By L.R. Shelton Jr
Repentance
and Faith are Inseparable.
Repentance and faith are inseparably
connected together in the Word of God, and they must be set forth
together. Let us not put asunder what God has joined together.
Listen to these verses of Scripture where these great truths
are set forth together in the Word of God! In Mark 1:15, "The
time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: REPENT YE, AND
BELIEVE THE GOSPEL." In Acts 5:31, "Him [Christ] hath God
exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give
REPENTANCE to Israel, and FORGIVENESS OF SINS." Again, in Acts
20:21 Paul declared that he had preached "REPENTANCE toward God,
and FAITH toward our Lord Jesus Christ." Then one of our Lord's
last commandments to His disciples before He returned to heaven, as
found in Luke 24:46-48 was, "Thus it is written, and thus it
behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day:
and that REPENTANCE AND REMISSION OF SINS should be preached in his
name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem; and ye are witnesses
of these things." There are many illustrations given in the
Bible of those who came to Christ in confession and repentance, and
looked by faith to Him to save them and forgive them of their sins.
The thief on the cross repented and believed; the prodigal son
repented and believed; and so we call upon men today to repent and
believe.
You see, our Lord told His disciples and us as well,
to follow His example in preaching repentance and remission of sins
through faith in Christ, because this truly shows His ministry while
here upon earth. His first message as recorded in Mark 1:15 was, "The
time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and
believe the gospel." And His last words to His disciples and to
us were those of Luke 24:46-48, that repentance and remission of sins
through faith in Christ should be preached in His name among all
nations, beginning at Jerusalem. Yet it seems that many are afraid to
preach repentance today. Our Lord was not afraid to call men to
repentance, and He has commissioned us to do the same; so we desire
to proclaim it to all men that they should repent: that they should
lay down their arms of rebellion and turn to God with broken hearts,
sorrowing over sin, so they may receive remission of sins in Christ's
name because of His blessed work of redemption.
"REPENTANCE
AND REMISSION OF SINS SHOULD BE PREACHED IN HIS NAME AMONG ALL
NATIONS, beginning at Jerusalem" (Luke 24:47). These are words
full of meaning, and that need to be proclaimed today as well as
then: that God requires repentance to be preached in Christ's name
because He is willing for sinners to be saved; that there is truly
remission of sins through faith in Christ for those who see
themselves to be sinners--ungodly sinners, lost, without God and
without hope, full of sin, full of unrighteousness--if they would
come to Christ for repentance, laying down their arms of rebellion
and hoisting the white flag of surrender. Unto them God has provided
remission of sins; He invites them to come, even as the prodigal came
back home.
First of all, I want to declare upon the authority
of God's Word that repentance is to be preached in the name of the
Lord Jesus as a grace given from above. It is given of God. Yes,
repentance has therefore been granted unto the Gentiles as well as
unto the Jews because it is a gift of GRACE (Acts 11:18). It does not
come to us by the works of the law, but it comes wholly and
completely out of the gracious heart of God. It should not be
preached in Moses' name as a legal duty, but it is to be preached as
a grace coming down from God. It is not to be preached like Jonah,
without any hope--for he proclaimed that Ninevah would be destroyed
in only 40 days--but it is to be preached in Jesus' name as the grace
of God, that for those who do repent, there is remission of sins in
the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Repentance is a gift given
by the GRACE of God, even as faith is given by the grace of God. And
it is given because God has highly exalted His Son, and given Him a
name which is above every name, having set Him at His own right hand
to be "a Prince and a Saviour" for to GIVE repentance and
forgiveness of sins (Acts 5:31). So it is the grace of God, the
goodness of God, that leads to repentance (Rom. 2:4). For the very
reason our Heavenly Father, our gracious God, has set the Lord Jesus
Christ as a Prince, a Ruler, and a King at His own right hand, is
that He might give repentance and remission of sins!
Wherever
there is real sorrow for sin, wherever there is an honest
determination by God's grace to cease from sin; wherever there is a
complete change of mind with regard to sin (and that is what
repentance means), then we can understand and know that by the grace
of God this repentance has been produced by the Spirit of God, and
that it is as much a gift of the covenant of grace as ever the pardon
which comes with it. And remember, God gives this grace to poor
sinners--only to sinners--those in whose hearts He has made to
realize their need of it. The song writer expressed it this way:
Come ye needy, come and welcome,
Come,
God's free bounty glorify;
True belief and true
repentance,
Every grace that brings you nigh;
Without money,
come to Jesus Christ and buy.
It is the grace of God that He uses
the Law to show us what we are, and it brings us to Christ. So Law is
a grace, because it is used by the Holy Spirit to give us the
knowledge of sin; therefore, never let us throw off the Law of God!
