The Power of Repentance  

Contentment is a gift from God. It’s really important to Him. He really wants you and me to be content. 

But sin is going to rob us of that contentment, each and every time. 

And we all have a sneaky, stubborn sin in our lives. It may be something obvious, like gossiping and complaining. Or, it may be something secret that nobody except God and you can ever see. Whatever it is, there’s no such thing as an insignificant sin.

That’s why repentance is such a powerful thing; because whilst you’re under the power of sin, you simply cannot be content.

So, let’s continue with Paul in 2 Corinthians as he shares the power of repentance with us: 

“Since we have these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, making holiness perfect in the fear of God… For even when we came to Macedonia, our bodies had no rest, but we were afflicted in every way – disputes without and fears within. But God, who consoles the downcast, consoled us by the arrival of Titus…" 

“Now I rejoice, not because you were grieved, but because your grief led to repentance; for you felt a godly grief, so that you were not harmed in any way by us. For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation and brings no regret…” (2 Corinthians 7:1, 5–6, 9–10)

Now, a bit more context might be helpful. Paul is writing to the Corinthians about how he made them sad with his previous (first) letter—the book in the New Testament we call 1 Corinthians. It was a sternly written letter, admonishing them for all kinds of sin: for sexual immorality, idol worship, disunity, all sorts of things. 

But here we see that Paul sends his friend Titus to find out how the Corinthians have responded, and Titus comes back to report that they’ve repented! They’ve turned away from their sins. They’ve let God reign and rule as Lord.

My friend, sometimes the reason we’re not content is that sin is robbing us of our contentment. And when we come to our senses and change our minds—which is what the word ‘repentance’ actually means—then we find salvation without regrets. That’s the place where contentment begins.

It’s a simple case of cause and effect. Sin brings discontentment. Repentance brings contentment. 

Life Application Questions:

• Spend some time in prayer asking God’s Spirit to convict you of any stubborn sins in your heart that you haven’t handed over to Him. Can you identify them?
• What’s holding you back from turning those behaviors or thoughts over to God?
• Has anyone ever called you out on something you did wrong, like Paul did for the Corinthians? How did you respond? What was the long-term outcome of that conversation?
• Read 2 Corinthians 7 in full. What can you learn from the Corinthians’ example of repentance?