Repentance - Part 2
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| In loving memory of my father Robert Louis (Bob) Padgett July 28, 1931-May 22, 2023 |
In Part 1 of this message on repentance we emphasized the need for repentance because of all the mixture, false teachers, traditions of men, and apathy in the church community today. We shared that every revival was initiated by a John the Baptist preacher. That scenario is about to be repeated. The question is, who wants to be part of that company?
The first message preached by Jesus was, "Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." The first message preached by John the Baptist was, "Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." To whom did John the Baptist and Jesus preach that word? to the chosen people of God. Today, many believers seem to say, "That word does not apply to me because I am already saved." How tragic! Human nature has never changed. The major word spoken in the first half of the book of Joel is repentance. The message preached by all of the prophets was repentance. Among the most-used words of the vocabulary of the prophets were the two words "turn" and "return".
Jesus said, in Luke 12:48, "For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required." Therefore, for those who have eyes to see, ears to hear, and a heart to understand, much is required. From our experience as well as the witness of the Holy Spirit, three major actions are required on our part as individual believers in Christ. The first is to repent, which goes far beyond what we have been taught. The second is to keep our own personal garments clean; the third is intercession with weeping and groaning that the will of God may be completed within the body of Christ. At the top of our action list is repentance! Repentance is not just for those who do not know the Lord. It applies to all of us today. To repent means to turn around, to change one's mind, to go in a different direction.
That verse in Hosea is current events. Why has the Lord smitten us? because we have strayed from Him and His ways. The prerequisite for healing is to return unto the Lord (repent).
The two worst scenarios are when we go out from the presence of the Lord and when the Lord leaves us, particularly when we are not even aware of it.
True repentance is not superficial words or thoughts that are "short lived." Shallow, sentimental tears will not suffice. A mere admission of guilt will not solve the problem. Neither will an outward performance of ritual satisfy the demands of a holy God. Unfortunately, this is why many of us go around the same mountain for years and are never able to walk in the victory which is found in Christ. True repentance requires our ability to sense, at least in some measure, the grief of the Lord as a result of our own ungodly thoughts, words, or actions. If we really love the Lord, we don't want to hurt or grieve Him or quench the Holy Spirit. So often we superficially repent because our words or actions backfired on us or we have harmed another person. However, our grieving the Lord must affect us deeply and supersedes all other reactions which lead us to repentance.
When our heart is broken because we let the Lord down, only then can we earnestly hate our "sinful nature" and desire only to please the Lord. I experienced that broken heart when I was a three-week-old Christian. At this point, we are able to turn in the direction of the Holy Spirit and be "born" into the victory which is in Christ. This may be painful to the flesh, but the Lord is more than able to complete that which He has begun. Weeping, travail, and intercession should spring forth as we identify with the wrong and cry out to the Lord for mercy, healing, and restoration.
There seem to have been many breech births in the body of Christ ... those who have come to Christ, but for the wrong reasons and in the wrong way, where the Head does not come first. There is nothing about the natural man ... the first Adam ... that is acceptable to God.
Many believers might say, "repent? of what?" Perhaps for starters, we could repent of any self-seeking attitude. We must repent from our two-way thinking and life style, with one foot in the kingdom and one foot in the world. Repent of any desire to fulfill some lower-level goal. Repent of any attitude that falls short of, "Lo, I come to do Thy will, O God." Repent because of our human nature.
It is profitable to read the rewards or results of repentance found in Deuteronomy 30. We will read only four verses of that chapter ... Deuteronomy 30, verses 1, 2, 3, and 9.
Notice the little word, "then," in verse 3. Little words mean a lot in the Bible. In other words, the blessings, prosperity, etc., spoken of starting in Verse 3 are conditional upon the repentance in Verses 1 and 2. The same is true in the Book of Joel. Exactly in the middle of the Book of Joel (Joel 2:18) is the word "then." This is the only occurrence of the word "then" in Joel. What follows Joel 2:18 is deliverance, blessing, prosperity, etc. What precedes Joel 2:18 is repentance.
