Sorry isn't good enough!

 

Sorry! Sorry! SORRY! Is it true that sometimes, "Sorry isn't good enough!" 

I have had situations where someone has told me multiple times they are sorry. Many times, they are saying sorry for repeated actions. I have heard people say (maybe I have said it), "Well, Sorry just isn't good enough!" Being sorry and being repentant are different. 

Repentance is a statement that -- I know I cannot change in my own power and that I need GOD to change me through HIS ETERNAL POWER. When we make THAT commitment, in our weakness, God will create in us a CLEAN HEART and fill us with his HOLY SPIRIT!

In Ezekiel, God relays a story that takes Israel through this image of God being the husband. Through the prophet, he recounts their "love story" and then recounts the adultery and separation:

"I gave you expensive clothing of fine linen and silk, beautifully embroidered, and sandals made of fine goatskin leather. I gave you lovely jewelry, bracelets, beautiful necklaces, a ring for your nose, earrings for your ears, and a lovely crown for your head. And so you were adorned with gold and silver. Your clothes were made of fine linen and costly fabric and were beautifully embroidered. You ate the finest foods -- choice flour, honey, and olive oil -- and became more beautiful than ever. You looked like a queen, and so you were! Your fame soon spread throughout the world because of your beauty. I dressed you in my splendor and perfected your beauty, says the Sovereign Lord."

"But you thought your fame and beauty were your own. So you gave yourself as a prostitute to every man who came along. Your beauty was theirs for the asking. You used the lovely things I gave you to make shrines for idols, where you played the prostitute. Unbelievable! How could such a thing ever happen?"(Ezekiel 16:10-16)

As Ezekiel continues the Lord recounts the depth of their sin. Their sin was worse than Sodom and Samaria. The depth they had fallen was great!

But, at the end of chapter 18, God extends a miraculous offer:

"Therefore, I will judge each of you. O people of Israel, according to your actions, says the Sovereign Lord. Repent, and turn from your sins. Don't let them destroy you! Put all your rebellion behind you, and find yourselves a new heart and a new spirit. For why would you die, O people of Israel? I don't want you to die, says the Sovereign Lord. Turn back and live!"(Ezekiel 18:30-32)

DO YOU UNDERSTAND WHAT JUST HAPPENED? Even the deep sin of Israel can be forgiven. God is giving them a chance to receive eternal life! "TURN BACK AND LIVE!" 

There is not a single thing you can do that will keep you from God's great love. ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS TURN FROM YOUR SIN AND LIVE! That is deeper than being sorry. That is a commitment to follow Jesus, to let HIM give you a new heart and a new spirit. He will help you overcome the sins of your past, and then those sins will be put out of your mind. He will RE-create you. 

Please don't ever think you are too far gone. Don't ever think you have done too much evil, to much sin! THAT IS NEVER THE CASE. Just STOP and TURN toward God!