The Nature of True Repentance

Now, here is the difference between a spurious and a real
repentance. I am afraid we have thousands in our churches who had a
spurious repentance: They were convinced of sin, they were sorry for
it; they wanted to live a better life, to love God in a sort of general
way; but they skipped over the real point of controversy with God; they
hid it from their pastor, perhaps, and from the deacons, and from the
people who talked with them.

Now, I say, Abraham might have been willing to have given
up every other thing he possessed; but, if he had not been willing to
give up Isaac, all else would have been useless. It is your Isaac God
wants.

You have got an Isaac, just as the young ruler had his
possessions. You have got something you are holding on to that the Holy
Spirit says you must let go, and you say, “I can’t.”

Very well; then you must stop outside the kingdom.

My dear friends, let me persuade you to trample under
foot that idol, to tear down that refuge of lies, and to come to God
honestly, and say, “Lord, here I am to be a servant, to be nothing, to
do anything, to suffer anything. I know I shall be happier with Thy
smile and Thy blessing than all these evil things now make me without
Thee.” When you come to a full surrender, my friends, you will get what
you have been seeking, some of you, for years.

But then another difficulty comes in, and people say, “I
have not the power to repent.” There is a grand mistake. You have the
power, or God would not command it.

You can repent. You can this moment lift up your eyes to
heaven, and say, with the prodigal, “Father, I have sinned, and I
renounce my sin.”

You may not be able to weep—God nowhere requires or
commands that; but you are able, this very moment, to renounce sin in
purpose, in resolution, in intention. Mind, don’t confound the
renouncing of the sin with the power of saving yourself from it. If you
renounce it, Jesus will come and save you from it.

And do not say, “I do not feel enough.” Do you feel
enough to be willing to forsake your sin? That is the point. Any soul
who does not repent enough to forsake his sin is not a penitent at all!

When you repent enough to forsake your sin, that moment
your repentance is sincere, and you may take hold of Jesus with a firm
grasp. You have a right to appropriate the promise.

Then it is, look and live. “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.”

Will you come to that point right now? Don’t begin making excuses. Now!

Oh! My friend, be persuaded now to repent. Let your sin
go away, and come to the feet of Jesus. For your own sake, be
persuaded. For the peace, the joy, the power, the glory, the gladness
of living a life of consecration to God and service to your fellowmen,
yield; but most of all, for the love He bears you, submit.

A great, rough man who was stricken down said to my
husband, when he looked up to the place where other people were being
saved, “Mr. Booth, I would not go there for a hundred pounds!”

My husband whispered, “Will you go there for love?” and,
after a minute’s hesitation, the man, brushing great tears away, rose
up and followed him.

Will you go there for love—the love of Jesus? The great
love wherewith He loved you and gave Himself for you? Will you, for the
great yearning with which your Father has been following you all these
years? For His love’s sake, will you come? Go down at His feet and
submit. The Lord help you! Amen.

Catherine Booth was the co-founder, with her husband,
William, of the Salvation Army. She was born in Ashbourne, Derbyshire,
England and was raised in a Christian home but was not truly converted
until age 16. The organization she and her husband founded began as a
mission in London’s East End, where Catherine played a prominent role.
She was committed to social reform and believed women had an equal
right to preach. Though initially timid herself, she gained a
reputation as a gifted speaker. The mother of eight natural children,
Catherine became known as “Mother” in the Army as well.