Latest / Reformed Thinking / Brothers, Lead Them to Repentance through Their Pleasure | John Piper

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Brothers, Lead Them to Repentance through Their Pleasure | John Piper · Reformed Thinking

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Welcome, and thank you for joining us on Reformed Thinking.
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Today we're taking a deep dive into a really compelling concept
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about the nature of repentance and, well, how it get started.
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Many of us, when we think about repentance, often picture it as,
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you know, a difficult experience, a somber turning
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away from wrong, usually driven by guilt or maybe fear of
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punishment. But our source material today
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presents a viewpoint that might just flip that common notion on
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its head. It suggests that the initial
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spark of true sorrow for sin, what's often called genuine
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evangelical contrition, doesn't begin with dread or external
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threats, but paradoxically, it starts from an awakened desire
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for contentment, for satisfaction and God himself.
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That's right. It's quite a counterintuitive
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idea at first glance, our sources primarily drawing from
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the reflections of a respected pastor who himself studied the
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writings of an 18th century missionary, David Brainard,
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along with a significant biblical account.
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They lay out a really refreshing perspective.
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They argue for what seems like a deep truth, that the actual pain
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of remorse for sin must first sprout and grow, if you will, in
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the rich soil of pleasure. Now obviously not pleasure in
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sin, but pleasure in God. Our mission in this deep dive is
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really to unpack how the seemingly contradictory idea
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works to help you grasp this rich concept and its far
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reaching implications for Christian life, for how we live
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and view our walk with God. It's an idea that once you sort
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of get your head around it, can really reshape your spiritual
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outlook. OK, let's unpack this core
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argument then, because it really is a foundational and thinking
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for many. Our souls argue that genuine
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remorse for sin, that authentic turning we call evangelical
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contrition, is far more than just a fearful sadness.
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It's not simply a reaction to, say, external threats or the
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negative consequences of our actions.
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It's something much richer, much more internal and, well,
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affectional. The source material draws a very
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clear line here. It distinguishes this authentic
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God honoring remorse from what it labels legalistic fearful
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sadness. And the distinction is quite
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stark when you look at. It it really.
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Is to illustrate. Our sources give this vivid
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picture. Imagine a criminal in a
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courtroom. He weeps when his sentence is
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read. Now we see tears, right?
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A visible sign of distress. But what's the root of that
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sorrow? Is it because he has, in that
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moment, truly come to cherish what is right and grieve that he
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violated it? Or is it simply because his
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freedom to continue doing wrong is being taken away?
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Maybe he just regrets getting caught or losing his comfort,
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his liberty, rather than the actual injustice or harm he
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caused. Right.
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The motivation matters enormously.
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Exactly. According to our sources, this
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latter kind of sorrow, the one born from just hating the pain
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or avoiding personal discomfort rather than genuinely hating the
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wrong itself, well, that's not true evangelical repentance.
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This kind of weeping, they argue, doesn't lead to a life of
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radical Christian obedience. It just hates the suffering, the
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personal inconvenience. It doesn't hate the sin itself.
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It's a sadness rooted in self preservation, a fear of negative
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outcomes, not a genuine change in the heart's affections.
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And that differentiation is absolutely crucial, because one
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leads to just a superficial kind of conformity, maybe an outward
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adjustment to avoid trouble, while the other, the genuine
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kind, paves the way for a deep, a more internal transformation
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of the whole person. The source material makes it
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very clear. A remorse born from simply
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avoiding consequences from those external pressures.
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It won't move a person to a life that truly reflects God's
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character or his commands. It's a shallow avoidance of
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discomfort, not a deep seated rejection of unholiness.
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And that's just not the type of sorrow that produces A genuine
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turning toward God, which is what real biblical repentance is
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all about. That distinction is indeed
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pivotal. It isn't just an academic point
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for theological debate, is it? It touches the very root of how
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we relate to God and how genuine spiritual transformation
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happens. Absolutely.