Please go back and read all of Isaiah 58, which describes the fast that the Lord has chosen. Those 14 verses in Isaiah 58 contain the word "then" four times. Each time, it describes how the Lord will bless us IF we repent. We suspect that there have been a multitude of people who have said, "Lord if you will just do this for me, then I will ..." In general, those who make such a statement do not keep their vow. But AFTER we have accepted the saving grace of our Lord, there is no more place for that kind of statement or vow. At that point it is the Lord who says, "If you repent, then I will ..." Will what? then the Lord will restore.
The word, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand," is the first word of the kingdom of God. All of the Old Testament prophets preached repentance. To whom did they preach that word? to the chosen people of God. The first word of the Lord that came unto Zechariah for the chosen people of God was a call for national repentance.
Therefore say thou unto them, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Turn ye unto Me, saith the LORD of hosts, and I will turn unto you, saith the LORD of hosts. Zechariah 1:3
Note the conditional decree of the Lord. We must first (re)turn to the Lord and then He will turn to us. Why did the remnant of Judah need to repent and turn back to the Lord? because of their apathy, lukewarm attitude, and self-centeredness, which is clearly indicated in the Book of Haggai. Do we need national repentance in America today? if so, in what segment of the population? the heathen? those in denominational churches? those in charismatic fellowships? How can the heathen turn back or repent to someone they never knew? Those in denominational churches have not received nearly the light that we have. The national climate is a mirror reflection of the modern-day spiritual Judah, which is similarly characterized by apathy, a lukewarm attitude, and self-centeredness.
Each one of us is familiar with the parable of the "prodigal son" as recorded in Luke, Chapter 15. The younger son said, "Give me," then went out and wasted his substance with "riotous" living (Luke 15:13). The word "riotous" does not mean what we think it means. It means to "preserve, save, or tend to self." In other words, he was just doing his own will. After a series of difficult circumstances, he repented and went back to his father. But we must remember that he was always the son of his father, even when he strayed away. Further, who caused the famine in the land? Who caused no man to give unto the son when he was away? That was the sovereignty of God. If we are called of God, He will arrange all of our circumstances to help us to return to Him if we have strayed. But He will never override our will or our decisions.
That example clearly shows that true repentance is something that begins with God, and not with man. It originates not in the will of man, but in the free and sovereign grace of God. Apart from the working of God's grace and the moving of His Spirit, man of his accord is not capable of repentance. Psalm 80 declares this fact three different times. When anything is repeated three times in Scripture, we best pay attention.
Those verses clearly state that unless the Father draws us by His Spirit, we cannot be born from above. But nothing is automatic. Because man has free will, we can still reject the call of God. Therefore, we must accept the call of God. That requires a decision on our part, not an emotion. That acceptance constitutes the first-level of repentance; i.e., from the status of being a non-Christian to becoming a born-again believer. But everything begins with God. In the beginning, God, in the end, God, and everything in between, God. Further, Jesus said,
A "second level" of repentance, and the one which is perhaps most obvious to us believers is when we are convicted by the Holy Spirit that we have said something "wrong" or done something "wrong." Then, like David, we must be quick to repent.
Nevertheless, we believe there is another level of repentance ... and one which Jesus primarily meant when He came preaching, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." We will describe this level shortly. We must always remember that Jesus spoke those words to the chosen people of God.
A number of years ago I read on a website a short excerpt, titled, "Removing the Candlestick!!" The excerpt was written by a believer of great, national reputation (his name is not important). His excerpt, which was an exhortation for believers to repent, was/is 100% truth. However, I do not know if his word had much of an effect on any believers because there was no reference as to WHY we, as true believers, need to repent. (I do not refer to the times when we say something "wrong" or do something "wrong.") Isaiah and Job repented. So did Ezra and Nehemiah and many others. Unless we, as professing Christians, see a need for the repentance that John the Baptist, Jesus, and the early apostles preached, then things will just rock along as usual. We can still have our nice meetings every Sunday, feel "good" that we have put an "X" in the right box, and never know what we missed. That same central message is preached in the story of Gideon's army, as related in Judges 7.
The Church at Ephesus in Paul's time was considered the "highest" in spiritual awareness of all churches. The Church at Ephesus in that day corresponds to the charismatic churches of today. We should never forget that all of Scripture is profitable for us today (2 Timothy 3:16).
