I set off to do a study on discipleship this morning. That quest turned into a study of the kingdom of God/heaven, which I hope to continue because it is a primary message of Jesus'. But then, as I was beginning to look up passages on that subject, I stumbled upon the word REPENT. It was the precursor to John's statement, "For the kingdom of heaven is at hand," before Jesus began His earthly ministry. So if this was John's message, it had to be important. Furthermore and more significantly, not only was this the first command from John, but it was the first command of our Lord as He began serving, preaching, and healing bodies and souls of people He encountered. Indeed, then, repentance is quite important. Ironically, it is a word we don't hear much of in our churches. It's not something usually discussed over coffee with a friend. Most probably consider repentance a private matter. Repentance is between the Lord Jesus and me, and in some cases, includes an offending party. Even so, we don't discuss the word and its implications. Why? This was the first command recorded from Jesus' mouth - why wouldn't we address this subject more often? And why is grace stressed so much more than repentance? The Christian subculture is obsessed, in my opinion, with grace. Shouldn't there be a balance?
So just what is repentance? Here are a few things that I read this morning, straight from the Book. Feel free to add verses in the comments section, for my list is certainly not exhaustive.
- Isaiah 30:15 - salvation comes through repentance and rest
- Isaiah 59:20 - the Redeemer will come to those who repent/turn from their sin
- Jeremiah 5:3 - unrepentance: not grieved by sin; refuse to receive correction; determined not to repent; refuse to return to God
- Jeremiah 15:19 - God restores those who repent
- Ezekiel 14:6 - repentance includes turning away from idols and from all abominations
- Ezekiel 18:30 - repentance includes turning from all transgressions which destroy/ruin us
- Ezekiel 18:32 - repent and live
- 2 Cor 7:10 - godly sorrow produces repentance
- 2 Tim 2:25 - God grants repentance
- Heb 6:6 - repentance not granted again to those who fall away
- 2 Pet 3:9 - God is patient, wanting all to come to repentance
- Revelation 3:19 - be zealous/eager and repent
That's a good start. I'll probably continue this in the next blog. So dig in the Word and let's learn more about this command of Jesus to REPENT.
2 comments:
Hey, Angie! So glad to see you writing again.
I haven't looked up the verses yet, but I intend to later. The first thing I think of when I hear repent is something some friends of mine always preach. Which is this "repent and believe". They say this to me especially after I have beat myself up about some sin.
My nature is to feel like I have to spend some time in shame and hiding for my repentance to be real. But the reality is, I AM FORGIVEN. So I should repent and then believe - repent of my sin and believe that Christ's sacrifice perfectly pays for all of those sins.
I am sure there is grace abuse in our culture. But there is also the opposite. The idea that unless we pay a little ourselves, God's forgiveness isn't enough. But if I repent without believing, I'm done for. And if I believe without repenting, I'm dishonest. I should do both.
Okay, you really got me going on this one. I can't wait to hear more of what you have to say on it.
See ya!
alice
Just for the record (although we discussed this on the phone), I do appreciate your view and agree with you that there can be abuse on the other side of repentance. I do think that we have to be careful, however, because we live in a "building self-esteem" saturated culture. But you are right, Alice, repent AND believe. Then move on. Thanks for the good e-discussion. :-)
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