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The source contends that true sorrow for not having holiness,
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for not living in a way that honors God, comes primarily from
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a love for holiness itself, not just from a desire to avoid
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negative results where the pain of punishment.
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You really think about it, genuine remorse over not
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possessing holiness is, at its heart, remorse over not enjoying
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God as fully as we could, and over not living a life that
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flows from and demonstrates that joy.
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This is a subtle but incredibly potent difference from how many
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of us might instinctively think about repentance.
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So for the sorrow to be authentic evangelical sorrow, it
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has to come from that place. Yes, for sorrow and contrition
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to be authentic and truly evangelical meeting, you know,
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springing from the good news of the gospel, not just the demands
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of the law, it must originate from a kind of broken hearted
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feeling you have for lacking a life of joy in God, not
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primarily from a fearful feeling of being threatened with pain.
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This perspective is what sets the stage for that seeming
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paradox we mentioned. The pain of remorse must grow in
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the soil of pleasure. Okay, explain that a bit more.
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How does pain grow from pleasure?
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Well, to clarify, for genuine remorse to truly emerge and be
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God honoring God Himself and His way of holiness must first
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become your joy, your supreme delight, before you can truly
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grieve over falling short of Him.
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You have to, in a sense, pace the deep satisfaction and
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contentment of knowing God, of savoring His presence and His
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ways, before you will experience the specific kind of God
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honoring pain that marks true remorse for sin.
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So affection has to come first. Precisely this means that
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authentic evangelical contrition, true repentance,
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must be preceded by an affection, a deep affection for
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the all satisfying God. Until God is perceived not just
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as a duty or some distant deity, but as your ultimate treasure,
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your greatest delight, people won't genuinely grieve over
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their failure to be satisfied in Him, or grieve their failure to
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live in a way that outwardly shows that satisfaction.
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Consider the simple human truth. If weeping over something you
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don't have is meant to show how precious that something is to
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you, well then you must genuinely take delight in that
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something. The more you delight in it, the
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more distressed, the more sorrowful you'll feel over not
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having it, or over having something that prevents you from
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enjoying it fully. Like losing something you deeply
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cherish hurts more than losing something you don't care about.
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Exactly. You must come to love something
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before separation or absence truly hurts.
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This sorrow, then, highlights a profound longing for what is
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truly precious, which is God Himself and the life of holiness
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reflecting His nature. It's an internal ache born from
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the absence or the diminishment of something supremely
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desirable, not merely an external reaction to something
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undesirable like punishment. This grief, then, is a deep
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response to the loss of joy in God, or the hindrance of that
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joy by sin. It's not just a calculation to
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avoid divine judgement. It's like the light of God's
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holiness shining so brightly that it makes your own spiritual
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imperfections glaringly obvious. And you grieve them because they
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obscure the very joy you crave in Him.
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OK, so if true sorrow for sin doesn't really begin with a fear
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of consequences, then where does it begin?
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And maybe more importantly, has this fascinating theological
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idea ever been actually observed in the messy reality of human
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experience? You know, outside of a theology
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book, our deep dive into historical accounts and biblical
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narratives offers a truly surprising answer here.
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And this is where it really comes alive for me.
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Yes, the practical examples are quite compelling.
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Our sources tell us about a remarkable discovery made by
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John Piper, the pastor you mentioned during an all night
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prayer meeting. He was rereading parts of the
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diary of David Brainard. Brainard, as you said, was this
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young, often sick, but fiercely dedicated missionary to American
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Indian tribes back in the 18th century.
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His life and ministry were preserved for us by Jonathan
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Edwards, which is significant in itself.
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Now Brainerd. Despite his youth and incredibly
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challenging circumstances, illness, isolation, cultural
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barriers, he observed genuine repentance and heartfelt
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contrition among the Indians he ministered to.
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But the way this repentance came about was deeply surprising to
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him and later to Piper. It really challenged
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conventional thinking even then. Yeah.
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For instance, on August 9th, 1745, while preaching to the
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Indians of Cross Week Sung New Jersey, Brainerd noted this
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powerful spiritual awakening. His listeners were overcome with
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emotion, many were shedding tears, some crying out in what
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he described as anguish of soul. Real conviction.
