Jesus came into Galilee proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, the time has been fulfilled, and the kingdom of God draws near. REPENT AND BELIEVE IN THE GOSPEL. Mark 1:15From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, REPENT! For the kingdom of Heaven has drawn near. Matthew 4:7And REPENTANCE and remission of sins must be preached on His name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem. Luke 24:47Earnestly testifying both to Jews and to Greeks REPENTANCE toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ. Acts 20:21Jesus Christ did not come to call the righteous, but sinners to REPENTANCE. Luke 5:32Even before Jesus Christ began to preach, John the Baptist already preached repentance as a preparation for the coming of the Christ and baptism as the outward sign of repentance.
the word of God came to John the son of Zechariah in the wilderness. And he went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. Luke 3:2&3But confusion enters in as to what Repentance really is. Many different voices, what is it?
What is Repentance? And what does it mean to repent?
It is clear that Jesus Christ calls us to repent. Today’s world lacks an understanding of what it means to repent. Religion, instead of explaining Repentance, has instead greatly added to the confusion. So first of all let’s try to understand what Repentance is. And we are talking of biblical repentance, what the scriptures mean by Repentance. The word in Latin means to “think again”. In Greek, the language of the New Testament, it means to “change your mind”. Therefore Repentance means exactly 3 things, or it involves 3 distinct aspects;
1. To think again
2. To change your mind
3. To make a turn, to change direction
About what are we to “think” & “change our minds”?
1. Think about GOD and how you relate to him! What does God say about himself, what does he say about you? Question may include; who made me, who made this world, Is this life all there is, or what happens after we die and other such truths. This brings about a change of mind on our part about the way you look at God, at ourselves, at life and at our situation.
2. Think and think again about yourself and especially yourself in relation to God. After that you Change your mind and you agree with God.
3. Think about sin, your attitude about it as compared to what God says about it. Change your mind from your thinking to what God says and to his attitude about SIN!
1. Change our mind about the way we look at God
Consider who God is and what he has done.
Who God is;
God is the Creator of the heavens and the earth and everything there is; He is the Creator of you and me.
Isn't the Creator the owner of his creation? If you make something, doesn't that imply that you also own what you have made, that it is yours? It certainly does in God's case. But ever since Adam we have disowned our Creator. How did Adam and ourselves separate from our Creator? To put it in simple terms; we all thought we knew better. Remember the attitude; don't tell me, I know what I'm doing? We have been told; Don't do this, yet we do it anyway....and many such things. Instead of God being first and foremost, instead of God occupying the first place, I the self took over. Remember " I did it my way"?
What has God done;
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that everyone believing into Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. John 3:16
Because even Christ once suffered concerning sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God; indeed being put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the Spirit; 1 Peter 3:18
We who thought knew better separated ourselves from God starting with Adam and continuing to this day. What God has done through Jesus Christ is to get rid of this separation, to make a way for us to be reconciled to God, for God to become our Heavenly Father and for us to have a real and a right relationship with our Creator just like Adam had before he got "smart".
This Jesus Christ God has exalted as a Ruler and Savior to His right hand, to give to Israel REPENTANCE and remission of sins. Acts 5:31
The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach REPENTANCE. 2 Peter 3:9
Do you not know that the kindness of God leads you to REPENTANCE? Romans 2:4
2. Change our mind about the way we think of ourselves!
We have a very high opinion of ourselves, we think that we are pretty good, but what is the truth about us?
“None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one.” Romans 3:10-12
For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, Romans 3:23
For as by Adams disobedience all were made sinners, so by Jesus Christ’s obedience all his own will be made righteous. Romans 5:19 (in my own words)
How "big" am I and how big is God? Am I a sinner? Where do sinners go? How can I escape the punishment that I so rightly deserve?
for “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, 1 Peter 5:5&6
But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” Submit yourselves therefore to God. James 4:6&7
3. Change our mind concerning what we think about sin
What do we think about sin? In general we think sin isn't a big deal. Well, we reason, all sin; and most sin way more and a lot worse than me.....I never murdered anyone, or robbed a bank.....
For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 6:23
Let's think again; what does sin cause? Sin causes separation from God. And why do we sin in the first place? We sin because we think we know better than God. What sin is has been debated endlessly and needlessly. We all have a basic knowledge of what is right or wrong. We all know it's wrong to murder, steal, cheat; just to name a few....
Where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, so that, as sin reigned in death, grace also might reign through righteousness leading to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Romans 5:20&21
A change of direction
How you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come. 1 Thessalonians 1:9&10 Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” Acts 2:37
We go from living a life as if there was no God, from living a life centered around ME, to living a new life desiring to please God. From being a slave to sin to wanting to be forgiven for our sins and a willingness and a desire to be what is pleasing to God. Turning away from whatever our idols are, and we all have them....to serving and believing the only true and living God.
We change from a downward spiral, to a upward direction, a heavenly one.