Repentance, Part 6: To Follow Jesus

“I have decided to follow Jesus…The world behind me, the cross before me… No turning back.”

These are excerpts from the lyrics of an old but popular Christian chorus that I recently heard sung in church.

To a Christian, the sentiment and the theology behind the lyrics are quite obvious. The singer is professing that he has abandoned the lusts and temptations and desires of the world which would keep him from Christ. He has changed his focus from things of the world to concentrate on the cross. By keeping the cross before him, he seeks to remain on the path of righteousness with no thought of ever turning back.

The reality is that this is seldom true of most Christians – or more accurately, most church members who profess to be Christians. Too many of us have not turned our backs on things of this world, either materially or spiritually. Too many are still determined to live the American dream of working or winning our way into prosperity.

We still sin – sometimes egregiously. We are still guilty of covetousness, of contempt and pride and hatred, of disobedience to parents, of adultery, and of untruthfulness. We are still strongly subject to idolatry, of taking the Lord’s name in vain, and of abandoning any concept of a Sabbath.

Yet I believe God was aware of all of this when He developed the plan of redemption before the foundation of the world. He was aware of all this when He created man and placed him in Paradise. He knew that even those who professed Christ as Lord would be subject to temptation, and sin, and rebellion, and spiritual as well as moral failure. He knew it – yet He staked the future of the kingdom of Heaven on just such people. As C. S. Lewis wrote in Mere Christianity, “…apparently He thought it worth the risk.”

That is why there is grace. That is why salvation is not dependent upon a person’s goodness or behavior or even upon on a person’s confession, but on God’s call on that person’s life. That is why the evidence of being born again is not a profession, or a prayer, or a performance, but obedience.

Matt. 7:21 Not everyone who calls out to me, “Lord! Lord!” will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of my Father in heaven will enter.

Read Luke 6.46-49 and Matt. 7.25-26 carefully. The rock upon which the house which can withstand the floods and storms of this world is not belief or profession, but obedience.

Thus the end of repentance is not salvation or the forgiveness of sin, but obedience. True repentance is not signified by walking an aisle or by reciting a salvation prayer or by inviting Jesus to come live in one’s heart, but by fulfilling the Great Commission.

Jesus promised that He and the Father would live in the hearts of those who were obedient (John 14.23). Thus confession that Jesus is the Son of God (1 John 4.15) is not simply making a statement, no matter how sincere. Abiding in love (1 John 4.16) is not settling complacently into a peaceful and relaxed relationship with God. Both of these are actions that follow hard after and give living proof of the reality of repentance.

Jesus called to Peter and Andrew, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” (Matt. 4.19)

Jesus did not call us simply to save us from death and hell. He saved us so that we would be able to respond to His call to obedience. God determined to build His kingdom through the labors of men and women empowered by His own Holy Spirit. He called us to come by the cross. Then, leaving the cross behind us, we are to focus our eyes on the world through which we are passing as obedient servants of the gospel. (Read Heb. 6.1-3 in the light of Matt. 29.19-20.)

Thus we should maybe rethink the old chorus. Maybe we should revise the song to say…

“I have decided to follow Jesus…The cross behind me, the world before me…No turning back.”

Repentance, Part 5

In my observation of religious practice, when someone mentions the word “repent,” they are most often making reference to a confession of sin and an expression of sorrow for that sin in hopes that God will be merciful towards them, forgive their sin, and rescue them from judgment.

I believe that the reason for such an inadequate understanding of repentance is directly due to the fact that such a concept has been taught from the pulpit generation after generation. Preachers and evangelists are constantly calling people to “repent of your sin” before it is too late.

The implication is that, if the preacher can convince someone of how lost they are, then they will feel enough guilt and remorse that they will repent of all their evil deeds, and God, because He is gracious, will accept that repentance as sufficient cause to respond to their repentance with salvation.

Yet, as I pray this series of articles has thus far demonstrated, there is no scriptural support for calling people to repent of their sins in the sense of confession and sorrow as a step on the road to salvation. That does not mean that confession and sorrow for sin are not an integral part of the salvation experience.

