“I have considered my ways and have turned my steps to your statutes.”
Psalm 119:59
Dear Church Family,
As part of our series on “The Marks of a Healthy Church”, we considered the topic of Biblical Conversion and sought to understand its definition, necessity and means.
I focussed heavily on these three aspects from the perspective of evangelism because I wanted to impress on your hearts the reality of man’s lost and sinful condition, his hopeless situation and the graciousness of God in his salvation. However, I felt compelled to follow it up with a short note of encouragement on the grace of conversion and the Christian.
As I defined in my sermon, “conversion” in its most simple sense is a “turning around”. With this definition, “conversion” can be applied to both the Great Conversion at the point of our salvation where God gives us a new heart and a new Spirit and to our continual day-by-day turning away from sin and turning to Christ (repentance).
Though one is a once-and-for-all event performed solely by God and the other is a duty that we perform with the help of God, neither can ever take place without the Gospel.
You see, true repentance (which includes conversion) as John MacArthur observes, can only occur as a result of a spiritual crisis – a crisis that is brought about because a person’s sinfulness has been exposed, his bankruptcy made evident and his need of a Saviour has been revealed.
Only the proclamation of the Gospel can produce such fruits.
Can you see how this is applicable to both our salvation and our ongoing conformity to Christ (sanctification)?
Because of indwelling sin, we need to remind ourselves of the Gospel continually. We need to experience frequent spiritual crises in order to reveal to us that we have departed from God’s will and cause us to return to the Lord.
Psalm 19:7 tells us that “The law of the LORD is perfect, refreshing (converting) the soul. The statues of the LORD are trustworthy, making wise the simple.”
And because of his love for the law of the LORD, the Psalmist says in Psalm 119:59, “I have considered my ways and have turned (repented) my steps to your statutes.”
Have your steps turned away from God’s statutes? Have certain sinful words, thoughts or deeds led your paths astray?
Preach the Gospel to yourself, dear brother and sister. Cherish the Scriptures that is able to make your paths straight. Though rehearsing our need of a Saviour may provoke a spiritual crisis and reveal our backslidden state, nevertheless, it is God’s gracious means to remind us of Christ’s victory over sin, to wake us from our sinful slumber and to remind us to turn around and live in light of our new life in Christ – immeasurably forgiven, intimately known and deeply loved.
Indeed, it is the goodness of God to us in Christ Jesus that leads us to repentance.
You also, O Christian, may have fallen to-day into a very dull state, you hardly know whether you have true godliness or not, religion is almost a weariness to you. Ah, dear soul, let not despair imprison you; you can yet turn your feet to God’s testimonies; by the power of the eternal Spirit you can be lifted out of your backsliding condition. As a child of God, you must not sit down and say, “I am delivered unto these corruptions, and given over to the power of Satan.” The Son has made you free, and free you are…Thou hast been redeemed, and thou art no more a slave; thy chains are broken, Christ with his mighty hammer has beaten them to pieces upon the anvil of his cross. “Awake, thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ will give thee light.” While the Lord liveth, and the eternal Spirit goeth forth to save, there yet is hope of restoration.
C.H. Spurgeon on Psalm 119:59