Kingsport Sovereign Grace Church,
located at 905 Yadkin Street in Kingsport, Tennessee, would
like to invite you to listen to a message of sovereign grace
by their pastor, Gabe Stoniker. And now, Pastor Gabe Stoniker. If you would like to read along
with me, the message this morning is going to come from 2 Corinthians
chapter 7. 2nd Corinthians chapter 7, and
I'm going to begin reading in verse 10. It says, for godly
sorrow worketh repentance to salvation. Godly sorrow worketh
repentance to salvation. And the godly sorrow that works
true repentance to salvation, it says not only, it says not
to be repented of, it will work repentance that will not be repented
of. But the sorrow of the world worketh
death. Godly sorrow, God-given sorrow
works repentance to salvation. Now the subject and the title
of this message is Repentance to Salvation. And this is what
I want us to look at. What is repentance to salvation? And have I received it? Has God
granted repentance to me? Repentance to salvation. In verse
11, the Apostle Paul gives seven statements in that verse that
describes repentance. It's the evidence. He gives seven
evidences of God-given repentance. And I'd like for us to look at
each one of them and see if the Lord has given it to us. First,
I want to read something to you from Proverbs 16. This is Proverbs 16, verse 25. It says, there is a way that
seemeth right unto a man. There is a way that seemeth right
unto a man. In his mind, it has to be right.
But the end thereof are the ways of death. The end of it is the
way of death. What that means is there is not
a man or a woman on this earth who started out with a correct
understanding of God, sin, or salvation. There's not a man
or a woman on this earth who started out naturally understanding
the truth, a correct understanding of God, sin, and salvation, even
though most everybody believes that they have a correct understanding. But every way that any man or
woman naturally thinks or believes, and we know there are many ways
out there, people have many different thoughts on this, many different
beliefs, but any way in regard to God or sin or salvation that
is not the one way God has declared in this word is the wrong way. and it will lead to destruction
every way but God's one way there is one way will lead to destruction
so what this means is every man and woman on this earth needs
repentance we all starting with me every man and woman now repentance
means the word, the definition of the word is a changed mind,
a changed mind. If a soul is going to be saved,
that soul is going to have to receive a changed mind about
God, about sin, and about salvation. Now if you'd like to look with
me at Romans chapter 2, Romans 2 verse 4 says, or despised thou
the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering,
not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance. The goodness of God. We don't
have the ability to naturally change our mind about the things
of God in sin and salvation. We change our mind about many
things, but we do not have the natural ability to understand
the truth of God, sin and salvation. We must be led to it. And God
is the one who leads us. If we're going to know the truth,
have a changed mind from error to truth, then God is the one
who has to lead us to that. It is his goodness. It is his
kindness that he would lead a sinner to repentance. It's his kindness. And when a sinner is led to repentance,
This is what the sinner is led to. Second Timothy 2 verse 25
says, in meekness, instructing those that oppose themselves,
if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging
of the truth. The acknowledging of the truth. Repentance is the gift of God.
God gives it, and it is to the acknowledging of the truth. Every
man and woman starts out in error. Every man and woman. Every single
one of us started out believing lies. We all did. And it's God's goodness that
leads a sinner to the truth, the truth of his word. Because
if a sinner ever comes to know the truth, the truth about God,
the truth about sin, the truth about salvation, men and women
read this Bible, but it's a closed book. They see stories, many
stories. They see good morality, good
humanitarian efforts, things like the Good Samaritan and But
their eyes are blind and the truth is hid of who God really
is, what sin really is, what salvation really is. But if God
ever leads a sinner to the truth, opens his eyes, opens his mind,
changes his mind, the truth will set that sinner free. The truth
will make him free. Now, before repentance, before
a sinner receives repentance. A sinner believes that God is
altogether such as we are. That's how the scripture words
it. Sinner believes God is just like us. He believes, well, God's
just like me. After repentance, a sinner sees
the truth that he is nothing like me. His ways are not our
ways. The way we believe it ought to
be, the way that seems right, that's not God's way. That'll
be proven to every sinner who sees the truth. Before repentance,
sinners say, God is a God of love. God does not hate. God is not angry. God would not
kill, that's before repentance. After repentance, a sinner sees
the truth. He sees the truth that God is
a God of love only in Christ. There is one place that God is
a God of love only in Christ, outside of Christ. God is a God of vengeance. God
is a God of wrath. Psalm 7 verse 11 says, He is
angry with the wicked every day. Who are the wicked? Me and you,
in our flesh, because we're sinners. We commit sin. Psalm 5 verse
5 says, he hates all workers of iniquity. Sin, sinners. In Deuteronomy 32, he said, I
kill. I kill. Before repentance, man
says, God wouldn't kill anybody. After repentance, they see the
truth in his word. He said, I kill. In Revelation
1, he said, I have the keys of hell and death. Before repentance,
man says, well, God wants everybody to be saved. God's trying to
save everybody. He said, I have the keys of hell
and death. I'm the judge. I send to one
place or the other. In Romans 12, he said, vengeance
is mine. I will repay. I will. Hebrews 10 says, it is a fearful
thing to fall into the hands of the living God. People do
not know that until repentance comes. Fearful, fearful. Before repentance, sinners say,
God is trying to make this happen. God wants so badly to make this
happen. Or God is trying to stop this
from happening. He does not want this to happen. He's trying. He's working. He's
working towards good in your life if you'll just cooperate.
