Gospel Words: Repentance
Repentance Defined
Strong’s Concordance
metanoeó: to change one’s mind or purpose
Repentance is the changing of one’s mind. It is not always used in reference to repenting from sin. It is sometimes used of changing one’s mind in general.
Numbers 23:19
“God is not a man, that He should lie, Nor a son of man, that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?
It is not speaking here of God repenting from sin. It speaking about Him changing His mind and not carrying out what He had already decided and spoken.
In Acts 8:20-22, we read about Simon “the sorcerer.” After becoming a Christian, he saw the apostles, John and Peter, laying hands on Christians and giving them the Holy Spirit. He offered them money to be able to do the same. Peter rebuked him, but notice how he speaks about it.
20 But Peter said to him, “Your money perish with you, because you thought that the gift of God could be purchased with money! 21 You have neither part nor portion in this matter, for your heart is not right in the sight of God. 22 Repent therefore of this your wickedness, and pray God if perhaps the thought of your heart may be forgiven you.
What Simon did in offering the money was wrong, but it was wrong because it came from wrong thinking. He made the Holy Spirit into something profane (common). He treated the gift of God as something that could be bought for money rather than worth more than any amount of money. He needed to repent by changing his thinking. The thought of his heart was wicked in how he regarded God and God’s things. That needed to change.
Since repentance is something that happens in the mind and heart, it is closely connected with belief. We see that connection in these passages:
Mark 1:15
and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.”
Jesus was telling people to repent and believe in the gospel. We would normally think that this should be the other way around. Shouldn’t we believe and then repent based on our belief? That depends on what we are talking about in particular. Here, repentance (changing your mind) is what leads to belief. If you don’t believe, you need to change your mind so that you do believe. Until we are able to reconsider things with an honest heart, we will never believe the gospel. So changing our minds may involve removing our biases and committing to examine the evidence with an open mind. That will have to happen first before we can truly believe the gospel.
Acts 20:21
testifying to Jews, and also to Greeks, repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.
In this passage, the connection may not be as clear as in Mark, but we can still see that Paul talks about repentance before faith. We can also see that the repentance here is not repentance from something but rather toward God. Repentance will always be from one way of thinking to another, but it is helpful to see this kind of wording. Repentance is turning away from sin (deciding to hate sin instead of taking pleasure in it). But we must also be turning toward right thinking. We must turn our thoughts and commitment toward God. This brings faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. If we change our thinking from following our own ways and decide to truly follow God, we cannot help but come to faith in Jesus, the one that the Father sent and proved it through so many miracles.
Because repentance takes place in the mind, it is connected with other things that take place in the mind. Sorrow is a big motivation for repentance. When we see the terrible consequences of our actions, we should not be able to continue defending those things to ourselves as right. We should feel sorrow over what we have done and change our thinking about not only that particular deed, but about following our own ideas in general. We should see that God is the one who actually knows what is good and bad and we must change our thinking to fit His.
2 Corinthians 7:9-10
9 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. 10 For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death.
Sorrow over the consequences without repentance (a change of thinking) produces death. Sorrow connected with an understanding that these things turned out badly because God created us to behave differently, leads to a change of mind and heart that leads to salvation. It is a great motivation to change.
Repentance is a change of mind that leads to a change of action.
Matthew 3:8-10
8 Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, 9 and do not think to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones. 10 And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
The fruits are not repentance, but they are worthy of repentance. A genuine change of thinking leads to change of action. When John talks with them about bearing fruits worthy of repentance, it has the idea that they had not truly changed their thinking. He says that they may be thinking that because they are children of Abraham, they will be saved. But he warns that trees who do not bear fruit will be cut down and burned. While repentance is a change of thinking, a true change of thinking will always lead to true change in our lives.
Acts 17:29-30
29 Therefore, since we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Divine Nature is like gold or silver or stone, something shaped by art and man’s devising. 30 Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent,
Paul talks here in Athens with those who worshiped idols. He reasons with them and asks them to understand that something they made cannot be what made them. So they must repent. They must change their thinking so that they will acknowledge and worship the true God. When they change their thinking, can they continue to worship idols? Certainly not. If they continue to worship idols, it demonstrates that their thinking has not truly changed. They have not repented.
