Scripture: Matthew 4: 12 - 23
Theme: Repentance
In this passage Jesus teaches us about Repentance - Repentance involves 1. Revelation and Realization 2. Redemption and Renewal 3. Reorientation and Righteousness
INTRO:
Grace and peace from God our Father and from His Son Jesus Christ who came to take away the sin of the world.
In his inspired little book entitled, After You Believe, Dr. Nicholas Thomas Wright shares this moving story:
"James was in his early twenties when it happened. His life had been going along, nothing too dramatic, just the usual ups and downs. Suddenly, out of the blue, he met up with an old friend who was on his way to a meeting at a nearby church. James went too, and that very night, to his complete astonishment, his life was turned upside down and inside out.
'I never knew these things really happened,' he told me when I met him some years later. ("James" isn't his real name, of course). 'When I talk about it, it sounds like I'm some religious nut, but it's the sober truth. I met Jesus! He was as real to me as you are in this room. All the old clichés suddenly came true. I felt cleansed, rinsed out, and more alive than I'd ever been before. It's as though I'd gone into a deep sleep and woken up in a new world, totally refreshed. I knew what people were talking about with all that God stuff before, but believe me, it all makes sense." (page 1)
What this young man experienced was of course what our passage deals with this morning. James ( we will continue to call him James) had repented of his sins and had began a new life in Christ Jesus. What this young man had experienced and was continuing to experience was/is the real reason that Jesus came to our world. Jesus came so that anyone and everyone could experience salvation.
This morning, I would like for us to spend some time looking at verse 17. I would like for us to look at this concept of repentance. What does it mean to repent? What and who are involved? What does repentance do in our lives and what does it lead to afterwards?
I. Repentance involves a Revelation and a Realization
Have you ever met or heard of a baby being born all by itself? A baby born that was all alone? A baby that just popped up out of nowhere?
We all have heard of babies being found or abandoned but never of one that just appeared out of thin air. Why? Because we all know that is not how babies come into our world. A baby has a human mother and a father and all babies are born with at least their mother being present. In fact, she has been there all along. She was there from the very beginning to the very end of the pregnancy. We may find babies abandoned, abused and neglected but all babies come into this world with at least one person with them. We may die alone but we are never born alone.
Now, why would I be saying this? Because just as one is physically born alone, no one comes to faith in Jesus Christ alone. No one comes to repentance without the help of the LORD and co-partnering human disciples.
+ First of all, of course, is the activity of the LORD who is calling, directing and guiding. Long before we repent of our sins the LORD is already at work in our lives. We never come to faith alone. In John 16:8 the LORD tells us that part of the work of the Holy Spirit is to convict us of our sins. That means that the Holy Spirit is at work in our lives before we are even aware. The Holy Spirit is busy speaking, drawing and calling people to repentance and salvation. He is revealing our sin and revealing the Good News of Salvation.
+Secondly, we see that the Lord enlists the help of others. How else can we know about the LORD outside of someone sharing with us the Gospel message? Romans 10:14 tells us - "How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in Him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching?" The LORD co-partners with humans to sound forth the message of repentance and salvation.
Remember in our story the young man named James? Dr. Wright informs us that his life had been going up and down. That is to say his life was not in balance. James was sensing that he needed a change. Then suddenly out of the blue he was invited to a meeting. We need to understand this morning that what looked like mere chance however, was instead a dance orchestrated by the Holy Spirit and fleshed out by obedient followers of Jesus.
Long before James was aware the Holy Spirit had been working in his life. During those times of ups and downs the Holy Spirit was ever so carefully guiding and directing this young man's heart, mind and soul. The Holy Spirit was using every opportunity to reveal Himself and to guide James to experience a new life in Christ.
The Holy Spirit was also co-partnering with James' friend. No doubt James' friend and perhaps many others had been praying for and interceding for James. They too had been aware of the ups and downs in his life. They had been asking the Holy Spirit to work in their friend's heart and life. Then under the guidance of the Holy Spirit his friend asked him to go to this particular meeting. While they were talking the Holy Spirit was at work wooing James to agree and go to the meeting. All around James there was supernatural spiritual activity.
What James did not know was that over the past few days or weeks the Holy Spirit had been orchestrating that meeting. People had been led by the LORD to saturate the service with prayer asking for an anointing of God's Holy Spirit. The LORD was doing all He could do to give this young man ( and no doubt many others) the opportunity to turn his life around and was setting up everything to make that possible. God's people were prepared to share the Gospel, to worship and praise and to be open to the leading of the Holy Spirit.
Everything went exactly as the LORD had planned because the Holy Spirit had been at work, James' friend(s) had been at work and the people at the meeting had been at work. Everything that happened that evening was a part of a beautiful plan coming into place that had been saturated by prayer and orchestrated by the Holy Spirit. All that was needed was for James to allow his heart to receive God's revelation and for him to recognize his need to repent and receive Jesus Christ as Savior and LORD.
You see, sometimes we are unaware of what is going on all around us. At times we are unaware of how the Holy Spirit is guiding us and directing us to prayer, to witness and to invite. We are unaware how the Holy Spirit is leading a service so that an invitation can be given for someone to come to faith. We are unaware that all of heaven and earth are working together for a soul to repent and receive Jesus Christ as Savior and LORD.