The first and most important exhortation from the Lord to the Church at Ephesus was verse 4, "You have left your first love." What is our "first love?" the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. The Church at Ephesus had become all engrossed and absorbed with hearing and learning new revelation from Scripture, with listening to all sorts of preachers instead of listening to what the Spirit was saying, with traditions of men (much more could be shared on that topic), with focusing on "what's in it for me," etc.
In verse 5, what are the "first works?" the works of the Spirit ... the works which were foreordained for us to walk in from before the foundation of the world. Perhaps the most important word for believers is, "Whatsoever He says unto you, do it" (John 2:5). We cannot do the first works unless we have returned to our first love.
Concerning Revelation, chapter 2, verse 5, we believers have heard, with our natural ears, quite a bit about the Lord. We have read many books, listened to many of the TV preachers, listened to many DVDs, gone to many conferences, and perhaps have heard a number of new thoughts that have tickled our ears. Unfortunately, that is the problem. We are so full of information that we have left off the most important part ... hearing from the Lord Himself. We are so busy with all of our church meetings and busy work that we have left our first love.
The problem is that we true Christians have become so hard-hearted and ego-centered that very few understand what "repent" means. A slowly increasing number of ministers now preach "repent." Experience and observation indicate that very few who even preach that word understand what "repent" means to a believer. NEVER in my life have I heard or read the true meaning of this "third-level of repentance" except from the Holy Spirit. (I do not refer to the "textbook" definition of repentance, which could be "a firm inward decision, not an emotion ... a change of mind.") As an aside, Biblical terms must be defined by Scripture itself, not by "textbook" dictionaries.
The meaning of this level of "repentance" is found in Isaiah 6 and Job 42. This "third-level" meaning of repentance is, we firmly believe, that which Jesus referred to when He said, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." Isaiah and Job were both good men. Isaiah prophesied in the first five chapters of the Book which bears his name. The Lord, Himself, had some good things to say about Job.
Job repented for the same reason that Isaiah did. The Lord said there was none like Job in the earth, a perfect and upright man who feared God and eschewed evil (Job 1:8). After 40 more chapters of carnal reasoning between Job and his three "friends," the Lord gave Job a revelation, such that Job said, in Job 42:5-6, "I have heard of Thee by the hearing of the ear: but now mine eye seeth Thee. Wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes."
In Isaiah 6:5, note the confession of Isaiah: "Then said I, Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts." When Isaiah saw the Lord, he repented. The word "undone" can be translated as "lost" or "cut off." But there is NOTHING in the previous five chapters of Isaiah that indicates that Isaiah had done anything wrong or said anything wrong. Isaiah saw that his very being was unclean, in comparison with the Lord. Isaiah repented because of his human nature.
Much of modern Christianity says, "I have need of nothing" (Revelation 3:17). What an indictment about our sorry state! That proud boast is the epitome of the ugly attitude of self-sufficiency and self-confidence. Those the Lord has chosen to lead His people throughout history usually bewail their lack of capability to fulfil the work of the Lord. Without a deep understanding of who we really are, with our hidden faults and weaknesses, we will never seek the Lord to remedy them or to fully cooperate with the process when He works to remedy our shortcomings.
From Isaiah 6:8, many Christians believe they are "sent" to go out and save the lost. But before we are sent, we must have a clear vision of the Lord Himself. That involves much more than being born again and baptized with the Holy Ghost. We must have the same revelation that both Isaiah and Job received. It is never sufficient to "go" because we see a need. Unless we are sent by the Lord, then our efforts are of little value. The Lord says, in
In verse 14, the "blessing ... even a meat [meal] offering and a drink offering," has nothing to do with the natural realm. The meal offering and drink offering speak of the remnant, or the sons of Zadok, who "shall teach My people the difference between the holy and profane, and cause them to discern between the unclean and the clean" (Ezekiel 44:23).
Is it time to repent from our dead works and let Christ build His Church? Who perceives the difference between "dead works" and the works of the Spirit? Repentance from dead works is the first principle of the doctrine of Christ.
Let us remember that verse is written to Christians, not heathens. Dead works are works of the flesh. We must repent from anything that is not led by the Spirit. If we cannot get through that first principle, there is no reason to try going any further.
