By (All
Scriptures taken from the Amplified Version
For several years I have had a great desire to express what I feel is a
vital issue for the people of the earth today, whether they be lost or
saved. I believe because of.
the continual dealings by the Holy Spirit in my own life these writings
have been delayed until now. God
desires to do a work in us so He can do a work through us.
Hallelujah! One of
these works is repentance. Repentance should be a life style not only an experience.
It is certainly an experience and a necessary one at that if we
are to come to know Jesus Christ and His will for us.
But to live a life of liberty and freedom on a continual basis,
we must always be ready and quick to repent. Unfortunately, there are many misun-derstandings and misgivings about repentance. Since it is a basic fundamental doctrine of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, we must not allow ignorance or indifference to limit our life experience with God. Jesus said, “You shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free” (See John 8:34). Do you and I want to be free? To be free we must know the truth and part of that truth is the truth of repentance. I believe that repentance is the door to liberty. I believe that we will see together why this is true. Read on!
If repentance is the door to liberty or the entrance to freedom, then
what does repentance mean and how can we understand its function? Repentance is a divine function that brings about a divine change,
however, it always requires action on our part. Repentance is a step of faith that leads us to reconciliation
with God. Repentance is a
change of mind and attitude, a different way of thinking. It is to change our mind for the better and to think the way
God thinks. This we can do
because we have the mind of Christ. (See I Cor. 2:16).
If we think Godly and Christ-like thoughts it will affect our
total being. “As a man
thinketh in his heart so is he” (Prov. 23:7).
Repentance is to hate our sin past and present, and to turn our
backs on what displeases the Lord.
This is repentance! Let’s look at the principle of the doctrines of Christ as found in
Hebrews 6:1-6. We find
listed here: repentance from dead works, faith towards God, the doctrine
of baptisms, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and
eternal judgment. Do we
believe faith towards God is necessary?
The Word of God tells us in Hebrews 11:6. that it is impossible
to please God without faith. Do
we believe that it is important to experience water baptism and the
baptism of the Holy Spirit and fire?
Jesus tells us clearly we need both to live a victorious life as
His witnesses. Do we
believe in the benefit of laying hands on the sick that they may recover
and laying hands on brothers and sisters to impart spiritual gifts and
to confirm callings? The
Bible exhorts us to do so. Do
we believe that we will resurrect from the dead if we die before the
coming of the Lord? This is
certainly one of God’s precious promises of eternal life. Do we believe that there is an eternal judgment?
God says there is for every man a time to die and then the
judgment. You see, Paul was
not minimizing the importance of these principles.
He was exhorting us to build, mature and grow up on these
principles, not to throw them aside. As a matter of fact. he warns us about falling away from the
light, the heavenly gift, the Holy Ghost, the Word of God and His
supernatural power or crucifying afresh the Son of God and putting Him
to open shame. This
hardness and insensitivity could cause us to be unable to renew
ourselves to repentance and we could be unable to enter into the liberty
of the Lord. Repentance from dead works, works of the flesh that produce nothing but
more frustration and bondage, is listed as the first thing we should do
here in this scripture. God
wants us free and alive in the Spirit!
Amen! Where the
Spirit of the Lord is there is liberty!
I am concerned that we, as the church, also have had some real
misconceptions about repentance. Although
we are recipients and beneficiaries of God’s forgiveness, when we do
not walk in the principles of repentance on a continual basis we enter
back into the bondage and the consequence of sin that we commit.
Paul tells us through the message to the church at Galatia,
“Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us
free and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage” (Gal. 5:1). The Holy Spirit, Who dwells within every believer has come into intimacy
with us and to reveal to us God’s will.
See in John Chapter 16 what Jesus says.
“Because if I do not go away, the Comforter (Counselor, Helper,
Advocate, Intercessor, Strengthener, Stand By) will not come to you -
into close fellowship with you. And
when He comes, He will convict and convince the world and bring
demonstration to it about sin and about righteousness - uprightness of
heart and right standing with God - and about judgment” (vs 7-8 Amp.Version).
