As Paul has told us in Romans 1, all of humankind has and continues to sin, and sadly that includes all of us (and this makes me squirm and feel uncomfortable as I write this!)

Any sin must be repented for and to do this we must depend on Jesus Christ, if not, there is no way to eternal life. But being repentant is not a negative thing – it is a huge positive, to receive God’s mercy.

Sometimes we can be doing something that we are not aware is obviously a sin. We need to pray that God will always show us the error of our ways so that we can say sorry. Thank the Lord that God is patient with us and gives us time to do this, He has not judged us yet even though we deserve it, although we should always ask for repentance sooner rather than later as none of us know when the Day of Judgement will occur.

Sadly, we are often aware when we are doing wrong and so we should pray that the Holy Spirit will give us the strength to protect us from our temptations.

We are truly a member of God’s family when our lives reflect his. What kind of example are we to non-believers if they hear us curse or see us behaving in an ungodly manner, we are dishonouring God’s name when we act like this.

Found William Newall in “Enduring Word Bible Commentary” summarises Romans 2 with “Seven great principles of God’s judgement.”.

• God’s judgment is according to truth (Romans 2:2).
• God’s judgment is according to accumulated guilt (Romans 2:5).
• God’s judgment is according to works (Romans 2:6).
• God’s judgment is without partiality (Romans 2:11).
• God’s judgment is according to performance, not knowledge (Romans 2:13).
• God’s judgment reaches the secrets of the heart (Romans 2:16).
• God’s judgment is according to reality, not religious profession (Romans 2:17-29).

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Question:

What role does repentance play in your life?

Prayer:

Almighty God, our heavenly Father: We have sinned against you, through our own fault, in thought, and word, and deed, and in what we have left undone.
For the sake of your Son our Lord Jesus Christ, forgive us all our offenses; and grant that we may serve you in newness of life, to the glory of your Name. Amen (Book of Common Prayer).