The Kingdom of God: Part 6 Repentance

Below is but a small measure of revelation that my father had received from the Lord. I hope this will be a blessing to you. All that is written below are the words of my father.

The Kingdom of God: Part 6 Repentance 

In loving memory of my father
Robert Louis (Bob) Padgett
July 28, 1931-May 22, 2023

In our previous message we tried to emphasize our need for repentance ... not simply for the initial believer but for every Christian, no matter what level of maturity in Christ. In this message we want to present in more depth what the Bible says about repentance, which is the first word of the Gospel. For many years I have heard many preachers and teachers talk about the gospel. Such ministers almost never define what they mean by the gospel. Those who do elaborate on the gospel seem to equate it to "being saved" and all of the good things that we get as a result. Let us begin by looking at a few scriptures concerning repentance.

John the Baptist said, in Matthew 3:2, 

"Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." 

Jesus preached, in Matthew 4:17, 

"Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." 

Jesus said, in Luke 24:47, 

"And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem."

Note the order of His words. That means no repentance, no remission of sins. Repentance does NOT mean that I simply say, "I repent." It means that I bring forth fruits meet for repentance. That is a process. Again, we must remember that being saved or being born again is not the same as walking or living or even entering into the kingdom of God. The repentance that the Lord is looking for occurs on a daily basis AFTER we are born again. We must walk in a state of repentance every day.

Mention the word "repent" and for most people what comes to mind is a wild-eyed' preacher with a sign "repent for the end is nigh," which typically evokes derision and mirth. This false image must be transformed if we are to have any chance of a revival at the end of this age. But repentance is not only for sinners. If the church is to be restored and go on to maturity, the message of repentance is vital. Only repentance can rescue both non-Christians and Christians from the extreme wickedness and rebellion that has made inroads in the last several generations.

Perhaps repentance is best understood by: such a sorrow for sin, such a hate for sin, such a change of mind about sin, so that it leads sinners to turn away from sin with all their hearts and turn to the Lord. This is a process, not a one-and-done event. Moreover, repentance is not something that man originates. It is the goodness (or graciousness) of the Lord that leads us to repentance (Romans 2:4).

The key to our right understanding of repentance can be found by looking at three sets of verses in the Bible. The first is when Paul said, in Acts 17:30-31, 

"And 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." 

Does the phrase "all men everywhere" include you and me? Absolutely! Does that phrase include all those who are trapped in man-made religions? Absolutely!

The second set of verses is when Jesus said, in Mark 1:14-15, 

"Now after that 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." 

God is very orderly. He never says or does anything haphazardly. First the blade, then the ear, then the full corn in the ear. Whenever we read scripture, that which is listed first is almost always more important or must precede than what is mentioned second. From Verse 15 that we just read, the order for all men everywhere is first to repent and then to believe the gospel. It is indisputable the gospel's first demand is to repent. The faith we need to truly trust in Christ, to rely on Him and adhere to Him is ours only when we are willing to repent. Along with any decision to trust in Christ, there must be a gift of faith to be truly saved; the faith we exercise is not our own. To turn away from sin in repentance is not an easy decision. As we journey on, some struggle with believing because they are not willing to repent first. To have faith in Christ is possible only if we are granted grace. The willingness to turn from our sin is the condition we must meet to receive this grace. That is each man's decision to make. The Lord cannot and will not make the decision to repent on our behalf, although He will frequently arrange our circumstances to help us make the right decisions. That is the love of God in action.

The third set of verses to complete our understanding of repentance is when John the Baptist said, in Matthew 3:7-12, 

"But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance: And think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham. And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but He that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: He shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire: Whose fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly purge His floor, and gather His wheat into the garner; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire."

Perhaps the two major truths from those six verses are: (1) true repentance must bring forth fruit that the repentance has been genuine, not just lip service; and (2) there is a wrath to come; it is inevitable. Paul said the same thing in Acts 17:30-31 which we read a few minutes ago. The day is coming when God will judge the world in righteousness by Jesus Christ. Many ministers preach the love of God; few preach the judgment of God. Is that because when we preach only the good things of God people are content and keep coming back and contributing money?

Leonard Ravenhill, a noted 20th century evangelist, once said, "We're so far removed from God's way of doing things—we think a man is a good man if he can draw a crowd these days. Do you know what Finney did? Finney preached sometimes, and the whole congregation got up and walked out on him. That's a good meeting! He sent them out horrified!" Ravenhill said, "I only preach for two reasons these days: either to send people out that door blazing mad at me or blazing with the peace of the Holy Ghost! That's all!"

For many years the call to repent has been largely stripped from the gospel. When it is included the real meaning has not been made clear. This lax understanding of what repentance means and the role it plays in our walk is woeful and tragic. Today the most common teaching for anyone to be born again is what some call "easy-believism." That consists of repeating Romans 10:9-10, or repeating the so-called "sinner's prayer," or in general just believe in the finished work of Calvary and you will be saved. All of those common methods omit the need to repent. Moreover, no man can repent unless they are convicted by the Holy Ghost of their need to repent.

