2 Corinthians, Day 6
Godly Grief
2 Corinthians 6:11 – 7:6
“Godly grief is to sin what pain is to disease. A sensitive conscience is a gift of God, just like nerve endings that recoil from scalding water” (John Piper).
I often have the privilege of meeting with couples preparing for marriage. It is an exciting season for an engaged couple and it is a privilege to be such a vital part of their preparation process. The first thing I ask them to do is to share with me about when they embraced Jesus Christ as their personal Savior. I learn so much in those first few minutes as they share their stories of coming to faith, or explain to me their view of religion and its impact or lack of impact on their lives. In some of those early moments of pre-marital discipleship, the future bride or groom is a Christian while their prospective spouse is not. In those situations, I explain to them that the Scriptures are clear that believers and non-believers should not get married. Paul addresses this call on a believer’s life in a declarative statement to the church at Corinth:
Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers (2 Corinthians 6:14).
After reading the verse to them, I explain that the apostle Paul gave this warning to the believers in Corinth because he loved them and wanted God’s best for them. We then discuss the ramifications of two unequally-yoked people in a marriage. Those conversations have been great learning moments for the couples and myself. Not one couple has ever walked out in the middle of those discussions as we talked about what the Bible said about their current situation. I am convinced that when we speak the truth of Scripture as the Spirit works in people’s lives, great things happen!
In 2 Corinthians 7, Paul uses a term that speaks to the process of drawing people to holiness in all areas of their lives through accountability to God’s Word — speaking the truth in love. He calls it godly grief:
For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death (2 Corinthians 7:10).
I love John Piper’s definition of godly grief:
“ . . . godly grief . . . is the uncomfortable feeling of guilt when the Word of God shows you that what you’ve done is sin and thus has brought reproach on God’s name . . . Godly grief is the grief of a God-saturated heart, not a world-saturated heart.”1
One day, a couple sat in my office and the bride-to-be introduced me to her fiancé. After a few minutes, I realized she had met a great guy, but I did not sense any spiritual depth. I really liked him and was enjoying the conversation. I could tell that she was very much in love with him. After getting to know each other, I asked them both to tell me about their relationship with Christ. The bride shared her story of growing up in the church. I was so proud of the way she joyfully described the day she met Jesus, described her walk with God, and how she believed God had put them together.
Then he began to share. As he spoke, I realized that he had grown up involved in a church, but had never given his life to Christ. He was definitely religious, but he had no personal relationship with God. Once he was finished, I asked him to answer a few questions for me:
1) Do you have sin in your life? He said, “Yes” (He obviously was familiar with the term), and I began explaining how sin was a part of all our lives (Romans 3:23).
2) Do you believe that Jesus Christ is Who He said He is? I read John 14:6 and I Corinthians 15:1 – 5 to him. After listening to the verses he said, “Yes.”
3) Do you have a moment in your life when you made Jesus Christ Lord of your life? He thought about it for a moment, and then said he had not.
I could see godly grief in his face as the Scriptures we had read brought clarity between the difference of religion and an authentic relationship with Jesus Christ. I had one more question for him: Do you want to make Jesus Christ Lord of your life today? He answered, “Yes.” At that moment, we prayed together as his soon-to-be wife cried and held his hand. It was a moment I will never forget! The season of discipleship with that couple will be something I will always treasure and has shaped how I disciple in similar situations.
I am so thankful for the times that the Word of God spoke to me and led me into godly grief about a situation where my actions did not line up with my identity as a son of the King of Kings. The Spirit’s work in our lives during seasons of godly grief leads us to confession and a pursuit of holiness only found in an authentic relationship with a gracious God. Sanctification is an on-going process, and we should all be sensitive to those moments when God pursues us through His Word and leads us into moments and seasons of godly grief. These moments and seasons remind us that God is good, He loves us no matter what, and He wants what is best for us.
Pastor Chuck
1 John Piper, found at https://www.desiringgod.org/messages/the-good-end-of-godly-regret.