Salvation Summaries

Repent

In my prior post, I filled in an outline of how a person is saved, or becomes a Christian, except in one area, and that area was repentance. That is the subject of this post.

Repent, or repentance, is an important concept to understand.  It is important not only because it relates to salvation, but because Jesus commanded it. When Jesus started His ministry, He – like John the Baptist before Him – told people to repent (Mt 4:17, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.”)

But repentance is important for another reason too, and that is its consequence, or more specifically, the consequence of those who don’t do it. What is this consequence? Spiritual death. We see this in Luke 13:3, where Jesus says “I tell you, no! Unless you repent, you too will all perish!”

So, now that we know how important repentance is, the question we should all be asking is, “What does it mean?”

To answer this question, I looked beyond the book of Matthew to other New Testament books that talk about repenting or repentance.  Based upon this review, it is clear that these terms are used in slightly different ways, or have slightly different meanings.

Turn away.  In its most limited sense, repentance means to turn (away) from something bad. In Job 36:10, the people are told to repent of their evil.  In Ezekiel 14:6, God tells the people to repent; to turn from their idols and renounce their detestable practices.

• Job 36:9-10 he tells them what they have done– that they have sinned arrogantly.  He makes them listen to correction and commands them to repent of their evil. 
• Ezekiel 14:6 “Therefore say to the house of Israel, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Repent! Turn from your idols and renounce all your detestable practices!

Turn toward.  In a slightly broader sense, repentance means not only to turn away from something bad, but also to turn toward something good. In short, it is turning away from evil and towards God. We see this in Acts 20:21, where people are told to repent and turn to God.

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

Confess sins.  At times, repentance goes deeper than turning from something evil and toward God to include confessing one’s sins.  Thus, it is closely related to forgiveness. John the Baptist preached that people should repent for the forgiveness of sins, and as part of this, he baptized those who did what?  Who confessed their sins. As you may know, forgiveness of sins takes place when a person becomes saved.

Relates to belief. Also, there are verses where repentance relates to another key element of becoming a Christian, and that is believing in the gospel, or Jesus. Mark 1:15 says, “…Repent and believe the good news.”  In Acts 19:4, we learn that John the Baptist told the people he baptized to believe in the one coming after him.

Mark 1:15 “The time has come,” he said. “The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!”  

Acts 19:4 4 Paul said, “John’s baptism was a baptism of repentance. He told the people to believe in the one coming after him, that is, in Jesus.”

At times it is synonymous with salvation.  However, there are verses where repentance goes beyond all of the above uses or meanings to be synonymous with salvation.  This is clearly seen in Luke 5:32, where Jesus says, “I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.  In Luke 13:3, Jesus tells people that if they don’t repent, they will perish.  Also, in Luke 15:7, we read that there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.

With repentance having several variations in meaning, some of you might be asking, “Then what does it really mean to repent?”

Here’s my answer. Of all of the verses I read with the word repent or repentance, the one I believe best summarizes its meaning is 2 Corinthians 7:10.  This verse says, “Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation.”

Thus, repentance starts with realizing you are a sinner; it moves to mourning over your sins; and proceeds to confessing them to the Lord.  As part of this process, repentance includes a desire to turn away from evil, or sinful things, and towards God, so that you do not continue to sin (or sin less).  Thus, confession affects your outward behavior too.

But the real reason for repenting is not simply to confess your sins and turn (from evil and towards God).  Rather, it is to have your sins forgiven once and for all, and this takes place when you believe (more technically, have faith) in the Lord and become saved. If you want to become saved, repentance is something the Lord requires.

For more details on how to become saved, and thus a Christian, please read my prior post, Matthew – Part 4 of 5.

My next post will be about the gospel book of John.  In this book, John uses a key word about salvation more than 70 times.  I’ll reveal this word and define it for you, as I believe it’s meaning is misunderstood by people today.