I'm speaking today from the book
of Revelation, chapter 16, verse 9. Chapter 16, verse 9. Now here's the subject. I could
give this message one of two titles. The first is, Have You
Repented? Have You Repented? Or the second
title is, True Repentance Glorifies God Almighty. Now let me read
from Revelation, chapter 16, verse 9. It says, and men were
scorched with great heat, and they blasphemed the name of God,
who hath power over these plagues, who sent the plagues, who has
power to give them or to withhold them, to stop them. And they
repented not to give God the glory. They repented not to give
God the glory. Now, John the Baptist, the forerunner
of Jesus Christ, our Lord, came preaching repentance. That was
his message. Bring forth fruits, meat for
repentance. Repent. That's what he came crying.
The scripture says that our Lord Jesus Christ began to preach
and to cry, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish. That was one of his first messages.
Repent or perish. The apostle Paul wrote God commandeth
all men everywhere to repent. Once in a while, we'll see cartoons
of strange, weird-looking characters dressed in long white gowns carrying
signs which read, repent, repent, or perish, repent. Well, what
is repentance? Let's see if we can find out
today from the Word of God what this thing called repentance
really is. Now, I believe the first thing
that ought to be done in defining repentance or any other Bible
term, especially in our day, is to state what it is not, what
repentance is not. Now, if you want to jot these
things down, I'd like you to do so because I've given this
some careful, prayerful thought, and I'm interested in the subject
repentance. I'm interested to know if I've
repented or if you've repented or if any of us have repented.
Our Lord said, except you repent, you'll perish. God commands all
men everywhere to repent. Now, what repentance is not? Well, it's not. First of all,
it is not a sorrow over sin because we're afraid we're going to be
punished. Now, that's not repentance. It's
not, and we'll put this in plain old everyday language. Repentance
is not a sorrow for sin. that is born of a fear of punishment. Now that was Cain's repentance. You remember Cain brought a sacrifice,
an offering of his works, of the fruits of his field. He rejected
God's sacrifice. He rejected the blood. He rejected
the type of Christ. And he brought his own thoughts
of an offering before God on the altar. And his brother Abel
brought the first thing of the flock, the lamb, and shed the
blood, the blood sacrifice. And God had respect to Abel's
offering, but to Cain's offering, he had no respect. And Cain got
angry, envious of his brother, and rose up and killed his brother.
And then God came to him and said, Cain, where's your brother?
Well, I don't know where he is, and I'm my brother's keeper.
And God said, your brother's blood cries to me from the ground.
He said, you killed your brother. Now he put a judgment upon Cain. And Cain started weeping and
wailing and gnashing his teeth and crying, my punishment is
greater than I can bear. He began to repent. Why? Because he was afraid of what
he was going to have to endure. He was afraid of the punishment
that God had put upon him. It wasn't true, for instance.
It wasn't sincere repentance. It wasn't scriptural repentance.
It wasn't repentance that glorified God. It was repentance that was
born out of fear of punishment, and it was no good. Now, preaching
on hell doesn't produce repentance. I think we ought to preach on
death and preach on judgment and preach on hell, but it does
not produce true repentance. You can't scare people into repentance. It can't be done. You can scare
them into religious decisions. You can scare them into religious,
emotional experiences, but you cannot scare a man into true
repentance. It cannot be done. And I know
they've got a movie today called The Raging Inferno. I haven't
seen it. We wouldn't have it in the place
where we worship. But I know they're getting a
lot of people to make decisions. They're showing people in hell,
burning in hell, and folks come running down the aisle and weeping
and wailing. They don't want to go to hell.
Well, who does want to go to hell? I don't want to go to hell.
But that doesn't bring forth repentance. That's not genuine. It's the same thing King experienced.
