INSIGHT
 
   The sacrifices Israel offered to God were never intended to be a substitute for obedience, as they had become in eighth-century Israel (Amos 5:22-25), but were only effective for cleansing if they were brought with a sense of sorrow for sin and complete humility before God, i.e., an attitude of repentance. The idea, then, would be that although Israel brought offerings in the wilderness, they brought more than offerings: they brought repentant hearts, "justice," and "righteousness" (v. 24). The Messiah came also preaching a message of repentance (Mark 1:15). Stressing that all men needed to repent (Luke 13:1-5), Jesus summoned his followers to turn and become like children. He defined His ministry in terms of calling sinners to repentance (Luke 5:32). Moreover, He illustrated His understanding of repentance in the parable of the prodigal who returned to the father (Luke 15:11-32). Like John the Baptizer in Luke 3:8, Christ insisted that the life that was changed was obvious by the "fruit" that it bore (Luke 6:20-45). Those who believe themselves to be God's people and who rely on the sacrifice for sin which God has provided (Heb. 10:12) have sometimes assumed that because their sins are dealt with, it does not matter how they live (Rom. 6:1). The Bible emphasizes that those who would live in fellowship with a holy God as His people must live in a way which reflects the holiness of God (1 Pet. 1:16; 1 John 1:5). "Mercy" (hesed, Heb.) is a rich word which includes the idea of faithful love in action (Jer. 9:24). Walking with God implies a manner of life characterized by gratefulness and obedience to God (Isa. 38:15). "Humbly" stresses that man must remember that he is man, and God is God. The proud people will find that God resists them, while the humble person will allow his attitude to be molded by his godly sorrow.
The Attitude in Christ
Repentance

 

Key Text:                Isaiah 1:27-28

"Zion will be redeemed with justice, And her repentant ones with righteousness. But transgressors and sinners will be crushed together, And those who forsake the LORD shall come to an end."

 

Theme:

Possessing a penitent attitude is a must when following Jesus. Throughout the history of Israel, God always called her to repent and come back to His ways. Even though we are all sinners, there’s a difference between those that are convicted and change and those that are just convicted. The attitude the Lord looks for is one of repentance, not just remorse.  It’s not enough just to be sorry about what you do, say or think.  The Lord looks for a radical change of heart, shown by the deeds that prove your repentance.

 

Application:

Here are some practical suggestions:

1. Make it your goal to be like Jesus in

    all you do: whether at work, at home,

    or in dealing with opposition.

2. Be open to discipline. Do not defend

    sin, but rather hate the sin, and love

    the reproof.

3. Ask your discipler to point out areas in

    your life that need work. Request

    reproof and correction! And don’t give

    them a hard time when they expose

    your sin.

4. Have godly sorrow about your sin.

    Don’t just “feel” sorry, but be deter-

    mined to show your change of attitude

    by a change of action!

 

May the Lord richly bless you!

 

 

 

 

 

Sermon Outline

 

Repentance

Sacrifices were never meant to substitute obedience to the Lord. But a sacrifice offered up with a broken and contrite spirit is never rejected (Ps 51).

I. A Lesson From The David's Life (2 Samuel 11-18)

A. Known as the greatest king of Israel 
1. Background characteristics 
  a. Most prominent character of Scripture 
  b. Most famous ancestor of Christ 
     -- Jesus referred to Son of David (Mt.1:1) 
  c. His life was filled with noble deeds 
  d. High aspirations 
  e. Great accomplishments 
  f. Called the man after God's own heart 
2. Yet he committed a great sin

B. David's Sin 
1. The Setting: David couldn't sleep (11:1-2)

2. He sees a beautiful woman and sleeps with her (11:3-4)

3. Adultery Committed 
  a. The woman is married (adultery) 
  b. She's pregnant (the fruit of adultery) 
  c. Lev. 20:10--the consequence

4. David Hides His Sin 
  a. Sends Uriah home, but David's plan fails (11:8-9) 
  b. Gets Uriah drunk, but still David's plan fails (11:12-13) 
  c. David places Uriah in front lines of army: success: 
     Uriah dies!

5. David Becomes Penitent 
  a. David's Rebuke (12:1-14) 
  b. Sins forgiven but consequences (12,15,18) 
II. Conclusion 
Acts 26:20b

Small Group Study

Warm-up:

Have you ever done something foolish and then regretted it? Were you afraid of facing up to it before other people because of how they may react?

 

See To It                                Luke 15:11-32

 

1. What attitude did the young man have toward

    what his father had given him?

 

2. What do you think caused him to come to his

    senses?

 

3. In which verses do you see the change of

     heart/mind happening?

