Friday, June 17, 2022
Repentance
REPENTANCE Luke 15: 3-24
Luke 15: The Lost Sheep
1 Now all the tax collectors and the sinners were coming near Him to listen to Him.2 Both the Pharisees and the scribes began to grumble, saying, "This man receives sinners and eats with them."
3 So He told them this parable, saying,4 "What man among you, if he has a hundred sheep and has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open pasture and go after the one which is lost until he finds it?5 When he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing.6 And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, 'Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!'7 I tell you that in the same way, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.
The Lost Coin
8 "Or what woman, if she has ten silver coins and loses one coin, does not light a lamp and sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it?9 When she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, 'Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin which I had lost!'10 In the same way, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents."
The Prodigal Son
11 And He said, "A man had two sons.12 The younger of them said to his father, 'Father, give me the share of the estate that falls to me.' So he divided his wealth between them.13 And not many days later, the younger son gathered everything together and went on a journey into a distant country, and there he squandered his estate with loose living.14 Now when he had spent everything, a severe famine occurred in that country, and he began to be impoverished.15 So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine.16 And he would have gladly filled his stomach with the pods that the swine were eating, and no one was giving anything to him.17 But when he came to his senses, he said, 'How many of my father's hired men have more than enough bread, but I am dying here with hunger!18 I will get up and go to my father, and will say to him, "Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in your sight;19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me as one of your hired men."'20 So he got up and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion for him, and ran and embraced him and kissed him.21 And the son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.'22 But the father said to his slaves, 'Quickly bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet;23 and bring the fattened calf, kill it, and let us eat and celebrate;24 for this son of mine was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.' And they began to celebrate.
25 "Now his older son was in the field, and when he came and approached the house, he heard music and dancing.26 And he summoned one of the servants and began inquiring what these things could be.27 And he said to him, 'Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has received him back safe and sound.'28 But he became angry and was not willing to go in; and his father came out and began pleading with him.29 But he answered and said to his father, 'Look! For so many years I have been serving you and I have never neglected a command of yours; and yet you have never given me a young goat, so that I might celebrate with my friends;30 but when this son of yours came, who has devoured your wealth with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him.'31 And he said to him, 'Son, you have always been with me, and all that is mine is yours.32 But we had to celebrate and rejoice, for this brother of yours was dead and has begun to live, and was lost and has been found.'"
The parable of the Prodigal Son goes from Rebellion to Revelry, Wretchedness, Remorse, Repentance, Return, Reconciliation, to Rejoicing.
Luke 13:1-5 Now on the same occasion there were some present who reported to Him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices.2 And Jesus said to them, "Do you suppose that these Galileans were greater sinners than all other Galileans because they suffered this fate?3 I tell you, no, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.4 Or do you suppose that those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them were worse culprits than all the men who live in Jerusalem?5 I tell you, no, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish."
John the Baptist began his ministry with a call to repentance (Matthew 3:2); our Lord's first word was "Repent…" (Matthew 4:17); those whom He commissioned were commanded to preach repentance (Mark 6:12 and Luke 24:47); there is joy in Heaven over one sinner who repents (Luke 15:10); Peter preached repentance (Acts 2:37-38); Paul preached repentance (Acts 17:30-31, Acts 20:21).
1. WHAT REPENTANCE IS NOT
Conviction of sin is not repentance. Repentance includes conviction, but a sinner can be deeply convicted and still not repent. Felix is an illustration of this – Acts 24:24-25.
Sorrow for sin is not repentance. Repentance includes sorrow and remorse, but it is more than this, for it is possible to be sorry for sin and yet not to repent of sin: 2 Corinthians 7:9.
Hatred of sin is not repentance. Repentance includes this, but it is possible to loathe sin and yet not to turn from it.
Promising to be better is not repentance. Many people make a life-long habit of doing this. The Prodigal determined that he would return (Luke 15:18), but repentance was not indicated by his determination merely. "The way to Hell is paved with good intentions."
Turning from one sin is not repentance. It is not giving up sins, the fruit; it has to do with sin, the root.
2. WHAT REPENTANCE IS
The words for "repentance" in the Old Testament include the Hebrew word nacham which is used 40 times, nearly all of which are used of God Himself. It means "to lament" or "to grieve." The Hebrew word shuvah is used 3 times and translated as "repent" but 185 times as the word "turn" and 369 times as "turn again."