It's fear of punishment. King says, what you put on me
is more than I can bear, God. But he didn't repent. He went
right on despising and hating truth and hating God. I'll tell
you something else, repentance is not. Now, if you only run
to God because you're scared you're going to hell, you haven't
repented. All right? Secondly, repentance is not a
temporary reformation. Temporary turning over a new
leaf and changing your ways and changing your style of life because
of some misfortune or some sickness or the death of a child or the
death of a lover that's not repentant. I Guarantee you that's not repentant
old Pharaoh Moses went down into Egypt to deliver Israel and he
said let God said let my people go ahead Pharaoh laughed at him
said why who's the Lord that I should obey him. I I've got
a good thing going here I'm not gonna let these folks go where
God sent a plague on he said now I just might let him go and
God sent another plague on him He said won't you just take your
people and leave the kids here and leave the cattle here Moses?
No, there's no everybody's going and Pharaoh said no They're not
finally God killed the firstborn and Pharaoh broke down and wept
his son was dead God had hit him in his sore spot God had
hit him Where he heard and he said okay get out of here take
these people and go When he got over his morning when he got
over his sorrow, he got his army together and headed out after
him And that's what happens today people today are quick to get
religion when they get sick Take him to the hospital the doctor
comes in clucks his Tongue in his cheek a little bit and says
believe you got cancer sin for the first Let's have the preacher. We're going to have to get right
with God because we just might die. Well, the only thing wrong
with that is 99% of them, when they get well, don't remember
what they did. They repent when they're sick and they just go
right back where they were when they get well. Sorrow and sickness
and trial will not give birth to repentance because when the
trial is over, just like Pharaoh of old, I'm telling you the truth,
men forget the God they vowed to serve. When I was in the Navy
in World War II, and was in the battles of the invasion of Iwo
Jima and Okinawa and several others, Ishima and some more
invasions, every time we'd start towards the beach, every Marine
and soldier and sailor on the ship would get religion. They'd
start singing songs, Amazing Grace, and Stand Up for Jesus,
and just about anything they could, Jesus Loves Me, about
anything they could think of. They'd all get religion. But
when the battle was over, and you hit the Liberty Point, You
wouldn't know it was the same fellow talking. Too many deathbed
penitents forget their words when they get well. That's not
repentance. I'm not saying that a man can't
repent under great trial and sorrow. I'm saying the majority
of cases is not so. It's just not so. True repentance
is not born of sickness, sorrow, or death. No, sir. It is not. Thirdly, repentance is not quitting
a few sins. A few sins and stopping short
of the vital issues. Now repentance has something
to do with God. It has something to do with the
will. It has something to do with the attitude. It has something
to do with the heart. And a man hadn't repented just
because he's quit getting drunk. A man hadn't repented just because
he's quit running around on his wife. A man hadn't repented just
because he's quit cheating on his income tax. A man hadn't
repented just because he's quit stealing. That doesn't constitute
repentance. To quit a few sins and stop short
of the vital issues. Herod is a good example of this.
Herod admired John the Baptist. He went all the way out into
the wilderness to hear him preach. The scripture said he did many
things. He did many things. He admired John. He went up to
hear him preach. He did many things. He straightened
up his life to a certain extent. But one day John pointed his
finger in his face and said, King Herod, It's not right for
you to have your brother's wife. You can't continue to have your
brother's wife and know God. And that's where he crossed his
way. He wanted God, but he wanted
to continue or remain in his old way of life. He doesn't mind
taking God and heaven and these things, but he wanted to stay
in his old way. That's the rich young ruler. He came to our Lord
and he said, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? And
our Lord talked about some things. He said, well, I'm all right
on that score. I'm okay. The Lord said, now
you go sell what you have and give it to the poor. Your problem's
covetousness. Your problem is selfishness. Your problem's greed. Now you
go sell what you have and give it to the poor and come take
up your cross and follow me. And he walked away with his head
bowed, sorrowful because he loved his riches. He was willing to
do a lot of things. But he wasn't willing to meet
God where God crossed his will. Now that's not real. Old Felix
trembled under the preaching of Paul, trembled, the scripture
said. But he remained on his throne. He remained in the place
where he was when he met the preacher of God. He remained.
And that's what a lot of these folks are doing today. In the
music field, in the movie field, in the entertainment field, in
all these other fields, they're meeting these preachers and they're
getting religion and they're staying right where they were.