And if the devil won't mess it up, hopefully everything will
be fine. That's before repentance. After repentance, sinners see
the truth that he is God and beside him there is no other. He does what he will with the
army of heaven and the inhabitants of the earth, and none can stay
his hand or say unto him, what doest thou? That's after repentance. That's after God brings a total
change of mind. Now this same change of mind
applies not only to God, but to sin and to salvation. And we're going to see that in
our text. If you want to look back with me at second Corinthians
chapter seven, it says in second Corinthians seven. Now this is
when God gives repentance. This is the evidence of it. This
is what it produces in the center. This is how we can know if God
has given it to us. And I pray God does this for
me. And I pray he does it for you. I pray he will produce this
in us. Verse 11, for behold this self
same thing that you sorrowed after a godly sort. You had this godly sorrow that
led to repentance and he said, what carefulness it wrought in
you. What carefulness. This gift of
repentance. This work of grace that God performs. Paul said, what carefulness it
wrought in you. Careful means full of care. Full of care. All of the sudden,
a sinner cares. Before repentance, a sinner does
not care. And if every man and woman would
get honest, they would know it's so. They just don't care. For so long, the sinner was told,
there is a God. The sinner's response is, I don't
care. He's the true and living God. I don't care. You have sinned against him.
I don't care. He must punish sin. I don't care. The wages of sin is death. I don't care. And then all of a sudden, God grants repentance in his
goodness, in his kindness. And that sinner cries, Oh, dear
God. What have I done? What must I
do? Oh Lord have mercy on me. That was the Apostle Paul's experience. Saul of Tarsus on the road to
Damascus. God changed his mind. You can read about it in Acts
chapter 9. Oh God just changed his mind.
That was the Philippian jailer's experience in Acts 16. He thought
he was in charge of that jail. He thought he controlled who
was in that jail and who wasn't. God changed his mind. That was the experience of 3,000
souls that literally laid hold on the Prince of Life, the Lord
Jesus Christ himself. And they led him to Pilate, crying,
crucify him. We want him dead. Pilate said,
but he's your king. They said, we don't care, crucify
him. Peter stood up on the day of
Pentecost and he preached the scriptures of God Almighty. He told them what the scripture
says. He told them who that man was and what he accomplished
on the cross that they led him to. He bore their sin. He bore all of their sin. He
suffered all of their wrath. He cleared them from every spot
and stain. And 3,000 of them cried, men
and brethren, what shall we do? God granted repentance. He granted
repentance to them. When God grants repentance to
a sinner, he makes that sinner full of care, full of care. It's an awakening. It is. Verse
11 says, what carefulness it wrought in you, yea, what clearing
of yourselves. Clearing of yourselves, not by
denying our guilt and our shame. That's what we did. Before that's
what we did our entire life leading up to repentance. We tried to
clear ourselves The last thing that the flesh naturally wants
to do is admit that it's a sinner That's the last thing but when
God gives a changed mind This is what it teaches us First John
1 verse 9 says if we confess our sins if we confess our sins. He is faithful and just to forgive
us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness if we
confess our sins. Back in Leviticus 13, the Lord
gave his commandment concerning leprosy. It's an amazing commandment. Leprosy. This flesh-eating disease
that represents sin spiritually. Leprosy always represents sin. Our Lord said, if there is one
little spot of leprosy in the flesh, just one little spot,
he's unclean, put him without the camp. If everything else is fine, but
there's one little spot of leprosy, he's unclean, put him without
the camp. And he said, Behold, if the leprosy
has covered all his flesh, pronounce him clean. He's clean. If he is covered from the crown
of his head to the sole of his foot, he's clean. That's how
it is in regard to sin. Most people have this mind. Well,
yeah, maybe I'm a sinner, but I just have some little sins.
Just a couple of little spots here and there. Unclean. After
repentance comes, that sinner cries, from the crown of my head
to the sole of my foot, I'm nothing but wounds and bruises and putrefying
soil. Men and women spend their entire
lives trying to convince everybody else and trying to convince God
that they're not sinners. And when we do that, we condemn
ourselves. Because what we're saying is
we don't need the blood of Christ to cover us. We don't need to
be totally covered. But when repentance comes, As
soon as we receive this changed mind, this is what we'll cry. We'll cry the same thing David
cried. Psalm 51 says, have mercy upon me, O God, according to
thy loving kindness, according to the multitude of thy tender
mercies blot out my transgressions. Wash me throughly from mine iniquity
and cleanse me from my sin, for I acknowledge my transgressions
and my sin is ever before me. Against thee, thee only, have
I sinned and done this evil in thy sight, that thou mightest
be justified when thou speakest and be clear when you judge.