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Yet, and this is the crucial point Brainerd makes, he spoke
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not a word of terror that day. Just think about that for a
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moment. Profound emotional responses,
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clear signs of spiritual distress and repentance, Yet no
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threats of Hellfire, no descriptions of judgement were
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used. Quite striking.
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Instead, Brainerd focused entirely on presenting the
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fullness and all sufficiency of Christ's merits and his
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willingness to save all the come to him.
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He pressed them gently, yet urgently, to come without delay
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to this glorious Savior. It seems it was the winsome
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attractiveness of Christ, his boundless efficiency, his
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eagerness to save, that pierced their hearts and stirred their
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souls to this deep contrition, which stands in stark contrast
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to the common idea that fear of punishment is the main motivator
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for turning from sin. Absolutely.
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Brainerd's observations strongly suggest a different pathway to
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repentance, A more profound 1. Arguably, his words weren't
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designed to terrify, but to allure, to draw them in with the
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sheer beauty and satisfaction found in Christ.
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He didn't just present an escape from wrath, he presented a
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treasure that made their current state of separation from God
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feel unbearable. And this wasn't just a one off
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observation for Brainerd, was it?
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No, not at all. This was a truly remarkable
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pattern for Brainerd, and its consistency really impacted
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Piper's own understanding. Brainerd had noted something
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similar just a few days earlier. On August 6th, 1745, he wrote.
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It was surprising to see how their hearts seem to be pierced
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with the tender and melting invitations of the gospel when
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there was not a word of terror spoken to them.
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So this pattern of repentance, driven by attraction, not alarm,
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was consistent in his ministry. And then again, on November 30th
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that same year, he was preaching on the familiar story of the
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rich man and Lazarus from Luke 16.
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Brainerd observed something else striking.
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He perceived that speaking about the blessedness of Lazarus in
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Abraham's bosom, you know, describing the comfort, the
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peace, the joy of being in God's presence, that affected them
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much more than what I spoke of the rich man's misery in
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torments. This became a usual pattern for
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him. His listeners almost always
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appeared much more affected by the comfortable than the
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dreadful truths of God's Word. The sweetness of God's grace and
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glory seemed to have a far greater impact than the severity
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of His justice. So what was it that was
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distressing them under conviction, according to
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Brainerd? Well, what truly distressed many
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of them, Brainerd observed, was not primarily the fear of
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suffering or hell, but rather that they found they wanted and
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could not obtain the happiness of the godly.
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This points directly to their grief stemming from a deep
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desire for, or maybe a perceived lack of, the joy and blessedness
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found in God and in holiness. It wasn't primarily fear of
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punishment. They longed for the beauty and
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contentment of God's way of life, for the satisfaction that
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came with knowing Him. And that longing went unmet in
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their own lives because of their sin produced genuine, heartfelt
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sorrow. That historical account really
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does provide strong support for this idea, doesn't it?
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It really does, that true broken heartedness and repentance
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aren't primarily produced by fear mongering or threats, but
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by revealing the attractive, satisfying, utterly desirable
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nature of God in Christ and the blessings of holiness.
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It led to a longing for what they saw as truly good and
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joyful, and consequently sorrow over their current separation
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from it. Their sorrow was a testament to
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the preciousness of what they desired but didn't yet possess.
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It echoes our earlier point about delight being the root of
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authentic remorse. The more glorious God appeared
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to them, the more grievous their sin and neglecting Him became.
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And this pattern, this kind of repentance born from
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encountering delight rather than dread, it's not just confined to
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the 18th century or Brainerd specific ministry.
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Our sources also point us to a powerful, maybe even iconic,
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biblical example from Luke. Chapter 5, verses 110 involves
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Simon Peter. Yes, the calling of Peter, a
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classic passage. Right Jesus, after teaching the
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crowds from Peter's fishing boat, using it as a kind of
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makeshift pulpit, told these seasoned fishermen to push out
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into the deep water and let down their Nets for a catch.
