For Whose Sake Do You Repent?

In Daniel 9, Daniel falls before the King of Kings, the one who holds all wrath and grace in His hands and is righteous to pour either one out at His own will. Daniel does not misunderstand Jerusalem’s punishment, and with humility and mourning he affirms the Lord’s good wisdom to punish His people. There is no doubt that Daniel reveres his God and seeks His glory.

Daniel makes intercession between God and the Jews, and through his repentance he seeks their good and God’s glory. In 9:17-19 Daniel petitions the Lord, “Therefore, our God, hear the prayer and the petitions of your servant. Make your face shine on your desolate sanctuary for the Lord’s sake. Listen closely, my God, and hear. Open your eyes and see our desolations and the city that bears your name. For we are not presenting our petitions before you based on our righteous acts, but based on your abundant compassion. Lord, hear! Lord, forgive! Lord, listen and act! My God, for your own sake, do not delay, because your city and your people bear your name.” (CSB)

How often do we repent for our own sake? I can speak on my own behalf and say that a lot of the time my inherit cause for repentance is to salvage my own being. I seek the Lord’s forgiveness because I am truly remorseful for the sin I have committed against Him and others. True repentance is right and is beautiful. But I wonder, do we truly consider how our sin affects God’s image to those who surround us?

Daniel asks God to open His eyes and witness the desolation of the city that bears His name. We are that city. In Christ we are sons and daughters, adopted into the family of God, co-heirs with Christ (Galatians 4:4-7). We bear God’s name. So when we sin and we suffer in sin we still are bearing God’s name. We run rampant in our sin and shame, yet we have been called to Christ and so we cast that shame on His name. The world around us sees our behavior that may not look much different from their own, and they attribute that behavior to the Creator of all. That is not a God that is enticing to anybody.

At the same time, the grace of our God is that we bear His name. He answers the call of His children, forgives them of their sins, and washes them clean. He does not leave us in our desolation but He saves us. Why? For His namesake. We bear His name because by His love He gave us His name. When we fail and we seek His forgiveness He grants it to us without hesitation because of Jesus. Wrapped in to His forgiveness is His ultimate will - He does all things for His glory and for our good.

So we should go before the Lord in repentance like Daniel. We know that God will not forgive us or save us based on our own merit and capacity for righteousness. And what a gift that is! We would always be turned away if God forgave us based on our inherent holiness. But like Daniel said, we present our petitions to the Lord based on His compassion. For the sake of His name and because He unquestionably loves you, you are forgiven! His compassion reaches the deepest and darkest depths of our wicked hearts, and makes us holy - for His glory and our good.