Theme: True Repentance
Text: Ez. 18:1-4, 25-32; Phil. 2:1-13; Matt. 21:23-32
Many people today think that by saying they believe in Christ and go to Church makes them a Christian. But as the saying goes sleeping in a garage does not make you a car. To become a Christian you need to repent and believe in Jesus Christ as Saviour and Lord. Repentance is the first step we take to receive the salvation that God offers to us in the Lord Jesus Christ. A true Christian is a person who repents and enters into a personal relationship with Christ. He accepts being a sinner and turns to God. He knows who he is and he knows who Christ is and what Christ has accomplished on his behalf. There are many so called Christians who believe there are many ways to God. They apply physical situations to spiritual ones and because the world says there are many roads to Rome, there must also be many ways to God. They would rather believe what the world teaches than what Christ teaches and Christ clearly declares in John 14:6 “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” In fact there are many religions in the world today that present many different pictures of God. They even go to the extent of changing the Word of God to suit their own purposes. Changing the message of God is to change the God of the message. But to make God what He is not is known as idolatry. Jesus Christ became a man to reveal to us exactly who God is. He came to reveal to us the character and nature of God and that true repentance leads to salvation.
The mere mention of true repentance implies that there is also false repentance. We can feel guilty about sin and yet not repent. It is true that no one can repent unless that person feels guilty about sin, but not all who feel guilty actually repent. Some people are very sorry because of the consequences of their sin or because they have been caught. They are not sorry because of what they had done but because of the penalty they would receive. They equate this sorrow with repentance but this is definitely not the case. We cannot change the meaning of repentance to conflict with what the Bible declares. Jesus Christ is the truth whether we believe it or not. Our assumptions do not change the truth however much we would want them to or however reliable they may appear to be. When we rely on our assumptions we simply end up believing a lie. We end up living a life that accepts as truth our assumptions about ourselves and our situations and our assumptions about other people and their situations. False repentance can be easily discerned when one relies on self to resolve the problem. Many people attempt to become better persons by changing their way of life on their own and in their own strength. Any reliance on self denies the need for repentance. The one thing we can always rely on is the Word of God. Jesus Christ is the truth, His word is truth. He is the only one who can correct our thinking on sin and about self reliance and lead us to the truth. False repentance is also often a result of deception, a deception caused by pride. A person can become extremely proud when given worldly authority. A person can become very religious and observe religious practices and believe that his behaviour and life are righteous because of his occupied place of authority. Pride hinders true repentance. When the chief priests and elders assumed they had more authority than Christ they could not repent. Christ‘s personality, character, and words are clearly declaring the truth but it is only received by those who are listening.
Not only did Jesus expose the assumptions of the Pharisees He showed them how wrong they were. They remained and listened to His teachings although they were very critical of their behaviour. Without even realising it they were submitting themselves to a greater authority, the authority of Christ. They had to listen to the truth of His words that portrayed them as hypocrites. You cannot be a Christian and not submit to the authority of Christ. Neither can you be a Christian with a wrong conception of who Christ is. The evidence of repentance is a recognition of the person of Christ and manifests itself in a changed conduct. Repentance, when true and genuine, leads to confession and restitution. The repentant thief will return the money he stole. The thief who keeps the money only has conviction but no repentance. If he had repentance, he would go and give back the money. A repentant cheat will restore what he unjustly acquired and take care of those injured by his action. True repentance is a permanent change of character and conduct when we see God as a God of love who offers us forgiveness. Without a right conception of who God is we can go to Church and yet be no better off than an unbeliever. God is Holy and as sinners we can only come before Him in repentance. We should stop making excuses for our behaviour, admit responsibility for our sin, and ask for God’s forgiveness.
True repentance is turning from sin and without true repentance we cannot enter into the Kingdom of God. God knows those who are His and He knows those who only claim to be His but do not really belong to His Kingdom. The behaviour and actions of the first Son is a picture of the behaviour and actions of the Chief Priests and elders. They professed belief in God and were able to convince everyone that they were closest to Him. They, however, failed to really understand the importance of true repentance. How could they understand when they saw themselves as deserving in God’s eyes? True repentance is not only turning from sin but also turning from the world. We cannot be in God’s Kingdom and live according to the standards of the world. The Pharisees claimed to be the ones closest to God and deserved His provisions. They had said yes to God but like the first son in the parable they refused to obey Him. Can this also apply to the Church today? Do we say yes to Christ declaring we believe in Him and will do what He tells us but do not do so? Does the first son make you feel uneasy? If he does it is no wonder because he is the one who said yes to God, the one who claims to belong to the Kingdom of God, the one who comes to Church, the one who donates to the Church, the one who promises to do God’s will and he is the one who does not do what he had promised to do? The second son is a picture of the one who qualifies to belong to God’s Kingdom. His first response to Christ was no but after true repentance he went ahead and fulfilled His Father’s will. The behaviour of the second Son is a picture of the tax collectors and harlots who believed the preaching of John the Baptist and repented. They had spent their entire lives saying no to God. However, at John’s preaching, they regretted their actions and behaviour, believed, turned away and hated their sin.
The famous evangelist, Billy Graham, refers to a mystery he describes as the mystery of salvation. This mystery is that many of those we do not expect to be saved will be saved whereas many we expect to be saved will not be saved. This will be because those we see and consider the worst sinners who have spent their lives saying no to Christ often realise their need for forgiveness and say yes to Him before their death whereas the self professing righteous ones often see no need for forgiveness and therefore no need to say yes to Him. Repentance is a turning back to God. It is finally realising you have been going in the wrong direction, turning around and continuing in the right direction. Repentance is a change of mind that leads to a change of life. How can someone repent when he believes in his own righteousness? Is your behaviour that of the first son or that of the second one? Let us be honest with ourselves because the truth will help us decide our eternal destiny.
True repentance is a turning from sin, from the world and from the devil to God. This is what the Lord Almighty says “Return to me and I will return to you” Zech. 1:3. Have you only said yes to Christ without meaning it? If you really meant it are you serving the Lord and are you obeying His commandments? The truth demands a response from us. Many of us here today are Christians and some of us assume we are Christians. Have we really been Christians for many years or have we only assumed we have been Christians? As a son which son are you? Are you the first son or are you the second? Have you done what God has told you to do? Have you believed in Jesus Christ as your Saviour and Lord? Jesus Christ died to bring us to God for us to enjoy His blessings. Some of us are living without God’s blessings because of our failure to truly repent.
True repentance is necessary for salvation. We can presume to have a relationship with God that we do not have and deceive our friends but it is impossible to deceive God. Just as the Jewish religious leaders presumed they had a relationship with God because of their position, so many Church members today are presuming on a relationship with Him on the basis of Church membership. Church membership cannot guarantee our entrance into heaven but our relationship with Christ can. It is only a relationship with Christ that can enable us live a life of righteousness, holiness, and service. Do you have a relationship with God or are you presuming you have a relationship with Him? Are you so engrossed with the world that you have forgotten your responsibilities as a Christian? God is a loving Father who will accept and welcome all those who truly repent and come to Him. God is looking for the rebellious and He’s looking for the proud. He welcomes all those who accept they are sinners and come to Him in repentance. Today Christ wants to welcome you into His Kingdom. All He requires from you is to truly repent, turn from sin and return to Him to the praise of glory of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen!