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Now, Peter was a professional. He'd spent his life on those
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waters, He protested respectfully, explaining they
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worked all night and got absolutely nothing.
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Zero. He knew the waters.
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He knew the craft. He knew it seemed futile.
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Yet at Jesus, a simple word. Peter set aside his experience,
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his exhaustion, probably his common sense, too.
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And he let down the Nets. An act of faith right there,
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even in his protest. Indeed.
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And what happened next was just astounding.
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Truly miraculous. The Nets immediately filled with
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so many fish and unimaginable quantity that they started to
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break under the weight. The sheer abundance was
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overwhelming, so much so that Peter and his companions had to
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desperately signal for their partners in another boat to come
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help. And even then, both boats filled
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with fish to the point they were nearly sinking.
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It was just an undeniable, overwhelming display of Jesus
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power, His goodness, His supernatural provision.
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This wasn't a moment of judgement or rebuke from Jesus.
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It was pure, overflowing, gratuitous grace and bounty from
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the Master of creation. Peter wasn't faced with a stern
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lecture about his sin. He was faced with this
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overflowing, tangible manifestation of divine
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goodness. And Peter's response to this
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incredible catch was really remarkable, quite unlike how
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maybe we and our modern sensibilities might react.
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He didn't celebrate the bounty. He didn't start calculating
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profits. Instead, he reacted with
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profound spiritual distress. He fell down at Jesus's knees, a
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position of just abject submission and awe, and cried
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out. Depart from me, for I am a
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sinful man, O Lord. Wow, depart from me, not stay
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with me. Let's catch more fish.
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Exactly. It was this overwhelming display
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of Jesus goodness and manifest glory.
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The sources rightly highlight that a miracle of grace, not a
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word of judgment or condemnation, was the catalyst
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that broke Peters heart and brought him to contrite
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repentance. His sorrow wasn't a legalistic
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fearful sadness just owing to threats or fear of being
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exposed. So what was happening inside
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Peter according to this view? Well, Peter in that moment saw
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in the miracle not just an incredible catch of fish, but a
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treasure of hope and joy. So wonderful, so utterly
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satisfying that he was completely overwhelmed with how
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out of sync his own life, his own character was with such a
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treasure. The immense contentment, the
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purity, the goodness he saw radiating from Jesus presence
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and power. It highlighted his own
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sinfulness by stark contrast. It's like turning on a bright
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light in a dimly lit room. The beauty of the light makes
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all the dust and disorder suddenly visible.
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Not necessarily in a terrifying way, but in a way that stirs a
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desire for cleanliness, for order.
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That's a helpful analogy. The radiant holiness and power
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of Christ, revealed in that amazing catch, made his own
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moral failing stand out in sharp relief.
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His sorrow was this of broken hearted feeling arising from
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lacking a life of joy in God that matched the immense value
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and satisfaction he perceived in Christ.
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So this account, both historical and biblical, demonstrates that
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genuine evangelical contrition is deeply grounded in an
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appealing vision of the holiness of God.
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The more Peter experienced the satisfaction of Jesus's presence
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and power, the more his own failures became visible and
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grievous, leading to a God honoring sorrow.
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It was the light of Christ glory that revealed his darkness, and
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that realization, rooted in delight and awe, moved him to a
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deep, transformative repentance. OK, so bringing this all
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together, what does this mean for us today?
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This understanding of repentance starting with contentment in God
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isn't just a theological nicety, right?
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An interesting point to discuss. It seems to have a grand
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overarching purpose that touches every part of our lives.
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Our source material frames this kind of repentance as the first
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spiritual step on the Calvary Rd. of radical obedience to
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Jesus. Now that phrase Calvary Rd. of
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radical obedience, that immediately signals something
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significant. It's not just about a difficult
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path, but one that mirrors Christ's self giving.
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Sacrifice points to a life of deep dedication, lived for
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Christ with genuine, joyful, abandoned, willing to follow him
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wherever he leads, whatever the cost.