Yes, it condemns us and it damns us to hell, for we have broken it;
therefore it brings us under the wrath of God; but we should praise
God for it, because it is by the Law of God that we see, acknowledge,
and understand our sinnership, our far distance from God, and our
great need of a Saviour (Rom. 3:19-20; 7:7-25). For as Gal. 3:24
tells us, the Law is the schoolmaster that brings us--guides and
leads us--to Christ as our only hope.
Then it is the grace of
God as revealed by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ that produces in
our hearts the salvation that God gives; and along with it is the
gift of repentance, a sorrowing over sin. But let me warn you, you're
not to seek to draw up repentance from the depths of your own heart
as you might draw up water from a well, but you are to come to Christ
for it; you are to ask Christ to work repentance in you by His Holy
Spirit, through belief of the truth as it is recorded in the Word of
God, or as it is set before you in the preaching of the Gospel (II
Thess. 2:13,14; Rom. 1:16). And it is as you learn how terribly
Christ suffered because of your sin, that this truth under the
guidance of the Holy Spirit--will be the means of leading you to hate
sin; and you will realize how the Holy Spirit, by enlightening the
understanding and influencing the affections, produces repentance in
you even in that heart that seemed to be unbroken and so sterile that
nothing could be produced! That heart will be broken and made fertile
by the gentle dew of the rain of grace as it falls in upon your soul.
Then, by the working of God's Spirit in you, you will see a beauty
and a glory in the Lord Jesus Christ that will cause you to desire
after Him, (II Cor. 4:4,6; Job 23:3; Song 2:3). And not only will you
hate sin and sorrow over it (II Cor. 7:10-11), you will willingly
turn from it by faith in Christ as you see what it has done to Him.
So God GIVES repentance to sinners; it is one of the free gifts of
His grace; and whoever has it may rest assured that the hand of the
Lord has been upon him for good-in fact, the work of salvation has
already been begun in your soul if the Holy Spirit has been gracious
to you in giving you a deep sorrow over sin (II Cor. 7:10).
But
let us go further. To preach repentance in the name of Jesus Christ
means also that wherever there is real repentance, it is the token of
the pardon of sin, for faith is operating in your heart to look away
to Christ! It is not merely a hopeful sign that it is going to be
done, but it is the sure, infallible sign that pardon has already
been given to you! If any man's heart be turned away from sin, if he
prostrates himself in the dust before God because of his offences,
his iniquities and his sins; if he looks with true penitence and
faith to Christ upon the cross crying, "Lord, remember me! Lord,
save me! God, be merciful to me, a sinner, and deliver me from going
down to the pit," it is not a question whether forgiveness may
or may not be granted to that poor seeking soul; it is a fact that he
already has it and that pardon has been given, because true heartfelt
repentance goes along with remission of sins and true faith in
Christ. You cannot separate true repentance and faith; where you will
find the one, you will find the other.
We have this so
beautifully illustrated in the case of the publican, as recorded in
Luke 18:13,14: "And the publican, standing afar off, would not
lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast,
saying, God be merciful to me a sinner." And the Lord said, "I
tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the
other; for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he
that humbleth himself shall be exalted." You see, the Psalmist's
word's are still true: "The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a
broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit" (Psa.
34:18). It was for such as these that our Lord Jesus suffered upon
the cross.
So let the message ring out from every land under
heaven: Wherever there is a soul that hates sin, that desires to
leave sin and who turns to God from sin (which is true repentance),
then there, in that soul, eternal mercy has already been granted, and
the gracious work of remission of sins and pardon has been given unto
that soul, for faith will look away from self to Christ, and find in
Him a sufficient Saviour for all his needs.
Let's go further.
Our Lord taught us here in our text also that repentance preached in
the name of Jesus means that it is preached in or UPON THE AUTHORITY
OF JESUS AS LORD. It is by His authority-by his power--as He tells us
in Matt. 28:18-19. Listen! "All power [all authority] is given
unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach [disciple]
all nations... in my name." This is what He is saying: It is in
the Name of Jesus, upon his authority, that sinners bow down in
repentance before God, and that every walled fortress of the sinner's
heart falls. It is in the Name of Jesus the LORD that the legion of
demons must be cast out of the man in the tombs of Gadara. It is in
the Name and upon the authority of KING Jesus that every sin must
flee and die out, its power broken, its penalty met, its dominion
gone, and the sinner set free through faith in His blood; it is in
the authority of that Name that he will flee as you plead it, coming
to that Throne that has been set up for poor sinners by God Himself
(Heb. 4:16).
