Steps of Repentance

1. Are you able to receive the rebukes of others - even from individuals who don't deserve to give them? Are you willing, for the sake of love, to rebuke a brother or sister in sin?

2. When's the last time you confessed sin to God? To another person? Are you willing to embarrass yourself before those you want to impress with a frank acknowledgement of your sin? (In doing so, of course, you should take care that no weaker or younger Christian is attracted to the sin you are confessing).

3. When you are confronted with your sin, either by another person or by the quick flashes of your conscience, do you take steps to repent, that is, to cease and desist? Or do you, honestly, go easy on yourself? Are you quick to point to circumstances? Can you think of a recent occasion where you went easy on yourself?

4. Once you have confessed a sin and owned up to your responsibility, do you get angry when the other parties still ask you to take responsibility for the consequences of your sin? When was the last time you did that?

5. How quickly would your parents (or spouse, sibling, friend, co-worker) say you grant forgiveness? Or would they say you tend to let bitterness fester? Or consider the question like this: Jesus told us to pray, "Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors" (Matthew 6:12). Would you really want God to answer that prayer?