Every Christian understands the sting of regret that comes when we’ve sinned against our Father. Contrition is one of the less-celebrated mercies of God, but it is mercy nonetheless. To sin with a sense of impunity is no good. On the contrary, it is a frightening prospect. We don’t want to be released to sin without regret. We want hearts that are quick to recognize a line crossed and quick to turn. It is grace, John Newton taught us, that both teaches our hearts to fear and that relieves those fears. For that reason, the first inklings of grief over sin should be met with awe and deep gratitude — a gratitude that deepens when you consider that your sin has neither diminished the Father’s love for you nor jeopardized your place in the family.
This comes from a right understanding of God’s heart toward his own and the stable rest that the gospel provides. The contrast between religion and the gospel is relevant at this point. Religion says, “I’ve messed up. My dad is going to kill me.” The gospel says, “I’ve messed up. I need to talk to my dad.” Our place as adoptees frees us to bring our sin to the Father, but what kind of father meets us there? You might find this excerpt from Bryan Chapell clarifying and encouraging:
“Forgiveness is the ocean that already surrounds us when we launch our prayers of repentance to God. We do not manufacture the ocean by our repentance; we sail in the peace its boundless waters provide. Repentance does not earn our forgiveness; repentance allows us to experience the peace of being forgiven. Those who have trusted Christ are already, entirely, and forever clothed in his righteousness (Galatians 3:27; Colossians 3:4). Our God is now ‘for us’; his every dealing with us is out of a heart that is tuned ‘for grace’ – that’s what forgiveness is, the desire for grace to bless the soul of another (Romans 8:32). That means that even when we experience the consequences of our sin under divine discipline, we are no less forgiven. God’s intentions are still entirely grace-motivated. He intends and gives only what is best for us and our fellowship with him. . . Forgiveness is the provision of grace that obliterates relational barriers between us and God.”
Living in the awareness that our position as beloved sons and daughters is eternally fixed and that his love for us doesn’t vacillate based on our performance will only cause sin to grow uglier, grace to shine brighter and contrition to run deeper. Terror might promote obedience to a harsh magistrate, but it’s love that promotes obedience to a loving Father – and that is positionally true for all who are have taken refuge in Christ. From that favored place, contrition is no longer a pointless exercise in flagellation but a gracious call to joyfully return, assured that our Father’s arms are not crossed but open. We needn’t (indeed mustn’t) dismiss the experience of grief over sin. Recognize it. Feel it. Acknowledge it as a mercy. Then, turn – turn rapidly – to your father whose word is trustworthy, who is resolutely for you, who has already received you, cannot deny you, and whose love will not let you go! That, beloved, is the largeness of God’s mercy!