First the repentant one admits unequivocally that he has sinned. There are to be no shades of grey, no excuses, no mitigating circumstances referred to; it was sin, plain and simple. There was perversion in it, and therefore it was deliberate and all the more guilty. We started with what was right and we knew it was right and we wilfully spoiled it and perverted it, turning it into something corrupt. This of course would not be possible if God had not written the law on our hearts so that we know the difference between good and evil. All sin is an act of destruction; it destroys what is good and right and it substitutes what is cruel or unclean or hateful.
The repentant sinner above all admits that sin did not bring an advantage or profit. This of course is the implied argument of sin. ‘God is wrong: righteousness does not profit and he is keeping from us something that is to our advantage. He is deceiving us in saying that obedience leads to life. On the contrary, it leads to a restricted life.’ This was what the sinner thought and said by his actions, even if not stated out loud. But this was all an act of self-deceit and in asserting this, the sinner was robbing God. Now he wishes to make restitution to God for stealing from his honour. ‘What I claimed brought me gain has actually taken away from me that which was most precious and which I could have in no other way than be following the Lord’s commandments. I have done foolishly.’