A Victorian’s Religious Beliefs

REPENTANCE

Repentance may follow, but can never precede, conviction. Man cannot repent of evil unless he is first convinced that he has committee it. And, either at once, or some time afterwards, nearly every man repents of the evil which he has committed. The laws which govern his physical nature, and his spirit, compel him to repent. At first, his repentance is wholly, selfish. He begins to find that his sins bring himself sorrow. Then also, he begins to feel unhappy, on account of himself. As yet, he is not at all unhappy on account of others, whom he has sinned against. By degrees, increased sinning takes him right away from happiness, into misery. And as misery has a loud and irritating voice it reminds him “The way of the transgressor is hard”. This gives new vigour to his repentance, and he wakes right up from his sleep of sin! Then he remembers the good times, and the sweet and happy years, now all gone away, and the loving hearts which he believes are still beating warm for him. And he can now see that his sins have brought sorrow to others, as well as to himself! This is the complete repentance, which must include sorrow for the sinner himself, and sorrow for those sinned against. The continued growth of this kind of repentance tends to end sinning, and will incline the man to “cease to do evil, and learn to do well”. Then, his next desire will be to confess his sins, and ask forgiveness. Thus we see that sinning precedes conviction – conviction precedes Repentance – and Repentance precedes Forgiveness. The whole process from sinning to Forgiveness is a gradual revelation and development of the Human Spirit, in harmony with the science and changeless laws of moral and spiritual development and perfection!

George Burgess – June 1899