 

4. When can we say that this man repented?

 

5. What was the Father’s attitude toward his son?

    Why do you think he had this attitude?

 

6. What was his older brother’s attitude? Do you

    think his older brother recognized his

    repentance?

 

Seeing It Closer:

 

1. How does repentance begin?

 

2. Have you really repented if you go through

    with the actions but your heart is not in it?

 

3.  How about if you’re just sorry about it, but

     you don’t want to change your actions?

 

4. How come these two approaches don’t cut it?

   

 

Getting To It:

 

Go around the room and take turns sharing with each other how your attitude has changed toward things you were pretty adamant about before. Share how you had a change of heart and how the actions followed after that.

 

This week's Quiet Times:

The Attitude in Christ:Repentance

MONDAY

The Message of Jesus is one that needs to be received with intent of letting it change your life. Jesus became like us so that we can, in turn, become like Him. This is the purpose of our Christian walk. Read Ephesians 5:1-2. Who are you to imitate? How are you to imitate God? Read Matthew 5:43-48. Who are we to be like? Is it possible to be perfect? What do you think Jesus means by v.48? Read Phillipians 3:12-16. Paul defines what “perfection” is all about in these verses. It’s about maturing. It’s about vision.  It’s about attitude. The Greek word for “perfect” is teleioo. It means to complete, i.e. (lit.) accomplish, or (fig.) consummate (in character):--consecrate, finish, fulfill, (make) perfect. (Strong’s Hebrew & Greek) Write Micah 6:8 on an index card and memorize it. Have you dedicated your children to the Lord? If you have kids, take some time out to dedicate them to God. Have a prayer with your household and dedicate each one to God.

 

TUESDAY

As we studied last week, in order to be able to please the Lord you must die to self. Dying to self involves believing that the message of forgiveness you heard has the power to change you! If your belief doesn’t affect your behavior, then why have beliefs? Read Ezekiel 18:30-32. How will you be judged? Does the Lord want you to live? What must you do to live? The problem is not God's unwillingness to save you, but rather your refusal to be saved! This is a masterful call to repentance. It is not divine grace or human freedom, but God's mercy and your choice. This is a call to those who have pushed God aside to awaken and renew themselves in faith in God. Read Hebrews 12:1-2. What must you do first, before you begin to run with endurance? Who are you going to fix your eyes onto? Why? Write 1 Peter 1:13 on an index card and memorize it.

 

WEDNESDAY

"Repent" is the translation of the Greek verb metanoeo, meaning “to have another mind, to change the mind”, and is used in the N.T. to indicate a change of mind in respect to sin, God, and self. A complete reversal. True repentance leads to change in behavior, which is what is expected from God. Read Luke 3:6-14. How did John recognize a true repentant attitude? What were the multitudes asking John? “There is no way of fleeing from the wrath to come, but by repentance; and by the change of our way the change of our mind must be shown. If we are not really holy, both in heart and life, our profession of religion and relation to God and his church, will stand us in no stead at all; the sorer will our destruction be, if we do not bring forth fruits meet for repentance.” -- Matthew Henry.  Write Acts 17:30 on an index card and memorize it.

 

THURSDAY

The most difficult part about repentance is initiating a change of heart and mind. Once the heart and mind are in sync with the Spirit, changes in attitude and actions will follow. Read 2 Corinthians 7:8-11. According to verse 9, does God intend for us to be sorrowful? Maybe you would like to go back to the study on pliability and look at Thursday’s Quiet Times about his topic. Does worldly sorrow produce fruits in keeping with repentance? So what is the difference between godly and worldly sorrow? Whenever there’s still any regret in your heart, you haven’t truly let go of your attitude -- you haven’t repented. When you let go of sin, the attitudes in verse 11 will be clearly manifested in your attitude and life. Notice also that in Hebrews 11, all these people were commended for their faith because they showed a change of heart and mind that lead them to action. Write Hosea 14:1-2 on an index card and memorize it.

 

FRIDAY

Jesus died for us on the cross that our sins might not be held against us as long as we are willing to repent.  One of the most illustrative passages as to how we begin our act of repentance is 1 John 1:5-9. What is the difference between walking in light and walking in darkness? What does walking in the light involve? The phrase "But if we walk" is suggestive of a life-style. The verb is in the present tense and denotes continuous action. John has in mind the practice and habit of life which is characterized by constant fellowship with God. Through the shed blood of Jesus, there is forgiveness and redemption from sin. The word "cleanse" (katharizo, Gk.) is in the present tense and denotes continuous action. The blood of Jesus "keeps on cleansing" from all sin. Therefore, walking in the light stems from having a mindset of renewal (Rom 12:1-2). Write Acts 3:19 on an index card and memorize it.