In fact, for repentance to happen there must first be a sorrow concerning our sin. Paul explained this concept in his letter to the church at Corinth: “Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation…” (1 Cor. 7:10)

(I will deal with the sorrow that leads to repentance in a later blog.)

Yet sorrow and confession alone are insufficient to bring one to a saving knowledge of Christ. The reason is that the focus of repentance, as well as the focus of redemption, is not our sin, but Christ.

The process of salvation does not end with repentance. Repentance is only part of a process that ultimately ends in worship of Christ as Lord, as Creator, as God, and obedience to His commands. Repentance, to be effective in the salvation process, must be followed by or accompanied by belief and obedience.

Here are several examples from Scripture where a form of the words repent and faith are used together.

Repent & Believe

Matt. 21:32 John came to you to show you the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes did. And even after you saw this, you did not repent and believe him.

Acts 19:4 Paul said, “John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, Jesus.”

Mark 1:14 Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, 15 and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”

Repent & Faith

Acts 20:21 I (Paul) have declared to both Jews and Greeks that they must turn to God in repentance and have faith in our Lord Jesus.

Heb. 6:1 Therefore let us leave the elementary teachings about Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death, and of faith in God…

First, notice that there is no mention of sin in any of these verses. Go back and read them again and try to read “repent” and “repentance” without subconsciously adding the words “of sin.” It is very difficult to do because the idea is so ingrained in our minds that repentance is tied only to our sin.

Here is a paraphrase of the reference from Mark 1 to help understand how one can read the word repentance without automatically linking it to the confession of sin:

Mark 1:15 The plan of redemption that the Father set into place before the foundation of the world has come to fruition. In fact, His kingdom is right here, right now, in me, the Son of God. I call on you now to change your mind about the way you understand righteousness and reconciliation and to embrace the Father’s plan of redemption revealed by His Son, Jesus.

Second, notice that in these five references, repentance always precedes believing or having faith. This does not mean that repentance is required for belief to take place or that repentance causes belief.

The fact is that both repentance and believing are essential elements in the process of salvation. In the plan of redemption, they are, in essence, simultaneous events. There cannot be a turning to unless there is first or simultaneously a turning from – a turning away from our path of unrighteousness (repentance) and a turning toward Christ (believing).

A person may be penitent without ever believing in Christ as Savior. An example from an earlier lesson is Judas Iscariot.

A person may say they believe in Christ without ever experiencing a change of mind concerning their lives in light of the righteousness of Christ. Listen to what James had to say about faith without obedience (and without repentance):

James 2:19 You say you have faith, for you believe that there is one God. Good for you! Even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror. (NLT)

In neither case does the person ever experience the grace of God that leads to salvation.

Third, notice the tense of the verbs in these references.

When Jesus preached His first sermon after His baptism in the Jordan River, He said, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.” (Mark 1:15)

When Peter preached his first sermon after his baptism in the Holy Spirit, he said, “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.” (Acts 2:38)

In response to the Philippian jailer’s question concerning salvation, Paul and Silas answered, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.” (Acts 16:31)

All of these verses are salvation-related verses, and all are calls to repentance and belief, not as an invitation, but as an imperative – as a command – obedience to which is a requirement of salvation.

Note that I did not say “requirement for salvation.” Repentance and belief are not actions required of a non-believer before he can know the grace of God in salvation. Instead, both repentance and belief are integral elements in the process of salvation that can never happen apart from the grace of God and without which the grace of God would be ineffective, which it never is.

Charles Spurgeon

"Repent ye" is as much a command of God as "Thou shalt not steal." "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ" has as fully a divine authority as "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with all thy soul, with all thy strength." Think not, O men, that the gospel is a thing left to your option to choose it or not!...

God commands you to repent. The same God before whom Sinai was moved and was altogether on a smoke – that same God who proclaimed the law with sound of trumpet, with lightnings and with thunders, speaketh to us more gently, but still as divinely, through his only begotten Son, when he saith to us, "Repent ye, and believe the gospel."[1]

So we see that repentance is a command of God. We see that the goal of repentance is not simply about confessing and expressing sorrow for our sin, but about worshiping Christ. Finally, we see that repentance that leads to salvation is always followed by or accompanied by believing.