There is only one reason for a sinner to repent and it's not because he will go to heaven and it's not to keep out of hell. If we are trying to serve God because He will do us good then it's nothing but trying to make a deal with God. Likewise, there is only one reason for a professing Christian to repent. It's because we have received a revelation of the holiness of God and because we have seen that "Woe is me, for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell among a people of unclean lips" (Isaiah 6:5). It's because Jesus Christ deserves the worship, love and obedience of our heart. It's because "Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created" (Revelation 4:11).
Any time that we see the Lord with spiritual eyes, we must repent. But "If any man sin, we have an Advocate (paraclete, intercessor) with the Father, Jesus Christ" (1 John 2:1). We must learn to be quick repenters. "And every man that hath this hope in Him purifieth himself, even as He is pure" (1 John 3:3).
Those verses speak not only of the first coming of Jesus but also of the second coming of the Lord to earth. In order for the Lord to come for spiritual Israel's redemption, she must repent. The Lord is not returning to the earth for millions of immature, baby Christians. The Lord is returning with ten thousands of His saints (Jude 14-15) for "a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish" (Ephesians 5:27).
The Church today desperately needs many John the Baptist preachers. Our current church community has no power to influence the world. How can a corrupt church go out into all the world, disciple all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world? How can we preach the gospel to every creature when we don't fully understand the gospel ourself?
One last thought concerning John the Baptist preachers ... John the Baptist was outside the religious system of his day. Jesus, as a man on earth, was outside of the religious system of the day. Peter, Paul, and the early apostles were outside of the religious system of the day. What is the religious system? all denominational churches, all mega-churches, and some charismatic churches. The Lord took me outside of the religious system in early 1980. You do NOT have to be inside of the religious system of today to be a John the Baptist preacher. Most pastors of the religious system cannot hear you anyway. You can be a John the Baptist preacher by your life and by speaking to others as the Holy Spirit opens the doors.
Many years ago, the Holy Spirit quickened to me a jewel from
Further, when the pure word of God is spoken into the air, it accomplishes that for which it is sent (Isaiah 55:11). From Genesis, chapter 1, "And God said ... and it was so." The pure word of God is not limited by time or space. The Holy Spirit is also God. If you have the Holy Spirit within you, then prophecy to the wind and to the mountains, oh man of God and oh woman of God, as the Spirit gives you unction. However, this cannot be a mechanical or legalist process. Everything must be led by the Holy Spirit.
Who is ready to allow the Lord to make us into a John the Baptist preacher? If you are so willing, raise your spiritual hand, not your natural hand. Yes, we must count the cost, but great will be your reward for an eternity if you accept the challenge of the Lord. The Lord is faithful to those who are faithful to Him. Amen and amen.
The first message preached by Jesus was, "Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." The first message preached by John the Baptist was, "Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." To whom did John the Baptist and Jesus preach that word? to the chosen people of God. Today, many believers seem to say, "That word does not apply to me because I am already saved." How tragic! Human nature has never changed. The major word spoken in the first half of the book of Joel is repentance. The message preached by all of the prophets was repentance. Among the most-used words of the vocabulary of the prophets were the two words "turn" and "return".
Jesus said, in Luke 12:48, "For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required." Therefore, for those who have eyes to see, ears to hear, and a heart to understand, much is required. From our experience as well as the witness of the Holy Spirit, three major actions are required on our part as individual believers in Christ. The first is to repent, which goes far beyond what we have been taught. The second is to keep our own personal garments clean; the third is intercession with weeping and groaning that the will of God may be completed within the body of Christ. At the top of our action list is repentance! Repentance is not just for those who do not know the Lord. It applies to all of us today. To repent means to turn around, to change one's mind, to go in a different direction.
Come and let us return unto the Lord: for He hath torn, and He will heal us; He hath smitten, and He will bind us up. Hosea 6:1
That verse in Hosea is current events. Why has the Lord smitten us? because we have strayed from Him and His ways. The prerequisite for healing is to return unto the Lord (repent).
In Hosea 5:15, the Lord says "I will go and return to my place, till they acknowledge their offence, and seek my face: in their affliction they will seek me early."
The two worst scenarios are when we go out from the presence of the Lord and when the Lord leaves us, particularly when we are not even aware of it.
