Ps. 51:1 – “Have mercy on me, O God, because of your unfailing love. Because of your great compassion, blot out the stain of my sins.
Ps. 51:2 – Wash me clean from my guilt. Purify me from my sin.
Ps. 51:3 – For I recognize my shameful deeds—they haunt me day and night.
Ps. 51:4 – Against you, and you alone, have I sinned; I have done what is evil in your sight. You will be proved right in what you say, and your judgment against me is just.
Ps. 51:7 – Purify me from my sins, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
Ps. 51:9 – Don’t keep looking at my sins. Remove the stain of my guilt.
Ps. 51:10 – Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a right spirit within me”. — NLT
Acknowledgment And Repentance.
The realization of one’s guilt may sober their mind and bring about a spiritual awakening, but only genuine repentance will bring about God’s forgiveness and mercy. This is so because conviction is easier to experience, as God does not need anyone’s permission to convict them of their sins. But in dealing with repentance, however, that is where the difficulty lies because God does not save anyone except with their cooperation; after their spiritual awakening, they have to honestly acknowledge that they need to repent of their known sins, and have a genuine desire to be saved from them, before He can reach out to them in mercy and love.
Jer. 3:13: “Only acknowledge your iniquity and guilt—that you have rebelled and transgressed against the Lord your God and have scattered your favors among strangers under every green tree, and you have not obeyed My voice, says the Lord”. (AMP)
It is, however, a common thing to see that some people who had earlier acknowledged their sins would still let Satan convince them that the timing was wrong for genuine repentance. It is a sad surprise to hear the manner of such excuses which keep some of those convicted hearts from genuine repentance and reconciliation with God. Some want to achieve success in their career before getting serious with God. Others first want to be married before abandoning their promiscuous life and turning to God. Yet others want to get rich before repenting of their financial crimes and receiving Jesus Christ into their life. And so on. They give God conditions for repentance as though they’ve had a bargain with Him to freeze their time on earth, and to keep it from running, until they are done achieving their goals and/or fulfilling their ambitions. In other words they view genuine repentance and reconciliation with God as a huge distraction to those set objectives. Needless to say, they have given priority to their worldly pursuits while abandoning God’s call to repentance. Well, God has no such time for an impenitent sinner; His grace was not designed as a license for the sinner to continue in their sin until repentance is possible! Whether anyone repents or not, their time on earth ticks away relentlessly, bringing them closer to God’s judgment.
Titus 2:11 – For the grace of God has been revealed, bringing salvation to all people.
Titus 2:12 – And we are instructed to turn from godless living and sinful pleasures. We should live in this evil world with self-control, right conduct, and devotion to God,
Titus 2:13 – while we look forward to that wonderful event when the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, will be revealed”. NLT
Considering that we are the ones who need God’s intervention, and that He has graciously given each one of us a time frame within which to seek and find it, we should be eager to seek reconciliation with Him because our life on earth does not continue indefinitely: a little delay here and there may lead to eternal condemnation and punishment in hell fire. God may be patient with the sinner but there is a limit within which they must respond to His patience and love. Whoever genuinely repents of their sins gets saved, but those who refuse must face His judgment nevertheless!
Ps. 7:9 – “End the wickedness of the ungodly, but help all those who obey you. For you look deep within the mind and heart, O righteous God.
Ps. 7:10 – God is my shield, saving those whose hearts are true and right.
Ps. 7:11 – God is a judge who is perfectly fair. He is angry with the wicked every day.
Ps. 7:12 – “If a person does not repent, God will sharpen his sword; he will bend and string his bow”.
Ps. 7:13 – He will prepare his deadly weapons and ignite his flaming arrows”.
But why would anyone keep the Savior waiting? Why would anyone give more priority to the temporal gains of this fleeting life while abandoning the eternal riches of a forgiven and cleansed life, which God, who cannot lie, offers to all who turn to Him in genuine repentance? Can there be any justifiable reason for such neglect and spurning of God’s mercy? Should we not, rather, acknowledge our shortcomings before God, and return to Him in repentance?
Heb. 3:12 – “Be careful then, dear brothers and sisters. Make sure that your own hearts are not evil and unbelieving, turning you away from the living God.
Heb. 3:13 – You must warn each other every day, as long as it is called “today,” so that none of you will be deceived by sin and hardened against God”. NLT