“Repent therefore and return, that your sins may be wiped away, in order that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord…” – Acts 3:19

Repentance and faith in the shed blood of Jesus are the keys that unlock the funnels of grace from the portals of Heaven. It’s not, “Say you’re sorry and keep going…” — it’s “Repent…and return…”. Go back! Go back where? To Calvary’s Cross! Weep for your sin under the shade of grace where the just wrath of a Holy God was poured out for your sin on His very own Son, Jesus Christ. Hebrews tells us that we have ACCESS to the Throne of Grace whereby we might receive mercy and help in our time of need. On what basis does that access come? Our own personal godliness? Our ability to adhere to our church’s membership standards? 21 days of fasting? The duration of my daily prayer time? Success in my year long Bible-reading plan? No! The priests in the Old Testament had access to the Holy of Holies – where the very presence of God dwelled – through the blood of the sacrifice slain for the sins of Israel. And so it is with us. We have access through the blood of the Lamb slain before the foundation of the earth. There is no sin too great, no shortcoming so extensive that it can’t be wiped away by the precious blood of Jesus Christ… but there is no refreshing without repentance. The Holy Spirit cannot comfort where sin is not confessed. Its antithetical to His very nature – “holy.” Jesus came to tear down the barriers that sin had built between God and mankind – barriers that can again be erected in each of our individual lives if we insist on walking in defiance to His Word rather than dependence on His Work. Is your heart battered, your mind anxious, your soul sick? When you’re ready to cry out to Him with a heart of repentance, He stands ready to meet you with times of refreshment.