True repentance is not superficial words or thoughts that are "short lived." Shallow, sentimental tears will not suffice. A mere admission of guilt will not solve the problem. Neither will an outward performance of ritual satisfy the demands of a holy God. Unfortunately, this is why many of us go around the same mountain for years and are never able to walk in the victory which is found in Christ. True repentance requires our ability to sense, at least in some measure, the grief of the Lord as a result of our own ungodly thoughts, words, or actions. If we really love the Lord, we don't want to hurt or grieve Him or quench the Holy Spirit. So often we superficially repent because our words or actions backfired on us or we have harmed another person. However, our grieving the Lord must affect us deeply and supersedes all other reactions which lead us to repentance.
When our heart is broken because we let the Lord down, only then can we earnestly hate our "sinful nature" and desire only to please the Lord. I experienced that broken heart when I was a three-week-old Christian. At this point, we are able to turn in the direction of the Holy Spirit and be "born" into the victory which is in Christ. This may be painful to the flesh, but the Lord is more than able to complete that which He has begun. Weeping, travail, and intercession should spring forth as we identify with the wrong and cry out to the Lord for mercy, healing, and restoration.
There seem to have been many breech births in the body of Christ ... those who have come to Christ, but for the wrong reasons and in the wrong way, where the Head does not come first. There is nothing about the natural man ... the first Adam ... that is acceptable to God.
Many believers might say, "repent? of what?" Perhaps for starters, we could repent of any self-seeking attitude. We must repent from our two-way thinking and life style, with one foot in the kingdom and one foot in the world. Repent of any desire to fulfill some lower-level goal. Repent of any attitude that falls short of, "Lo, I come to do Thy will, O God." Repent because of our human nature.
It is profitable to read the rewards or results of repentance found in Deuteronomy 30. We will read only four verses of that chapter ... Deuteronomy 30, verses 1, 2, 3, and 9.
1 And it shall come to pass, when all these things are come upon thee, the blessing and the curse, which I have set before thee, and thou shalt call them to mind among all the nations, whither the Lord thy God hath driven thee,2 And shalt return unto the Lord thy God, and shalt obey His voice according to all that I command thee this day, thou and thy children, with all thine heart, and with all thy soul;3 That then the Lord thy God will turn thy captivity, and have compassion upon thee, and will return and gather thee from all the nations, whither the Lord thy God hath scattered thee.9 And the Lord thy God will make thee plenteous in every work of thine hand, in the fruit of thy body, and in the fruit of thy cattle, and in the fruit of thy land, for good: for the Lord will rejoice over thee for good, as He rejoiced over thy fathers.
Notice the little word, "then," in verse 3. Little words mean a lot in the Bible. In other words, the blessings, prosperity, etc., spoken of starting in Verse 3 are conditional upon the repentance in Verses 1 and 2. The same is true in the Book of Joel. Exactly in the middle of the Book of Joel (Joel 2:18) is the word "then." This is the only occurrence of the word "then" in Joel. What follows Joel 2:18 is deliverance, blessing, prosperity, etc. What precedes Joel 2:18 is repentance.
Please go back and read all of Isaiah 58, which describes the fast that the Lord has chosen. Those 14 verses in Isaiah 58 contain the word "then" four times. Each time, it describes how the Lord will bless us IF we repent. We suspect that there have been a multitude of people who have said, "Lord if you will just do this for me, then I will ..." In general, those who make such a statement do not keep their vow. But AFTER we have accepted the saving grace of our Lord, there is no more place for that kind of statement or vow. At that point it is the Lord who says, "If you repent, then I will ..." Will what? then the Lord will restore.
The word, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand," is the first word of the kingdom of God. All of the Old Testament prophets preached repentance. To whom did they preach that word? to the chosen people of God. The first word of the Lord that came unto Zechariah for the chosen people of God was a call for national repentance.
Therefore say thou unto them, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Turn ye unto Me, saith the LORD of hosts, and I will turn unto you, saith the LORD of hosts. Zechariah 1:3
Note the conditional decree of the Lord. We must first (re)turn to the Lord and then He will turn to us. Why did the remnant of Judah need to repent and turn back to the Lord? because of their apathy, lukewarm attitude, and self-centeredness, which is clearly indicated in the Book of Haggai. Do we need national repentance in America today? if so, in what segment of the population? the heathen? those in denominational churches? those in charismatic fellowships? How can the heathen turn back or repent to someone they never knew? Those in denominational churches have not received nearly the light that we have. The national climate is a mirror reflection of the modern-day spiritual Judah, which is similarly characterized by apathy, a lukewarm attitude, and self-centeredness.
