th; the
former, from faith in God's mercy. In the latter, the sinner is
chiefly affected with the punishment to which his sin exposes him;
in the former, he mourns for his sin as offensive and dishonoring to
God. Cain and Judas repented, but it was on account of the
consequences of sin to themselves; whereas the true penitent mourns
after a godly sort, with a godly sorrow, or a sorrow which directly
regards God.—2 Corinthians 7:9, 10.

That the doctrine of repentance is to be preached by every minister
of the gospel, as well as that of faith in Christ, is asserted in
opposition to a gross heresy of the Antinomians, who maintain that
repentance ought not to be preached by any minister of the gospel;
alleging that it leads us away from Christ, and proves most hurtful
and dangerous. How opposite is such a sentiment to the example and
command of Christ himself! He preached the doctrine of repentance to
those who attended his public ministry. "Repent," said he, "and
believe the gospel." Mark 1:15. And in the instructions which he
delivered to the apostles, when he commissioned them to preach the
gospel, it was expressly enjoined that "repentance and remission of
sins should be preached in his name among all nations." Luke 24:47.
The apostles, accordingly, inculcated the necessity of repentance
both on Jews and Gentiles.—Acts 2:38; 3:19; 14:15. The apostle Paul
speaks of "repentance from dead works" as one of the first
principles of the doctrine of Christ; and, when giving a summary of
his doctrine before the elders of Ephesus, he comprehends the whole
under the two great articles of repentance and faith: "Testifying
both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance towards God,
and faith towards our Lord Jesus Christ." Hebrews 6:1; Acts 20:21.

A sinner is the only subject capable of repentance. Christ "came not
to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance;" and he intimated
that "just men need no repentance." But "all have sinned, and come
short of the glory of God." Repentance, therefore, must be
universally necessary. "God now commands all men everywhere to
repent;" and Jesus Christ, the faithful and true witness, has
solemnly declared "Except you repent, you shall all likewise
perish." Acts 17:30; Luke 13:3.

1. True repentance springs from a sight and sense of sin. All men
will readily acknowledge, in general terms, that they are sinners;
but no man can have a clear sight and a feeling sense of his sins,
until the Holy Spirit becomes his teacher. It is his work to
convince of sin.—John 16:8. This he does by means of the law; for
"by the law is the knowledge of sin." Romans 3:20. When the Spirit
enlightens the mind of the sinner to discern the purity,
spirituality, and vast extent of the divine law, he sees sin to be
"exceeding sinful." He views it as not only dangerous, but as odious
in itself, on account of its contrariety to the holy nature and
righteous law of God.

2. True repentance flows from an apprehension of the mercy of God in
Christ to such as are penitent. Had we reason to regard God as an
inexorable judge, we might, like Adam, attempt to flee from his
presence, and escape the sword of his avenging justice; but never
would we return to him as sincere penitents. Blessed be God! we have
the firmest grounds on which to rest our faith of his pardoning
mercy. He has proclaimed his name as "The Lord, the Lord God,
merciful and gracious, forgiving iniquity, and transgression, and
sin." Exodus. 34:6, 7. The wicked is invited to "forsake his way,
and return unto the Lord," encouraged by the assurance that "he will
have mercy upon him, and will abundantly pardon." Isaiah 55:7.
"Jesus Christ is set forth to be a atoning sacrifice , through faith
in his blood;" "through his name in preached unto us the forgiveness
of sins;" and we are assured, "that through his name whoever
believes in him shall receive remission of sins." Romans 3:25; Acts
13:38; 10:43. Now, it is an apprehension of the mercy of God in
Christ, by faith, that melts the heart into penitential sorrow for
sin. Of so generous a nature is evangelical repentance, that the
penitent soul is never so deeply humbled and grieved for sin, as
when it has reason to hope that a gracious God has freely forgiven
it. This generous temper is assigned to the true penitent in the
Sacred Scriptures: "You shall remember, and be confounded, and never
open your mouth any more, because of your shame, when I am pacified
toward you, for all that you have done, says the Lord God." Ezekiel
16:63.

