By Gerald Gates
Hebrews 6:1-2 (NKJV) reminds us there are truths we should be rooted in, that we should build upon our faith toward its completion, not losing sight of the gospel that has been delivered to us. “Therefore, leaving the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, of the doctrine of baptisms, of laying on of hands, of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgement.” Today let us look at “repentance”.
When Jesus preached the gospel of the kingdom of God, He said, “…The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe in the gospel.” Mark 1:15 (NKJV). He also warned about the consequences of sin, “…unless you repent you shall all likewise perish.” Luke 13:3,5 (NKJV). Jesus came to call “…sinners to repentance” Luke 5:32 (NKJV), and He told the apostles, “…that repentance and the remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.” Luke 24:47 (NKJV).
The apostle Peter instructed the Jews to repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of their sins in Acts 2:36-38 and in Acts 3:19 to repent and be converted so that their sins may be forgiven and that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord.
God wants us to repent and turn to Him from sin and from the idols of the world, as Paul told the Gentiles at Athens, “Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent.” Acts 17:30 (NKJV). Paul told both Jews and Gentiles that they should repent, turn to God, and do works worthy of repentance (Acts 26:20).
God is patient with people not willing that anyone should perish but that all might come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9). The riches of God’s goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering are to lead one to repentance (Romans 2:4), but the choice to repent is something each person must make on their own. When Israel was suffering from consequences related to their sins, God gave them opportunity to repent: 2 Chronicles 7:14 (NKJV) states “if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” God desires all men to be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth (1 Timothy 2:4). If one wants to know the truth of God, they must turn to God and follow His word–that is to change their lives from ways of sin to ways of righteousness, from doing wrong to doing right, it takes changing one’s minds about the things they do and leaving behind those things that will draw them away from God. Sin is what separates one from God (Isaiah 59:1-2) and each one must humble themself to acknowledge their sins and turn to God and repent, making the changes needed. As the church at Ephesus was instructed, “Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice. And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.” Ephesians 4:31-32 (NKJV), repentance requires a change of mind and a change of action. Consider from Matthew 21:28-31, two sons whose father told to go work in his vineyard. The first one said, “I will not,” but afterward he regretted it and went. The second son said, “I will,” but did not go. Like the first son, let us seek God’s praise, let our repentance be toward pleasing Him by obeying His word that we may receive His promised blessings.
In Christ we are blessed to know that God will forgive our sins as 1 John 1:9 (NKJV) states “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Repentance from sin is an act of faith, putting our trust in God and obeying His word. Let us always strive to be humble and to confess our sins to God and also be diligent to repent of sin and do what is good and right.