Repentance:
Matthew 3:1: "Now in those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea saying, Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."
Matthew 4: 17: Jesus began to preach and say, Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."
Mark 6:12: "And they went out and preached that men should...what?...repent."
Luke 13:3 and 5, "Unless you repent you will all likewise perish."
Luke 15:7: "I tell you that in the same way there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who...what?...repents
Luke 24:46, "that the Christ should suffer and rise again from the dead the third day and that repentance for forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations beginning from Jerusalem."
Acts 2:38: Peter preached repentance.
Acts 3;19: "Repent therefore and return in order that your sins may be wiped away."
Acts 11:18: "When they heard this, they quieted down and glorified God saying, Well then, God has granted to the Gentiles also the repentance that leads to life."
Acts 17:30: Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all everywhere should...what?...repent, repent because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world."
2 Peter 3 : 9, "The Lord is not slow about His promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to...what?...repentance."
We are called to preach what? Repentance. I hear a lot of people say they want to share their faith. I don't hear too many people say they want to go out and preach repentance. But that's really what we're called to do. We're called to preach repentance for forgiveness of sins, to proclaim it to all nations.
Now let's see what the early church did. Go to the book of Acts. Did they pick up on the ministry of John and Jesus and the disciples? Did they follow the instruction of the great commission that repentance for forgiveness was to be preached among all nations? Let's listen to Peter, Acts 2:38. Peter stands up on the day of Pentecost, this is the first sermon in the new era, the church is about to be founded and born after the resurrection. And what is the message that in fact is the invitation which gives birth to the church? Peter said in verse 38, "Repent...repent."
"My, it's a turning, it's a turning from your own life, your own will, your own way, your own sin to follow at all cost. It is a change of mind. It is a change of heart. It is a new life of denying self and sin and seeing the Savior as Lord and King in self's place. "
Let me take you all the way back. How about the early church fathers 150 A.D., okay? Fifty years after John the Apostle died, that's early. Let me read you from the Second Epistle of Clement in 150 A.D., this is what it says, "Let us not merely call Him Lord for that will not save us, for He says, `Not everyone who says to Me, Lord, Lord, will be saved, but he who does what is right.' Thus, brothers, let us acknowledge Him by our actions, this would end the world to come...this world, rather, and the world to come are two enemies, this one means adultery, corruption, avarice and deceit while the other gives them up. We cannot then be friends of both. To get the one we must give up the other." That's repentance...that's repentance.
That's exactly what James said. Friendship with the world is enmity with God. You are either the friend of the world or the friend of God, not both...that's repentance.
In 1517, Martin Luther fired the shot that's been heard around the world when he pinned to the church door at Wittenberg his Ninety-Five Thesis. He postulated 95 principles that he thought the Roman Catholic Church ought to acknowledge. I don't know if you're aware of what those 95 were but after tonight you're going to be aware of what the first three were because here they are.
Number one, this is what was on the door at Wittenberg. "Our Lord and Master Jesus Christ in saying `Repent ye,' meant the whole life of the faithful to be an act of repentance."
Number two of his Ninety-Five Thesis, "This saying cannot be understood of the sacrament of Penance, i.e., of confession and absolution which is administered by the priesthood."
Three: "Yet He does not mean interior repentance only, nay, interior repentance is void if it does not produce different kinds of mortifications of the flesh." So said Martin Luther, three main points.
One, repentance is a way of life. Two, it has nothing to do with church sacraments, confession and absolution. Three, it's not just inward it produces mortification of the flesh. Martin Luther was right on target.