Also it is upon His authority that remission of
sins by faith in Christ is to be preached. Repentance and remission
are so joined together, that wherever we find one, we are sure to
find the other. Where there is no repentance, rest assured that there
is no faith in Christ; but where there is true repentance that godly
sorrow for sin that needs not to be repented of--rest assured there
you will find faith to trust Christ for full and free forgiveness of
all your sins. Our Lord Jesus Christ declared with authority that
"All manner of sin... shall be forgiven unto men" (Matt.
12:31); the apostles declared it, and we declare this same truth
today. In the Book of Acts: "Him hath God exalted with his right
hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel,
and forgiveness of sins" (Acts 5:31). "Be it known unto you
therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto
you the forgiveness of sins. And by Him all that believe are
justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by
the law of Moses" (Acts 13:38-39). "And how I kept back
nothing that was profitable unto you, but have shewed you, and have
taught you publicly, and from house to house, testifying both to the
Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward
our Lord Jesus Christ" (Acts 20:20-21).
And there is
promised in the Gospel to penitent sinners A FULL PARDON OF SIN--from
every sin that they have ever committed, whether it has been a sin of
thought, word or deed, whether it has been a sin of omission or
commission. It is a pardon as great as it is full: pardon from the
most horrible and oft-repeated offences; from uncleanness, theft,
blasphemy, rape, drunkenness, yea, from whoremongering and adultery,
and even from murder if the murderer has truly repented. It is a
pardon for crimes of deepest dye, a pardon bought with the precious
blood of Christ, for when we turn to God in true repentance, and look
to Jesus Christ by faith to cleanse us, it shall be done and we shall
be saved!
This is the Gospel, the hope that God tells us to
hold out to sinners--not as Jonah, who said, "Forty days and
Ninevah shall be destroyed!" He said nothing about repentance.
But we tell you with one breath that the wrath of God is coming; and
with another, that if you will repent and turn to God with full
sorrow for sin, with a broken heart and a contrite spirit, there is
full forgiveness and remission in the blood of the Saviour. You see,
"the blood of Jesus Christ, God's Son, cleanses us from all sin
(I John 1:7). For all who truly repent and believe in Him, this blood
cleanseth from sin--all sin, and from every sin that banishes men
from the presence of the thrice-holy God. Yes, pardon is proclaimed
in the Name of Jesus for sins such as these; they are not too black
to be forgiven by God; they are not too deeply engrained to be washed
out by the precious blood of our Lord Jesus!
But I hear
someone saying, "I do not doubt that repentance and remission of
sins are to be preached in Christ's name, and that this is the
teaching of Christ. My difficulty is, are they for me?" Well,
that is a point that you must yourself settle under the guidance of
the Holy Spirit, but let me ask you a few questions: Have you really
repented of your sin? Have you sorrowed over it as the plague of your
heart and the curse of your life? Have you hated it? Have you turned
away from it and sought to live as the Holy God would have you to
live? Then I say unto you: If this repentance is yours, then this
remission is yours also, for they go together; Christ put them
together: "repentance and remission of sins" (Luke 24:47).
And remember, God has commanded you to repent and believe (Mark
1:15), so what He has commanded, you can by His grace perform. You
see, by hating sin because it slew Christ, hating it because God is
so good that you ought not to sin against Him, hating it because God
is so gracious as to forgive it, and hating sin as to weep over it
and return to God as your loving Father Who is ready to forgive--this
shows us that repentance and remission of sins go together.
But
if indeed you have not experientially known what repentance is, then
will you breathe this prayer? "Oh Lord, show me the guilt of my
sin; teach me to mourn over it, to loathe it and to leave it. Let me
see Thy dear Son bearing its penalty on my behalf, and then assure me
by Thy Spirit's gracious instructions from Thy Word that my sins,
which are many, are all forgiven for Jesus' sake, that I may go on my
way rejoicing as a sinner saved by Thy sovereign grace." Will
you do it?
The Fruits of Repentance
In conclusion, let us consider THE
FRUITS WHICH WILL ALWAYS FOLLOW GENUINE BIBLICAL REPENTANCE.
In
his message recorded in Matt. 3:8, John the Baptist warns his hearers
to bring forth fruits meet [suitable] for repentance. Also in his
address before King Agrippa, as recorded in Acts 26:20, the apostle
Paul tells us that his message to the Gentiles was that they should
repent, and turn to God, and do works suitable for repentance. So
from these two Scriptures we learn that true biblical repentance will
show itself in the believer's life by its fruits. Let us look then,
at some of these fruits, and pray that the Holy Spirit will open our
understanding to His precious Word, and that our hearts will be
searched and opened, that we may know if these fruits have been, and
are being, produced in our lives by the Spirit of the living God.
