6 Aspects of Godly Sorrow

In 1 Corinthians 5, Paul rebukes the Corinthian Christians.  They repent, and Paul commends them for their "godly sorrow" (2 Corinthians 7:8-16).

This passage illustrates these six important aspects of godly sorrow (i.e. godly conviction):

1. We sometimes need correction and rebuke in order to experience godly sorrow (verses 8-9). See Misunderstandings About Judgment.

2. Godly sorrow “stings” - no one enjoys correction (vv. 8-9).(1) 

3. Godly sorrow leads to genuine repentance, i.e. turning from sin (v. 9).

4. Godly sorrow doesn’t harm us or leave us with regret because we face it honestly (vv. 9-10).

5. Godly sorrow leads to an earnest desire to make things right through reconciliation and/or restitution (v. 11).

6. Godly sorrow restores trust, love, and fellowship (vv. 12-16).

Worldly sorrow is the opposite: 

Correction "stings" for a different reason: because we’re sorry for being corrected, not sorry for our sins. We may insincerely or temporarily repent. But we return to our sin and lose the trust, affection, and fellowship of others.
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(1) Modern Christian culture often assumes that all aspects of our faith are meant to make us feel good about ourselves. But Scripture makes it clear that feeling bad about our sins is a necessary step in repentance. Most of us can use some encouragement to repent sincerely. Here are a few other 1-minute devotions that can help:
No Regrets
How to Say "I'm Sorry"
Self-Defense
How to Share Offenses and Apologize Biblically

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