What is our responsibility when the Holy Spirit convicts us of sin? First, we must acknowledge, as believers, that there can be sin in our
lives. See I John Chapter
1. “If we say that we have no sin - refusing to admit that we are
sinners - we delude and lead ourselves astray, and the truth (which the
Gospel presents) is not in us - does not dwell in our hearts” (vs 8
Amp. Version). Second, we must take action by repenting and confessing our sin.
“If we freely admit that we have sinned and confess our sins,
He is faithful and just (true to His own nature and promises) and will
forgive our sins (dismiss our lawlessness) and continually cleanse us
from all unrighteousness - everything not in conformity to His will in
purpose, thought, and action” (vs 9. Amp Version). Take note that verse 10 follows up repeating the warning that we should
not ignore sin in our lives. “If
we say (claim) we have not sinned, we contradict His word and make Him
out to be false and a liar and His word is not in us - the divine
message of the Gospel is not in our hearts.” Hypocrisy causes people to stumble!
When we, the church, preach the Gospel with our mouths but live
another way in our daily lives, we are hypocrites.
Most of the people of the world, deep down on the inside, want to
be free from the bondage of sin. As
the church, we have been set free from the bondage of sin by the
precious blood of Jesus. This
is an absolute Gospel truth and law, but it does not operate
automatically. It requires the action of repentance on our part.
Repentance is the door to liberty!
It is the pathway to freedom! We can be self-deceived by not taking necessary action.
“But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving
you own selves.” (James 1:22). James
also tells us “But he who looks carefully into the faultless law, the
(law) of liberty, and is faithful to it and perseveres in looking into
it, being not a heedless listener who forgets, but an active doer (who
obeys), he shall be blessed in his doing - in his life of obedience”.
(James 1:25 Amp. Version). Can you see the confusion that is caused by a contradictory life style
that calls others to repentance but refuses to repent itself?
I John 1:6 Amp. Version says: “If we say we are partakers together and
enjoy fellowship with Him when we live and move and are walking about in
darkness, we are (both) speaking falsely and do not live and practice
the truth (of the Gospel).” Take
note of the words used here: “live and move and are walking about in
darkness”. See by
contrast what the following verse says about another way to live and
walk. “But if we (really)
are living and walking in the Light as He (Himself) is in the light, we
have (true, unbroken) fellowship with one another and the blood of Jesus
Christ His Son cleanses (removes) us from all sin and guilt - keeps us
cleansed from sin in all its forms and manifestations.” Let’s take a look at Romans Chapter 8 in reference to walking and
living in liberty. “There
is therefore no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk
not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me
free from the law of sin and death” (vs 1-2). The truth is that when we do not walk, talk,. think, act, and are not led
by the Holy Spirit, we sin against the Lord and against those who are
around us. If we do not
deal in a spiritual manner with sin we fall under the condemnation of
satan. Thank God for
repentance, confession, and forgiveness that frees us from that
condemnation. Hallelujah! Let me share with you an illustration the Lord gave me many years ago
that has helped me greatly in my walk with God. This is what I saw in the spirit. (Holy Spirit’s Work) Take note that one step leads to another in both cases.
At any point in our life when we respond to God with a repentant
heart the work of the Holy Spirit begins and this work leads us through
the door of restoration as seen in the above illustration.
If we do not choose to respond to the Holy Spirit we
automatically open the door to satan who leads us downward into bondage,
isolation, and separation from our only source of liberty, Jesus Christ. Remember, I said earlier that repentance is a change of mind and attitude
which is to think God’s way about our situation.
Again looking at Romans 8:6, we see “For to be carnally minded
is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.” Also notice
how the law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus affects our fleshly
bodies and brings them under subjection to God.