Next, we will see that both repentance and believing are gifts from God and that repentance that leads to salvation is always accompanied by obedience.

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[1] http://www.spurgeon.org/sermons/0460.htm

Repentance, Part 4

The concept of repentance is so common in our language and so integral a part of our concept of salvation that the meaning of the word has become blurred and even skewed from its original meaning.

In the second article of this series on repentance I wrote about things that repentance does not mean. In the last article, I ended by stating that the focus of repentance is not our sin, but Christ.

In this article, I will try to put these ideas into a common thread in an attempt to help understand the meaning and the purpose of repentance.

Old Testament

In the Old Testament, there are two words which are most often translated repent. The first of these (nacham) is a word that is most often translated “comfort.” When it is translated as repent, the primary meaning is of regret for past actions or decisions. Very many of these are references to God, who never needs to repent of sin since He knows no sin.

1 Sam. 15:29 And also the Strength of Israel will not lie nor repent (have regret, ESV; change his mind, NIV): for he is not a man, that he should repent.

(The study of the use of the word repent in relationship to God is another whole study that would merit some space, but since that is not the object of this lesson, I will defer it to another time.)

The second word used for repent (shoob) in the Old Testament means to turn or to turn back. It also may mean a change of heart. The word is used three times in the following text from 1 Kings, but translated three different ways. This is part of a prayer Solomon prayed for the dedication of the newly completed Temple.

1 Kings 8:46-49

46 When they (the people of Israel) sin against you – for there is no-one who does not sin – and you become angry with them and give them over to the enemy, who takes them captive to his own land, far away or near; 47 and if they have a change of heart in the land where they are held captive, and repent and plead with you in the land of their conquerors and say, “We have sinned, we have done wrong, we have acted wickedly”; 48 and if they turn back to you with all their heart and soul in the land of their enemies who took them captive, and pray to you towards the land you gave their fathers, towards the city you have chosen and the temple I have built for your Name; 49 then from heaven, your dwelling-place, hear their prayer and their plea, and uphold their cause.” (NIV)

Another example of the multiple use of the word shoob is found in Ezekiel 18:27-32.

Though the sample is admittedly small and the study brief, we can safely come to the understanding that the meaning of repentance is not that we repent of something, but that we turn from something. We are not instructed in Scripture to repent of our sin in the sense of calling attention to it and confessing it. Instead, we are called to turn from our sin as a result of a changed heart.

New Testament

In the New Testament, the words translated as some form of the word repent are all related to the word metanoia. The word is a compound word. The first part (meta)addresses location or direction. It “denotes a change of place or condition.”  The second part refers to the mind. It means “to exercise the mind, think, comprehend.” Together, the word metanoia indicates a change in the direction or focal point of the mind. (Zhodiates 1992, 969)

To carry this a little further, the prefix meta implies “motion (in pursuit of or following) after a person or thing.” When used in a compound word, the prefix implies fellowship, partnership, participation, proximity, motion or direction after, transition, and change. (Zhodiates 1992, 966)

Based on this brief study, one immediately realizes that there is so much more implied in the word repent than simply expressing sorrow for sin or even turning from it in abhorrence, even though these are critical elements of the process.

Repentance is coming to a realization of the error of one’s plans and purposes and experiencing a turn in an opposite direction from the path regularly followed. For there to be a turning from something, there very naturally has to be a turning to something else.

In the context of the plan of redemption, that “something else” that we turn to is in actuality someone else – the person of Jesus Christ.

This is where we have gone wrong in our understanding of repentance. We have understood somewhat the idea of sorrow for our sins. As we reflect upon our sinful behavior, we may even experience abhorrence and revulsion of the sin. The problem is that with time our revulsion weakens and we never truly turn away from those sins.

And even when we attempted to turn away, we are typically unsuccessful because we never completed the process. We may have turned away from our sin for a season, but we never turn toward Christ.

Repentance means that we turn to Christ in fellowship, relationship, and obedience. He becomes the focus of our lives.

Look back at Mark’s version of Jesus’ first sermon. In Matt. 4:17, the sermon simply said, “Repent.”

But Mark added, “…repent and believe in the gospel.” (Mark 1:15)

Several times the New Testament mentions these two aspects of salvation together. That is because the process of repentance is not ended by turning from sin, but by believing in Christ as Savior.

