Wounding Christ Again
If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of god afresh, and put him to an open shame. Hebrews 6:6
We often sorrow because our evil deeds bring unpleasant consequences to ourselves; but this is not repentance. Real sorrow for sin is the result of the working of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit reveals the ingratitude of the heart that has slighted and grieved the Saviour, and brings us in contrition to the foot of the cross. By every sin Jesus is wounded afresh; and as we look upon Him whom we have pierced, we mourn for the sins that have brought anguish upon Him. Such mourning will lead to the renunciation of sin.
The worldling may pronounce this sorrow a weakness; but it is the strength which binds the penitent to the Infinite One with links that cannot be broken. It shows that the angels of God are bringing back to the soul the graces that we lost through hardness of heart and transgression. The tears of the penitent are only the raindrops that precede the sunshine of holiness. (The Desire of Ages, 300)
Reflection: As we pray for more understanding about the sin issue, and ask the Lord to give us the heart we need, it will become clearer that committing sin is like wounding our Savior afresh. Let's see sin as so terrible that we no longer want any part of it.
If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of god afresh, and put him to an open shame. Hebrews 6:6
We often sorrow because our evil deeds bring unpleasant consequences to ourselves; but this is not repentance. Real sorrow for sin is the result of the working of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit reveals the ingratitude of the heart that has slighted and grieved the Saviour, and brings us in contrition to the foot of the cross. By every sin Jesus is wounded afresh; and as we look upon Him whom we have pierced, we mourn for the sins that have brought anguish upon Him. Such mourning will lead to the renunciation of sin.
The worldling may pronounce this sorrow a weakness; but it is the strength which binds the penitent to the Infinite One with links that cannot be broken. It shows that the angels of God are bringing back to the soul the graces that we lost through hardness of heart and transgression. The tears of the penitent are only the raindrops that precede the sunshine of holiness. (The Desire of Ages, 300)
Reflection: As we pray for more understanding about the sin issue, and ask the Lord to give us the heart we need, it will become clearer that committing sin is like wounding our Savior afresh. Let's see sin as so terrible that we no longer want any part of it.
RSS Feed