Leonard Ravenhill also once said, "The sinner's prayer has sent more people to hell than the taverns." I cannot disagree.

True repentance means to think differently or reconsider. It means to change one's mind or purpose for the better and to hate one's past sins. We must love what God loves and hate what God hates. Repentance has two aspects. First it requires a change of mind or turning away from our past sins and sinful nature. Second, this rethinking is to result in outward changes with regard to sin, or as John the Baptist put it, bring forth fruits meet for repentance. If our repentance is to be genuine, both the act of repentance and the fruits of repentance must be evident. Any inward change of mind must be reflected in the outward actions to demonstrate the change. Our thinking must change enough to result not only in an outward turning away from the old life of sinful habits, but also to turn toward the Lord. Initially this transformation in a person's lifestyle and conduct may be minimal, although some with a profound conversion, like Paul, will from the start experience radical lifestyle changes. But for most of us, it is not in any way a complete reversal from the sinful way of life we previously led. But there should be enough of a change of mind to demonstrate the seriousness of a decision to be a disciple of Christ. The minimum is a willingness to be baptized in water to demonstrate a change of heart. If someone has chosen to turn away from rebellion and now wants to obey the Lord, then water baptism provides the first test to prove if their commitment is genuine.

Paul makes clear that we should not mistake repentance for "feeling sorry?" 

In 2 Corinthians 7:9-10, Paul said, 

"Now I rejoice, not that you were made sorry, but that your sorrow led to repentance. For you were made sorry in a godly manner, that you might suffer loss from us in nothing. For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death." 

To feel sorry for our sin can be mere "worldly sorrow," the remorse a criminal in prison suffers over the regret, shame, and guilt of their crimes. They may be regretful, sometimes with deep sorrow; but it is usually anguish of soul over being caught and punished. It is not true remorse for what they have committed or genuine repentance. In the New Testament two different Greek words are translated as "repent." One word means only to regret our actions, as Judas did (Matthew 27:3) and is the "worldly sorrow" Paul refers to. Worldly sorrow does not lead to the changes a true conversion brings. That can make us more careful about repeating the sin or crime or even more devious in covering it up. And if there is a change for the better, it is usually only short-lived. When there is a genuine turning away from these vanities to the living God, it is the result of real, godly sorrow. This is one reason why we see some converts who do not show evidence of real change in their life and never seem to grow in the Lord. They did not fully repent in the beginning.

What inward changes of the mind and heart qualify as true repentance and not merely worldly sorrow? First, any change that is superficial, limited, or ultra-hasty in both thinking and behavior is probably not true repentance. A real change of heart takes some time for the radical and wide-ranging overhaul that takes place to give a new mindset and set of beliefs. Many things must be offered up for realignment, such as long-held attitudes, false concepts, mental constructs, inner motivations, passions, desires and goals. Not only the conscious mind with its rational thoughts and views must change, but core, inner convictions must also undergo a renovation, the beliefs that make up the deep intents of the heart and guide us through life. These are the real driving forces that mostly determine our behavior.

More than anything else, allegiance is to ourselves first more often than not. We are to change our allegiance when we first repent. As unconverted sinners, our loyalty is to self, family, our nation, perhaps some type of club, or some other entity. But if we are not serving the living God, then we are serving the devil. Jesus said (Matthew 24:6), 

"No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon."

Therefore, the primary intent of the call to repent is to have us change our loyalty and who we are subject to. Unless we first renounce our allegiance to the kingdom of darkness it is impossible to be subject to King Jesus. Repentance happens when we disown the old master to give our obedience and faithfulness to our new Lord.

A further basic change of mind in addition to that of loyalty must occur when we repent ... the willingness to give up any rebellion to the Lord and His ways and thoughts. 

Isaiah 55:8-9, "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts."

We must decide to submit to God and His righteousness and become obedient to the faith (Romans 1:5) ... a change we make because we have chosen to forsake "doing it my way" with all that that means ... a life of independence and self-pleasing. We make Jesus "Lord" of our life as well as take Him as a Savior. Nowadays all that is offered is Jesus as Savior. The word "Lord" in scripture has the clear meaning of master or sovereign ruler. To allow Jesus to be our total master develops over time as our walk in repentance increasingly submits to His will and commands. We submit more and more habits and behaviors to the Lord as we prove the truth of the adage, "if Christ is not Lord of all then He is not Lord at all."

Ephesians 4:17, "This I say ... and testify in the Lord, that you should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind." 

The human mind can be woefully fickle. One of the radical changes repentance brings is to change our reliance on the power of our intellect and rational thinking. To rely on natural intelligence and wisdom is really the height of arrogance. Even long-held, cherished beliefs, often gained from those regarded as the wise of this world are to be discarded when they contradict revealed truths of scripture. If we genuinely decide to walk in repentance we must give up the ways that seem right to a man but its end is the way of death (Proverbs 16:25).

