I am aware that John the Baptist preached it, REPENTANCE … in Matthew 3:1-2, for example.

And Jesus Himself certainly did … Luke 13:3 (“I tell you, Nay: but, except ye REPENT, ye shall all likewise perish.”)

Come to think of it, the Old Testament is replete with it too, the doctrine (mandate) to repent!

The Prophet Ezekiel (14:6) comes to mind: “Therefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord GOD; REPENT, and turn yourselves from your idols; and turn away your faces from all your abominations.”

Even when the exact verb is not used, the idea is present: “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and TURN FROM their wicked ways ….” 2 Chronicles 7:14

But my thought today is that even the Apostle Paul preaches repentance. And not just for sinners, for the Christian as well!

That’s a surprise for many!

“For godly sorrow worketh REPENTANCE to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death.” Yes Paul, in 2 Corinthians 7:10 … written to Christians who had sinned.

Repentance in a Believer leads to … “For behold this selfsame thing, that ye sorrowed after a godly sort, what carefulness it wrought in you, yea, what clearing of yourselves, yea, what indignation, yea, what fear, yea, what vehement desire, yea, what zeal, yea, what revenge! In all things ye have approved yourselves to be clear in this matter.” This is 2 Corinthians 7:11 now.

This almost sounds like anger at sin, holy anger!

The deeper realization of what sin really costs, what our sin has done to the heart of God … the closer will be the harmony and communion with the Almighty!

And Jesus, as late in the New Testament as the Book of Revelation, is still preaching repentance … to the various Churches of Asia Minor! (Six times in fact!)

And that Greek word for repentance?

“Meta + noeo,” meaning “to change one’s mind. To alter one’s thinking! But with this caveat … to change one’s thought processes … with the resultant change in one’s behavior!

Really it is true … “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” 2 Corinthians 5:17

Hallelujah!

— Dr. Mike Bagwell

We all, very likely, look way too favorably at sin!

“God touch our hearts, we pray!”

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