Both have meaning to me at the moment because I have spent a lot of time recently looking at the issue of true repentance and what that means in being a Christian. But, even more recently, as I stated in my last post, I have also been dealing with the issue of being called.
First, repentance...in Matthew 4:17 Jesus says, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." The Greek word used for "Repent" is "metanoeō". This word (based on the definition by blueletterbible.com) is "to change one's mind" or "to change one's mind for the better". But it also says that the etymology of the word is based on two separate words put together and they are "meta" and "noeō". "Meta" simply means "with, after, or behind". The word "noeō" appears to have at its roots in the word "ginōskō" which is usually defined as "understanding". My "pew sitter" definition is that I understand what I did and will leave it behind because I know that my life and the lives of those around me will be better if I leave it behind. I think its interesting that Jesus started his ministry by preaching this message first rather than what so many churches focus on today and that is "forgiveness and grace and love". We hear so little of "repent" today.
In my understanding of the Gospel message, Christ outlines for us that the path to salvation as a two-step process. First, John 1:12 tells us, "to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God." So, the first step to salvation is believing that Chris came and died for your sins. Romans 10:9 says "If you declare with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved." Seems pretty clear to me. But, then the second request that is defined is best defined by Christ's own words in John 15:9-17 9 “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. 10 If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. 11 I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. 12 My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command. 15 I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. 16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. 17 This is my command: Love each other.”
So, the first step is to believe that Christ died for your sins and with that, freely gives you his grace and forgiveness and love...only because you believe. But, the second step is that after you receive that free gift of grace, He asks that you live a life "in Him", committed to his second request, and that is living a life of loving those around you.
So, where does repentance come in? We learned that Christ began his ministry by preaching that we needed to "repent". I was baptized as a child and have been going to church from the time I can remember. I don't have a conversion story. I don't have a moment where I knew God had called me into his family. But, I do know that I am a sinner. More sinner than saint. I believe that God knows my heart; that it is a heart of humbleness in his sight, knowing that I fail each and every day, but ask for his guidance the next day to be more like him. But, many say that repentance means to "leave your life of sin" and not return to that thing you are repenting for, yet why do I seem to come back to the same things? I believe that repentance in Matthew 4 is Jesus' first message to the Jewish people that they needed to turn away from the life they had been living...both in terms of the sin and in terms of the law. It was his way of saying to them, "The old way is not the new way, because the new way is better, because the new way is easier, yet harder, because the new way is life." And what is that new way? Believe that I am sent by the father to die for your sins. And, instead of the old law of ceremony and tassels and burnt offerings and following the law...all those things are summed up in one way..."love your neighbor as yourself". I know...cheap grace! But this is not cheap grace, its free grace. But, living a life of loving your neighbor is not cheap. It's very expensive. It could cost you your life.
That's more than I have time for this morning. Maybe tomorrow I can get to that and the call of Christ. Have a blessed day!
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