"Repentance is the doctrine of the Gospel."
- Thomas Boston, Repentance, pg 42
The book "Repentance", which is a collection of sermons preached by the 18th century Puritan Thomas Boston, is the second book I have read recently concerning the biblical topic on repentance (the first being by Thomas Watson - see book review before this one). As Thomas Watson gave what I believe is a very emotional look at repentance (having the heart being central in one's own repentance), I believe that Thomas Boston gave a technical view of repentance. I believe both views must be adopted by an individual in order to have a full and biblically balanced view and experience of repentance.
In his book, what Boston did very well was to give warnings distinguishing between a true repentance and a false repentance, as he wrote, “Without a sense of sin there is no humiliation; without humiliation there can be no repentance; and without repentance there can be no escape from the wrath of God... Insensibleness of sin, and the evil of it, locks up the heart in obduration and impenitency; and that will shut up the soul under wrath.” True repentance cannot take place until the true nature of your own evil is self-understood. A false and limited view of your own sin will result in producing a false and limited act of repentance. And speaking of limiting repentance, Boston also points out the importance of exercising repentance as a daily part of your walk with God, as opposed to repenting only once at your conversion. Boston states it as such, “Whoever endeavours not to carry on their repentance, I doubt if they ever at all repented yet... The heart first smitten with repentance for sin at the soul’s first conversion to God, the wound still bleeds, and is never bound up to bleed no more, till the band of glory be put about it in heaven.” Daily repentance of our sins is to exist side-by-side with our daily faith in God, who delivers us from those sins.
For a detailed look into the nature of true repentance, and how it is to affect our daily walk with God, I would suggest Thomas Boston's book "Repentance" as a helpful manual to gain a robust and thorough grasp of such an important life-saving experience that genuine repentance gives.
“Though you have sinned with the world, if you repent with God’s elect, you will not perish with the world.”
- Thomas Boston, Repentance, pg 124
