Results or Repentance

Encouraged? Share this post...

Molly Evert
Counter Cultural Mom

Last year an American mega-church made headlines when it challenged the church’s singles to abstain from fornication for 30 days.  WHAT?! That’s right. Just 30 days.

I have tried to find the word “repent” in their 30 day study guides, on their website, in their news bytes and on their blog, but to no avail. From what I’ve read, their highest goal seems to be that a temporary abstinence would teach people how to develop healthier relationships.

Isn’t this the essence of humanism? That empty philosophy teaches that our highest goal is to better ourselves in order to have a more meaningful life on this earth. This is a morality based on results, not on the demands of a holy God.

It is easy to point the finger at this blatant disregard for God’s Word, and yet we often buy into the same subtle message on a smaller scale. We are results-oriented, too!

Just last night one of my boys was selfishly manipulating his little brother. I told him that he needed to change his behavior or it would damage their relationship. And while this is true, it illustrates how easy it is for me to fall into the humanist mindset myself. I want my children to repent of their sin because it is wrong and it grieves the Lord. It is not enough for them to feel mere worldly sorrow because sin interferes with their long-term happiness.

Am I encouraging my children to better themselves through keeping a moral code so that they can have a good and meaningful life? Or am I reminding them daily that we all fall short of God’s glory, and we can only be made righteous through faith in Jesus Christ?

We must repent of our sin and live according to God’s standards, by God’s grace…not so that we can have a “good life”, but because this is what it means to be a Christian.

“You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.” Ephesians 4: 22-24

About Molly Evert

Writer Molly Evert is a wife and homeschooling mom to 6 kids, who range in age from 2 to 18. She runs an educational website, My Audio School (http://www.myaudioschool.com), providing access to the best in children's audio literature. She also blogs at CounterCultural Mom (http://www.counterculturalmom.com) and CounterCultural School (http://www.counterculturalschool.com).

Encouraged? Share this post...

Molly Evert

Writer
Molly Evert is a wife and homeschooling mom to 6 kids, who range in age from 2 to 18. She runs an educational website, My Audio School (http://www.myaudioschool.com), providing access to the best in children's audio literature. She also blogs at CounterCultural Mom (http://www.counterculturalmom.com) and CounterCultural School (http://www.counterculturalschool.com).

You may also like...