God is good and He is always good! This is not an easy formula or statement. This is the truth, because kindness is part of the very nature of God. This implies that God's goodness is not conditioned by our actions, our prayer life, or anything else. God is always good, His goodness is renewed day after day (cf. Lamentations 3:23) and this for all, whether we are just or unjust (cf. Matthew 5:45). The fact that we are alive, that we have enough to live on, etc., is only the result of His goodness because without Him we would not be here... Which implies that we are constantly benefiting from His goodness and that because God loves us.
This is what Paul says when he says that the goodness of God leads us to repentance. To put it another way, repentance does not condition the love of God, it is the love of God that conditions repentance. Repentance is something extraordinary that we are called to experience on a regular basis. To repent is to recognize our state and our estrangement from God in order to choose to separate from it definitively in order to return to God (cf. Luke 15:17). It is something liberating that is directly linked to the revelation…
This is the difference between repentance and remorse. Remorse is becoming aware of one's situation, knowing oneself guilty and wanting to get out of it but not being able to do so because the feeling of judgment is too strong... Repentance is also recognizing one's condition and wanting to be free but by having a revelation of God's love and goodness. Judgment brings condemnation while the love of God produces freedom... It's not that we don't deserve judgment, but it's that it was paid for by Christ. He gave himself for us on the cross, taking upon himself our condemnation… It is the love manifested…
Which means that we may want to try to separate ourselves from something by our own strength, but we will never succeed... Only the revelation of the goodness of God and His love, of who He is, will allow us to experience true repentance and freedom. In the story of the prodigal son we have this extraordinary demonstration. The father takes the son in his arms, before he can even say a single word. By doing so, he comes to meet him and reveals his love to him and it is here that this son's true repentance occurs (cf. Luke 15:20). In the same way, God comes to meet us to reveal himself to us so that we can live this repentance which will produce freedom in a definitive way...
We are therefore invited not only to go within ourselves to recognize our situation and what is far from God. Do not stop there, let us not be judged or accused, on the contrary let us approach God with confidence (cf. Hebrews 4:16). Let's open our hearts to His presence and allow the Holy Spirit to reveal to us the Father and the reality of the cross... We need revelation and God desires to reveal Himself to us more than we might want so let's invest time in His presence to simply seek Him...
Last important thing… You cannot bring about repentance, only the Holy Spirit can do that… So let us be those who do not judge others, because that will only cause hurt, accusation and separation… On the contrary let us commit ourselves to reveal the love, the goodness and the grace of God around us because it is thus that the hearts will be transformed and will be able to live the repentance and the reconciliation with the Father… Let us therefore be filled with love at toward all men (cf. 1 Thessalonians 3:12) knowing that it will release a spirit of revelation of Christ to know Him.
What you decide today determines who you will be tomorrow… So I would like to encourage you to develop a new habit. Why don't you take 5 minutes every day in your prayer time to simply find out who God is by opening your heart to His revelation?
God has blessed you richly so that you bless abundantly ...
Luke
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