Saved By Repentance

     Thank you and how grateful I am to each one in our listening
audience this morning. It is my prayer that each one is listening with
a view to eternity, for indeed, our Lord stated, "the words I have
spoken, the same shall judge you in the last day" (John 12:48).
     Our study this morning is a continuation of the lessons presented
the past two Sundays, on the general theme "The Scheme of Human
Redemption." Two Sundays ago we spoke on the subject of "Saved by
Grace." Last Sunday our lesson was entitled, "Saved by Faith." This
morning we shall study the vital lesson of "Repentance." And next
Sunday we shall look at what the Bible says about "Baptism."
     Repentance of sin has, in every age and dispensation, been a
condition of pardon or forgiveness. God has never saved a sinner
without repentance and he could not if he would. In the very nature of
conversion, repentance is required; and no sinner can turn from
darkness to light and from the power of Satan unto God without
repenting.
     What is repentance? The word "repentance" means, "a change of
mind." Repentance, therefore, means changing one's attitude toward
sin. A sinner turns from sin because he has changed his mind about it.
He once loved sin, now he hates it; he once delighted in sin, now he
abhors it; he once found pleasure in sin, now he finds pain in it. He
once believe that sin was good for him; he now sees that sin degrades,
debauches, demoralized, and destroys him. Instead of finding peace and
joy in sin, he learns, from bitter experience, that sin brings shame,
remorse, a defiled conscience, a polluted soul, and an impure heart.
Instead of elevating him, sin degrades him; instead of making him
better, it makes him worse; and instead of satisfying him, sin leaves
him completely unsatisfied and dissatisfied. He longs for something
better, therefore he repents and turns completely away from sin.
Repentance is, then, a sorrow for, and abhorrence of, sin that brings
about such a change of mind that it leads the sinner to turn away from
sin with all his heart.
     There are many examples in the Bible which illustrate the meaning
of repentance. In Matthew 12:41, Jesus said, "The men of Nineveh....
repented at the preaching of Jonah." If you will turn back to Jonah
3:8-10, you will find that the people of Nineveh turned from their
sins and evil ways. Repentance, therefore, was a change of mind that
led them to turn from their sins. In Matthew 21:28-29, Jesus gave the
parable of the two sons. "A certain man had two sons; and he came to
the first and said, Son go work today in my vineyard. He answered and
said, I will not; but afterward he repented and went." This man
repented because he changed his mind and this led him to turn from his
disobedient ways. The story of the Prodigal son in Luke 15 is a good
illustration of repentance. This young man left his father's house,
departed into a far country and there wasted his substance in riotous
living. He lived in sin and became steeped in iniquity. Later, he came
to himself, confessed his sins, turned from them, and went back home
to his father, where he received mercy and pardon.
     Repentance has been preached to the world in every dispensation.
This was the universal message of the Old Testament prophets. God
raised these men up in times of great apostasy and their chief work
was in turning people from sin unto righteousness, from Satan unto
God. A casual study of the prophets, like Samuel, Elijah, Isaiah,
Jeremiah, Amos, Hosea, Micah, Jonah, and many others, reveals that
repentance was the main burden of their preaching because sin was the
main burden of the people.
     When we come to the New Testament, we find Repentance preached on
almost every page. When John, the forerunner of Jesus, began his
ministry, he began by preaching, "Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven
is at hand" (Matthew 3:2). And when the Pharisees came to receive his
baptism, John refused to baptize them until they had brought forth
fruits meet for repentance (Matthew 3:7-8). When Jesus began his
personal ministry He, "began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the
kingdom is at hand" (Matthew 4:17). Later He said, "for I am not come
to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance" (Matthew 9:13). On
another occasion he laid down these uncompromising words, "except ye
repent, ye shall all likewise perish" (Luke 13:3). These words still
ring loud and clear down through the centuries as the Lord's ultimatum
to a lost and sinful world.
     When Jesus sent the twelve apostles out to preach during the
personal ministry, it is said in Mark 6:12, "And they went out, and
preached that men should repent." When Jesus gave the Great Commission
He not only commanded Faith and Baptism as conditions of pardon, but
He also predicated salvation on Repentance. In Luke 24:47, He said,
"And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his
name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem." When the gospel was
preached for the first time in Acts 2, many sinners were convicted of
sin and the apostles Peter said unto them, "Repent, and be baptized
every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of
sins" (Acts 2:38). A few days later, Peter preacher to another group
of sinners and said, "Repent and be converted, that you sins may be
blotted out" (Acts 3:19), and about five thousand obeyed. On another
occasion, Peter encountered an erring child of God. This man had
believed and had been baptized. However, he fell into sin and was in
the gall of bitterness and in the bond of iniquity. Peter said to him,
"Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps
the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee" (Acts 8:22). Thus we
see that repentance has always been a condition of forgiveness, both
to the alien and to the erring child of God.