“But if the Spirit of Him that raised up Jesus from the dead
dwells in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken
your mortal bodies by His Spirit that dwelleth in you. (Romans 8:11). Repentance starts a supernatural chain reaction that gives us all of the
wonderful benefits of life and liberty in Jesus Christ.
Hallelujah! The thought here is that unless we, the people of God, repent and yield
to the Holy Spirit we can’t witness to the world around us the liberty
found in Christ. The Bible
says, “Now the Lord is that Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord
is, there is liberty” (II Cor. 3:17). We should also see that where the Spirit of the Lord is quenched and
resisted there is no liberty. Jesus dealt severely with the religious ones of His day, primarily
because of the hypocrisy in their lives.
Remember hypocrisy is to say one thing but do another. Hypocrites
insist on a certain standard for others to live by but do not live by
that same standard themselves. Speaking
of hypocrisy, Jesus said: “The scribes and Pharisees sit in Moses seat,
all therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do, but
do not ye after their works, for they say and do not” (Matt. 23:2,3).
Jesus repeatedly addresses these same people as hypocrites
further in this same chapter. We as Christians are called by God to witness to others in the Name of
Jesus Christ. How do we do
that effectively? Many of
us have our ways of witnessing, but unless our witness includes a life
style correspondent to what we say, share, or preach, we will be
hypocrites. Unfortunately, the world around us quickly sees hypocrisy in
our lives and can be turned away from our Lord and Savior. Church, let’s walk and live in repentance so that those around us will
respond to the Gospel, the conviction of the Holy Spirit, and will
repent and walk through the door of liberty.
Amen!
John the Baptist, who was the last old testament prophet, the forerunner
and proclamer of Jesus the Messiah, preached and declared only one
message. It was the message
of repentance. John also
baptized those who believed and heeded that message in the baptism of
repentance. In Matthew 3:8,
he warns some hypocrites that repentance must be made evident with the
fruit of repentance. As we
all know being sorry for our sins, mistakes, and wrong doings does not
help us to be set free from them. That
is why true repentance, true Gospel repentance is to be accompanied by
it’s fruit. Jesus later
said that we would know a tree by its fruit.
“Ye shall know them by their fruits ... Even so every good tree
bringeth forth good fruit, but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.
A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit neither can a corrupt
tree bring forth good fruit” (Matt. 7:16-18).
Jesus and John both preached prophetically the Gospel of the New
Covenant which was not yet in effect. When Jesus came out of the wilderness experience of 40 days, His first
message was the message of repentance.
“From that time Jesus began to preach and to say Repent, for
the kingdom of heaven is at hand”
(Matt. 4:17). “Now
after John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the
gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, The time is fulfilled, and the
Kingdom of God is at hand: Repent ye, and believe the Gospel” (Mark
1:14-15). Jesus was
preaching the gospel message of repentance. Jesus is the only door through which we can enter into life, liberty, and
the pursuit of happiness. Jesus
said: “I am the door: by Me if any man enter in, he shall be saved,
and shall go in and out, and find pasture.
The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to
destroy: I am come that they may have life, and that they may have it
more abundantly” (John 10: 9-10).
Hallelujah! Jesus
said “I am the Way, the Truth,, and the Life; no man cometh unto the
Father but by Me” (John 14:6). Once
again let me say that Jesus is our only hope, and to receive innumerable
divine benefits we must heed the gospel message, the message of
repentance, and enter through that door which Jesus Himself has provided. During Jesus’ earthly ministry, as He trained His disciples to the
Gospel work, He gave them instructions about what to preach and how
to minister. He set the example for them.
We see what is said about their ministry in Mark Chapter 6:
“And He called unto the twelve and began to send them forth two by two
and gave them power over unclean spirits ... and they went out and
preached that men should repent; and they cast out many devils,
and anointed with oil many that were sick, and healed them” (Vs
7,12,13). One of the last things Jesus said to His disciples about their
responsibility to carry out the great commission is found in Luke
24:46-47. “And He said
unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behooved 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.” Remember this occurred after Jesus’ death,
burial, and resurrection, also making repentance a part of the New
Covenant that was established. Although
Jesus ministered in the old covenant, He also introduced and announced
the New Covenant. We see in Acts, Chapter 2, on the day of Pentecost, that the Holy Spirit
fell and filled all those who were gathered in the upper room.