Each one of us is familiar with the parable of the "prodigal son" as recorded in Luke, Chapter 15. The younger son said, "Give me," then went out and wasted his substance with "riotous" living (Luke 15:13). The word "riotous" does not mean what we think it means. It means to "preserve, save, or tend to self." In other words, he was just doing his own will. After a series of difficult circumstances, he repented and went back to his father. But we must remember that he was always the son of his father, even when he strayed away. Further, who caused the famine in the land? Who caused no man to give unto the son when he was away? That was the sovereignty of God. If we are called of God, He will arrange all of our circumstances to help us to return to Him if we have strayed. But He will never override our will or our decisions.
That example clearly shows that true repentance is something that begins with God, and not with man. It originates not in the will of man, but in the free and sovereign grace of God. Apart from the working of God's grace and the moving of His Spirit, man of his accord is not capable of repentance. Psalm 80 declares this fact three different times. When anything is repeated three times in Scripture, we best pay attention.
3 Turn us again, O God, and cause Thy face to shine; and we shall be saved.7 Turn us again, O God of hosts, and cause Thy face to shine; and we shall be saved.19 Turn us again, O LORD God of hosts, cause Thy face to shine; and we shall be saved. Psalm 80:3, 7, 19
Those verses clearly state that unless the Father draws us by His Spirit, we cannot be born from above. But nothing is automatic. Because man has free will, we can still reject the call of God. Therefore, we must accept the call of God. That requires a decision on our part, not an emotion. That acceptance constitutes the first-level of repentance; i.e., from the status of being a non-Christian to becoming a born-again believer. But everything begins with God. In the beginning, God, in the end, God, and everything in between, God. Further, Jesus said,
No man can come to Me, except the Father which hath sent Me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day. John 6:44
8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:9 Not of works, lest any man should boast. Ephesians 2:8-9
A "second level" of repentance, and the one which is perhaps most obvious to us believers is when we are convicted by the Holy Spirit that we have said something "wrong" or done something "wrong." Then, like David, we must be quick to repent.
1 John 1:8-10, "If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us."
Nevertheless, we believe there is another level of repentance ... and one which Jesus primarily meant when He came preaching, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." We will describe this level shortly. We must always remember that Jesus spoke those words to the chosen people of God.
A number of years ago I read on a website a short excerpt, titled, "Removing the Candlestick!!" The excerpt was written by a believer of great, national reputation (his name is not important). His excerpt, which was an exhortation for believers to repent, was/is 100% truth. However, I do not know if his word had much of an effect on any believers because there was no reference as to WHY we, as true believers, need to repent. (I do not refer to the times when we say something "wrong" or do something "wrong.") Isaiah and Job repented. So did Ezra and Nehemiah and many others. Unless we, as professing Christians, see a need for the repentance that John the Baptist, Jesus, and the early apostles preached, then things will just rock along as usual. We can still have our nice meetings every Sunday, feel "good" that we have put an "X" in the right box, and never know what we missed. That same central message is preached in the story of Gideon's army, as related in Judges 7.
The Church at Ephesus in Paul's time was considered the "highest" in spiritual awareness of all churches. The Church at Ephesus in that day corresponds to the charismatic churches of today. We should never forget that all of Scripture is profitable for us today (2 Timothy 3:16).
4 Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.5 Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent. Revelation 2:4-5
The first and most important exhortation from the Lord to the Church at Ephesus was verse 4, "You have left your first love." What is our "first love?" the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. The Church at Ephesus had become all engrossed and absorbed with hearing and learning new revelation from Scripture, with listening to all sorts of preachers instead of listening to what the Spirit was saying, with traditions of men (much more could be shared on that topic), with focusing on "what's in it for me," etc.
In verse 5, what are the "first works?" the works of the Spirit ... the works which were foreordained for us to walk in from before the foundation of the world. Perhaps the most important word for believers is, "Whatsoever He says unto you, do it" (John 2:5). We cannot do the first works unless we have returned to our first love.