In the New Testament three verbs are used in connection with repentance.
Repentance is a change of mind – an intellectual experience; it is a change of feeling -–an emotional experience; it is a change of purpose – a volitional experience; and it is a change of conduct – a moral experience. Repentance is not one of these, but all of them together.
Repentance is a change of MIND. The primary Greek word is metanoeo which is used 60 times and refers to a "change of mind" that leads to a change in conduct.The Greek word "metonia" means "after-thought". The change of mind involved in true repentance is so (1) radical that the sinner takes up an entirely new attitude towards God, towards the Lord Jesus Christ, towards sin and towards himself – look up Matthew 21:28-29 for our Lord's illustration of this aspect of repentance.
Repentance is a change of FEELING. The New Testament words include the Greek word metamelomai which is found 8 times and refers to a feeling of concern or regret. A form of the word appears in 2 Corinthians.
It conveys the idea of regret. It is a state of mind that may or may not be accompanied by returning to God.
After his conversion, Saul of Tarsus was overwhelmed with a sense of remorse when he thought of the way he had treated the Lord Jesus – compare Psalm 38:18. The Publican expressed deep emotion when in penitence and confession he "beat his breast" (Luke 18:13); and so did the Prodigal when he returned and said: "Father, I am no longer worthy…" (Luke 15:21).
Repentance is a change of PURPOSE. The will is involved. The Prodigal said, "I will set out…" (Luke 15:18) – "…so he got up" (Luke 15:20). See what Jesus said to the man in John 5:6, and compare Psalm 119:59; Isaiah 55:7 and Ezekiel 18:30.
Repentance is a change of CONDUCT. This is illustrated in the conversion of Zacchaeus (Luke 19:1-10); Saul of Tarsus (Acts 9:1-6), and the jailer (Acts 16:30-34). (epistrepho) emphasizes the idea of turning back and is used on a number of occasions for converting or returning to the Lord (Acts 26:20). The Thessalonians turned to God, from idols, to serve the living and true God (1 Thess. 1:9).
Repentance is to leave The sins I loved before;
And show that I in earnest grieve By doing so no more.
0 love that wilt not let me go, I rest my weary soul in Thee;
I give Thee back the life I owe, That in Thine ocean depths its flow
May richer, fuller be.
0 Cross that liftest up my head, I dare not ask to fly from Thee;
I lay in dust life's glory dead. And from the ground there blossoms red
Life that shall endless be." George Matheson
J.C. Ryle "Nothing, in fact, has done more harm to Christianity than the practice of filling the ranks of Christ's army with every volunteer who is willing to make a little profession, and talk fluently of his experience. It has been painfully forgotten that numbers alone do not make strength, and that there may be a great quantity of mere outward religion, while there is very little real grace. Let us all remember this. Let us keep back nothing from young professors and inquirers after Christ. Let us not enlist them on false pretences. Let us tell them plainly that there is a crown of glory at the end. But let us tell them no less plainly, that there is a daily cross in the way."
Repentance is essential for salvation. Twice in the same context Jesus underscores this: "Unless you repent, you too will all perish" (Luke 13:3, 5). God commands all men everywhere to repent, because he has fixed the day in which he will judge the world in righteousness by Christ (Acts 17:30-31). Repentance "is of such necessity to all sinners that none may expect pardon without it" (Westminster Confession of Faith, XV, 3).
Salvation is salvation from sin. That means more than forgiveness; it includes sanctification, a transformed life. It involves those who are saved in a turning away from sin. That turning away is repentance. There can be no salvation if we continue in sin (Rom. 6:1-4; 1 John 3:9). Does this mean that we are forgiven on the basis of our repentance? Not at all! Repentance and faith are both necessary for salvation, but they are related to justification in different ways. Faith alone is the instrument by which Christ is received and rested on as Savior. Justification is by faith, not by repentance. But faith (and therefore justification) cannot exist where there is no repentance. Repentance is as necessary to salvation by faith as the ankle is to walking. The one does not act apart from the other. I cannot come to Christ in faith without turning from sin in repentance. Faith is trusting in Christ; repentance is turning from sin. They are two sides of the same coin of belonging to Jesus.
3. HOW REPENTANCE IS BROUGHT ABOUT
Repentance is a Divine gift. Look up Acts 5:30-31; 11:18 2 Tim 2:25.
