Remorse VS. Repentance

By Justin Jordan

In his last post, Sidharth did an excellent job of defining the simple definition of the word “repentance”. He also pointed out that, “repentance is the first and foremost response the Gospel of the Kingdom demands from an individual.” It is no surprise that this foundational requirement has been dramatically distorted in these last days. Many have confused remorse with repentance, and they have deceived themselves into thinking that just because they feel bad about what they have done; they have fulfilled God’s will.

According to dictionary.com the definition of remorse is this:

1. Deep and painful regret for wrongdoing; compunction.

There is nothing in this definition that would imply there was a change of direction in one’s life. While repentance may happen as a result of remorse; remorse alone is not the fulfillment of God’s command. Also, the need to repent is not dependent on feelings of remorse. You don’t have to wait for things like regret and guilt to change your life’s direction! By aligning your life with the Word of God, you will be in His will.

I remember an instance where I was reading the Bible and I came across a scripture that had to do with gossiping. I had been guilty of this sin, but I never felt bad about it. While reading, I recalled some scenarios where I had been gossiping, and I realized that it was time to make a change. It had nothing to do with my feelings, but rather my willingness to be obedient to the Word of God.

Remorse doesn’t guarantee repentance. This is clear in the case of Esau:

“Afterward, as you know, when he wanted to inherit this blessing, he was rejected. He could bring about no change of mind, though he sought the blessing with tears.” Hebrews 12:17 (NIV)

The Amplified Bible clarifies it more:

“for he could find no opportunity to repair by repentance [what he had done, no chance to recall the choice he had made], although he sought for it carefully with [bitter] tears.”

As you may remember, Esau had given up his birthright for a single meal. Afterwards he deeply regretted his mistake, but all the remorse in the world couldn’t change what he had already done!

I recall another night when I experienced true repentance. In this night, I had been burdened with the credit card debt that I had incurred. There were times before this night that I regretted my careless spending, but this time something was different. God had shown me a few scriptures that outlined how I was to be a good steward of the money that He had blessed me with. After seeing His Word and knowing that I had disobeyed Him, I didn’t just regret what I had done, but I knew that I had to change from that night on. To not change, would be outright disobedience!

It is important to take note of how it was God who led me to this repentance. It wasn’t something that I could find on my own because my guilt was selfish. I needed to be shown that my actions were offending Someone much higher than me!

In Romans 2:4 we are told that it is God’s kindness that leads us to repentance. In my next post, I will be discussing what keeps people from truly repenting, and why this error has formed a Church that is sick and dying.

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