Behold, I was shapen in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive
me. Behold, thou desirest truth in
the inward parts, and in the hidden part thou shalt make me
to know wisdom. He said, Purge me with hyssop,
and I shall be clean. Wash me, and I shall be whiter
than snow. as soon as God-given repentance
causes us to see that from the crown of our head to the sole
of our foot, we are nothing but sin. As soon as God-given repentance
causes us to cry out for the blood of the Lamb to completely
cover us, God says, you're clean. Pronounce Him clean. clear from
all unrighteousness. That's wonderful, isn't it? That's
beautiful. Well, verse 11 here in our text,
it says, what carefulness it wrought in you, yea, what clearing
of yourselves, yea, what indignation. Indignation means greatly afflicted,
much displeased, sore displeased, When repentance comes to a sinner,
that's what he will feel about himself. Every believer relates
to what the Apostle Paul said in Romans 7. He said, Oh, wretched
man that I am. That's what comes with repentance. That's what repentance brings.
I am disgusted. I am much displeased. I'm greatly afflicted by everything
I do, everything that I am. That's not a natural opinion
of self. That is not. A person who has
not received God-given repentance will not feel that way about
himself, not at all, and will not understand why a believer
would feel that way. But the believer understands
it. Job understood it. In Job 42 verse 5, he said, I
have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear, but now mine eye
seeth thee. I've had repentance given to
me. And he said, wherefore, I abhor myself and repent in dust and
ashes. Oh, I hate myself. I hate what
I see. That is God-given repentance. It produces the same thing in
every sinner that it's given to. Verse 11 here says, yea,
what fear. That's the next thing it brings.
Fear means dread. That which strikes terror. It
means reverence. Reverence. Everybody fears hell
and damnation. Everybody does. Nobody wants
to endure that. And the fear of the Lord does
involve a holy fear of God, a holy reverence for his judgment, but
that's not the fear he's talking about. When repentance comes
to God's children, when it comes, they greatly fear dishonoring
him. They greatly fear and reverence
his holy name. They fear bringing a reproach
on His name. They fear not glorifying Him
in the way He deserves to be glorified. They fear not worshipping
Him in the way He deserves to be worshipped. They fear taking
His gospel for granted. They fear so many things. They
fear being an offense to Him, to His people. That's what repentance
brings. Verse 11 goes on to say, what
vehement desire. That means a longing for, to
long after, to pursue with love. David said, as the deer thirsts
for the water books, as the heart panteth after the water books,
so my soul thirsts for thee, O God. Thirst, true thirst. It produces love. That's what
it is, love. Vehement desire also means to
intensely crave possession of. Jacob said, I can't let you go.
I can't. David said, one thing have I
desired. Paul said, I'm willing to let
everything else go that I might have him. I need him. Well, verse 11, the next thing
says, yea, what zeal. Zeal means jealousy. as a husband
for his wife. Jealousy. Now, every time I have
the opportunity to preach a wedding ceremony, I ask this question
to the husband first. Do you take this bride to be
your lawful wedded wife? And do you promise in the sight
of God Almighty, in these witnesses, that you will be to her a true
devoted husband? that you will love, honor, and
cherish her in joy or sorrow, sickness, health, poverty, wealth,
leaving all others you will keep to her and her alone as long
as you both shall live. Do you promise that?" He says,
I do. That's zeal. That's what God
the Father asked God the Son. concerning his bride. Do you
promise? He said, yes, I do. And then
the question is asked to the bride, the same question, do
you promise? And she says, yes, I do. Jealousy. That's what repentance brings.
Well, he said in verse 11, yea, what revenge? This is the last
thing he mentions, what revenge? That means justice. to do one
justice. Repentance, when that is in the
heart of the sinner, that sinner will say, you've done all things
well. You've done all things right.
You're the judge of the earth and you've done it right. Whether
I understand all things or not, you've done all things well.
I bow to your will. I bow to your purpose. That's
the heart of true repentance. And the Apostle Paul said, whoever
receives this gift of repentance has received the gift of salvation. When the heart possesses these
things, that is the evidence that God has shown mercy to that
heart. May God do that for us. Do it
for me, do it for you. Till next week, may the Lord
bless his word to our hearts. You have been listening to a
message by Gabe Stoniker, pastor of Kingsport Sovereign Grace
Church in Kingsport, Tennessee. If you would like a copy of this
message or to hear other messages of Sovereign Grace, log on to
our website at ksgctn.org. If you would like to come and
worship with us, our service times are Sunday morning Bible
study at 10 o'clock a.m., worship at 1045 a.m., and 6 o'clock p.m.,
Wednesday evening at 730 p.m. Please tune in next week for
another message of God's free and sovereign grace.