The gift of repentance is bestowed through the preaching of the Gospel
The goodness of God leads to repentance. Romans 2:4 When we consider the love of God, especially in the gift of His Son (John 3:16), who went to the cross for us (1 Peter 2:24), then we are brought to repentance.
The sorrows of life bring people to repentance. Trials and bereavements are all instruments in the hands of God for bringing men and women to repentance.
The emptiness of life makes some repent.
4. WHEN IS THE TIME TO REPENT?
NOW - Acts 17:30-31.Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent,31 because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead."
2 Peter 3:9 –"The Lord is…patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance."
ALWAYS Continually repent
In 1517 when Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses to the door of the church, the very first thesis was "When our Lord and Master, Jesus Christ, said "repent," he meant that the entire life of believers should be one of repentance."
Martin Luther didn't realize that by nailing his theses to the Wittenberg Castle Church door, he simultaneously "nailed" the Gospel of Christ into the heart of the church. He was calling Christendom to repentance.
Repentance which is occupied with thoughts of peace is hypocrisy. There must be a great earnestness about it and a deep hurt if the old man is to be put off. When lightning strikes a tree or a man, it does two things at once—it rends the tree and swiftly slays the man. But it also turns the face of the dead man and the broken branches of the tree itself toward heaven. (Bainton, Here I Stand, p. 48)
According to Calvin, repentance involves a threefold cord: "denial of ourselves, mortification of our flesh, and meditation on the heavenly life"
This means that true repentance can never be reduced to a single act found only at the beginning of the Christian life. It arises in the context of our union with Jesus Christ; and since its goal is our restoration into the image of Christ, it involves the ongoing practical outworking of our union with Christ in his death and resurrection—what Calvin calls mortification and vivification (Institutes, III, iii, 3)—that is, being conformed to Christ crucified and risen.
Repentance comes from a true view of God. If he should mark iniquities, none could stand; but there is forgiveness with him, that he may be feared (Ps. 130:3-4). In the Gospels, Simon Peter's genuine repentance after his denial of Christ seems to be set in deliberate contrast with Judas' worldly sorrow and ultimate despair. It was produced by his remembering the word of the Lord, which in this case included the promise, "I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers" (Luke 22:32). The kindness of Christ led Peter to repentance (Rom. 2:4).
This was also the wise teaching of confessing Christians in the past:
By it [repentance] a sinner, out of the sight and sense not only of the danger, but also of the filthiness and odiousness of his sins, as contrary to the holy nature and righteous law of God, and upon the apprehension of his mercy in Christ to such as are penitent, so grieves for and hates his sins, as to turn from them all unto God, purposing and endeavoring to walk with him in all the ways of his commandments. (Westminster Confession of Faith, XV, ii)
Ask God to help you see where you need to repent . . . and then keep repenting as He makes your sin ever more apparent in the cleansing process. In His grace, grow closer to Him each day.
Verses 17-19 says, "But when he came to himself, he said, 'How many of my father's hired servants have more than enough bread, but I perish here with hunger! I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants." The last time the prodigal saw his father, he demanded his inheritance. Now he would beg for a job! Life caught up with him and stripped him of his pride. Working harder in the pig pen could not fix the situation. He needed to go home. This the deliverance that redeems the life of sin. Come home!
• You can come home to God.
• You should come home to God.
• You must come home to God.
Will you come home to God today? Why won't you come home to God today? If you come home to God, you do not have to worry or wonder about how God will respond.
Verses 20-24 says: "And he arose and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. And the son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.' But the father said to his servants, 'Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and shoes on his feet. And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate. For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.' And they began to celebrate." This is the punchline of Luke 15. The religious leaders asked: "If Jesus really knows God, why is he partying with sinners?" Jesus answers: "If you really know God, why haven't you joined the party?" The heart of God celebrates when any prodigal comes home to him. Join the party! When the prodigal son came home, he found in his father's house the things he was looking for in the far country.
• The father put the best robe on him.
• The father put a ring on his finger.
• The father put shoes on his feet.
• The father killed the fattened calf.
• The father threw the mother of all parties to celebrate his return.
• The father even went into the field to plead with the elder brother to join the party!
God alone has everything your soul needs, spirit craves, heart desires, mind imagines, and strength pursues. In John 10:10 Jesus said, "The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they might have life and have it abundantly." Come home!
With gratitude to Rev. Francis Dixon's Bible Studies.