Doing the same things they were doing, running with the same
crowd, saying the same thing and claiming to know God. Repentance
is not quitting a few bad habits and holding on to your point
of rebellion and serving yourself and living in luxury and splendor
and denying the teachings of God's Word. That's not repentance.
I beg your pardon. That's not repentance. All right? In the fourth place, true repentance
is not simply mourning over the loss of some blessing. Mourning
over the loss of some benefits. That's not repentance. Not at
all. Esau, he's an example of this. Esau had the birthright. It was
his because he was a firstborn son. It would have been his,
but he sold it. He sold his birthright. Now that's
more than just an inheritance. That's more than just a little
cash. and a few cows. That birthright was his right
to reign and rule as a spiritual head of that family and that
tribe. And he didn't regard it with enough interest. He didn't
regard it with enough enthusiasm to care about it, and he sold
it. And when he found out what all was involved in losing his
birthright, he wept and cried and begged. He sought repentance
with tears, but it was too late. What was he weeping about? Because
he denied God? No, sir. Because that he had
done the wrong thing? No, sir. He lost some blessings. He lost some benefits. That's
what the rich man in hell said. He said, Father Abraham, send
Lazarus back to the earth to warn my brothers. Why do you
want to warn them so they won't come to this awful place? He
wasn't sorry because he'd sinned against God. He wasn't sorry
because his brothers were sinning against God. He wasn't weeping
over the fact that they didn't give God his place of preeminence
and omnipotence and majesty and worship. He said, just don't
let them come to this place. That's not repentance. Not repentance
just to mourn over losing some benefits and blessing. And I'll
tell you something else. True repentance does not lead
to despair. No, it doesn't. It leads to faith.
True repentance does not lead to despair. and to suicide, it
leads to faith. A man hasn't repented just because
he's got his face down in the ground. A man hasn't repented
just because he walks around crying all the time. A man hasn't
repented just because he walks around mourning about how ungodly
he is. Repentance does not lead to despair. Judas is an example of this.
He came back and took the 30 pieces of silver which he had
received for betraying the Son of God and threw them on the
floor. And he said, I have betrayed innocent blood. And he went out
and hanged himself. That's not repentance. Repentance
doesn't lead to the end of a rope. Repentance leads to Calvary.
Repentance doesn't lead to falling off a cliff and dashing your
bowels out on the rock below in despair. Repentance leads
us to look up to the throne of God's grace and mercy and receive
that mercy and that grace. Trials. What use are trials? What use are afflictions? Well,
I'll tell you this, trials make believers better and make bad
men worse. That's right. That's what a trial
will do. A trial will come into the life
of a believer, and it'll make him a better man. It'll increase
his faith. It'll strengthen his confidence.
It'll strengthen his faith. It'll teach him patience. It'll
teach him all these things. But a trial in the life of an
evil man will make him worse. That's right afflictions heart
and revels and teach sons. You know, I know that's true
Satan Satan is no better as a result of his misery He's been in misery
for thousands and thousands of years and he's no better No better
and that's what our text is saying in the last days God pours out
scorching heat Scorching heat. That's what it says scorching
heat from the wrath of God is poured out upon the world Men
are scorched with great heat, but they did not repent to give
God the glory Instead of repenting they blaspheme Him who has the
power over these plagues instead of repenting they blaspheme All
right. That's what repentance is not
now. What is? Repentance what is a
repentance that glorifies God? What is a repentance that results
in saving faith? What is repentance? that results
in a right relationship with God. For true repentance and
faith are inseparable. Somebody says, Preacher, which
comes first, repentance or faith? I really don't know. I think
they go together. You can't have one without the
other. Repentance and faith are like a sheet of paper with two
sides. You can't have a sheet of paper with one side. It's
got to have two sides. And I don't believe a man can truly repent
who does not believe. And a man cannot truly believe
who does not repent. Here's the first. Let me give
you several things about true repentance. And like I say, it
has something to do with my attitude toward God. It has something
to do with my attitude toward sin, toward myself, but toward
God. Now somebody said repentance
is a change. It's a change of masters. It's
a change of manners. It's a change of our methods
of life. Of course it is. It's a turning.
