Ezekiel 33:14 Again, when I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; if he turn from his sin, and do that which is lawful and right; 15 If the wicked restore the pledge, give again that he had robbed, walk in the statutes of life, without committing iniquity; he shall surely live, he shall not die. 16 None of his sins that he hath committed shall be mentioned unto him: he hath done that which is lawful and right; he shall surely live.
This passage of scripture teaches us that the work of genuine repentance has both spiritual and literal aspects to it, which must be addressed in order for the process of full restoration to take place. The spiritual side is where God forgives our sins and sends us His Holy Spirit to enable us to stay the course with Christ. But the literal aspect is also important, because it moves us to restore that which was wrongfully gotten, or in other words, causes us to retrace our steps.
In the above passage The Lord gives us practical illustrations of how this must be done, for if a bandit desires to be saved in God's kingdom, he must not only accept Christ as his Lord and Savior, but he must also restore the stolen goods that were taken from various persons, where ever and whenever this can be done. Anything short of this is pseudo repentance, and will not avail much for those desiring to walk in newness of life.
A very notable example of what God is referring to, occurred with Zacchaeus, who worked as a tax collector, but who had defrauded many of his neighbors in order to fill his pockets with ill-gotten gain. We observe in the narrative that Christ did not condemn him in anyway, for he volunteered to restore fourfold, that which he had robbed, thus giving evidence that the work of genuine repentance and change had indeed begun.
Whenever true repentance takes place, there is always an ardent desire on the part of the repentant one to have both the horizontal and vertical aspects of relationship restored, and thus no effort or means are spared in order to accomplish this, even though, as in the case of Zacchaeus, it would cost him in real time. Let's read:
Luke 19:2 And, behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus, which was the chief among the publicans, and he was rich. 3 And he sought to see Jesus who he was".... 5 And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up, and saw him, and said unto him, Zacchaeus, make haste, and come down; for to day I must abide at thy house. 8 And Zacchaeus stood, and said unto the Lord: Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor; and if I have taken any thing from any man by false accusation, I restore him fourfold. 9 And Jesus said unto him, This day is salvation come to this house"... 10 For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.
In our day there is a form of repentance that is not genuine, and which has become very popular with the masses. This type of repentance feels sorrow for the adverse results of wrongdoing, but not for the actual wrong, and it does not call for a permanent change to the habits and practices which caused the disconnect between our souls and God in the first place. This kind pf pseudo repentance only acknowledges guilt when it is caught or cornered, and even then, it makes excuses for one's sins by placing the blame on others or circumstances. It does not involve the godly principle of restitution, and calls sin a mistake or an error in judgment, instead of specifying what evils were actually committed.
Whenever we fall into sin for any reason, we should never blame others or circumstances for our failures, for if we do, we will be admitting that we can be made the sport of circumstances, or otherwise can be forced into sinful acts by the will of other people. Sin must be called by its right name in order for the whole process of genuine repentance to be engaged, in other words, if a person has committed adultery, the confession must not be of a generic order, in which the specific wrong is not confessed to God, but should instead clearly state the violation committed, and the desire to restore the broken relationship, and also to forsake and turn away from sin.
When this is done, God will abundantly pardon, for He is primarily concerned with restoration, not prosecution. Let us then be honest with God and with our fellowmen in the work of true repentance, whenever it becomes necessary, for the promise is made by God, that all who come to Him, genuinely seeking forgiveness, will never be disappointed or turned away. We therefore end with a passage of scripture which calls for genuine repentance on the part of those of us who have gone astray, for the door of mercy is still open, so that all who will may enter, and thereby find pardon and peace with God, and with those we may have wronged. Let's read:
Ezekiel 33:11 Say unto them, As I live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?
May The Lord add His blessing to the study and practice of His every word. God bless!