First, the fruits of true Biblical repentance will be seen in
our lives in A REAL HATRED FOR SIN AS SIN, and not merely for its
consequences, which are: the wrath of God poured out upon every soul
which dies outside of Christ, and a separation from God in hell
forever. Also, it is not a hatred against this or that sin, but a
hatred of all sin, and particularly of the root itself which is
self-will. In Ezek. 14:6 we read, "Thus saith the Lord God;
repent, and turn yourselves from your idols; and turn away your faces
from all your abominations," and we do this with a hatred for
them and a loathing of ourselves. This is set forth in Ezek. 20:43:
"Ye shall lothe yourselves in your own sight for all your evils
that ye have committed." You see, the change of mind which God
requires, the change of mind which God is pleased with, is a real
hatred for sin as sin against God. Therefore I ask--Do you and I have
a hatred for sin in this manner? If not, then we have not brought
forth the fruits of true Biblical repentance.
Second, the
fruits of true Biblical repentance will be seen in A DEEP SORROW FOR
SIN. II Corinthians 7:9-10 reads, "Ye sorrowed to repentance:
for ye were made sorry after a godly manner.. for GODLY SORROW
worketh repentance to salvation." And such a sorrow is produced
in the heart by the Holy Spirit, which has God for its object, for it
consists of a grief for having despised such a God, for having
rebelled against His authority, and for having been indifferent to
His glory. It was such a sorrow that caused Peter to go out and weep
bitterly over his sin of denying his Lord (Matt. 6:75). And it is
such a sorrow that causes us to weep bitterly over our sins because
they have been against God. We are made to cry like David in Psa.
51:3-4: "I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever
before me. Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil
in thy sight." Have you thus sorrowed for sin as being against
God? For this fruit of true Biblical repentance causes us to "crucify
the flesh with the affections and lusts" (Gal. 5:24) and to
follow God in Christ with all our hearts. Only this kind of sorrow
for sin is genuine.
Third, the fruits of true Biblical
repentance will be seen in A CONFESSING OF SIN. We read in Proverbs
28:13, "He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso
confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy." Yes, there must
be the fruit of confession of sin: confessing all and hiding nothing.
You see, you and I both know that it is our nature to deny our sins,
directly or indirectly; to minimize or make excuses for them. But
when the Holy Spirit works in our souls and our sins are brought to
light, there must be an acknowledging of them before God. If true
Biblical repentance has been worked in our hearts, then there can be
no relief for these stricken hearts of ours until we confess our sins
and lay them bare before God. This is brought out in Psalm 32:3-4 in
these words: "When I kept silence, my bones waxed old though my
roaring all the day long. For day and night thy hand was heavy upon
me: my moisture is turned into drought of summer." You see, it
is only the fruits of a frank and brokenhearted confession of our
sins that will bring us peace with God in Christ. This is the change
of attitude which God requires, thereby showing true repentance. And
my friend, this continues in our life until we get to glory.
Confession and repentance is part of the believer's daily prayer, as
he pleads I John 1:9 at the throne of grace: "If we confess our
sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse
us from all unrighteousness."
Fourth, the fruits of true
Biblical repentance will be seen in AN ACTUAL TURNING FROM SIN. My
friend, there are three Greek words used in the New Testament which
represent different phases of repentance, and all three of them are
seen in the life of the one who has actually turned to God from sin
in true repentance. In Matt. 3:2 the word "repent" means A
CHANGE OF MIND ABOUT SIN. In Matt 21:29 the word "repent"
means A CHANGE OF HEART. And in Matt. 3:8 and in Acts 20:21 it means
A CHANGE OF LIFE, AN ACTUAL TURNING FROM SIN TO WALK IN IT NO MORE.
So we can say again, true repentance is a radical change of mind and
heart that leads to a complete turnabout of our life. It brings about
in the repenting believing sinner, a change of mind, which is the
understanding; a change of heart, which is the affections; and a
change in the course of our life, which comes from our wills.
"He
that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and
forsaketh them shall have mercy." If I really hate sin and
sorrow over it, then I shall forsake it. I shall take to heart Isa.
55:7, which reads, "Let the wicked forsake his way,/ and the
unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord; and
he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly
pardon." This is the change of course which God requires. It
will show itself in the repenting, believing sinner taking heed to
the Word of God which says, "Flee fornication" (I Cor.