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Yes, that language is intentionally chosen.
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It connects repentance directly to discipleship, to the very
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shape of the Christian life. So the aim of our ministry then,
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the aim of preaching and teaching, is to lead people onto
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this path of radical obedience. Why is this so crucial?
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Well, Jesus himself said it right, Matthew 5.16.
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People see our good deeds, our acts of obedience flowing from a
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changed heart, and they give glory to our Father in heaven.
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So if God's glory is paramount, the supreme name of everything,
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the very reason for creation, then radical life, offering
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obedience to Jesus is absolutely essential.
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It's not just an option for this for spiritual.
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It's necessary for God's radiance, His worth, His beauty
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to be seen and known in the world.
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That's right. This kind of obedience makes
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visible the value and beauty of all that God is for us in
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Christ. It's a living demonstration, A
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tangible display of the truth that God is infinitely
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satisfying, that he's supremely good, and that his ways are the
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path to true contentment. When believers live in a way
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that truly reflects this truth, a life of joy is abandoned for
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him. It becomes a powerful,
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undeniable witness to a watching world.
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It shows them where true treasure really lies.
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And this connection to God's glory is where it really expands
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beyond just individual repentance, isn't it?
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It moves from a personal conviction to a public
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declaration of God's worth. Exactly this theme of God's
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glory is central to the whole discussion.
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Preachers, and really all believers, are called to magnify
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God in the obedient lives of His people because God himself
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upholds his own glory. As Psalm 23, verse 3 says, He
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leads me in paths of righteousness for His name's
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sake. This means God's leading towards
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righteousness. His guidance into a life that
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honors Him is intrinsically tied to His own renown, His
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reputation, His glory among all peoples.
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It's not just about us, it's about Him.
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So our obedience reflects on His name.
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Yes, when God's people cast fear to the wind, fear of
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disapproval, fear of loss, fear of suffering, and spend
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themselves risking their lives, their fortunes, for God's truth
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and for the good of others, then God is shown for who he truly
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is, infinitely valuable, infinitely satisfying,
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infinitely worthy of all devotion.
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This kind of joyful sacrificial living demonstrate something
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profound. It shows the world that God's
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people don't need the fleeting, unsatisfying pleasures of sin to
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be content. They find their deepest
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satisfaction in God alone. This liberation from lesser
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sinful pleasures is what enables believers to live with radical
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abandoned to pursue God's purposes with unrestrained zeal,
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unburdened by the cravings that hold so many captive.
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Preaching for radical obedience, therefore, comes precisely from
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a passion for the supremacy of God and his people and
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throughout the world. Without this kind of obedience,
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the glory of God scarcely shines forth from the church into the
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world at all. The outward acts of faithful
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self giving living aren't just moral achievements.
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They are powerful revelations of God's nature, his character, his
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surpassing worth. This means that repentance born
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from delight in God naturally flows into a desire for a life
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of radical sacrificial living that displays God's supreme
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worth. It's the outward manifestation
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of that inward change, born from an affection for all that God is
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for us in Jesus. It's a joyful giving of self
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that spotlights God's infinite worth to everyone around us.
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This whole discussion has really significantly to get
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implications then for how we preach, how we minister, and
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frankly how we even pursue our own spiritual growth.
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If remorse for sin is the first spiritual step on this road of
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God exalting obedience, then the crucial question for pastors,
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for anyone involved in ministry, really for any follower of
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Christ, becomes how can I help people come to this place of
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remorse, the kind that genuinely results in life change and truly
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exalts God? How can I help people feel
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sadness about their sin in a way that truly matters, that
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produces genuine turning and lasting change?
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Right. And this is where the core
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paradox comes back in, providing A guiding principle for our
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practical approach. It's not just about listing sins
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or highlighting consequences. It's about cultivating a
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specific kind of spiritual environment for true repentance
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to flourish, one that might seem counterintuitive at first.
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It's about leading the heart, not just correcting behavior
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from the outside. So how do we do that?
