Repentance to salvation for sinners
Repentance and faith are foundation gospel truths (Heb 6.1). In the New Testament we began with the urgent preaching of John the Baptist: "Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand" (Mt 3.2). His baptism was marked by repentance; in fact it was literally a repentance-baptism (Mt 3.11), when people were baptised confessing their sins (Mt 3.6, Mk 1.5), believing the gospel (Mk 1.15), and then they knew remission of sins (Mk 1.4, Lk 3.3). Later, the Lord Jesus reprimanded the chief priests and the elders for not repenting at John's preaching as did so many people (Mt 3.5-6), including tax-collectors and harlots (Mt 21.32).
The Lord Jesus also explained that His ministry was to call sinners to repentance (Lk 5.32), and from the beginning He too preached, "Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand" (Mt 4.17). He was particularly critical of those who saw his might works and did not repent (Mt 11.20; 21.41), and He warned such people that unless they repented they would perish (Lk 13.3,5). On the other hand He said that "joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance" (Lk 15.7,10). The scribes and Pharisees pretended to be righteous and saw no need of repentance, but such was their unbelief that "neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead" (Lk 16.31).
Then the disciples also, at the instruction of the Lord Jesus, "went out, and preached that men should repent" (Mk 6.12). Lastly, before His ascension the Lord Jesus instructed His disciples that "repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem" (Lk 24.47). Accordingly, "beginning at Jerusalem", Peter preached repentance: "Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out" (Acts 3.19; 2.38), and later preached about the Lord Jesus whom "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).
The gospel was then preached in Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria and beyond, and in due course Gentiles repented and believed. After some initial reluctance, this was eventually accepted by the Jewish believers at Jerusalem, who "glorified God, saying, Then hath God also to the Gentiles granted repentance unto life" (Acts 11.18). Paul's responsibility as a preacher was spelled out to him by the Lord Jesus: "…now I send thee [to the Gentiles], To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me" (Acts 26.17-18). Paul carried out this command to preach to Gentiles, "Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ" (Acts 20.21). Then the Gentile hearers' responsibility was that "they should repent and turn to God" (Acts 26.20). This incidentally led on to the same moral responsibility as specified by John the Baptist in speaking about his work among Jews: "Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance" (Mt 3.8; Lk 3.8), and in his turn Paul said that "they should…do works meet for repentance" (Acts 26.20).
One outstanding example of such a call to repentance was when Paul preached on Mars Hill to the Athenian philosophers. He spoke about God the Creator and hence the futility of idolatry. Then he said that God will judge the world through His resurrected Son, i.e. "the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent: Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead" (Acts 17.30-31). Interestingly, the command to repent came after ignorance was dealt with, and compares with Peter who, prior to his appeal for repentance, said, "brethren, I wot [know] that through ignorance ye did it, as did also your rulers" (Acts 3.17). God's call to repentance always follows the clarification of the truth in the gospel.
Paul later wrote to the believers at Rome reminding them that "the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance" (Rom 2.4). Of this we have the helpful remarks of Robinson: "The very kindness of God is trying to lead thee to a right-about face, a change of mind and attitude instead of a complacent self-satisfaction and pride of race and privilege" (New Testament Word Pictures). In the same vein Peter wrote, "The Lord is…not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance" (2 Pet 3.9).
In summary we can say that for us sinners, repentance is nothing more and nothing less than a complete change of mind, when we pass judgment upon ourselves, because of what we are and what we have done, in view of God's Word and through the conviction of the Holy Spirit. We then realise and fully accept that we are sinful, guilty, hopeless, helpless and lost. In this context we note the words of William Kelly who wrote: "Repentance is when a soul pronounces judgment upon itself, according to the truth and character of God…and in consequence of this…judging self, assured that what we are is altogether unfit for the presence of God…We are called to acknowledge the utter ruin of all that is of ourselves. This is repentance, taking [sides] with God's righteousness and holiness against myself". So we take God's side against ourselves, when we agree with all God's verdict about us and His sentence and judgement upon us.
To be continued.
