The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1919-05-23
PRACTICAL LESSONS

Repentance is a grace wrought in
our souls by the Holy Spirit. whereby
oeing deeply convinced of our guilt
danger and helplessness, we turn to
GOD with unfeigned contritlon. con-
resslon and supplication for mercy.
rms grace is insepara bly, connected
with faith, which will be the subject
or our next lesson It is impossible
to com pletely define repentance I'M
less faith is also included, for while
repentance Is essentially a turning
f is a turning unto God in Christ
Tor salvation. Says DR.. Wallace: THE
repentance which is inseparablv linked
with faith, and leads to salvation, is a
cody sorrow for sin, such a sorrow
as can arise only when the Holy Spirit
has moved upon the heart When
man became lost in sin one of the
consequences was loss OF spiritual dis
comment and power. az well as
spiritual impulse 1t Is to supply this
lack that the Holy Spirit comes to tho
help of the soul, So damaaed is the
soul by sin thar 1t cannot repent as it
ought to repent. nor can II believe as
II ought to believe. Eut the HOLY
Spirit, responding TO human need, as
ne does his regcnerattuc work in the
soul, auickens The soul into godly re-
pentance and saving faith. the in
separable graces, which are also
sacred duties. ~
That repentance is duty may be
seen from the many Scripture pas
Sages in which men are called upou
10 do so. Repentance was the bur
den Of the preaching of John the
Baptist, and Jesus himself opened his
ministry in Galileo with the call.
Repent ye, and believe in the
gospel"
inc duty Of repentance grows out
of the fact that men have sinned
against Cod and by reason of the
nature Of God, it is impossible for
nm to forgive mans sin unless he
truly rcp"nts, nor would it help man
to be forgiven unless his heart was
truly turning TO God in contrition
and purpose OF amendment, for he
would forthwith become sinner
against God again. and again be
brought under Just condemnation.
Genuine repentance is a great bless
ing to man. The thirty-second Psalm
makes this plain when 1t says: When
kept silence, my bones wasted away.
through my grooming all the day long.
i acknowledged my sin unto thee
and mine iniquity did not hide said
| viii confess my transgressions unto
Jehovah. and thou forgavcst the iniq-
uity of my sin 4
No one will repent toward God UNI
less his. heart has been convicted of
sin by the Holy Spirit. 1t was only
when the people to whom Peter
preached were "prioked in their
hearts" that they called on the apos-
ties to know what they should do.
Conviction. or tho painful knowledge
of sinful self as 1t has been defined,
is wrought in the heart by the Holy
Spirit, usually by means of the Word.
Recall Jeremiah's words: rs not my
word like tre. and like hammer
that breaketh the rock In pieces7"
Again the writer to the Hebrews SAYS.
For tho word of God Ia living, and
active. and sharper than any two
edged sword. and piercing even to
the dividing of soul and spirit, OF both
joints and marrow. and quick to dis
Germ the thoughts and intents OF the
heart" II We would be used of the
Holy Spirit in the salvation of sin /,
ners, we must know the Bible and how
rightly to divide it.