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How do we cultivate that? Well, the argument from our
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sources is clear and direct. The most potent and fruitful
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acts of radical obedience, beginning with that remorse for
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sin, must be motivated by an awakened paste for contentment
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in God. Therefore, the preaching and
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teaching that Kindles this must constantly portray God as
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supremely and everlastingly satisfying.
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It must devote itself to making God and His Holiness look
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alluringly attractive and truly satisfying, a treasure to be
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desired above all else. This isn't just about presenting
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God as good or righteous in an abstract way.
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It's about presenting Him as ultimately and eternally
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desirable, the fountain of all true joy.
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What about warnings? Don't warnings about sin and
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judgment have a place? Oh, absolutely.
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Warnings about the consequences of sins certainly have their
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place. They can stir seriousness.
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They can help people take the glories of holiness in heaven
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seriously. They can jolt us to attention.
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But, and this is the key point, it is the delight in those
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glories, the delight in God Himself, that causes the genuine
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grief when we fall short. Think about it again.
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No one truly grieves over missing something they do not
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want to have. If a priceless treasure is
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offered to you and you just don't desire it, it's loss won't
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cause you any pain. You might just shrug.
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But if you see that treasure as beautiful, precious, supremely
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satisfying, then it's absence or your failure to obtain it, or
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worse, your act of throwing it away, that will cause the
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deepest sorrow. OK, I see that the value
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perceived determines the pain of loss.
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Exactly so. The ultimate objective of this
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kind of preaching, this kind of ministry, is to preach for joy
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in the glory of God, to lift up Christ as utterly delightful if
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we would produce true grief over falling short of God's glory.
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Evangelical repentance is fundamentally grounded in an
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appealing vision of the holiness of God.
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This means that true remorse and contrition are born from an
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affection for all that God is for us in Jesus.
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Until God is perceived not just intellectually but
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experientially, as our ultimate treasure, our supreme delight,
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we won't grieve over our falling short of being satisfied in Him,
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and we won't begin living in a way that clearly shows that
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satisfaction to the world. The instruction for pastors, for
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all of us involved in pointing people to Christ, is direct and
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quite profound. Pursue their repentance through
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their pleasure. Pursue their repentance through
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their pleasure. That sounds almost scandalous,
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but in this context it means. It means aiming to cultivate a
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deep seated joy and contentment in God first, which then becomes
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the very foundation for authentic remorse over anything
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that hinders that joy, and a joyful turning toward a life of
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radical obedience that flows from that joy.
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It's about inviting people to see God as He truly is, the most
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desirable, satisfying reality in the universe, and letting that
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vision reshape their hearts from the inside out.
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So our deep dive today has really shown us that genuine
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repentance isn't simply a grim duty or a painful necessity.
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We have to grit our teeth and get through.
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It can actually be a delightful discovery, stemming not
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primarily from fear of punishment, but from seeing God
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as our greatest treasure, our deepest satisfaction.
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It's about a broken hearted feeling for lacking the joy
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found in Him, a sorrow that recognizes the immense loss of
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missing out on God's beauty and presence because of our sin.
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And this is where true change begins.
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A change that naturally leads us into lives of radical obedience
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LED the powerfully display God's supreme worth to a watching
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world. It's really a call to view
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repentance through a lens of profound joy and satisfaction at
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God, recognizing that our sorrow over sin isn't a standalone
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emotion, but a product of a deeper, more compelling
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affection for our Creator. And that understanding naturally
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raises an important question for you, our listener, to maybe
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reflect on as you go about your day.
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Where do you find your true contentment?
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Is it primarily in the fleeting pleasures and temporary comforts
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of the world? Or is it rooted in the all
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satisfying reality of God Himself?
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And how might cultivating a greater delight in God shape
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your sorrow over sin, and in turn shape your desire for a
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life that genuinely reflects His beauty and His worth?
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That's a great question to leave us with.
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Thank you for joining us on this deep dive into Reformed
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thinking. Until next time, may you find
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your contentment in God above all else.