Crosspoint

Their deeds do not permit them to return to their God. A spirit of prostitution
is in their heart; they do not acknowledge the Lord. Israels arrogance
testifies against them; the Israelites, even Ephraim, stumble in their sin;
Judah also stumbles with them.
(Hosea 5:4-5 NIV)
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There is a difference between unremorseful and unrepentant fallen leaders. The unremorseful do not want to leave their position of authority. The unrepentant do not want to return.
Im racking my brain trying to think of ways to illustrate this idea that came to me as I read these verses without using examples that would be little more than the pointing of fingers. Its not an easy thing to do. I mean I dont want to kick somebody who is down, but sometimes we need to deliver a good swift kick or two.
The unremorseful need to be kicked out. Its like Saul. Samuel had given Saul very specific instructions from God. Saul started out on the right foot, but he fell far short of finishing his task. This didnt stop him, when Saul showed up on the scene, from claiming mission accomplished. Samuel turned around and laid a scathing denunciation against Saul. King Saul, ignored most of this and only showed concern that he not lose the appearance of authority. Even though the spiritual and moral authority has already been lost, the unremorseful sinner will continue to grasp at power. There is an abundance of former televangelists, presidents, mayors, or other leaders Im sure we can all mentally plug in here as an example of this.
The unrepentant on the other end of the spectrum are harder to call to mind. They are the ones who tend to fade into obscurity. They may not try to hide or belittle their sin, but neither are they willing to do the hard and humbling work of fully turning from it. Perhaps they arent even committing the act of sin anymore, but they will continue to hide in the background leaving that backdoor open just in case. While with the first its their arrogance that testifies against them, the latter are still harboring a spirit of prostitution.

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We all fall. When we do, we need to avoid the danger of both these responses. On the one hand, we dare not belittle or hide our sin. On the other, we cannot allow ourselves to be paralyzed into inaction. Psalm 51 gives the perfect example of true reconciliation. We often hear and focus on the first 12 verses where David demonstrates what true remorse looks like and asks God for a cleansing or a purifying of not just his actions, but his heart. But this Psalm doesnt stop there. Verse 13 reads: Then I will teach transgressors your ways and sinners will turn back to you. And in 15, O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare your praise.
It takes remorse to stop. Repentance is the turning from it, but continues from there into the reconciliation of walking in the right direction once more.

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-- Edited by Beejai at 15:03, 2009-02-25