Peter afterwards brought forth the message of repentance, that
led to the beginning of many conversions to Christ and the beginning of
the New Testament church as we know it today.
Peter spoke that day with a new and fresh empowerment from on
high and finished his message with this strong exhortation.
“Then Peter said unto them . Repent and be baptized everyone of
you in the Name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall
receive the gift of the Holy Ghost” (Acts 2:38).
Take note that repentance was the first step Peter told them to
take to be freed from sin. They
had asked Peter a very profound question. “Men and brethren what shall we do?” (Acts 25:37).
Repentance is the door to remission of sins and the gift of the
Holy Ghost. Glory to God!
This is freedom and liberty! In Acts, Chapter 3. Peter once again confronted people with the Gospel.
He encouraged them to repent to receive the benefits that
followed. “Repent ye
therefore and be converted that your sins may be blotted out, when the
times of refreshing shall come from the Lord; and He shall send Jesus
Christ which before was preached unto you” (vs 19-20). In Acts Chapter 17, Paul was addressing the people of Athens, Greece, and
explaining to them the Gospel of Jesus Christ. He recognized their ignorance, and that they had many gods,
however he challenged them to repent.
He said, “And the times of this ignorance God winked at, but
now commandeth all men everywhere to repent” (vs 30). You see, if we are going to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ,
we are going to have to preach the message of repentance to all men
everywhere. When Paul was meeting with the elders of the church at Ephesus, he
reminded them that he had testified to the Jews and Greeks concerning
repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ (See Acts
20:20-21). In Acts Chapter
27, Paul also spoke boldly to King Agrippa about his (Paul’s)
obedience to the heavenly vision. We
can read the account in Acts, Chapter 9, when Paul was met on the road
to Damascus by Jesus. He
had a heavenly vision which blinded his natural sight, knocked him to
the ground and brought him to repentance so he could be a chosen vessel
for the Lord. Afterwards,
we know Annanias was sent to minister to Paul (then called Saul) to
confirm the purpose of this divine encounter he had with the Lord Jesus.
Ananias prophetically told Paul that he was to bear the Name of
Jesus to the Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel.
How
did Paul carry this out? Once
again see what he said to King Agrippa.
“Whereupon, 0 King Agrippa.
I was not disobedient unto the heavenly vision; but showed first
unto them of Damascus, and at Jerusalem, and throughout the coasts of
Judea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God,
and do works meet for repentance” (Acts 27:19-20). Jesus
reminds us in His warnings to the churches of Asia that He takes into
account obedience and disobedience to the Gospel.
When we obey Him it pleases Him, but when we disobey Him it
displeases Him. Jesus calls
us to repentance for disobedience.
We can see in Chapters 2 and 3 of Revelation that our route of
escape from rebellion, indifference, slothfulness, pride and
lukewarmness is repentance. We
will talk more about these messages to the church later on..
An
answer to that question is found in II Peter 3:9: “The Lord is not
slack concerning His promise, as some men count slackness; but is long-suffering
to His word, not willing that any should perish, but that all
should come to repentance.” We
have been considering the truth of the Gospel message of repentance and
of its necessity in order to experience liberty.
When God expresses His will and purpose for us it is because He
knows what is best for us. He
is a loving Father, full of mercy, compassion, and long-suffering.
He does not want to see us perish, be in bondage, and suffer for
unrighteousness sake. He
does not strike us down or quickly bring His judgment upon us, but is
slow to anger and quick to restore us when we repent. Let
us look closer at the merciful heart of God as expressed in Hebrews,
Chapter 4. “For the Word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper
than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul
and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the
thoughts and intents of the heart.
Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in His sight;
but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of Him with whom we
have to do” (vs 12-13). These
verses let us know that if Jesus is our Lord, then He, the Living Word,
will penetrate our inner most being and call us to account. Everything
in our lives, all actions, attitudes, and thoughts are exposed by His
Word and by His Spirit. This
applies to even the things that we think are secret and hidden.
He knows and searches deep within us because He wants to help us
with our weakness and free us from our bondage.
Hallelujah! “Seeing
then that we have a great High Priest, that is passed into the heavens,
Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession.
For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the
feeling of our infirmities, but was in all points tempted like we are,
yet without sin” (Hebrews 4: 14-15).
There is something very important for us to see here.
Temptation is not sin. It
is, however, an opportunity or an open door to enter into sin.
Remember Jesus was greatly tempted on several occasions; once in
the wilderness by satan himself and later in the Garden of Gethsemane as
He faced crucifixion and death on the cross.
We know He did not yield to these temptations, but resisted the
devil in the desert and in the garden.
He quickly renounced the thought that entered His mind that there
might be another way to consummate the New Covenant.
He said: “Not my will but your will be done, Father” (See
Mark 14:30). Jesus never
sinned! Thank God.
He is our perfect substitute and sacrifice for sin because
although he was tempted in every way as we are, He never sinned! He
is also our great High Priest who mediates for us at the right hand of
the Father through His blood. Hebrews
4:15 says He understands our weaknesses and sympathizes with us and
desires that we get help from Him when we are tempted.
“Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we
may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need” (vs 16).
Jesus is calling out with outstretched arms for us to come unto
Him to receive help. To
receive this help we must repent. We
must turn away from the temptation, turn away from the door to sin, and
turn unto Jesus with a repentant heart, to receive grace, power, and
mercy and to enter into the liberty that awaits us.
Glory, Hallelujah! There
is a worldly saying that people use to try to avoid facing reality.
They say, “What comes first, the chicken or the egg?” If we
would only think for a moment we could see that the answer is simple.
God created the chicken and the chicken laid the egg.
The same applies to the spiritual principle of repentance.
First, we must repent, then the Lord forgives, cleanses, heals,
delivers, and restores us. The
salvation of the Lord Jesus Christ is very extensive and actually
contains the answer to any need that we could have.
Repentance is the door to liberty!
God’s will is that we repent so we can be free.
Amen! God
wills that everyone repent because He is no respecter of persons.
He wants to save, heal, deliver and rescue everyone.
“For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior;
who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the
Truth” (I Tim. 2:3-4). Remember,
the truth sets us free! Peter
was astounded by God’s mercy unto the Gentiles at Cornielus’ house (See
Acts Chapter 11). Peter
gave the following account to a group of Jewish Christians.
“Forasmuch then as God gave them the like gift as He did unto
us, who believed on the Lord Jesus Christ, what was I, that I could
withstand God? When they
heard these things they held their peace and glorified God, saying, then
hath God also to the Gentiles granted repentance unto life” (vs
17-18). Jesus
said, “They that be whole need not a physician but they that are sick,
but go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not
sacrifice, for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to
repentance” (Matt 9: 12-13). God
wants to help everyone so He calls all sinners to repent. it is
important that we see God s heart in the matter of repentance.
Many mistakenly think that it is a hard, mean God that would
demand repentance as the first step of the salvation process, but it is
in fact a kind, merciful God that demands that we repent. Paul
wrote a letter to the Roman church which confirms God’s true nature. In Romans, Chapter 2, Paul warns against those who harden
their hearts, and continue to live in sin.
This type of person will eventually suffer the judgment of God.
“But we are sure that the judgment of God is according to truth
against them which commit such things.
