Godly Sorrow Versus Sorrow of the World
Lakella Davenport
II Corinthians 7:9-10 KJV —“Now I rejoice, not that ye were made sorry, but that ye sorrowed to repentance: for ye were made sorrow after a Godly manner, that ye might receive damage by us in nothing. For Godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of, but the sorrow of the world worketh death.”
Godly sorrow is what we experience when we come before God confessing our sins, asking for forgiveness because we are sorry for committing these sins against God, our Father. Godly sorrow comes forth out of a heart made new in Christ; a heart that has believed in and turned to Jesus as its Savior.
A sorrowful heart is a repenting heart. It is a heart that seeks Godly change in its lifestyle and behaviors. Godly sorrow seeks after God first and desires to learn His ways. Godly sorrow seeks obedience to God’s commands and ordinances. Worldly sorrow seeks fulfillment in worldly things such as riches, status, and possessions. Worldly sorrow comes as a result of not putting God first in our lives, and not putting our trust in God. Worldly sorrow comes as a result of putting our trust in ourselves, mankind, possessions, and positions.
Trusting in the material things of this world won’t make us happy or content. We’ll always be seeking more and more when we put our trust in anything other than our God. With Godly sorrow, contentment comes in knowing that God will supply all our needs according to his riches in glory; if we honor and serve him first.
Which kind of sorrow would you rather have? I would rather have Godly sorrow that bears the fruit of the Word of God in my life, leading to eternal life. With Godly sorrow comes the fruit of “…love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, and temperance…” (Galatians 5:22-23 KJV). Worldly sorrow produces destruction and leads to death. As Christians, we should exemplify Godly sorrow, not the sorrow of the world.
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