Returning to God After a Life of Sin and Long Repentance
The concept of returning to God after a life of sin and long repentance is rooted in biblical teachings on repentance and reconciliation. The biblical anchor for this concept is found in various passages that call individuals to turn away from sin and back to God. For instance, in 1 Samuel 15:25, King Saul is told to "forgive my sin and return with me so I can worship the LORD" [1]. Similarly, Acts 3:19 commands, "Repent therefore, and turn again, that your sins may be blotted out" [2].
Biblical Understanding of Repentance
Repentance involves a change of mind and heart, turning away from sin towards God. The Greek word "metanoia" is used in the New Testament to describe this change, implying a transformation that goes beyond mere regret [3]. According to Easton's Bible Dictionary, "metanoeo" means to change one's mind and purpose as a result of after-knowledge, leading to a change of life [3].
The prophets and apostles emphasized the importance of repentance. In Hosea 14:1-2, Israel is called to return to the Lord, taking with them words of repentance and seeking forgiveness [6]. This call to repentance is not limited to Israel; it is a universal call to all people to turn away from sin and towards God.
Theological Articulation of Repentance
Theologically, repentance is understood as a gift from God, facilitated by the Holy Spirit. According to John Calvin, repentance is "a real conversion of our life unto God, proceeding from sincere and serious fear of God; and consisting in the mortification of our flesh and the old man, and the quickening of the Spirit" [4]. This understanding is echoed across various Christian traditions, including Reformed, Lutheran, and Catholic perspectives.
Restoration After Repentance
The question of whether one can return to God after a life of sin and long repentance involves understanding the nature of God's forgiveness and restoration. According to Aquinas, through penance, man is restored to his former dignity in the eyes of God, recovering the principal dignity of being counted among the children of God [8]. Calvin also emphasizes that through repentance, believers are renewed into the righteousness of God, from which they had fallen through sin [7].
Differences in Tradition
While there is a broad consensus on the importance of repentance, different Christian traditions have nuanced views on the process of returning to God. For example, the Catholic tradition, as represented by Aquinas, emphasizes the sacrament of penance as a means of restoration [8]. In contrast, Reformed traditions, such as Calvin's, focus on the role of faith and the Holy Spirit in facilitating repentance and restoration [4, 7].
Historical Development
The understanding of repentance and restoration has developed over time, influenced by various theological debates and ecclesiastical practices. The early Church Fathers, such as Tertullian, emphasized the importance of repentance and the need for a changed life [5]. The Protestant Reformation further highlighted the role of faith in repentance, as seen in the works of Calvin and Luther [4, 6].
The call to return to God after a life of sin is a persistent theme throughout Christian history and theology. While different traditions may articulate the process of repentance and restoration in varying ways, the underlying biblical imperative to turn away from sin and towards God remains a constant. As Matthew Henry notes, conversion must be preached even to those within the church, emphasizing the ongoing need for repentance and return to God [9].
Sources
- I Samuel “I Samuel 15:25 (BSB) — Now therefore, please forgive my sin and return with me so I can worship the LORD.””
- Acts ““Repent therefore, and turn again, that your sins may be blotted out, so that there may come times of refreshing from the presence of the Lord, -- Acts 3:19”
- Easton's Bible Dictionary “Easton's Bible Dictionary: Repentance — There are three Greek words used in the New Testament to denote repentance. (1.) The verb metamelomai is used of a change of mind, such as to produce regret or even remorse on account of sin, but not necessarily a change of heart. This word is used with reference to the repentance of Judas (Matt. 27:3). (2.) Metanoeo, meaning to change one's mind and purpose, as the result of after knowledge. This verb, with (3) the cognate noun metanoia, is used of true repentance, a change of mind and purpose and life, to which remission of sin is promised. Evangelical”
- CCEL (Reformed) “John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, section 58: both derivations, for it is substantially this, that withdrawing from ourselves we turn to God, and laying aside the old, put on a new mind. Wherefore, it seems to me, that repentance may be not inappropriately defined thus: A real conversion of our life unto God, proceeding from sincere and serious fear of God; and consisting in the mortification of our flesh and the old man, and the quickening of the Spirit. In this sense are to be understood all those addresses in which the prophets first, and the apostles afterwards, exhorted t”
- Schaff ANF/NPNF (Patristic) “ANF Vol 3: Tertullian — CHAP. V.--SIN NEVER TO BE RETURNED TO AFTER REPENTANCE.[6] (part 1): For what I say is this, that the repentance which, being shown us and commanded us through God's grace, recalls us to grace[7] with the Lord, when once learned and undertaken by us ought never afterward to be cancelled by repetition of sin. No pretext of ignorance now remains to plead on your behalf; in that, after acknowledging the Lord, and accepting His precepts[8]--in short, after engaging in repentance of (past) sins--you again betake you self to sins. Thus, in as far as you are removed from ignor”
- Hosea (Lutheran) “Keil & Delitzsch on Hosea 14 (introduction): After the prophet has set before the sinful nation in various ways its own guilt, and the punishment that awaits it, viz., the destruction of the kingdom, he concludes his addresses with a call to thorough conversion to the Lord, and the promise that the Lord will bestow His grace once more upon those who turn to Him, and will bless them abundantly (Hos 14:1-8). Hos 14:1. (Heb. Bib. v. 2). "Return, O Israel, to Jehovah thy God; for thou hast stumbled through thy guilt. Hos 14:2. Take with you words, and turn to Jehovah; say ye to Him, Forgive all gu”
- CCEL (Reformed) “John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, section 58: the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, as by the Spirit of the Lord.” Again, “Be renewed in the spirit of your minds” and “put ye on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.” Again, “Put ye on 516 the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him.” 310 310 2 Cor. 3:18 ; Eph. 4:23, 24 ; Col. 3:10 ; 2 Cor. 4:16 . Accordingly through the blessing of Christ we are renewed by that regeneration into the righteousness of God from which we had falle”
- theology (Catholic (Scholastic)) “Aquinas, Summa Theologica, Third Part (Tertia Pars), Of the Recovery of Virtue by Means of Penance, Art. 3: Article: Whether, by Penance, man is restored to his former dignity? I answer that, By sin, man loses a twofold dignity, one in respect of God, the other in respect of the Church. In respect of God he again loses a twofold dignity. one is his principal dignity, whereby he was counted among the children of God, and this he recovers by Penance, which is signified (Lk. 15) in the prodigal son, for when he repented, his father commanded that the first garment should be restored to him, toget”
- Hosea (Nonconformist/Puritan) “Matthew Henry on Hosea 14:1: Here we have, I. A kind invitation given to sinners to repent, Hos 14:1. It is directed to Israel, God's professing people. They are called to return. Note, Conversion must be preached even to those that are within the pale of the church as well as to heathen. "Thou are Israel, and therefore art bound to thy God in duty, gratitude, and interest; thy revolt from him is so much the more heinous, and thy return to him so much the more necessary." Let Israel see, 1. What work he has made for repentance: "Thou has fallen by thy iniquity." Thou has stumbled; so some read”