     Repentance stands out in the preaching of the apostle Paul. When
preaching to idolators in Athens he said, "The times of this ignorance
God overlooked; but now he commandeth all men everywhere to repent"
(Acts 17:30). Later when he preached that matchless sermon to King
Agrippa, he said that sinners "should repent and turn to God, and do
works meet for repentance" (Acts 26:20). When Jesus addressed the
churches of Asia, He said, "Repent; or else I will come quickly, and
will fight against them with the sword of my mouth" (Revelation 2:16),
and he later said to them, "be zealous therefore, and repent"
(Revelation 3:19).
     Thus we can see, my friends, from all of this that repentance is
important in conversion. It is commanded of God; we will perish
without repentance; we cannot have remission of sins without it; nor
can we live the life of a Christian without daily repenting of our
sins. One of the most severe "woes" ever pronounced by our Lord was
upon those who refused to repent. "Then began he to upbraid the cities
wherein most of his mighty works were done, because they repented not;
Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty
works, which were done in you, had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they
would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes" (Matthew 11:20-
21). Christ is still pronouncing "woes" upon those who refuse to
repent, and He cannot save them until they repent!
     Perhaps the most difficult task of a preacher is to persuade
sinners to repent.  It is not hard to convince sinners of the truth
and make believers of the, nor it is hard to convince an honest person
that they must be baptized for the remission of sins. The hardest job
is to bring about such a conviction of sin as will lead sinners to
turn from it and to turn to Christ for salvation. The kind of
preaching greatly needed today is not just that which convinces the
mind of doctrinal truth, but that which convicts the heart of sin and
creates within the soul of the sinner a great desire for salvation.
Let us as preachers, like the prophets of old, preach against sin in
all of its forms, denounce it, rebuke it, expose it, and condemn it
until sinners become so completely and thoroughly convicted of sin
that they will come to the foot of the cross and there, in deep
penitence and contrition of the soul, receive mercy and pardon!
     What are the blessings of repentance? One of the great blessings
is the remission of sins. "Repent and be baptized for the remission of
sins." Sin is a load that needs lifting; it is a guilt that needs
pardoning; it is a barrier that needs removing; it is a defilement
that needs cleansing; it is a blot that needs erasing; it is a debt
that needs cancelling; it is a bond that needs breaking; and it is a
power that needs destroying. But this cannot be done until sinners are
willing to repent. But once they repent, having believed, and obey the
Lord`s commandments, sin, in all its forms, will be forgiven. The
heavy burden will be lifted from their soul. The blood of Christ will
cleanse.
     Another blessing which repentance brings is that of joy. The
repentant sinner not only rejoices in his new found salvation, but all
heaven rejoices also. In Luke 15, Jesus pictures the joy in heaven
when sinners repent. When the shepherd found the lost sheep, he
brought it home rejoicing. Jesus said, "likewise joy shall be in
heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more that over ninety and nine
just persons, who need no repentance." When the woman found the lost
coin, she called her friends to rejoice with her. Jesus said,
"Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels
of God over one sinner that repenteth." When the lost son come to
himself, confessed his sin and returned to his father's home to
receive mercy and pardon, we see the joy of heaven pictured in the joy
of the father, who so gladly received him back home, and rejoiced that
his son, once dead, was alive again, and though lost, was now found.
     We urge you, my friends in this listening audience, to repent of
all your sins, obey the gospel and be saved today. It will make you
happy, it will make those who are God's children happy, and, it will
make God, Christ, and all the angels in heaven rejoice. God earnestly
desires you to be saved. He does not desire you to be lost. Peter
stated, "The Lord....is not willing that any should perish, but that
all should come to repentance" (2 Peter 3:9). Will you not believe in
Christ Jesus as the Son of God, repent of your sins, be baptized for
the remission of your sins, and be saved.
     Please tune in against next Sunday morning at 8:30 when we shall
continue this vital theme. "The Scheme of Human Redemption." Until
then we bid you a most pleasant good morning. Why not call someone and
tell them about the program.

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