Repentance, Part 1

In my studies I ran across some very interesting articles that claimed that repentance is not part of the process of salvation – that a person does not have to repent to be saved. I was quite surprised to find that anyone could come to such a conclusion in light of the clear teaching of Scripture.

In chapter 3 of the book of Matthew, Jesus is baptized by John the Baptist in the Jordan River. In the first part of chapter 4, Jesus goes off alone into the wilderness where He is tempted by Satan.

Following this time of temptation, Jesus returned home to Galilee, where Mark tells us Jesus began to preach.

Mark 1:15 and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”

Matthew tells us that Jesus then left His home in Nazareth of Galilee to begin His traveling ministry. He did not head into the big city of Jerusalem – the center of Judaism – as you might think He would, but He headed out into the wilderness provinces of Zebulun and Naphtali.

Matt. 4:17 From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

This is the same sermon that was preached by John the Baptist (Matt. 3.2), and it is the same message that the disciples would preach when they began their first mission trips (Mk. 6.12).

Just before Jesus was ascended to the Father following His resurrection appearances, Jesus said to His disciples…

Luke 24:46 Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, 47 and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem.

Following the coming of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost, the first sermon was preached by Peter. One of the primary points of his sermon concerned the need for repentance.

Acts 2:38 And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

After Peter preached in the home of the Roman Cornelius and witnessed the coming of the Holy Spirit on those who were not Jewish in national origin, he shared the good news with the leaders in Jerusalem.

Acts 11:18 When they (the Jewish leadership) heard these things they fell silent. And they glorified God, saying, “Then to (all the people groups of the world) God has also granted repentance that leads to life.”

When the Apostle Paul stood face to face with the wisest men of the known world on Mars Hill in Athens, Greece, he preached to them of Jesus and the resurrection, and as he neared the end of his sermon, he said…

Acts 17:30 The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent.

On at least two occasions, Paul stated that his message never changed as he preached to both Jews and to those who were not Jewish…

Acts 20:21 testifying both to Jews and to Greeks of repentance toward God and of faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.

To the church at Corinth Paul would write…

2 Cor. 7:10 …godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death.

Many will argue that all that is required for a person to become a Christian is to believe. And you will notice that belief is mentioned several times in the verses quoted above. However, I want you to understand that belief is not all that is required for salvation.

As we discovered in our recent study of the Revelation on Wednesday nights, millions of people will one day believe in Christ and even recognize that He is Lord, but they will not repent which leads to their doom.

Rev. 9:20 The rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands nor give up worshiping demons and idols of gold and silver and bronze and stone and wood, which cannot see or hear or walk, 21 nor did they repent of their murders or their sorceries or their sexual immorality or their thefts.

Rev. 16:9 They were scorched by the fierce heat, and they cursed the name of God who had power over these plagues. They did not repent and give him glory. 10 The fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and its kingdom was plunged into darkness. People gnawed their tongues in anguish 11 and cursed the God of heaven for their pain and sores. They did not repent of their deeds.

Finally, the writer of Hebrews encourages the believers in the early church by writing…

Heb. 6:1 Therefore let us leave the elementary doctrine of Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God.

This verse tells us that the foundation of the doctrine of Christ begins with repentance from dead works and faith toward God. Thus we see that one of the fundamental concepts of the gospel of Christ is repentance.

Having established the necessity of repentance in redemption, the next question we need to answer is “What does the Bible mean by repentance?”

I hope to explain that meaning very clearly to you next time. I warn you, you might be surprised at what we discover.

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