And thinkest thou this, O man, that judgest them which do such
things, and doest the same, that thou shalt escape the judgment of God?
or despiseth thou the riches of His goodness and forbearance and long
suffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to
repentance? But after thy
hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against
the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God.” (vs
2-5). There
are times when we, even as children of God, fall into sin and fail to
obey the Gospel. The
message here is that we not harden our hearts, because a kind, merciful,
and good God desires to lead us to repentance.
Yes, my friends, repentance is an act of faith and obedience on
our part; but the beautiful truth is that God, through His Holy Spirit
kindly leads us to repentance. This
repentance closes the door on satan’s tactics and opens the door to
the Lord’s liberty. Remember God s will is that we repent and not perish. Many
times we have seen that those who have judgmental attitudes, unjust
criticism. and slander hinder those who desire to be restored in the
Lord. These attitudes and actions are contrary to the heart of God.
Jesus said to His disciples, “Take heed to yourselves.
If thy brother trespass against thee rebuke him and if he repent,
forgive him. And if he
trespass against thee seven times in a day, and seven times a day turn
again to thee saying, I repent, thou shalt forgive him”
(Luke 17:3-4).
We must ask ourselves a question.
Why would we not want to forgive and help restore someone who has
repented? If we believe
that it is God’s will for all to repent and for none to perish, why
would we not react to another according to God’s will?
Jesus said: “Blessed are the merciful for they shall obtain
mercy.” (Matt 5:7). We
have seen those who have hypocritically and publicly ridiculed others
for their sin, later publicly exposed for the same sin.
We find God s righteous judgment and justice in Romans Chapter 2.
“Therefore thou art inexcusable O man whosoever thou art that judgest
for where in thou judgest another thou condemest thyself. for thou that
judgest doeth the same thing.” (vs 1) Let’s
look at another exhortation which clearly shows God s heart of mercy and
His will to see us come to repentance.
In this passage Paul is speaking to his co-laborer Timothy about
the responsibilities of a servant of God.
“And the servant of the Lord must not strive but be gentle unto
all men, apt to teach, patient, in meekness instructing those that
oppose themselves, if God peradventure will give them repentance to the
acknowledging of the truth; and that they may recover themselves out of
the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will.” (II
Tim 2:24-26). God
is saying to us that we should make every effort to help other people to
get free from the devil’s snare.
How? By showing them
the error of their ways? Yes! But take note of the attitude we must have while doing this.
It should be an attitude of patience, meekness, and gentleness
that would allow us to teach and instruct those who are confused,
frustrated, discouraged, trapped and defeated.
Our goal should be to see the truth break through so that
repentance can come. Hallelujah!
God s will is that all be rescued from the captivity of sin and
that all be free. Glory to
God! In
Luke, Chapter 15, Jesus
gives two parables showing the significance that God puts on repentance
and how important it is to all of heaven.
The Lord used the example of looking for one lost sheep out in
the wilderness, while leaving the ninety-nine who were in safe keeping.
He also used the example of the woman who had ten pieces of
silver. When she lost one,
she searched for it until it was found.
In both cases there was great rejoicing when the lost sheep and
the lost coin were found. In
like manner we see what great rejoicing it brings to heaven when one
person repents. “I say
unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that
repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no
repentance ... likewise,. I
say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one
sinner that repents.” (vs 7,10)
Let
us begin with this thought. Sin
has its consequences while repentance has its rewards.
Paul shared in his letter to the Corinthian church another
important aspect of repentance, that of Godly grief and sorrow.
It is very important to understand the difference between the
sorrow that we have as human beings when we make mistakes that bring us
embarrassment or hurt our pride, and the sorrow that comes because we
realize we have grieved the Holy Spirit.
God is not the author of grief, pain, sorrow and the like.
God is the .Author of joy, healing and happiness.
If we are sensitive to the Lord, we will respond to the grieving
of the Holy Spirit within us and repent.
Paul said: “Yet I am glad now, not because you were pained, but
because you were pained unto repentance (that turned you to God); for
you felt a grief such as God meant for you to feel ... for godly grief
and the pain God is permitted to direct, produces a repentance that
leads and contributes to salvation and deliverance from evil, and it
never brings regret ...” (II Cor 7:9-10a Amp.
