City Life Starter

Written by Stefan Johnsson

The Word

⁴ “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

Matthew 5:4 (ESV)

¹² “Yet even now,” declares the Lord, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning; ¹³ and rend your hearts and not your garments.” Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love; and he relents over disaster. ¹⁴ Who knows whether he will not turn and relent, and leave a blessing behind him, a grain offering and a drink offering for the Lord your God?

Joel 2:12-14 (ESV)

Reflection

During my trip to Israel, one of the images that I will always remember was the statue depicting Joel 2:12-13 (see image below). Joel, the prophet, tells the Israelites to rend their hearts to God, not their garments. To mourn for the wrong committed and to turn back to God. He will forgive them and relent on the judgments. To rend their garments was just an outward sign of repentance and was done more so to show others of their religious fervor. Joel wanted the Israelites to make a true repentance of their sinful hearts.

To mourn, is to see the path you’ve walked and realizing the sins you’ve committed. It requires you to repent and to turn 180 degrees from your old ways. To “tear our garments” is to show others your outward repentance but without making a true repentance form your sins. It’s like saying “I’m sorry,” but not actually making a change. And when the next opportunity arrives, you will just go right back to your old self and your old ways. This is not where true repentance lies. 

What God wants from us is to rend our hearts, to break down in tears towards God for what we have done. It is turning towards God in our pain and sin. We should seek for forgiveness from our wrongs, but to do so knowing that we sinned against God first and foremost. 

As Psalm 51:3-4 says:

3 For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. 4 Against you, you only, have I sinned     and done what is evil in your sight, 

In Jesus there is no condemnation since we have been forgiven for our sins. Though, we should never take lightly any sin we do. We should be truly humbled by our faults and the knowledge in knowing that without Jesus we are without hope. Repent with the knowledge that God loves us, chooses to see us as perfect even through the mistakes we make, because of the blood that Christ shed on the cross for our sins. This will allow us to continue to grow and keep following in our Rabbi’s footsteps. So rend your hearts unto God and not your garments and for He is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love.

Application

Have you truly repented from your old ways and habits? Have you broken down to mourn to God for the sins in your life that is holding you back from what He wants from you?

True repentance is of the heart, not what others see. Mourn for your faults and seek after God. In Him, and only Him, will you find true comfort and rest. He will built you back stronger than ever.

Now you can book a trip to Israel with Ji Yun and experience all this for yourself!

Prayer

Lord and Father in heaven, help me to seek after You. Let me seek after true repentance and to bring all my faults to You. Break me and mold me to be more like You. In Jesus’ name, amen.