{"id":14515,"date":"2026-09-04T07:22:16","date_gmt":"2026-09-04T11:22:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.garycombs.org\/blog\/?post_type=oyb&#038;p=14515"},"modified":"2026-09-04T07:25:14","modified_gmt":"2026-09-04T11:25:14","slug":"repentance-is-more-than-regret","status":"publish","type":"oyb","link":"https:\/\/www.garycombs.org\/blog\/oyb\/repentance-is-more-than-regret","title":{"rendered":"REPENTANCE IS MORE THAN REGRET"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cFor godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death\u201d (2 Corinthians 7:10 ESV).<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Paul had written to the Corinthian believers about sin that needed to be confronted, and his earlier letter had caused them sorrow. Yet Paul rejoiced because their sorrow had not ended in mere regret. It had become \u201cgodly grief\u201d that produced repentance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Paul distinguished between two kinds of sorrow over sin. Worldly sorrow focuses on self and circumstance. It is sorry about getting caught, ashamed of what others think, or distressed by the painful consequences of wrongdoing. Such sorrow may involve genuine tears and deep emotion, but emotion alone is not repentance. Worldly sorrow remains centered on ourselves and ultimately \u201cproduces death.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Godly sorrow is different. It sees our sin in relation to God. We grieve not merely because sin hurts us, but because our sin is against the God who made us and against the Savior who bore our sins on the cross.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Peter and Judas illustrate the difference. Both sinned grievously against Jesus. Both experienced profound sorrow. Yet their sorrow traveled in different directions. Judas\u2019s remorse drove him into despair. Peter\u2019s sorrow ultimately drove him back to Christ.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Paul said godly grief produces \u201crepentance.\u201d The Greek word <em>metanoia<\/em> speaks of a change of mind and direction. Repentance turns from sin, while faith turns to God by trusting in Jesus Christ. These belong together as gifts of God\u2019s grace.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Paul then added that this repentance leads to salvation \u201cwithout regret.\u201d The word translated \u201cwithout regret\u201d differs from <em>metanoia<\/em>. His meaning was beautiful: repentance leading to salvation is something we will never regret.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We must not confuse feeling bad about sin with actually repenting of it. The question is not simply, \u201cHow sorry do we feel?\u201d but, \u201cWhere does our sorrow take us?\u201d Godly sorrow brings our sin to the cross, where Christ has already borne its judgment. By God\u2019s grace, we turn from sin and turn to Jesus in faith.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We may deeply regret our sin, but we will never regret to Christ. Repentance is more than regret.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>PRAYER<\/strong>: Dear Father, give us godly sorrow that sees our sin as You see it. Keep us from self-centered regret that leaves us unchanged. Lead us by Your grace to turn from our sin and trust afresh in Jesus, who bore our guilt at the cross. Thank You that in Him we find forgiveness, restoration, and salvation we will never regret. In Jesus\u2019 name, amen.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u201cFor godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death\u201d (2 Corinthians 7:10 ESV). Paul had written to the Corinthian believers about sin that needed to be confronted, and his earlier letter had caused them sorrow. Yet Paul rejoiced because their sorrow had not ended in mere regret. [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":0,"template":"","meta":{"audio":"https:\/\/garycombsorg.s3.amazonaws.com\/uploads\/2026\/09\/Sep-4-2026-at-7_15_52AM-esv2-50p-bg-10p-music-10p.mp3"},"categories":[],"tags":[],"scripture-book":[1314],"scripture-chapter":[1340],"oyb_day":[1774],"class_list":["post-14515","oyb","type-oyb","status-publish","hentry","scripture-book-2-corinthians","scripture-chapter-1340","oyb_day-september-4"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.garycombs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/oyb\/14515","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.garycombs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/oyb"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.garycombs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/oyb"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.garycombs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14515"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.garycombs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14515"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.garycombs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14515"},{"taxonomy":"scripture-book","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.garycombs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/scripture-book?post=14515"},{"taxonomy":"scripture-chapter","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.garycombs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/scripture-chapter?post=14515"},{"taxonomy":"oyb_day","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.garycombs.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/oyb_day?post=14515"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}