Part 5), FORSAKING ALL SIN
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FORSAKING ALL SIN
From: Martin M Overfield
Date: Mon, 24 Apr 2000
Repentance (Part 5)
FORSAKING ALL SIN
Isaiah 55:7, "Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his
thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon
him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon."
Proverbs 28:13, "He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso
confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy."
The forsaking of sin mentioned in Isaiah 55 carries the idea of
"desertion", "to leave or abandon". In Proverbs 28 forsaking sin means
"to loosen, i.e. relinquish", "to retire from; give up or abandon."
(Strong's Dictionary and American Heritage Dictionary).
These Scriptures make clear that God requires the forsaking of sin as a
condition for receiving His mercy and forgiveness. God requires that the
sinner desert, leave, abandon, loosen from, relinquish, retire from, or give
up his sins. With such truth so clearly and emphatically expressed could
anyone misunderstand that God means for the sinner to agree to get out of
the sin business in order that he might be forgiven?
Again, this aspect, or fruit, of repentance is in agreement with all the
previous ones that I have attempted to explain. When the sinner has a
godly sorrow for sin, a broken and contrite spirit over his sins, and
confesses his sins by saying the same thing about his sins and himself as
God says, it is only a logical next step for him to tell God that he is
DONE WITH SINNING.
The sinner must mean business -- for God does -- and must QUIT
SINNING. Yet, he cannot do this on his own. When he truly has the
attitude and determination to forsake his sins, he can depend on God to
help him. God will give the repentant sinner the grace to stop sinning.
Many souls, under old time, Holy Ghost conviction, have quit doing
everything that they knew to be sin, and have started doing everything
that they knew to be right before knowing that they have obtained
peace with God.
Many souls have proven that they are NOT repenting after a godly
sort (II Corinthians 7:10, 11) by the fact that they have a nonchalant
attitude toward their sins and have continued in their sins as though they
were not responsible free moral agents.
I would encourage every sinner to say, "Goodbye" to his sins once
and for all, throwing up "the white flag of surrender" and give up his
rebellion against God. It is then, and only then, that he can cast his soul
at the Savior's feet and trust in His mercy and grace to bring forgiveness
and cleansing from his wicked sins.
"And let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him;
and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon." Oh, how merciful is God!
Oh, how abundantly forgiving He is to those who run from sin to Him!
Yours In Christ,
Martin Overfield
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