The Awakening of a Sinner From the Sleep of Sin

The awakening of a sinner is such an action of Divine grace in his heart that as a result he, like one awakened from sleep, sees his sinfulness, feels the danger of his position, begins to be afraid for himself, and is concerned about how to escape his misery and be saved. Before he was blind, insensitive, and negligent toward salvation; now he sees, feels, and is concerned. But this is not yet a change, only the possibility of change and a call to it. Grace only says here to the sinner: “See where you have gone; now take measures toward your salvation.” It only tears him from his habitual bonds, stands him outside them, and holds him there, thus giving him the possibility to choose an entirely new life and commit himself to it. If he makes use of this—well for him; if not—he will be cast down again, will sink back into that same sleep and abyss of ruin.

Divine grace achieves this by revealing before the consciousness and feeling of the person the worthlessness and shame of that to which he is devoted and what he so values. As God’s Word passes “to the division of soul and spirit, of joints and marrow” (Heb 4:12), so grace passes to the division of heart and sin and dissolves their illegal union and connection. We have seen that the sinner sinks with his whole being into such a realm where principles, ideas, judgments, rules, customs, pleasures, and orders are completely opposite to the true spiritual life for which man is destined. Having sunk into this realm, he does not remain separate and apart, but penetrating everything, he merges with everything: he is wholly in all. From this it naturally follows that he does not know and does not think about what is contrary to this order, and has no sympathy for it. The realm of the spirit is completely closed to him. It is clear after this that the door to conversion can open only on condition that the order of spiritual life is revealed before the sinner’s consciousness in all its clarity, and not only revealed but also touching his heart; while the order of sinful life is put to shame, rejected, and destroyed—also before his consciousness and feeling. Only then can concern arise—to abandon this and enter that. All this is accomplished in one act of grace-filled awakening of the sinner.

In its manner of action, the awakening grace of God always corresponds not only to the bonds in which the sinner is held, but also to the particular state of the sinner. In this latter respect, one must especially note the difference in the action of grace on those who have never been awakened and on those who have already experienced this awakening. To one who has never once experienced it, it is given as if for free, as universal preceding or calling grace. Nothing preliminary is required from him, because he is wholly directed elsewhere. But to one who has already been awakened, knew and felt what life in Christ is, and again gave himself to sin, awakening is not given freely. Something is required from him as well beforehand. He must, as it were, still earn and pray for it; not only wish, but do something to himself to draw grace-filled awakening. Such a person, remembering his former dwelling in the good Christian order, often wishes for it again but does not gain power over himself; he would like to reform, but cannot master himself and overcome himself. He is in helpless powerlessness, abandoned to himself because he formerly abandoned the gift, “insulted” the “Spirit of grace” and “trampled underfoot the Son of God” (Heb 10:29). Now he is given to feel how great this grace-filled power is by the very fact that it is not readily given. Seek and labor, and by the difficulty of gaining it learn to value it. Such a person is in a somewhat tormenting state: he thirsts but is not satisfied, hungers but is not fed, seeks but does not find, strains but does not receive. Some are left in this state very, very long, until they feel as though God has rejected them, as though God has forgotten and rejected them, and condemned them like land which has been rained on many times but remains barren (see: Heb 6:7–8). But this delay of grace touching the seeker’s heart is only a trial. The trial passes, and the awakening spirit descends on him again, because of his labors and sweaty seeking, as on others it descends freely. Such a way of action of saving grace indicates to us: a) the extraordinary actions of Divine grace in awakening sinners, and b) the ordinary order of gaining the gift of awakening grace.