With regard to the order of faith and repentance, it may be
remarked, that we can form no conception of a moment of time when
the one exists in the soul separate from the other. In point of
time, then, faith and repentance necessarily accompany each other;
but in the order of nature, faith must precede repentance.
Evangelical repentance is a turning from sin to God; but there can
be no turning to God, except through Christ; and no coming to
Christ, but by believing in him.—John 14:6; 6:35. Besides,
evangelical repentance flows from love to God; but the exercise of
sincere love to him proceeds from the exercise of true faith.—1
Timothy 1:5. Add to this, it is only by looking on Him whom we have
pierced, that we can mourn after a godly sort, according to that
remarkable promise: "They shall look on me whom they have pierced,
and they shall mourn for him." Zech 12:10. There is, indeed, a
conviction of the person's guilt and misery, accompanied width a
kind of sorrow for sin, and resolutions to forsake it, because it
exposes him to everlasting punishment, which, in the nature of
things, must precede the exercise of faith in Christ; but this is
very different from evangelical repentance.

3. True repentance includes grief, or deep contrition and godly
sorrow for sin. There is a false sorrow, which many mistake for the
genuine. Many are grieved for their sin, merely on account of the
punishment it is like to bring upon themselves; and those who are
most deeply affected with this kind of sorrow, if they succeed in
allaying their fears, often return to a course of sinning with
greater freedom and impetuosity than before. But the sorrow of a
true penitent is for sin as committed against God—as rebellion
against his rightful authority—as a violation of his holy law, and
as a most base, ungrateful return for all his goodness.—Psalm 51:4.

4. True repentance includes hatred of sin, not only as that which
exposes us to death, but as hateful in itself, as the abominable
thing, which God hates, and as that which renders us vile and
loathsome in his sight. If this hatred of sin is genuine, it will
lead us to loathe and abhor ourselves, and it will extend to all sin
in ourselves and others.—Job 13:6; Ezekiel 36:31; Jeremiah 31:19;
Psalm 119:128, 136.

5. True repentance includes a turning from sin unto God with a
sincere purpose, and endeavor to walk with him in all the ways of
his commandments. This is the crowning act and the grand test of
genuine repentance. Paul preached both to Jews and Gentiles "that
they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for
repentance." Acts 26:20. True penitents forsake sin, with a firm
resolution to have no more to do with idols. They are converted from
the love as well as from the practice of sin. They particularly
guard against those sins to which they were formerly most addicted,
and before whose influence they are most ready to fall.—Psalm 18:23.
They assiduously watch against all occasions of sin, and earnestly
long for complete deliverance from it. They return to God as their
rightful Lord and Master, resolving, in dependence upon his grace,
to "serve him in holiness and righteousness all the days of their
lives." They form a steady and unshaken purpose in their hearts, and
sedulously endeavor, by watchfulness and diligence, in the constant
use of all means, to avoid all sin, and to practice universal
holiness. It is not meant that true penitents have attained to
sinless perfection; for "there is no man that lives and sins not."
They will, therefore, find occasion every day for the renewed
exercise of repentance. All tears will not be wiped from their eyes
until all sin is perfectly removed their souls.

SECTION 3. Although repentance be not to be rested in, as any
satisfaction for sin, or any cause of the pardon thereof, which is
the act of God's free grace in Christ; yet is it of such necessity
to all sinners, that none may expect pardon without it.

Exposition of 15.3

1. In opposition to the Romanists, who make satisfaction one of the
essential parts of repentance, and conceive that certain acts or
penances, performed by an offender, constitute a compensation for
his transgression, in consideration of which it is forgiven; and
also in opposition to Socinians, who deny the atonement for sin by
the death of Christ, and maintain that repentance is the only
atonement required; our Confession asserts, that repentance is not
to be rested in as any satisfaction for sin, or a cause of the
pardon thereof. It has already been shown, that it must always be
the duty of every sinner to repent; now, the discharge of a present
duty can never atone for past crimes. Repentance is never supposed
to be a legal ground for remitting the punishment due to crimes
committed against a civil State. How unreasonable, then, to suppose
that it can form a sufficient ground for the pardon of sin as
committed against God! Christ has fully satisfied the justice of God
by the sacrifice of himself, and his blood alone cleanses us from
all sin.—1 John 1:7. To us the pardon of sin is wholly
gratuitous—"an act of God's free grace in Christ"—and, if it be of
grace, then it is no more of works; and, therefore, not by
repentance, as a satisfaction for sin.

