Posts Posted in March 2016View All Posts >>

We are saved, forgiven, and made righteous through faith in God’s Christ. There is no other way (John 14:6); there is no shortcut. More

The whole of Scripture proclaims that forgiveness of sins is received only through faith in Christ. Those who suppose that God forgives their sins because they are good people, are led astray by their vain imaginings. More

Everyone acknowledges that, “You can’t take it with you.” Common sense wisdom understands that our works have no eternal value. So why do some try to stack them up as having merit with God? Belief in God’s promises is what counts as righteousness. More

The forgiveness of sins is received—not earned. Now a sizeable portion of the Church thinks otherwise. Yet this is clearly what Scripture teaches us. Forgiveness is received by faith. More

If you cannot believe God’s promise then you may as well insist that the sun will rise in the west tomorrow morning. For if you cannot believe that which is most sure, how certain is anything else that has been taken for granted up until now? More

Promises are laughable words, unless received with faith. Abraham and Sarai were promised a son in their advanced old age. Abraham laughed; he laughed so hard that he fell to the ground. More

We cannot place our trust in works wrought by ourselves. Surely, this is evident to everyone. Who among us has been found faithful—even to his own intentions? More

Being sorry for our sin does not merit forgiveness. You probably heard a retort something like this at some point in your life: “Sorry doesn’t fix what you broke.” More

These are important distinctions. Faith is different than sorrow or contrition. It is also different from devotion or works of penance. Faith stands apart, believing in the Redeemer... More

In this passage, we see two kinds of sinners. One is dull in spirit, self-absorbed, and very capable of seeing the sin in others but unable to see it in himself. The second is overcome with sorrow over her sin. More

When David was brought up short by the knowledge of his secret sin, he was contrite and confessed his sin. After his confession, the prophet Nathan spoke words of forgiveness from the Lord. More

After we take the tantalizing fruit of sin, a frightening self-consciousness overwhelms us. All we want to do is cover our sin and hide from God. This terror is contrition; and it is not enough. More

The promise, though veiled, goes all the way back to Genesis. That very first sin demanded the declaration of a Savior from the loving God. For from those tragic bites of forbidden fruit... More

How strange it must seem to a child, for the parent who loves, to also seem so angry. For the threat of an oncoming car does not concern the unknowing child who is chasing a ball into the street. More

Life and death are in God’s hands. And there is nothing that we can do to deliver ourselves from the grave. The foolish harden their hearts to this fact of life. But the wise are contrite. More

Our ways lead us to certain death. They are low and dusty, clinging to the world and sin. Yet, God is always calling us to the way of life. More

We are in bondage to the flesh: these bodies of death with their natural inclinations that serve the law. We are bound by nature to sin “in thought, word, and deed.” More

It is the height of arrogance for someone to think that justification occurs through the human acts of contrition, devotion, or other acts of love or good works More

Paul speaks plainly about these two parts of repentance. He writes that we are dead to sin, this taking place through our baptism. More

It is not enough to only believe the history of the gospel. One must have faith in the one who is the incarnate gospel. One must trust in Christ for the remission of sins. More

To think of repentance in terms of contrition alone is to act in accordance with the law. This is unstable ground since it depends upon the person who is sorry for their sin. More

God has always been ready to forgive. Proof of his willingness is the ways he has provided for people to have faith and turn to him. More

Here is one of the surest and most obvious ways that the Lord’s Prayer is answered. We pray, “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” More

The promise of divine grace is received through hearing the gospel. This hearing occurs in many ways. It is received through the reading of the Scripture, both individually and corporately. More

We cannot fear, love, and trust God without faith. In other words, we cannot keep even the first of the commandments without faith, let alone the rest of the law. More

The witless child who does not believe his parents got him a birthday present, will never enjoy the gift. Perhaps he was sorry for having been a disobedient child but just could not accept that his parents loved him nonetheless. More

If repentance is only a matter of sorrow for sin, then human nature tries to appease God. But we cannot appease God by any means. More

As long as we live in this flesh, we will experience all of these feelings. For the law will never cease to accuse us of sin. More

We are very weak. Jesus reminds us if this fact of our human nature. “The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” More

Simply stated, contrition is when a person, because of love or fear, stops defending sin and confesses it instead. More

Repentance begins with a heart that is moved toward God’s mercy and then has faith that he forgives for Christ’s sake. More