Listen to what Spurgeon said. "There must be a true and actual abandonment of sin and a turning unto righteousness in real act and deed in every day life. Repentance, to be sure, must be entire. How many will say, Sir, I will renounce this sin and the other...but there are certain darling lusts which I must keep and hold? Oh, sirs, in God's name let me tell you, it is not the giving up of one sin, nor 50 sins which is true repentance. It is the solemn renunciation of every sin. If thou dost harbor one of those accursed vipers in thy heart and dost give up every other, that one lust like one leak in a ship will sink thy soul. Think it not sufficient to give up thy outward vices, fancy it not enough to cut off the more corrupt sins of thy life, it is all or none which God demands. Repent, says He, and when He bids you repent, He means repent of all thy sins otherwise He can never accept thy repentance as real and genuine. All sin must be given up or else you will never have Christ. All transgression must be renounced or else the gates of heaven must be barred against you. Let us remember then that for repentance to be sincere, it must be entire repentance. True repentance is a turning of the heart as well as of the life. It is the giving up of the whole soul to God to be His forever and ever. It is the renunciation of the sins of the heart as well as the crimes of the life," end quote.
What is biblically defined repentance? Number one, it's an element within saving faith. It is an element within saving faith. In fact, it can be used as an expression interchangeably with saving faith. We are to preach repentance. We're to call men to repentance. That means to saving faith. It's so inherent it can be used as a synonym for saving faith. You can call on someone and say, "Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ." Or you could call and say, "Repent of your sin and embrace Christ." Same thing. It is simply all that salvation is.
(taken from www.gty.org)
Those who heard Jesus preach knew what He was calling for, believe me. The Jews knew exactly what He was calling for. He wasn't asking them just to change their opinion about Him. They knew what Isaiah said when Isaiah preached, what did he preach? Isaiah 1:16, this is what Isaiah preached, "Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean, remove the evil of your deeds from My sight, cease to do evil, learn to do good, seek justice. And then though your sins be as scarlet they shall be...what?...white as snow. Though they're red like crimson, they'll be like wool if you wash yourselves, if you make yourselves clean."
Where are the fruits? Prove your repentance by your life. And what are the fruits of repentance? Simply righteous deeds, holy deeds, godly deeds, transformed life
You want to know where true repentance shows up? In the character of your daily living. Do you give your cloak to one who doesn't have one? Do you make sure you don't take anything from anyone that you don't deserve? You don't force people. You don't accuse people falsely. Are you content with whatever your wages are? That's where the genuineness of your repentance shows up. That's pretty mundane stuff, folks. And, beloved, I submit to you that no message that doesn't press for repentance can properly be called the gospel. Conversion to Jesus is more than a break with an old thought pattern, it's a new life...it's a new life.
"To be converted embraces all that the dawn of God's Kingdom demands of man," a changed life. And please understand, I don't think that anyone could miss my heart on this, this is not something you do so you can get yourself saved, this is something God's Spirit produces in you in saving you. That's why it says, and we've been reading it in 2 Timothy, and this is an essential passage for us to grasp, chapter 2 verse 25, that God may grant them repentance. It's a gift of God...it's a gift of God. Acts 11:31, that God has granted repentance to the Gentiles. It's a gift of God.
Let me close with this last passage, Matthew 21:28, turn to it, please. So much to say...humph. Matthew 21:28, "What do you think?" Jesus said. Think this one through with me, will you? "A man had two sons. He came to the first, said, Son, go work today in the vineyard. And he answered and said, I will, sir. And he didn't go." You've got a son like that? "He came to the second, said the same thing. He said, I will not. Afterward, regretted what he said and went. Which of the two did the will of his father? The crowd said, The latter. Jesus said to him, Truly I say to you, tax gatherers and harlots will get into the Kingdom of God before you."
Potent, my friend. Jesus describes two kinds of people, are you ready for this? People who pretend to be obedient but are actually rebels in their heart. They pretend to be obedient but they're rebels in their heart. And people who begin as rebels but do what? Repent. He told it for the benefit of the Pharisees who pretended to be obedient to God but were rebels in their hearts. And then there were the harlots and the tax gatherers who started out as rebels but repented.
There's no salvation apart from repentance. Let's bow together in prayer.
