Subscribe to Every Post:Godly or Worldly Sorrow?
Everyone sins – from the most pagan and evil to the most godly and spiritual. Second Corinthians 7:10 talks about a worldly sorrow and a godly sorrow over sin. One that leads to death and another that leads to repentance. When we sin, have you thought much about the difference?
I think there are times in my life when I sin (maybe in thought, word, or deed), and rather than having a godly sorrow over it, I have a worldly sorrow over it. This was always true when I sinned as an unbeliever, but it is sometimes true when I sin as a believer. Nothing comes to mind right now by way of example, but I am sure if I thought hard enough I could think of several.
One of the things I have seen over time is that when a person confesses sin “before they get caught” it is almost always because they have genuinely repented over their sin. This repentance and desire to change have led them to bring their sin to the light (godly sorrow).
However, when people try to hide their sin, cover it up, and keep it in darkness, and then they get caught, they generally have sorrow, but it is harder to tell if it is godly or worldly sorrow. If they do have worldly sorrow, the Spirit can change that and bring repentance, but it is very difficult to discern by others, because they wonder, “how long would they have continued sinning, if they would not have been caught.”
The way I have always handled it, is if a believer gets caught sinning and seems sorrowful and remorseful afterwards, I make the assumption it is godly sorrow unless proven otherwise. Time will tell if it is godly sorrow or worldly sorrow, but I always give the benefit of the doubt. After all, I cannot see their heart. Only God can.
Let me encourage you and myself that when we sin, let’s repent and confess it to others before we get caught. Confessing sin first will render a higher frequency of godly sorrow over worldly sorrow.