The Doctrine of Repentance - Reformed Perspectives Magazine

deformed face is hidden. People are veiled over with ignorance and self-love;
therefore they see not what deformed souls they have! The devil does with them
as the trainer with the hawk. He covers their eyes, and carries them hooded to
hell! "The sword will pierce his right eye!" (Zechariah 11:17) Men have insight
enough into worldly matters—but the right eye of their mind is blind. They do not
see any evil in sin; the sword has pierced their right eye!
Ingredient 2
SORROW for Sin
"I will be sorry for my sin." (Psalm 38:18) Ambrose calls sorrow the embittering of
the soul. The Hebrew word "to be sorrowful" signifies "to have the soul, as it
were, crucified". This must be in true repentance: "They shall look upon me
whom they have pierced—and they shall mourn" (Zech. 12:10), as if they did feel
the nails of the cross sticking in their sides. A woman may as well expect to have
a child without pangs—as one can have repentance without sorrow! He who can
repent without sorrowing, suspect his repentance. Martyrs shed blood for Christ,
and penitents shed tears for sin: "she stood at Jesus' feet weeping" (Luke 7:38).
See how this tear dropped from her heart. The sorrow of her heart—ran out at
her eye!
The brazen laver for the priests to wash in (Exod. 30:18) typified a double laver:
the laver of Christ's blood we must wash in by faith—and the laver of tears we
must wash in by repentance. A true penitent labors to work his heart into a
sorrowing frame. He blesses God when he can weep. He is glad of a rainy day,
for he knows that it is a repentance he will have no cause to repent of. Though
the bread of sorrow is bitter to the taste—yet it strengthens the heart (Psalm
104:15; 2 Cor. 7:10).
This sorrow for sin is not superficial: it is a holy agony. It is called in scripture a
breaking of the heart: "The sacrifices of God are a broken and a contrite heart"
(Psalm 51:17); and a rending of the heart: "Rend your heart" (Joel 2:13). The
expressions of smiting on the thigh (Jer. 31:19), beating on the breast (Luke
18:13), putting on of sackcloth (Isaiah 22:12), plucking off the hair (Ezra 9:3), all
these are but outward signs of inward sorrow. This sorrow is:
(1) To make Christ precious. O how desirable is a Savior to a troubled soul!
Now Christ is Christ indeed—and mercy is mercy indeed. Until the heart is full of
sorrow for sin—it is not fit for Christ. How welcome is a surgeon—to a man who
is bleeding from his wounds!
(2) To drive out sin. Sin breeds sorrow—and sorrow kills sin! Holy sorrow
purges out the evil humours of the soul. It is said that the tears of vine-branches
are good to cure the leprosy. However that may be, it is certain that the tears