5 Signs of a Fake Apology

The Bible describes insincere repentance and gives us the examples of Cain, Joseph's brothers, and King Saul (Genesis 4:1-16; Genesis 50:15-17; 1 Samuel 15). 

People who insincerely repent: 

1. Are sorry for getting caught and suffering consequences, not sorry for their sin (Genesis 50:15-17). See I Doubt They Genuinely Repented and  Three Motives.

2. Believe they should get off easy (Genesis 4:13).(1) See Anatomy of An Insincere Repentance. 

3. Blame-shift, excuse or minimize their sin (Genesis 4:9; 1 Samuel 15:24). See Good Sins.

4. Demand forgiveness and/or preferential treatment despite their sin
(1 Samuel 15:30). See: He Apologized for His Affair, But Didn’t Repent.

5. Think it's wrong for people to judge them even though Scripture commands it for their own good (Matthew 18:15-20; 1 Corinthians 5:9-12). 

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(1) An article called Consequences of Forgiven Sin explains that God may give penalties for forgiven sin “(1) to demonstrate the exceeding evil of sin, (2) to show that God does not take sin lightly even when he lays aside his punishment [eternal consequences], (3) to humble and sanctify the forgiven sinner.”

Would you like to do a short Bible study on this subject and explore some of these examples more thoroughly? Check out today's Bite Size Bible Study. 

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