That is the subject for the next lesson.

Proverbs & Discipleship

If you are following the lessons on repentance, please continue to visit. Another lesson is soon to follow. But for now, I felt that this lesson was more appropriate for the moment.

Because of the proliferation of leadership books and church growth books, most people are very familiar with Proverbs 29:18, “Where there is no vision, the people perish.”

The verse has been misused on so many occasions that we have lost sight of its real meaning. While it may not be readily apparent, we should realize that this verse is actually a verse about evangelism and discipleship.

Let’s begin with one of the most well-known verses and arguably one of the most evangelistic verses in the Bible.

John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (KJV)

John 3:16 For God loved the world in this way: He gave His One and Only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life. (HCSB)

There is so much to say about the first two parts of this verse, but for the moment, I want to concentrate on those last few words, “will not perish but have eternal life.”

Most people know this verse and are familiar with the promise that God gives eternal life through Christ. But not so many are as familiar with the fact that, in His high priestly prayer of John 17, Jesus defined the term eternal life.

John 17:2-3 …you (God, the Father) have given him (Jesus Christ, the Son) authority over all flesh, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him. And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.

In verse 3, Jesus very clearly defines the meaning of eternal life as the knowledge of the only true God and of Jesus Christ.

Now, substitute this definition into John 3:16.

John 3:16 For God loved the world in this way: He gave His One and Only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have the knowledge of the only true God and of Jesus Christ.

Notice that there is a direct correlation between perishing and the knowledge of God in John 3:16 just as there is in Prov. 29:18. From John 3:16 we learn that people are rescued from perishing by the knowledge of God and of Jesus Christ. Yet not everyone is saved from perishing. The only ones who are saved are those who believe.

Belief is the verb form for which faith is the noun. Thus believing means to exercise faith.

Yet faith is a gift from God (Eph. 2:8). It does not exist in the human heart until it is placed there by God. That’s why Jesus was authorized to give eternal life only to those whom the Father had given Him (John 17:2).

How does this happen? How does this gift of faith find its way into the human heart where it eventually blossoms into believing? The Apostle Paul explained this for us in his letter to the church at Rome.

Rom. 10:17 …faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ. (ESV)

Earlier in that same chapter, Paul explained the process of hearing.

Rom. 10:14-15 But how can they call on him to save them unless they believe in him? And how can they believe in him if they have never heard about him? And how can they hear about him unless someone tells them? And how will anyone go and tell them without being sent? (NLT)

Now let us return to Prov. 29.18.

By taking some liberties and borrowing from several translations and commentaries, the verse might be written in a longer, explanatory form.

Prov. 29:18 Where there is no prophetic vision, no redemptive revelation of God, no revelation of God's will made through and by the people of God to the culture in which they live, the people of the culture are deprived of moral restraints, run wild, become ungovernable, and cannot be reined in.[i]

Here is a simpler paraphrase:

When the servants of God (individual Christians) fail to participate in evangelism and discipleship – in actively making God known to all of the people – then the people lose their moral compass, cast off all moral restraints, and everyone basically does what is right in their own eyes – in other words, they perish.

When the people of God are faithful in fulfilling the Great Commission, people are rescued.

When the people of God are not faithful in evangelism and discipleship, we get the society that we live in today.

And we wonder what’s wrong with the world! Could it be that we who call Jesus our Savior and Lord simply do not believe that the biblical process of making disciples is a sufficient way to change the world?

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[i] The additional words and commentary used in this expanded version came from the ESV, the NLT, the Amplified Version, Jamieson Fausset Brown Commentary, and The Pulpit Commentary.

Repentance, Part 3

I apologize in advance for the technical nature of this lesson. My goal is to teach a correct doctrine, and to do that sometimes requires unteaching previous learning. If you continue through this entire series on repentance, I believe you will agree with one of the closing sentences in the previous lesson: The Bible never uses the phrase “repent of your sin.”

Such a statement may cause consternation among the faithful, but I believe you will understand the statement more once you have read through the steps of my study of the word repentance.