Version) Hallelujah! Let’s
look at the rewards produced by repentance in this case.
It was salvation and deliverance from evil! It was God to the rescue!
It was God’s route of escape from the perils of sin!
Brothers and Sisters, if we repent as a result of godly grief we
will never regret it! Paul
continued to explain to us the result of worldly grief.
“But worldly grief (the hopeless sorrow that is characteristic
of the pagan world) is deadly - breeding and ending in death.” (II Cor
7:10 Amp. Version). I
believe that this is closely tied into the satanic work of condemnation.
Condemnation produces guilt for a mistake, error, or sin which we
have committed. How do we
escape this guilt and condemnation? We escape by repenting.
Amen! Let
me share with you again the spiritual illustration that I shared with
you earlier in these writings. No repentance leads us into
worldly and human guilt, sorrow and grief, and then deeper into
condemnation, bondage and finally into separation from our fellowship
with God and our brethren. Repentance leads us into confession,
forgiveness, freedom (liberty) and into fellowship with God and those
around us. What rewards!
Freedom and fellowship! Dear
friends, we need to permit this divine sadness that comes through the
conviction of the Holy Spirit to lead us to repentance.
A sadness that comes because we are sorry we got caught or
exposed is nothing more than self-pity.
God does not want us to feel sorrow for ourselves.
Instead He wants to bless and reward us as we respond to Him
through repentance. Jesus
gave a very clear message of repentance to the seven churches in Asia as
found in Revelation, Chapters 2 and 3. Here we can clearly see the
righteous judgment of God. This
warning of judgment was always accompanied with the promises of rewards
if the church repented. Many
of us do not want to acknowledge the authority of Jesus Christ in His
church. We are, as
believers, His church; whoever we are and wherever we are located on the
face of the earth, we need to realize that because Jesus loves us He
calls us to repentance. He
calls us to repentance so we can fulfill our godly purposes and so that
He can reward or recompense us according to what we deserve.
We need to also see that God will not be mocked or disregarded in
any area of our lives. When
we have godly fear, reverence and respect we will be quick to repent.
If we do not fear God then we will eventually fall into His hands
of judgment. “For we know
Him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto Me, I will recompense,
saith the Lord, and again, The Lord shall judge His people.
It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.”
(Hebrews 10:30-31). Let
us remember that all local churches that belong to Jesus are accountable
to Him. He is the Head of
the church. Unfortunately
there are local groups that belong to men who do not want to recognize
His lordship. In the midst
of such groups, repentance is not preached or practiced.
Jesus does not reward and recompense such as these.
He only rewards those who repent.
We need to accept this truth once and for all. When
the Lord calls us to repent, it is not because we are not necessarily
doing anything to please Him. On
the contrary, He calls us to repentance so we can be free and
glorify His Name even more and more in our lives. Also remember, the Lord is a righteous judge. He will deal with us in direct proportion to our sin, be it individual or corporate sin. We find this confirmed over and over in the scripture in Revelation, Chapters 2 and 3. When credit was due, Jesus was quick to recognize works of righteousness and faith. We can review the deeds that pleased the Lord. These were numerous, but some of them were: patience, perseverance, faithfulness, endurance of affliction, persecution and false accusation for His sake, resistance to false messengers and doctrines, love, faith and servanthood practiced in large degrees, the guarding of His Word and the proclaiming of His Name. In some of these same churches, the Lord found faults which He also quickly confronted. Let’s list a few: losing Him as the first love, fear and dread, adhering to or accepting false teaching or teachers,, tolerance of false prophets and seducing spirits, spiritual laziness and slothfulness, not completing the work of the ministry, pride, self-deception, and lukewarmness. There was one common solution that Jesus gave for all these maladies: Repentance! Here
were some of His specific exhortations to repent: Repent and return to
Me; Be loyal and faithful even unto death; Wake up and remember what you
were taught; and finally, To those who I love I rebuke and chasten and
call to zealously repent. If
the Lord’s warnings to repent are not heeded consequences will follow.