6:18); "Flee from idolatry" (I Cor. 10:14); "Flee the
love of money" (II Tim. 6:10-11); "Flee also youthful
lusts" (II Tim. 2:22). And it will also show itself in the
putting into practice the positive graces of following after
"righteousness, faith, love, peace, with them that call on the
Lord out of a pure heart" (II Tim. 2:22). My friend, the
question before us is--Have you and I from our hearts actually turned
unto God from sin?
Fifth, the fruits of true Biblical
repentance will be seen in A DESIRE TO PUT INTO PRACTICE THE
SCRIPTURES THAT TEACH US TO WALK IN RIGHTEOUSNESS AND TRUE HOLINESS
(Eph. 4:24), and to be careful to maintain good works (Titus 3:8).
This, to me, is one of the most distinguishing marks of true Biblical
repentance: the desire to walk in a different way--a different course
of life than we did before. We read in Hebrews 12:14, "Follow
peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the
Lord." So by God's grace we desire to follow after this peace
and holiness, because God has given us a new heart and a new nature.
In Matt. 1:21 we read that Christ came to save His people from their
sins (not IN their sins), so the heart of the true penitent cries
unto God daily to be delivered from sin and self because he hates
them. Again, in Eph. 1:4 we read that God's purpose in saving us was
to make us holy, so by God's grace we desire to be holy, separate
from sin and our self-will. And in I Thess. 4:7 we read that God's
purpose in calling us was not to be unclean--to stay in our sins and
self-will--but to live in holiness; so by God's grace, we desire to
walk worthy of this calling unto holiness.
Then in I Thess.
4:3 we read that the will of God for our lives is for us to be
sanctified: that is, to be set apart from God's holy use. So this
being true, we desire by God's grace to be separated from sin unto
Christ. It is by our desiring and walking in righteousness and true
holiness and "being careful to maintain good works," that
we can know the fruits of true Biblical repentance are being
manifested in our lives. For we read in Titus 2:11- 12 that "the
grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men,
teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should
live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world." And
this is the desire of our hearts: to put into practice the denying of
ourselves ungodliness and worldly lusts and by the grace of God to
live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present evil world. Our
cry will be, "O Lord, help me to understand Thy Word, and by Thy
grace help me walk in the way that is well-pleasing unto Thee."
Or like that of the Psalmist: "Shew me thy ways, 0 LORD; teach
me thy paths. Lead me in thy truth, and teach me: for thou art the
God of my salvation; on thee do I wait all the day" (Psa.
25:4-5). And, "Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is none
upon earth that I desire beside thee" (Psa. 73:25), so teach me
Thy way, and lead me in plain paths, that I will follow Thee all the
days of my life."
These then, are the fruits of true
Biblical repentance: A deep desire to be finished with sin, because
it is the plague and sorrow of our heart; a deep desire to abstain
from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul, and a desire to fight
the good fight of faith; a deep desire never to go back to a way of
self-will and self-pleasing, but to show forth the praises of Him Who
has called us out of darkness into His marvelous light; a deep desire
to follow the Lord in a path of holiness all the days of our life; a
deep desire to please Him in all our ways; the deep desire to judge
ourselves before Him every day and to live at His feet with a broken
heart and a contrite spirit.
Sixth, the fruits of true
Biblical repentance will be shown in REAL FAITH IN CHRIST. True
Biblical repentance cannot be separated from true saving faith; the
two always go together. He who truly repents will truly believe, for
the same Holy Spirit Who gives us repentance to the acknowledging of
our sinful conduct before God, and gives us such a desire to confess
it and forsake it with a true godly sorrow, will also turn our eyes
upon yon lovely Lord Who died in our place. The Word of God says that
the Holy Spirit never separates these graces: repentance and faith.
Where you find one, you will find the other in the life of the saved
soul, for repentance without faith will despair; it would end in
hell. But praise the name of our thrice-holy God, He Who gives
repentance also gives saving faith!
Faith finds in the Lord
Jesus Christ and His shed blood the forgiveness of God for all sin.
By faith in Him we find a putting away and a washing away of all our
sins. We find in Christ a complete Saviour Who has undertaken for us
before God. We find in Christ peace, because Christ made peace by the
blood of His cross. We find in Christ hope, and hope is not made
ashamed, because the love of God has been shed abroad in our hearts
by the Holy Spirit. We find in Christ a perfect standing before God,
because Christ has by God been made unto us wisdom, righteousness,
sanctification and redemption. We find in Christ a perfect hiding
place from the wrath of God against our sins, because the judgment of
all of our sins has fallen upon Christ. We find in Christ all that
God gives to poor, repenting, believing sinners; for we find that we
are complete in Him, the Saviour of our souls, the Lord Jesus Christ.
Taken from Biblical Repentance:
The Need of This Hour
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