"Turn us unto you, O Lord, and we shall be turned; renew
our days as of old."--Lamentations 5:21 Are you not often destitute of the power to repent, and
confess your sins before God? Does not conscience often bring to view a
melancholy retrospect of carnal thoughts, wicked desires, vain imaginations,
foolish words, frivolous speeches, and all that catalogue of evils, that
huge bill which godly fear sometimes files in the court within, as seen in
all our departures from the life of God? But are you able to repent? are you
able to feel cut to the very heart? are you able to mourn and sigh because
conscience brings against you this long indictment? Can you always feel your
soul melted down with sorrow on account of it? Are you always able to feel
contrition because you are proud, worldly, covetous, everything that is
evil, everything that is hateful in God's sight? But, then, there are times and seasons when the Lord is
pleased to work upon the conscience, to move and stir the soul, to touch the
heart with his gracious finger--then repentance and godly sorrow flow forth.
It is with us as with the rock that Moses struck. There was water in the
rock; but it required to be struck with the rod before the waters flowed
out. So we may have the grace of repentance in our souls; but it requires
the divine hand to strike the rock, to cause the waters of godly sorrow to
gush forth. January 25 |