I think I have answered this question the only way it is possible to answer it -- with Luther's own words on this subject: "Our Lord and Master Jesus Christ, when He said Poenitentiam agite, willed that the whole life of believers should be repentance."
That is, you have pictured "repentance" apart from "faith", but the truth is that when there is "faith" there is "repentance".
The case the Bible makes for us here in in several passages. In Rom 7:14-8:11, for example, declares that one must "set the mind on the Spirit [for] life and peace." That passage deserves more work than that, but I leave it to the reader to see that faith and repentance are inseparable.
The passage I want to look more closely at, however, is Luke 18:9-14. In this parable, Christ tells us something about what real faith in God looks like -- and it's not merely gratitude and obedience. The Pharisee has that, and Jesus says plainly he was not justified. But the tax collector was in the temple, and his prayer was simple: "God, be merciful to me, a sinner!"
Jesus says plainly of him: this man went down to his house justified. Because he knew his works were sinful, and he had no standing before God, he was justified before God. That, in a nutshell, is repentance.
And this is why I previously cited the LBCF to you: to underscore that I can know my own repentance. See: I think your question really comes from a place that the NT never does: you are asking an ontological question on-par with "How can I know I drove my car?" or "How can I know I love my wife?" or "How can I know I have posted my response at D-Blog?" The question of repentance is simply not that complicated -- and it is not a work but rather an orientation to God.
Think of it this way specifically: David murdered Uriah to conceal his sin with Bathsheba, right? So he made sin to cover sin. But when Nathan came to him and pointed told him his sin, unlike Saul who made excuses for his sin, David confessed, "I have sinned against YHVH."
These are not only words. When you know your sin is against God, and this is why it is wrong, and you know you deserve judgment, confess. This is the meaning of Rom 10:10. This is how anyone can know they are saved -- and to answer your question specifically, I know I have repented because I have repented as the Bible describes repentance.
That is, you have pictured "repentance" apart from "faith", but the truth is that when there is "faith" there is "repentance".
The case the Bible makes for us here in in several passages. In Rom 7:14-8:11, for example, declares that one must "set the mind on the Spirit [for] life and peace." That passage deserves more work than that, but I leave it to the reader to see that faith and repentance are inseparable.
The passage I want to look more closely at, however, is Luke 18:9-14. In this parable, Christ tells us something about what real faith in God looks like -- and it's not merely gratitude and obedience. The Pharisee has that, and Jesus says plainly he was not justified. But the tax collector was in the temple, and his prayer was simple: "God, be merciful to me, a sinner!"
Jesus says plainly of him: this man went down to his house justified. Because he knew his works were sinful, and he had no standing before God, he was justified before God. That, in a nutshell, is repentance.
And this is why I previously cited the LBCF to you: to underscore that I can know my own repentance. See: I think your question really comes from a place that the NT never does: you are asking an ontological question on-par with "How can I know I drove my car?" or "How can I know I love my wife?" or "How can I know I have posted my response at D-Blog?" The question of repentance is simply not that complicated -- and it is not a work but rather an orientation to God.
Think of it this way specifically: David murdered Uriah to conceal his sin with Bathsheba, right? So he made sin to cover sin. But when Nathan came to him and pointed told him his sin, unlike Saul who made excuses for his sin, David confessed, "I have sinned against YHVH."
These are not only words. When you know your sin is against God, and this is why it is wrong, and you know you deserve judgment, confess. This is the meaning of Rom 10:10. This is how anyone can know they are saved -- and to answer your question specifically, I know I have repented because I have repented as the Bible describes repentance.
This is centuri0n, aka Frank Turk, who has been an internet apologist for about 10 years and has never really gained anything for himself through it but a handful of friends and a lot of ill-will. Most people, honestly, do not like to argue with him because he doesn't know how to let it go. He's a blogger of some minor note, and he's a "calvinist".
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