We must never ignore the reality of God s judgment, my friends. I
believe with all my heart that the last course of action that God wants
to take is to judge us. But
He is Almighty God and reserves that right and privilege.
We must understand this truth!
Jesus said to these churches, Repent or else.
Jesus is saying to us today: Repent or suffer the consequences.
He said to one of these churches.
“I will come unto thee quickly and will remove thy candlestick
out of his place. except thou repent” (Rev 2:5).
This means in plain words that He would remove His hand from this
local church and it would not be able to function under His power and
direction. He said,
“Repent, or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against
them with the sword of My mouth” (Rev 2:16).
What this means in plain words is that Jesus will clean up: clear
out, and cut up the garbage in His church.
He is coming for a glorious church, without spot or wrinkle.
Glory to God. He
said: “I gave her space to repent of her fornication; and she repented
not. Behold, I will cast
her into a bed, and them that commit adultery with her into a great
tribulation, except they repent of their deeds.
And I will kill her children with death; and all the churches
will know that I am He which searcheth the reins and hearts: and I will
give unto everyone of you according to your works” (Rev 2:21-23).
Take note here that although Jesus warned of the consequences of
these sins, He still gave room for repentance. In
another instance He said: “Remember therefore how thou hast received
and heard, and hold fast, and repent.
If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come as a thief, and
thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee” (Rev 3:3).
Jesus was saying wake up so you will not be caught off guard in
the final hour. Jesus
said to another of these churches: “So then because thou art lukewarm
and neither cold nor hot., I will spew thee out of my mouth” (Rev
3:l6). This should sober us
up brothers and sisters! Hear
this: “Not everyone that saith unto Me, Lord, Lord shall enter into
the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will My Father, which is in
heaven. Many will say to Me
in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy
name cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?
And then. I will
profess unto them, I never
knew you! depart from me, ye that work iniquity” (Matt 7:21-23).
If these words of Jesus bother us then it is a sure sign that we
need to repent, be set free. and enter into the joy of our salvation. In
Revelation 3:19,. Jesus
emphasizes that He loves us and because of His love He disciplines,
reproves, corrects, and calls us to repentance.
I appreciate this passage of scripture because it confirms God’s
loving heart towards us and shows His desire for our well-being.
“Those whom I dearly and tenderly love; I tell their faults and
convict and convince and reprove and chasten - that is - I discipline
and instruct them. So be
enthusiastic and in earnest and burning with zeal and repent - changing
your mind and attitude.” (Rev 3:19 Amp Version). Once
again let’s look at the rewards that God has for those of us who
repent. I believe that this
will encourage us more than ever to repent as quickly as possible, Amen! These rewards are also found in Revelation, Chapters 2 and 3.
They are: Eating of the tree of life in paradise; Receiving the crown of
life; Escaping the injury and danger of the second death; Receiving the
hidden manna and a white stone with a new name; Receiving just
compensation for our deeds and faithfulness; Receiving authority to rule
over the nations; Being kept safe from the hour of testing, temptation,
and tribulation coming upon the earth; Being made pillars in the temple
of God; Having His name and the name of the new city written upon us;
and Sitting down beside Jesus on His throne.
Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
Thank you, Lord, for your rewards!
We want to repent! If
that’s not enough, listen to what the Word says in Revelation 3:20 to
those who answer Jesus’ knock on the door.
This is the door to liberty!
This is the door of repentance.
“Behold I stand at the door and knock.
If anyone hears and listens to and heeds my voice and
opens the door, I will come into him and will eat with him, and he shall
eat with Me.” (Rev 3:20 Amp Version) Can
we see that repentance opens the door, the door to liberty, and the door
to fellowship with the Lord Jesus, Himself?
What a glorious reward that is!
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