But now let's bring it down a little better than that. True repentance
glorifies God. Now that's the key. True repentance
glorifies God. These people repented not to
glorify God. True repentance does not glorify
the flesh, it glorifies God. It has something to do with how
I feel about God. How I feel about God. Now here's
the first part. True repentance will glorify
God by believing Acknowledging his majesty and his sovereignty. That's where it's fine Joe when
they came to Joe Joe was a man who truly repented we know that
we're sure of that When they came to Job and told him that
everything he had was gone his cattle his horses His donkeys
his sheep even his ten children swept away He was now a man of
poverty and a man of loneliness a man no family This is what
he said. He said, the Lord giveth and
the Lord taketh away. Blessed be the name of the Lord.
Now that's acknowledging God's majesty and God's sovereignty
over all things. That's where repentance comes.
God has a right to do with his own what he will. They came to
Eli and told him, Samuel told him, that God was going to destroy
his sons because his sons had offered strange fire unto the
Lord And he hadn't rebuked them for their sin. You know what
the old man replied? He said it is the Lord let him
do what he will Our Lord Jesus Christ in Matthew 11 said father. I thank thee Lord of heaven and
earth Because thou hast hid these things from the wise and the
prudent and reveal them to babe for even so father It seemed
good in my sight. That's where repentance start
Acknowledging God's right to reign Acknowledging his majesty
and his sovereignty. And I say this to you. The only
place a man will really worship is at the throne of a sovereign
almighty God. The only place that a man will
find salvation is at the throne of a God who is able to save
and keep and raise and glorify. The only place that a man will
find any comfort, any real comfort, is at the throne of a sovereign
God who works all things according to the counsel of His own will
for His glory and our good. That's where repentance starts.
My attitude toward God, His sovereignty and majesty. Secondly, true repentance
glorifies God by admitting the holiness of God, the absolute,
infinite, unchangeable holiness of God. God is holy. My friend, you don't repent by
bringing God down. You repent by exalting and magnifying
his omnipotent name. He's righteous and holy. And
when I see the holiness of God, I see my sin and I admit my sinfulness. You see that? Now let me give
you some examples. Job, the Lord appeared to Job several times
and showed his power and his awesome majesty. And you know
what Job said? He said, Lord, I've heard of
you. I've heard of you by the hearing of the ear. And now mine
eye seeth thee, wherefore I abhor myself. I hate myself. That's
the result of seeing God's holiness. When we see God's holiness, we
see our sin. It's like seeing the beautiful,
brilliant white snow that covers the hillside. And when you see
that beautiful, brilliant white snow against the hillside, every
little speck, every little dark, dirty speck is made more prominent
than ever. When everything was dirty around
it, you couldn't see it. But boy, when everything became
snow white, that black speck just stood out like a sore thumb.
And that's the way it is. The more we see of the holiness
of God, the righteousness of God, the awesome, the awesome,
infinite infallibility of God's holiness, we're made to cry what
wretched sinners we are. Like Job said, I've spoken once,
I won't speak again. Isaiah said I saw the Lord and
I cried oh woe is me I'm a man of unclean lips and I dwell amidst
the people of unclean lips. And that's repentance. It continues
not only acknowledging God's majesty and sovereignty but his
holiness. His holiness and my sinfulness. Sinfulness. Wretched sinfulness. And then thirdly through repentance
glorifies God by confessing the justice of God's judgment. Now, will God punish sin? Will
He? Come on now, will God punish
sin? Well, yes He will. You know He will. He said He
would. You can go back to the Garden of Eden, go back to Sodom
and Gomorrah, go back to Noah's day, go back to Babylon, go back
to all these places, go back to Jerusalem in 70 A.D. God will
punish sin. He has and He will. Second question,
is God just to punish sin? Is He just? Is He just to punish
sin? Don't hesitate now. Is he just
and righteous to punish sin? Well, yes, he is. God's righteous. He ought to punish sin, all right?
