Rejoicing over Repentance

"Likewise, I say to you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents."

Luke 15:10

All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.  I have sinned and am therefore a sinner, even as a man who murders is and will always be a murderer.  Even if a man spends 30 years or longer in prison for the crime of murder, after his release the grim fact remains:  he is a murderer.  Time served alone or the paying of fines cannot expunge our permanent record.

I have been forgiven and cleansed from my sins through the power of Jesus Christ and the Gospel.  All born-again Christians have received the blessing of all past and future sins atoned for by the blood of the Lamb.  We have been clothed in Christ's robe of righteousness.  When God looks upon us, He sees righteousness without flaw, choosing not to remember a single sin we have committed.  But because I still live on earth in a body of human flesh, I still sin.  I remain a sinner.  Even if I only walked in holiness and never sinned again during my time on earth after coming to Christ, it does not change the fact that I have lied, cheated, stolen, been an idolator, etc.  I am a sinner.  I therefore need God's help to walk uprightly and the Word of God as a mirror to reveal my flaws through the power of the Holy Spirit.  I would not have known sin but by the Law, and I would never have been convicted except through my conscience and the Holy Spirit.

Jesus told a parable about a shepherd who leaves the 99 to find a single lost sheep.  He then told a parable about a woman who lost one of her 10 coins.  She diligently swept the house until she found it.  Both the shepherd and the woman rejoiced greatly over finding what was lost.  God and the angels rejoice over one sinner who repents:  both the sinner who repents for the first time, and the lost sheep who is already of God's fold who responds in repentance.  The writer of Hebrews say we ought to lay aside every weight and the sin which easily besets us (Heb. 12:1).  It is possible for even Christians to be overtaken in a fault.  This is no surprise to any believer.  It is possible for born again, committed Christians to aimlessly wander and become lost.  We lose sight of our first love, our purpose, and let down our guard, walking directly into enemy attacks.

The call to repentance is a frequent call, not a "one-time" acknowledgement when we first commit to follow Christ.  Even a skilled driver can fall asleep at the wheel, and valiant Christians who have fought long and hard for the cause of Christ make mistakes.  That is why Paul wrote this admonition in 1 Corinthians 15:34:  "Awake to righteousness, and do not sin; for some do not have the knowledge of God. I speak this to your shame."  Paul was not writing to the heathen but to the church.  When Paul tells the church in Corinth to "awake to righteousness," he is not only talking about good works:  he is reminding them to be awake to God!  Earlier in the book Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 1:30:  "But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God--and righteousness and sanctification and redemption..."  Jesus has become for us wisdom and righteousness!  If we grow spiritually weary and sleepy, having removed ourselves from the strength and vitality which only the Vine supplies through the Holy Spirit, we will sin.  In our flesh no good thing dwells.

No matter the struggles we face or the sin which might weigh us down, today is the day of salvation.  Today can be a great day of rejoicing in heaven!  When one sinner repents, Christ, angels, the church, and the sinner who has been delivered rejoicing with exceedingly great joy.  Whenever we do wrong, repentance is the first step to doing what is right.  Those who are of God's own heart - the ones He has graciously indwelt - find repentance to always be in season.  The joy of the LORD will be our strength!