Sunday, May 6^th, 2018, Evident Grace Fellowship looked at 1 Samuel 15:24-35:

1 Samuel 15:24 Saul said to Samuel, “I have sinned, for I have transgressed the commandment of the Lord and your words, because I feared the people and obeyed their voice. 25 Now therefore, please pardon my sin and return with me that I may bow before the Lord.” 26 And Samuel said to Saul, “I will not return with you. For you have rejected the word of the Lord, and the Lord has rejected you from being king over Israel.” 27 As Samuel turned to go away, Saul seized the skirt of his robe, and it tore. 28 And Samuel said to him, “The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you this day and has given it to a neighbor of yours, who is better than you. 29 And also the Glory of Israel will not lie or have regret, for he is not a man, that he should have regret.” 30 Then he said, “I have sinned; yet honor me now before the elders of my people and before Israel, and return with me, that I may bow before the Lord your God.” 31 So Samuel turned back after Saul, and Saul bowed before the Lord.

32 Then Samuel said, “Bring here to me Agag the king of the Amalekites.” And Agag came to him cheerfully. Agag said, “Surely the bitterness of death is past.” 33 And Samuel said, “As your sword has made women childless, so shall your mother be childless among women.” And Samuel hacked Agag to pieces before the Lord in Gilgal.

34 Then Samuel went to Ramah, and Saul went up to his house in Gibeah of Saul. 35 And Samuel did not see Saul again until the day of his death, but Samuel grieved over Saul. And the Lord regretted that he had made Saul king over Israel.

From those verses, we answered this Big Picture Question:

Big Picture Question:  Why is repentance is so powerful?

And we found these 3 answers to our Big Picture Question:

Repentance Doesn’t Care About Reputation

Repentance Kills the Source of Sin

Repentance Grieves

 

Repentance Doesn’t Care About Reputation

1 Samuel 15:24 Saul said to Samuel, “I have sinned, for I have transgressed the commandment of the Lord and your words, because I feared the people and obeyed their voice. 25 Now therefore, please pardon my sin and return with me that I may bow before the Lord.” 26 And Samuel said to Saul, “I will not return with you. For you have rejected the word of the Lord, and the Lord has rejected you from being king over Israel.” 27 As Samuel turned to go away, Saul seized the skirt of his robe, and it tore. 28 And Samuel said to him, “The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you this day and has given it to a neighbor of yours, who is better than you. 29 And also the Glory of Israel will not lie or have regret, for he is not a man, that he should have regret.” 30 Then he said, “I have sinned; yet honor me now before the elders of my people and before Israel, and return with me, that I may bow before the Lord your God.” 31 So Samuel turned back after Saul, and Saul bowed before the Lord.

Saul finally realizes that he sins, so he begs Samuel.  He says he sinned and transgressed the commandment of God.  He recognizes that he feared the people more than God, and he asks Samuel to forgive him and return with him to tell the people.  But Samuel will not honor him in the way he asks.

The reason that Samuel asks the way he does is because Saul never asks for forgiveness from God.  He only begs from Saul.  Saul is like the child who realizes that he lost a privilege and then finally begs for forgiveness.

This is not repentance.  Repentance is unconcerned earthly reputation.  True repentance only concerns itself with reconciling one’s relationship with God.

Repentance Kills the Source of Sin

32 Then Samuel said, “Bring here to me Agag the king of the Amalekites.” And Agag came to him cheerfully. Agag said, “Surely the bitterness of death is past.” 33 And Samuel said, “As your sword has made women childless, so shall your mother be childless among women.” And Samuel hacked Agag to pieces before the Lord in Gilgal.

Saul spared King Agag and the best of the spoil.  This was his sin.  Samuel have nothing to do with it.  He puts to death Agag.

This is repentance.  Repentance puts to death anything that is remaining of the sin so that sin will not return.

Repentance Grieves

34 Then Samuel went to Ramah, and Saul went up to his house in Gibeah of Saul. 35 And Samuel did not see Saul again until the day of his death, but Samuel grieved over Saul. And the Lord regretted that he had made Saul king over Israel.

Samuel grieved over Saul.  He grieved of the mess Samuel made.  He grieved of the damage that Saul made.  And God showed a godly regret that Samuel was ever king.

What are powerful steps we can make to repentance? 

Sight of sin – Psalm 139: 23-24 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!

Sorrow for sin – 2 Corinthians 7:10 For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death

Confession of sin – Psalm 32:3-5 For when I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long.  4 For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was dried up as by the heat of summer. 5 I acknowledged my sin to you, and I did not cover my iniquity; I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,” and you forgave the iniquity of my sin.

Regret for sin – Ezra 9:6 “O my God, I am ashamed and blush to lift my face to you, my God, for our iniquities, have risen higher than our heads, and our guilt has mounted up to the heavens.

Hatred for sin – Psalm 104:102-104 – I do not turn aside from your rules, for you have taught me.  103 How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!  104 Through your precepts I get understanding; therefore I hate every false way.

Turning from sin – Zechariah 1:3 Therefore say to them, Thus declares the Lord of hosts: Return to me, says the Lord of hosts, and I will return to you, says the Lord of hosts.

Big Picture Question:  What’s the difference between repentance and change

Truth:  True repentance kills sin at its sources through a Godly grief that desires to honor God more than it wants to protect self. 

Application:  Live knowing that our greatest intimacy with God and others comes through a Godly repenting that denies self and lifts up God.

Action:  Kill a sin this week at its source through a Godly grief that confesses your sin to God and any offended party without justification or fear of lost reputation.