What is repentance?

My friend, repentance is imperative for salvation. 

In short, it means to change your mind.  Billy Graham has described it this way:  you’re driving down the road of life going your own direction - and you do a flat out U-turn.  You’re willing to turn around, go the opposite direction - God’s direction. 

Repentance means you agree with God that His way is the way you’re willing to go with God’s help.  Any many people may say, "well I’ve got this sin problem.  I’m addicted to alcohol.  There’s no way I could just quit drinking like that.  My language is awful.  How can God change me?"

That last question may be key.  God does the changing.  One of the most powerful and well-known hymns in the world is called “Just As I Am”.  And that’s exactly how God wants you to come to him:  Just as you are.  God does the changing.  If you will trust that He is able, you just say to him, “Lord, I can’t change on my own, I need you to do this for me.”  He is able - and He is willing. 

II Corinthians 7:9-10 is perhaps one of the most important scripture passages in the whole Bible dealing with the subject of repentance.  The Apostle Paul speaks in a letter to the Church at Corinth: 

“yet now I (Paul) am happy, not because you were made sorry, but because your sorrow led you to repentance. For you became sorrowful as God intended and so were not harmed in any way by us.  Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death.”

So then, what is the difference between a Godly sorrow that leads to repentance and a worldly sorrow that leads to death?  Please take a quick read of this story I found on CNN.com recently:

http://www.cnn.com/2013/03/28/travel/russian-photographer-apology/index.html?hpt=hp_c3

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“Photographer sorry for climbing pyramid”

Russian photographer apologizes for pyramid photos

(CNN) -- Was it the ultimate adventure or an audacious act of disrespect that should be punished by law?

An Internet sensation was touched off this week by Russian photographer Vadim Makhorov and a group of his friends -- the group ignored regulations prohibiting the public from climbing on the Pyramids at Giza, Egypt, and came away with spectacular photos.

The images from Makhorov and another photographer, Vitaliy Raskalov, were taken on top of the Pyramids from positions that avoided detection by guards. The photos have incited reactions ranging from envy and awe to indignation and concern for the preservation of the ancient wonders.

In an email to CNN, Makhorov now explains his reasons for flaunting the regulations, and issues an apology to Egypt and the world.

Vadim Makhorov's email to CNN

"I've always been drawn to Egypt. For as long as I can remember my dream was to get to the top of the Great Pyramid of Giza.

"When my friends and I arrived in Cairo the first thing we decided to do was to go and see the pyramids. We got there in the evening, just in time to witness the laser show.

"No words can express the fascination I felt when seeing my childhood dream come alive. Probably this very feeling made us climb onto the top of the Pyramid and see the the panorama of the whole complex, the desert and Cairo itself.

"It was already pitch black and nobody paid us any attention. We started climbing as fast and as soundless as we could. You have to be quite strong and agile to climb onto a meter-high block covered with dust.

"The thought that we were going to witness something spectacular pushed us forward."
"It was exhausting, but the thought that we were going to witness something spectacular pushed us forward.

"It took us around 20 minutes to get to the top. We were taken breathless by the view.
"What we saw from up there was the seventh wonder of the world. We tried to capture the beauty of the scenery in the photos, so that the others could also see this magnificent panorama.

"We, of course, were not the first who dared to climb the pyramid.

"The pyramid's peak was filled with different inscriptions in many languages, some of them being hundreds years old.

"After enjoying the view for some time we started the descent. It turned out to be harder then climbing up. We were very lucky not to get [caught]. We would have been in serious trouble if we did.

"That's why I would like to apologize for this ascension. We didn't want to insult anyone. We were just following the dream."
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This is just an illustration.. As you read that article, did you sense that this fellow was sorry for what he did?  I sure didn't.  How do I know that?  He apologizes.  It’s obvious that he wishes he hadn’t been caught.  And the statements he makes are filled with justifications for his actions.  It appears the only thing he’s sorry about is that he got caught.  If we asked this man “if you had it to do all over again, would you still do it?”, I think his answer would be affirmative, especially since getting “caught” didn’t result in any legal repercussions or trouble. 

Peter denied the Lord on three different occasions.  But Peter is with the Lord even now in Heaven.  Judas sold the Lord for thirty pieces of silver.  The Bible says this concerning Judas in  

Matthew 27:3: 

“When Judas, who had betrayed him, saw that Jesus was condemned, he was seized with remorse and returned the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and the elders.”

Both men betrayed Jesus in one way or another.  Both were sorry.  But the difference between the two men was a heart matter that only God could see.  Judas took his own life afterward.  And Peter’s repentance led him to continue in the ministry, boldly preaching the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. 

Esau, too, from the Old Testament was sorry for selling his birthright for a morsel. 

(side note:  I never refer to people from the Bible as “characters”..  That word carries with it the idea that they are somehow fictional.  We would never refer to Thomas Jefferson or Napoleon Bonaparte as ‘characters’.  They’re real people.  They lived a long time ago, but their stories are real.)

But the Old Testament tells us that he (Esau) was unable (or unwilling, rather) to come to a place of repentance. 

Hebrews 12:17

“For ye know how that afterward, when he (Esau) would have inherited the blessing, he was rejected: for he found no place of repentance, though he sought it carefully with tears."

That's a scary thought to me.  He sought repentance with tears.  He wanted desperately to be sorry for what he had done.  You might ask that, too:  what if I just honestly don't feel sorry for what I've done or for the route I'm traveling?  PRAY!  Ask God to give you a spirit of repentance! 

Understand this, too.  Jesus Christ invites everyone to a relationship with him.  And He is not willing that any should perish as a result of an unrepentant spirit:

II Peter 3:9 -

“The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.”

Have you changed your mind?  Have you arrived at a place where you no longer are travelling your own road, but you’ve sort of metaphorically turned the car ‘round and you’re letting God do the driving down the path He designed for you? 

Let me tell you something, my friend.  Life is hard.  There’s no doubt about it.  We all carry sin problems and we have relational and financial and health problems.  Giving one’s heart to Jesus Christ does not ensure that life’s problems will go away.  But walking with Jesus ensures you this:  He will never leave you, nor forsake you.  Even as you walk through the valley of the shadow of death, He will be with you.  Even if every friend you have on this earth turns on you, He will be constant.