2. True repentance and pardon are inseparably connected. Though no
one is pardoned for his repentance, yet repentance is of such
indispensable necessity, that an impenitent sinner cannot be a
pardoned sinner. "They are connected in the economy of salvation,
not as cause and effect, but to show the consistency of a gratuitous
pardon with the interests of holiness. For any government to acquit
a criminal, and restore him to society without some evidence of a
change of disposition, would be little else than granting him a
license to commit crimes with impunity. But if this would be
unworthy of a human, how much more of the divine government! God,
for the vindication of the honor of the plan of mercy, has so
connected pardon with repentance and confession—the expression of
repentance—that they are the only certain evidences that we are in a
pardoned state; while pardon and repentance are equally the gift of
God through Jesus Christ our Lord."

SECTION 4. As there is no sin so small but it deserves damnation; so
there is no sin so great, that it can bring damnation upon those who
truly repent.

Exposition of 15.4

In opposition, on the one hand, to the Church of Rome, which holds
that some sins are mortal, and others venial—that is, of so trifling
a nature, that they may be expiated by some temporal infliction—our
Confession asserts, that "there is no sin so small but it deserves
damnation;" and, on the other hand, in opposition to certain
Anabaptists, and some others, who have held that if persons, after
baptism and grace received, fall into grievous sins, there is no
pardon remaining for them, even though they should repent, our
Confession asserts, that "there is no sin so great that it can bring
damnation upon those who truly repent." We admit that a great
variety in the degree of guilt attaches to different sins; but we
maintain that every sin is worthy of death. Most explicit are the
declarations of an inspired apostle: "The wages of sin is death."
Romans 6:23. "Cursed is every one that continues not in all things
which are written in the book of the law to do them." Galatians
3:10. Both these texts are unquestionably applicable to sin of every
kind. The chief of sinners, however, may obtain mercy; and those
who, after grace received, have fallen into grievous sins, may truly
repent, and obtain forgiveness. David, after his "great
transgression," and Peter, after his denial of his Master, repented
and were pardoned.—2 Samuel 12:13; John 21:19.

SECTION 5. Men ought not to content themselves with a general
repentance, but it is every man's duty to endeavor to repent of his
particular sins particularly.

Exposition of 15.5

No man can reckon up all his sins in order; for "who can understand
his errors?" But it is not enough to acknowledge in general terms
that we are sinners; we should, by a strict and impartial
examination of our hearts and ways, endeavor to obtain a discovery
of those particular sins by which we have offended and dishonored
God, and should "mourn, every one for his iniquity." Thus, when
David was brought to the exercise of true repentance, he not only
acknowledged in general that he had sinned, but he had his eye upon
that particular sin by which he had in a special manner dishonored
God: "My sin is ever before me. Against you, you only, have I
sinned, and done this evil in your sight." Psalm 51:3, 4. "I will
declare mine iniquity; I will be sorry for my sin." Psalm 38:18.

SECTION 6. As every man is bound to make private confession of his
sins to God, praying for the pardon thereof; upon which, and the
forsaking of them, he shall find mercy; so he who scandelizes his
brother, or the Church of Christ, ought to be willing, by private or
public confession and sorrow for his sin, to declare his repentance
to those that are offended; who are thereupon to be reconciled to
him, and in love to receive him.

Exposition of 15.6

In this section we are taught—

1. That every man ought to make private confession of his sins to
God. We cannot discover to God anything that was previously
concealed from his omniscient eye; but by confessing our sins we
give glory to God, as well as take shame to ourselves. Hence Joshua
said unto Achan: "My son, give, I pray you, give glory to the Lord
God of Israel, and make confession unto him." Josh 7:19. To cover
our sins is to dishonor God, as if he either did not see, or could
not punish them; whereas, to confess our sins is to honor God's holy
law, which we have violated—to honor his omniscience, which beheld
all our transgressions—to honor his justice, which might have taken
vengeance upon them—and to honor his patience and longsuffering,
which have forborne to execute the merited punishment.

2. That those who privately confess their sins to God, and forsake
them, shall find mercy, though they do not also confess all their
sins to a priest. This is amply confirmed by that inspired
declaration: "He who covers his sins shall not prosper; but whose
confesses and forsakes them shall have mercy." Proverbs 28:13. The
experience of David corresponded to this declaration.—Psalm 32:5.
But the Church of Rome holds that the auricular confession of sins
to a priest, and his absolution thereupon obtained is the only means
appointed by God for the procuring of pardon of all mortal sins
committed after baptism. For such a confe