An apprehension of God's mercy in Christ. A persistent endeavor after a holy life in a walking with God in the way of his commandments. Thus he apprehends himself to be just what God has always seen him to be and declares him to be. The soundness of one is evidenced by the presence of the other. Repentance reminds us that if the faith we profess is a faith that allows us to walk in the ways of this present evil world, in the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, in the fellowship of the works of darkness, then our faith is but mockery and deception.
True faith is suffused with penitence.
And just as faith is not only a momentary act but an abiding attitude of trust and confidence directed to the Saviour, so repentance results in constant contrition. The broken spirit and the contrite heart are abiding marks of the believing soul. as long as sin remains there must be the consciousness of it and this conviction of our sinfulness will constrain self-abhorrence, confession, and the plea of forgiveness and cleansing. Christ's blood is the laver of initial cleansing but it is also the fountain to which the believer must continuously repair. It is at the cross of Christ that it must continue to pour out its heart in the tears of confession and contrition. The way of sanctification is the way of contrition for the sin of the past and of the present.