It is also true that even those who are truly repentant will continue to struggle with sin. Those with various addictions will still have those addictions even after they believe that those things are evil and destructive. The difference with a repentant person is that because they believe it is wrong, they will be actively fighting against these sins. They will not dismiss them as “no big deal.” They will seek help to overcome these sins. They will have remorse and confess their sins to God (1 John 1:8-10). This demonstrates a different thinking than those who have not repented.
Revelation 2:4-5
4 Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love. 5 Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place—unless you repent.
In the rebuke and exhortation for the church in Ephesus, Jesus tells them to “repent and do the first works.” He says their problem that they need to repent from is that they had left their first love. The problem was in their thinking and in their heart. When they repented and changed their thinking, they would get back to doing what they should be doing. Doing their first works was not repentance, but it was a result of repentance. Without a change in behaviour, it is clear that no real change in thought has happened.
Repentance leads to forgiveness.
Luke 17:3-4
3 Take heed to yourselves. If your brother sins against you, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. 4 And if he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times in a day returns to you, saying, ‘I repent,’ you shall forgive him.”
In the instructions about not being stumbling blocks, Jesus says that we must forgive those who sin against us but repent. But notice that He tells us to forgive if they say they repent. That is the same thing as repentance as far as we are concerned. Because repentance takes place in the mind and heart, we cannot know if someone has truly repented or not. If they sin against us again and do not say they repent, then we see that they are not repentant. But Jesus does not want us waiting to see fruit of repentance before we forgive. He expects us to take their word for their change in thinking–even if they sin against us seven times in one day!
Luke 24:47
and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.
While saying we repent is necessary for forgiveness from one another, true repentance is necessary for forgiveness by God. God knows what is in our minds and hearts. He knows if we have truly had a change of thinking. We cannot lie to God and think that He will forgive us. We must genuinely have a change in our thinking–which will lead to a change in action–if we want to be forgiven by God.
Acts 2:38
Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
In this passage, Peter has preached to a large crowd of Jews in Jerusalem, telling them that they have crucified Jesus but God has raised Him from the dead and made Him Lord and Christ. The people then believe this message and ask what they must do. Peter tells them to repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ to have their sins forgiven. What repentance is Peter talking about here? He does not say “repent of your sins.” He essentially says, “change your mind and be baptized….” What change of mind must they have? Move from being one who rejected Jesus and crucified Him to one who will submit to Him as Lord and Christ. This will lead to repentance from all sin as we learn what is right and wrong from Christ, but this repentance is more fundamental than repenting of individual sins. It is a commitment to do whatever Jesus says and follow Him and His way.
We see this same idea in Matthew 28:18-20:
18 And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.
Jesus tells His apostles to make disciples (followers) of all the nations, baptize them, and then teach them to observe all things He has commanded. Disciples are not taught everything Jesus taught before being baptized (and forgiven of all sin). They do have to become Jesus’ disciples which means they must repent. They must change their thinking from following their own way or some other way to following Jesus completely. Someone who has truly repented toward God and has faith in Christ as the one with all authority will not argue with Jesus. They may not understand everything perfectly, but they will do their best to follow everything Jesus says and to better understand Him. That is what Jesus is looking for and that is the repentance required before being baptized.
Acts 3:19
Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord,
In this sermon to the crowd in the temple, Peter tells them to repent and be converted. Being converted is not just another term for baptism, although baptism is a necessary part of the process. Being converted means actually changing into a believer and follower of Christ. Change from not following Him to following Him as the one with all authority.
Conclusion
We need to understand that repentance is something that happens in the mind and heart. If we change a particular action, but not our heart, we have not repented. If we change our heart and thinking, we have repented–even if we have not yet had an opportunity to demonstrate that change in our actions.
Actions follow true changes of thinking. We will bear fruit from whatever is in hearts–good or bad. If we genuinely believe that Jesus is the Christ and has all authority, we will genuinely do what He says. Just as faith leads to action, repentance leads to action. That is why the first repentance we must have is changing to believe and trust in Christ. After that, we will repent regarding everything in our lives that does not fit what Christ teaches us to be.
You do not need to wait to prove your repentance to become a disciple of Christ. If you have repented to really believe the gospel, you can be baptized and then continue to learn what Christ has taught and put those things into action in your life. If you have not been baptized, repent. If you are a Christian, continue repenting. Be transformed by the renewing of your mind (Romans 12:1-2). Our minds need to be continually changed by the word of Christ, whom we have committed ourselves to following with our whole hearts.