Repentance That Does Count
Hosea 14:1–9
Take words with you and return to the Lord. Say to him: “Forgive all our sins.” Hosea 14:2 (NIV)

There are three things that make this confession a true one, things lacking in the false repentance of chapter 6. First, there is an awareness of sin and that in two ways: (1) that sin is sin and (2) that it is serious. We see this in the word that is used for sin, literally “iniquity” (v. 1). It is an ugly word but it rightly describes sin’s nature, which is ugly. True repentance begins with an acknowledgment that sin is sin and that it is ugly and terribly offensive in God’s sight.

The second thing that makes the confession a true repentance is its turning from specific sins. In this case it is a repudiation of those foreign alliances, which the people have trusted, and the idols, which they made in the days of their apostasy. To repent of one’s own, specific sin is so difficult that it is actually impossible apart from the grace of God.

The third element in the true repentance of these verses is an appeal to the grace of God. This is involved in verse 2: “Forgive all our sins and receive us graciously” (NIV). It means that we must come to God solely on the basis of his grace, not imagining that in spite of our sins there is nevertheless some merit in us to commend us to God—not even the fact that we have repented of our sins and appeal to his mercy.

There is probably nothing that is harder for us to do. It is hard to admit that we are sinners and that sin is serious. It is harder to admit to specific sins and turn from them. Hardest of all is to admit that apart from these sins there is still nothing in us to commend us to God or compel him to be favorably disposed toward us. What we usually do, even when we are confessing our sin, is immediately rush on to remind God that, although we have sinned, there are nevertheless other areas in which we have been true to him. This is not true repentance. We only truly repent when we admit, as the old Anglican collect has it, that “there is no health in us.”

How do we repent? Hosea hits on something important when he answers, “With words.” “Take words with you and return to the Lord.” We must not merely assume that God knows of our repentance, though he does if we are repentant. Rather, we must express our repentance verbally. Without this open confession, we can never be fully sure that we have done what God requires. But “if we confess our sins,” we can know that “he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).

Taken from Come to the Waters by James Boice ISBN 9798887790954 used with permission from P&R Publishing, Phillipsburg NJ 08865

Scripture quotations are from the ESV (the Holy Bible English Standard Version) copyright 2001 by Crossway a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. All rights reserved.