You're getting close to repentance. But now here's the acid test.
Here's the acid test. Is God just to punish my sins
and your sins? Now that's the question. And
you haven't repented. No, you haven't, until you can
answer yes to that question. Is God just to punish my sins? If God didn't save me, if God
didn't forgive me, if God sent me to eternal damnation, would
he be just? Would he? That's repentance,
when you can say yes. When you can say with David in
Psalm 51, 4, O Lord, against thee and thee only have I sinned
and done this evil in thy sight, that you might be justified when
you speak, justified when you speak, and clear when you judge. David said again in Psalm 130
verse 3. Oh Lord if thou shouldest mark
iniquity who could say Now you're this repentance is a whole lot
more than just crying a few tears Because you got caught and crying
a few tears because you lost something and crying a few tears
because you're scared to go to hell And crying a few tears because
of this that miracle somebody died or you got sick and got
scared repentance Is he just to punish sin? We've
got to take sides with God in his holiness, not only against
other people's sins, but against our sins. That's the acid test. That's the test of repentance.
Have you repented? Have I repented? The Canaanite
woman said, when our Lord, first of all, he didn't even answer
the woman. And she kept begging for mercy. Secondly, he said
I'm come to call the I'm come to feed the children of Israel
I'm sent to the lost sheep of the house of Israel and she kept
crying He said it's not right to give the children's bread
to dogs He said that's so that's it He still cried and our Lord
showed mercy to us. All right forth the true repentance
glorifies God By acknowledging that it lies with his sovereign
mercy to save us Now are you with me? Salvation's of the Lord. It's the gift of God. Now you
know what scripture says? Eternal life's the gift of God.
The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life.
God has given us eternal life. Now my friend, God is not obligated
to you and me. God's not indebted to us. Our
Lord taught that bunch of religious people in Luke chapter 4 this
truth. He said, because you've got a religious background and
religious ancestors and religious heritage and religious ceremonies
doesn't mean that God's obligated to you. In the land of Israel,
there were many lepers, and God didn't heal any of them, but
one, a Gentile. In the land of Israel were many
widows, and God didn't heal one of them, but fed a Gentile. And they rose up in anger and
would have killed him. They thought God was obligated
to them. And some of us think the same thing. Hath not the
potter power over the clay, to make of the same lump one vessel
to honor and one to dishonor? Can I not do with my own what
I will, God said? I will be merciful to whom I
will be merciful. I will be gracious to whom I
will be gracious. The leper came to our Lord, and
falling down, worshiping him, he said, Lord, if you will, You
can make me clean if you will. Now I'm telling you this, you
can talk about free will, man's will, this will, that will, all
you want to, but I know salvation is by God's will. It's not of
him that willeth nor him that runneth, but of God that showeth
mercy. And he will show mercy to whom he will show mercy. And
that's, you're bordering on repentance if you can come to that place
where you acknowledge that you're up to God and his sovereign pleasure
to show mercy to you. And then true repentance glorifies
God by bowing to and submitting to the claims of King Jesus,
the royal claims of King Jesus, receiving the mercy of God as
given to us in Christ Jesus our Lord. I like what the centurion
said. Our Lord, he came to him about
his son who was sick, and the Lord said, all things are possible
to them that believe. He said, Lord, I believe. I believe. I believe. Help thou my unbelief. Can you say that? I do believe.
I bow to the Word of God. I bow to the truth of God. I'm
just a beggar at the door of mercy. I need help. Lord, I believe. Help thou my unbelief. Now, last
of all, true repentance glorifies God by living the rest of my
life walking in fellowship with Him and submission to Him. Repentance
that does not keep on repenting is not true repentance. This
is not a once-for-all deal. We have repented, we are repenting,
we shall repent. Faith that does not keep on believing
is not saving faith. Actually, that preaching which
leads to true repentance is the preaching of God's holiness,
man's sin, and Christ's redemptive work, and we preach that every
Sunday. And we keep repenting, keep repenting, keep walking
before Him in humility and submission and repentance.