Without true humility we will never get rid of the natural, carnal understanding of this world to accept the divine. A true adage is, "the more we know, the more we realize the less we understand." A Christian is a disciple (a learner) who will "take my yoke and learn of Me" (Matthew 11:29) as Jesus asked. To learn from Him demands true openness of mind, a characteristic of the humble.

This is not to say the mind and its faculties are to be ignored. We are not asked to discard all rational thought, but not to lean on our understanding; that is, not put our full confidence in or depend upon it. The mind and intellect are to be put in their place so they will not be the final authority in any consideration. The mind can be a good servant but is a bad master.

This change in what we believe is not a simple matter or even a quick one. For most of us it is a lifelong task of constantly overcoming a mind that wants to be carnal, proud, and overly logical to the detriment of the wisdom that is from above (James 3:17). I do not advocate mindless, unthinking acceptance of the teaching of scripture; we are to test all things (1 Thessalonians 5:21). But in order to prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God (Romans 12:2) and discern what is truth, we are to weigh these things with our spiritual faculties. In a world where human intellect still rules as king, this renewing of the mind (Romans 12:2) is a lifelong undertaking. Interestingly, for natural Israel to possess their inheritance, the first giants and kings to be conquered dwelled in cities with names that mean "reason" or "intelligence" (Joshua 11:1). Unless Israel gained victory over these enemies first, any further progress in possessing what was rightfully theirs would fail.

Genuine repentance must also result in behavioral changes. John the Baptist preached the changes are to be practical and observable. He told soldiers, tax collectors, and others to stop their wrong behavior by ensuring they treated others honestly and with dignity, justice, and compassion (Luke 3:8-14). Paul (Ephesians 4:22-29) lists behavioral changes a follower of Christ is to address when they put off the old life, such as outward sins of the flesh like lying, immorality, stealing, and foul language ... bad behavior most of us would agree should stop. In Ephesians 4:30-32, Paul also exhorts us to put off un-forgiveness, bitterness, hatred, jealousy and malice that especially grieve the Holy Spirit. Paul says the way to put off these is to put on opposite attitudes and behaviors. As well as putting off habits of the flesh, we must make sure soon after our conversion to put on the habits of prayer, Bible study, and fellowship with other believers. Putting the right habits in place makes all the difference in our effort to maintain a new walk as a Christian with its new way of thinking and behaving. The people we walk with can make or break us in our journey with the Lord. Many long years ago the Lord gave my wife a real revelation about how to maintain a healthy, nice looking lawn. The answer is to make sure the roots of the grass have adequate nutrients and water. Healthy grass will keep the weeds at bay.

It is clear that repentance is to be peached to the sinner who desires to become a disciple of Christ. What is not so clear is the necessity to continue to walk in repentance every day. This imperative for one already born again is no less important. Surely it is self-evident that every believer needs to have a heart always open to turn away from whatever the Holy Spirit convicts as wrong. But this resolve is none other than repentance. And surely it is not hard to see the modern church has much to turn away from before the great and terrible day of the Lord.

Multitudes of believers will need to repent if they are to escape the judgments of the great tribulation. That includes many ministers in leadership positions in churches. This understanding about the final days of this age may not be what you subscribe to, but it is plainly taught in Scripture. We will emphasize this truth in greater detail in a later message.

Now there is one more important scriptural truth concerning repentance. The natural man cannot repent. It is God that works within us both to will and to do of His good pleasure (Philippians 2:13). Also, to repeat, it is the goodness of God leads us to repentance (Romans 2:4). Only by the grace of God can we see a need for repentance in some specific areas, but then we must ask the Lord, by the power of the Holy Spirit, to change us ... to change our heart and make that repentance real within us.

When the Lord first apprehended me and my wife, the Lord emphasized two things to me ... the sovereignty of God and the proper relationship of the Christian with money or the mammon of unrighteousness. Although I never made much money in the 46 years of my 3 secular jobs, the Lord from the very beginning made real to me the gift of freely giving to others. If I were to share with you all the ways that the Lord has provided for us, you would say that is impossible.

But I have proved experientially that no one can out-give God, who owns the cattle on a thousand hills. However, for many years my wife struggled somewhat when I felt led to give money to others. I believe that is part of the human nature of women, particularly wives, who seem to desire or need a greater sense of security than do men. But the Lord has in the past few years set her free from that concern for financial security. She recognizes that it has been a work of the Lord in her heart.

In our next message we hope to share with you the other requirement to walk in and live in the kingdom of God... namely what I call character refinement.

For now, we ask that the Lord open our eyes to see and our ears to hear what the Spirit is saying to the churches and to each of us individually. Until next time, may the Lord keep us under the shadow of His wings. Amen.