Concerning Revelation, chapter 2, verse 5, we believers have heard, with our natural ears, quite a bit about the Lord. We have read many books, listened to many of the TV preachers, listened to many DVDs, gone to many conferences, and perhaps have heard a number of new thoughts that have tickled our ears. Unfortunately, that is the problem. We are so full of information that we have left off the most important part ... hearing from the Lord Himself. We are so busy with all of our church meetings and busy work that we have left our first love.
The problem is that we true Christians have become so hard-hearted and ego-centered that very few understand what "repent" means. A slowly increasing number of ministers now preach "repent." Experience and observation indicate that very few who even preach that word understand what "repent" means to a believer. NEVER in my life have I heard or read the true meaning of this "third-level of repentance" except from the Holy Spirit. (I do not refer to the "textbook" definition of repentance, which could be "a firm inward decision, not an emotion ... a change of mind.") As an aside, Biblical terms must be defined by Scripture itself, not by "textbook" dictionaries.
The meaning of this level of "repentance" is found in Isaiah 6 and Job 42. This "third-level" meaning of repentance is, we firmly believe, that which Jesus referred to when He said, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." Isaiah and Job were both good men. Isaiah prophesied in the first five chapters of the Book which bears his name. The Lord, Himself, had some good things to say about Job.
Job repented for the same reason that Isaiah did. The Lord said there was none like Job in the earth, a perfect and upright man who feared God and eschewed evil (Job 1:8). After 40 more chapters of carnal reasoning between Job and his three "friends," the Lord gave Job a revelation, such that Job said, in Job 42:5-6, "I have heard of Thee by the hearing of the ear: but now mine eye seeth Thee. Wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes."
Isaiah and Job both received a revelation (without which we all will continue to go around the same mountain day after day). They were allowed to see the holiness of God and the filthiness of us humans. What they were allowed to see (revelation) did not come through the teaching of men or the doctrines of men."
Now we turn to Isaiah 6:1-8, "In the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and His train filled the temple. Above it stood the seraphims: each one had six wings; with twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly. And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts: the whole earth is full of His glory. And the posts of the door moved at the voice of him that cried, and the house was filled with smoke. Then said I, Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts. Then flew one of the seraphims unto me, having a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with the tongs from off the altar: And he laid it upon my mouth, and said, Lo, this hath touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin purged. Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us? Then said I, Here am I; send me."
In Isaiah 6:5, note the confession of Isaiah: "Then said I, Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts." When Isaiah saw the Lord, he repented. The word "undone" can be translated as "lost" or "cut off." But there is NOTHING in the previous five chapters of Isaiah that indicates that Isaiah had done anything wrong or said anything wrong. Isaiah saw that his very being was unclean, in comparison with the Lord. Isaiah repented because of his human nature.
Much of modern Christianity says, "I have need of nothing" (Revelation 3:17). What an indictment about our sorry state! That proud boast is the epitome of the ugly attitude of self-sufficiency and self-confidence. Those the Lord has chosen to lead His people throughout history usually bewail their lack of capability to fulfil the work of the Lord. Without a deep understanding of who we really are, with our hidden faults and weaknesses, we will never seek the Lord to remedy them or to fully cooperate with the process when He works to remedy our shortcomings.
From Isaiah 6:8, many Christians believe they are "sent" to go out and save the lost. But before we are sent, we must have a clear vision of the Lord Himself. That involves much more than being born again and baptized with the Holy Ghost. We must have the same revelation that both Isaiah and Job received. It is never sufficient to "go" because we see a need. Unless we are sent by the Lord, then our efforts are of little value. The Lord says, in
Isaiah 66:2, "For all those things hath Mine hand made, and all those things have been, saith the LORD: but to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at My word."
The very essence and basis of sin is to put self in the preeminent place of God. Paul said, "I die daily." Whenever anyone is allowed to see the King, the Lord of Hosts, he must repent. We must repent simply because of who we are ... our human nature. "Let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit" (2 Corinthians 7:1). No man can cleanse himself! So how do we fulfill that commandment? by repentance. Then we allow the Spirit of God to do His work within us. Whenever "king self" dies we can see the Lord high and lifted up.
No man, except Jesus Christ, could ever live up to the law. Jesus said in
No man, except Jesus Christ, could ever live up to the law. Jesus said in
Matthew 5:48, "Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect."
