Scripture does not know anything about apologies to God. Scripture only knows about perfect righteousness as the way to acceptance with God. As has been said often enough, God does not grade on a curve. Indeed, he does not.

Consider the wholly horizontal orientation of Tiger’s apology and the rather more, if you will, vertical orientation of David’s confession of sin in Ps 32. Discovered for the adulterer (and murderer) he was, David did not hold a press conference. Convicted by God’s Spirit of his sin against God (and Bathsheba and Uriah) he turned his face to God his judge. “Blessed is the man against whom Yahweh counts no iniquity” (Ps 32:2). The God-wardness of David’s repentance is perhaps even more pointed in Ps 51: “Have mercy upon me, O God…blot out my transgressions" (Ps 51:1). “Against you only have I sinned” (Ps 51:4). In these moments David understood that sin is lawlessness (1 John 3:4) and “the day you eat thereof you shall surely die” (Gen 2:17). “The wages of sin is death” (Rom 6:23).

True repentance, as distinct from mere apologies, begins with a recognition of reality, of who and what God is and of who and what we are. It begins with the knowledge of the greatness of our sin and misery. True repentance reckons with the law as the perfect expression of God’s perfect and unyielding righteousness. True repentance drives one to Christ, the only righteous man, the only man who ever actually kept the law, and true faith trusts in that one righteous man and in his “one act” of righteousness (Rom 5:18; i.e., his whole, perfect obedience) for his elect.

True repentance, i.e., genuine sorrow for sin against God and heartfelt desire to turn away from it, is born of true faith. Unbelievers don’t repent. Believers do. They know the greatness of their sin and misery. Tiger does not yet appear to know that. He seems to think that if he just focuses a little harder, is more disciplined, if he denies himself the pleasures of this world (his language), he can get everything back on track. Perhaps he can—as far as we can see. At the last day, however, it will not matter that Tiger recovered his public image, that he built more schools, that he regained the trust of his family and followers. At the last day it will only matter if he has satisfied the righteousness of God and I guarantee you that, as remarkable as Tiger is, he cannot do it. No sinner can.

The great good news for Tiger and for you is that Jesus has already done it and everyone who trusts in him and in his obedience for sinners is reckoned as if he himself had done all that Jesus did. God accepted Jesus’ righteousness. Jesus was vindicated by his resurrection (1 Tim 3:16). As certainly as Jesus was raised from the dead, so certainly will God accept Tiger and you and whoever turns to Christ in true faith, i.e., a certain knowledge and a hearty trust that Jesus obeyed and died “for me.”

From that true faith, a believer begins daily to die to his own desires and to live to Christ. He continues to sin for the rest of his life but now we know what sin is and we know what grace is. We know that in God’s free acceptance of sinners for Christ’s sake there is power and new life and real hope for real change; not perfection in this life but free acceptance with God (grace) and mercy and the work of the Spirit in our hearts, minds, and wills. By his grace the same Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead unites us to Christ, through faith, and is at work in us making us slowly, imperceptibly like Jesus.

Tiger pledged to do better. That won’t be good enough. Pray that Tiger and everyone else who heard his apology realizes the difference between “doing better” and doing “everything written in the book of the law” and that Christians understand the difference between an apology and true repentance.

There is a sentence of death over every one who has not professed faith in Jesus Christ. This sentence is executable at any moment. And the only reason that it is not executed and the sinner is not immediately experiencing the terrible judgment due for sin is because of the grace and mercy of God.

Yet, even more is the reality that instead of having the sentence immediately executed, millions of people experience the grace and mercy of sunshine and rain; seed time and harvest. The fact that there is any light or joy in the life of a sinner is owing to God’s desire to show mercy and to be longsuffering.

Nevertheless, those who have come into the knowledge of the truth and have experienced the forgiving grace of God in Jesus Christ are aware of the pending danger of judgment upon the unrepentant and thus we plead with them, even in the midst of God’s longsuffering and patience, to repent and believe. We plead with them because God will not strive with them forever and without repentance toward God and faith in Jesus Christ, judgment for their sin is coming. The sun they take for granted will be darkened, a perpetual night will grip their soul, and they will know the true nature of their sin and the necessary punishment for it. It is a terror just to contemplate. And so we say with all our energy, “Flee from the wrath that is sure to come! Flee to the mercy of Jesus Christ!”

Everlasting life is not possible without Jesus. Neither is life in this world. Those who acknowledge it in this world will have life in the next. Those who don’t, won’t.

If you know you are needy and believe that God helps the needy, you will pray. Conversely, if we seldom pray, the problem goes much deeper than a lack of organization and follow through. The heart that never talks to God is the heart that trusts in itself and not in the power of God.  Prayerlessness is unbelief.

Prayerfulness, on the other hand, is an evidence of humility and faith, which is why God loves it when we pray.