It is one thing to acknowledge one’s fault, it is another thing to be sorry for doing it. A person may acknowledge a fault but with a bold face defending his actions. Such a person can not obtain mercy whether in the court of men or the heavenly court.

Repentance means to think differently about one’s sins and actions; and to make up the mind never to go back to them. Repentance usually involves sorrow of the heart. In this state, a person truly sees himself as a worthy hell-deserving sinner who needs God’s mercy to make it.