1.    I did a word search in the Online Bible [1] for the word repent and found 112 uses of the word in its various forms in 105 verses in both the Old and New testaments. [2]

2.    I found only 13 verses in both testaments that include both a form of the word repent and a form of the word sin

Furthermore, when a form of repentance is used in direct conjunction with a form of the word sin, the form of the word sin relates to a person, not an action. For example…

Luke 5:32 I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.

In none of these verses is the word repent directly related to the word sin. And in none of these verses, or in any other biblical verse, are we commanded to repent of our sin for salvation in the sense that it is most commonly taught.

3.    There are nine verses in the Bible that use the phrase “repent of” followed by some object or objects.

Five of these verses refer to the actions of God, not to those of a person. [3]

In 2 Cor. 7:10, the phrase “repented of,” as used in the KJV, should better be translated as “regretted” or “without regret” (See almost any other translation other than the KJV).

In the remaining three verses (2 Cor. 12:21; Rev. 2:21,22), the word repent is followed by words related to sin. However, these verses are not calling for the sinner simply to sorrowfully acknowledge their sins, but to turn away from them in abhorrence due to the nature of the sin. (More on this later.)

4.    As shown above, in the majority of cases, the word repent (in whatever form) is seldom ever used in the same context as the word sin. There are too many examples to list them all, but here are some examples of the use of the word repent apart from any reference to sin.

Ex. 32:14 And the LORD repented of the evil which he thought to do unto his people.

Certainly the word repent in this verse does not mean that God acknowledged His sin and was sorry for it. The actual meaning of this verse is a discussion for another context, but it should be clear that since God is perfect in holiness and righteousness, He is not required to repent of sin.

When God freed the Hebrews from Egyptian captivity, the shortest route to the Promised Land was a week’s journey through the land of the Philistines, but God would not let them go that way “Lest peradventure the people repent when they see war, and they return to Egypt.” (Ex. 13:17)

Obviously, God was not concerned that the people would recognize their sinfulness and express their sorrow for their behavior. He knew that upon the first encounter with an enemy, the people would change their minds about freedom and desire to return to Egypt.

In the New Testament, according to the gospel of Matthew, when Jesus began His public ministry, His first sermon was “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” (Matt. 4:17) Jesus did not say, “Repent of your sin.” He simply said, “Repent.”

5.    Finally, the word “of” is a tiny word, but understanding its meaning is very important when understanding how a verse should be interpreted. The word did not originally refer to possession but to source of origin. [4]

For example, in the KJV version of John 15:15, Jesus says, “…all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you.” In the NKJV and the ESV, the statement is more clearly translated as “…all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you.”

Now go back and reread 2 Cor. 12:21 and Rev. 2:21,22, substituting the word “from” in the place of “of,” and I believe you will agree that the intent of the verses is more clearly understood.

In summary, there is no biblical reference that says that we must repent of our sins in the sense of naming them or simply acknowledging them. That is confession, which is an aspect of repentance, but which alone is insufficient for salvation.

When we think of the word repent, typically our next thought is of sin. We say or hear things like “Repent of your sin” or “If you want to go to heaven, you must repent of your sin” or “Salvation requires men to repent of their sins.” Yet there is a weakness in such an understanding of repentance.

The weakness is that we are focusing on the wrong thing – ourselves and our sin. We tend to think that we are lost because we have done bad things, therefore, we must do something good to deserve the salvation of God.

The truth is that we have done nothing to be lost except to be born in a sinful condition, which is evidenced by our immediate participation in sin. But our sins do not make us lost. We sin because we are lost.

Since we did nothing to be lost, we can do nothing to be saved. Our salvation is the decision of God by the agency of Christ through the work of the Holy Spirit. The focus of repentance is neither us nor our sin.

The primary focus of repentance is the kingdom – that is, the person of Jesus Christ.

More on this critical understanding in the next lesson.

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[1] Click here to review or to download a free version of the Online Bible by Larry Pierce.

[2] Click here for a complete listing derived from the Online Bible of all verses in the Bible using a form of the word repent.

[3] Ex. 32:12, 14; Jer. 18:8, 10; Jonah 3:10

[4] Click here for a study of the use of the word “of” by Burton Scott Easton.