Enjoying a stroll in Sofia, Bulgaria

Sorrow upon Sorrow
I Corinthians 7, part three 

Paul had written a severe letter calling the Corinthians to repent and to remove the false teachers whom they had previously welcomed. Paul had great joy when he heard that the church had responded with repentance. Verse 9ff says, 

“I now rejoice, not that you were made more sorrowful, but that you were made sorrowful to the point of repentance, for you were made sorrowful according to the will of God, so that you might not suffer loss in anything. For the sorrow that is according to the will of God produces a repentance without regret, leading to salvation, but the sorrow of the world produces death.”  

This is very interesting to me. There are two types of sorrows contrasted. One sorrow is according to God’s will.  A sorrow that has God as its source. On the other hand, there is a sorrow of the world that doesn’t end well. One sorrow that produces repentance leading to life and another sorrow, a worldly sorrow, leads to death. 

Peter & Judas  

The example that comes to mind is Judas and Peter. Both betrayed Jesus. Both caved in to the pressures of others. Judas caved in because of greed and Peter caved in because of pride. When you look at it rationally, I don’t believe that Judas’ betrayal was monumentally worse than Peter’s. One could argue that Judas’ carried greater consequences, which is true. What Judas did was horrendous.  But what about Peter? His pride and arrogance led to a pitiful cowardice of betrayal.  

What makes it worse is that hours before he denied Jesus, Peter boasted; not once, not twice but three times, that he would never, ever, never turn on Jesus. And then he did turn on Him. It was horribly despicable. So, was Judas’ betrayal so bad that it was unforgivable? While Peter’s wasn’t as bad so as to be forgivable? That’s silly. Both actions were forgivable and both were condemn-able. However, Judas was condemned and Peter was forgiven and restored to usefullness. What’s the difference?

The difference wasn’t that Judas’ sin was worse and unforgivable and Peter’s was less bad and forgivable.  The difference was that Judas’ sorrow was of the world and led to his death. Peter’s tears and sorrow lead to repentance and ultimately to a useful life on earth and eternal life in heaven.  

Guilt vs. Repentance 

They both felt sorrow for their sins but Judas’ led to guilt that could only be solved (in his mind) by suicide. Peter’s sorrow led to repentance and seeking Christ’s forgiveness. The result for Peter was a life of usefulness and eternal glory.  

When Paul sent the severe letter to the Corinthians, he was agonizing over whether they would respond like a Judas or like a Peter. The sins that the Corinthians fell into were severe. They were deceivers, immoral, wicked and imminently selfish. On top of that, they embraced false teachers and false doctrines and slandered Paul, even to his face.  

But the issue was not the depth of their sins but their response to their sins when confronted with the truth!!! 

It’s natural for us to weigh and regard others according to the severity of their sin. But as it pertains to God in the areas of repentance, forgiveness and salvation, it’s all about the response of the sinner to God’s grace, not the sins of the past. If my past life is better than your past than I feel better about myself when sitting next you in church. Hah! But that’s not how God thinks about it.

What matters between you and God is not your past but whether you have humbly repented of your past and future sins with a true, sincere, godly repentance.  

Yes, the severity of our sins has cause-n-effect ramifications in this world. Some cause great harm and some less so. But when it comes to being forgiven by God and the level of our service to God, the severity of our past is not the issue. Our response to our past sin with a godly repentance is the issue. 

Let’s do sorrow correctly!  

Sorrow is not fun! But, it is good when it comes from God and we allow it do the work God intended it to do which leads us to humble repentance and dependence upon him.   Let it serve as motivation to live a life of obeying and honoring Him. We can’t change the past but we can honor God by reflecting his glory in the acceptance of His grace. Humbly repent and accept fully His grace. Paul called it a “repentance WITHOUT REGRET,” verse 10. Sorrowful, yes. Guilt ridden, NO! Lord, may we repent of our past, acknowledge our sins and then forget it and press forward. May we live in the light of Your grace, forgiveness and the energy of the Holy Spirit. Amen