That is a commandment! Why did Jesus say that? To help us to understand that just as no man, except Jesus, can ever live up to the law as given through Moses, likewise no man can ever live the Christian life, except Christ Himself and the Christ within us. Repentance is the FIRST step toward perfection. That is required to return to our first love so that we can do the first works. If we do not fulfill that first step, we have no need to try to get to step two.
One of my favorite books in the Bible is the Book of Joel.
One of my favorite books in the Bible is the Book of Joel.
Joel 2:12-14, "Therefore also now, saith the LORD, turn ye even to Me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning: And rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the LORD your God: for He is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth Him of the evil. Who knoweth if He will return and repent, and leave a blessing behind Him; even a meat offering and a drink offering unto the LORD your God?"
In verse 14, the "blessing ... even a meat [meal] offering and a drink offering," has nothing to do with the natural realm. The meal offering and drink offering speak of the remnant, or the sons of Zadok, who "shall teach My people the difference between the holy and profane, and cause them to discern between the unclean and the clean" (Ezekiel 44:23).
Is it time to repent from our dead works and let Christ build His Church? Who perceives the difference between "dead works" and the works of the Spirit? Repentance from dead works is the first principle of the doctrine of Christ.
Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on to perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works. Hebrews 6:1
Let us remember that verse is written to Christians, not heathens. Dead works are works of the flesh. We must repent from anything that is not led by the Spirit. If we cannot get through that first principle, there is no reason to try going any further.
There is only one reason for a sinner to repent and it's not because he will go to heaven and it's not to keep out of hell. If we are trying to serve God because He will do us good then it's nothing but trying to make a deal with God. Likewise, there is only one reason for a professing Christian to repent. It's because we have received a revelation of the holiness of God and because we have seen that "Woe is me, for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell among a people of unclean lips" (Isaiah 6:5). It's because Jesus Christ deserves the worship, love and obedience of our heart. It's because "Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created" (Revelation 4:11).
Any time that we see the Lord with spiritual eyes, we must repent. But "If any man sin, we have an Advocate (paraclete, intercessor) with the Father, Jesus Christ" (1 John 2:1). We must learn to be quick repenters. "And every man that hath this hope in Him purifieth himself, even as He is pure" (1 John 3:3).
Behold, I will send My messenger, and he shall prepare the way before Me: and the Lord, Whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to His temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, He shall come, saith the LORD of hosts. Malachi 3:1
Those verses speak not only of the first coming of Jesus but also of the second coming of the Lord to earth. In order for the Lord to come for spiritual Israel's redemption, she must repent. The Lord is not returning to the earth for millions of immature, baby Christians. The Lord is returning with ten thousands of His saints (Jude 14-15) for "a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish" (Ephesians 5:27).
The Church today desperately needs many John the Baptist preachers. Our current church community has no power to influence the world. How can a corrupt church go out into all the world, disciple all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world? How can we preach the gospel to every creature when we don't fully understand the gospel ourself?
One last thought concerning John the Baptist preachers ... John the Baptist was outside the religious system of his day. Jesus, as a man on earth, was outside of the religious system of the day. Peter, Paul, and the early apostles were outside of the religious system of the day. What is the religious system? all denominational churches, all mega-churches, and some charismatic churches. The Lord took me outside of the religious system in early 1980. You do NOT have to be inside of the religious system of today to be a John the Baptist preacher. Most pastors of the religious system cannot hear you anyway. You can be a John the Baptist preacher by your life and by speaking to others as the Holy Spirit opens the doors.
Many years ago, the Holy Spirit quickened to me a jewel from
Hebrews 4:12, "For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged 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."
Further, when the pure word of God is spoken into the air, it accomplishes that for which it is sent (Isaiah 55:11). From Genesis, chapter 1, "And God said ... and it was so." The pure word of God is not limited by time or space. The Holy Spirit is also God. If you have the Holy Spirit within you, then prophecy to the wind and to the mountains, oh man of God and oh woman of God, as the Spirit gives you unction. However, this cannot be a mechanical or legalist process. Everything must be led by the Holy Spirit.
Who is ready to allow the Lord to make us into a John the Baptist preacher? If you are so willing, raise your spiritual hand, not your natural hand. Yes, we must count the cost, but great will be your reward for an eternity if you accept the challenge of the Lord. The Lord is faithful to those who are faithful to Him. Amen and amen.
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