Sometimes we think we are merely going to church. We don't think that it is a big deal. But then why do you think that the LORD directs us to pray for our services? Why do we plan and ask the Holy Spirit to lead, guide and direct? Why do we fast? Why do we obey and listen? Why do we reach out to the broken? Why do we invite?
Well, it's not to grow a church. It's not even to make ourselves feel good. Instead, it is to co-partner with God so that His Holy Spirit can convict, reveal Himself and lead a person to enjoy a life of newness with Jesus Christ. It is so that others can experience the same joy of salvation that you and I enjoy this morning. For that is the second fact we see about Repentance:
II. Repentance involves a redemption and a renewal
James words that he shared with N. T. Wright are invaluable - "I felt cleansed, rinsed out, and more alive than I'd ever been before. It's as though I'd gone into a deep sleep and woken up in a new world, totally refreshed."
Cleansed, rinsed out, more alive. Woken up in a new world.
Wow! That's exactly the life that repentance leads us to experience. We may use companion words like justification, regeneration and salvation. We may use concepts concerning atonement and the New Birth but whatever word or concept we use the truth is the same. In Christ Jesus we repent of our sins and by grace through faith we are redeemed and made new.
In 2 Corinthians 5:17 the Apostle Paul tells us: "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away, behold, the new has come."
Repentance therefore reminds us of the seriousness of our sins. When asked about repentance C. S. Lewis had this to say in his book, In the Problem of Pain:
“We have a strange illusion that mere time cancels sin. I have heard others, and I have heard myself, recounting cruelties and falsehoods committed in boyhood as if they were no concern of the present speaker’s, and even with laughter. But mere time does nothing either to the fact or to the guilt of a sin. The guilt is washed out not by time but by repentance and the blood of Christ: if we have repented these early sins we should remember the price of our forgiveness and be humble.” (underline mine)
In Christ Jesus we are made new. We are transformed. Earlier in 2 Corinthians 3:16-18, the Apostle Paul used the image of metamorphosis. Metamorphosis is the transformative process that happens for example when a caterpillar turns into a butterfly. The caterpillar's whole being changes. It is no longer the same creature it was merely days before metamorphosis. It goes from crawling on the ground to flying in the heavens. It goes from looking like some grub to being one of God's most beautiful creations. Everything about a caterpillar changes to become a butterfly.
In like manner we are spiritually metamorphosed. We are changed into Jesus' glorious image. We go from being ordinary sin bound, guilt bound and Hell bound humans to becoming extraordinary people who are cleansed and filled with God's Holy Spirit. We are invited to live a life unlimited by our natural abilities. We are invited to be filled with God's supernatural power and live a life of freedom over sin, death and the grave.
To me this is the beauty of Wesleyan view of the Christian life. A great part of John Wesley theological genius was that he married reason, tradition, the Word and experience together. He reminded us that there is no glass ceiling when it comes to a life in Christ. He reminded us that we are called to be one in heart, mind and soul with Christ and one another.
In Christ we are able to become the new people of God. We are able to live the life that God planned for us to live way back in the Garden of Eden. We are able to rise above our flesh and experience a life of grace and holiness. We are able to live for more than money and materialism. We are able to live above human power and position.
We all know that Jesus lived the greatest life of any human being. He lived the most authentic life of any human being. He didn't have anything and yet he had everything. He didn't hold a great position and yet he was the Lord of Lord and King of Kings.
Repentance leads us to the greatest life we could ever experience. By grace through faith we can experience the abundant life in Christ. A life in which we are changed from the inside out. A life in which we have been cleansed, rinsed out and made new.
III. Finally, we see that repentance involves a life long journey of reorientation and righteousness
Dr. Wright goes on to share that James ran into a rather sticky puzzle. His love for the LORD grew more and more each day. He loved learning about God and about himself. But after a period of time he began to seek something more. In His heart he knew that repentance of one's sin was not the end all. That there had to be more than simply following the rules or acquiring more spiritual knowledge.
Dr. Wright was inspired by the LORD to write a whole book on what that more involved. Inspired by the Holy Spirit, N. T. Wright shares that we can never just accept a belief that ..."one can just believe in Jesus and then really do nothing else."
Sadly, that is what so many people believe. They repent of their sins, accept God's salvation and then go back and live their lives as before. They know that they need Jesus and so they accept Jesus. They want to go to heaven but not right now. So, there is a gap. What should they do between the time they come to salvation and the time they go to heaven? Should they do anything but just live out their lives? Haven't they just done the most important thing and now all they have to do is live out their life here on earth? It is up to them how they should do that. Some choose to live by a set of rules while others live out their desires and dreams. Either way their eternal ticket has been punched and they are only waiting for their time to redeem their ticket.
Some do believe that. They believe that once you come to Jesus the next big event is one's home going. What you do in between doesn't really matter so much.
Some share a similar view of marriage today. They believe that the most important day of the couple's relationship is the day of the wedding. All the pomp and circumstance happens on that day. After that high note, it is just plodding through life together, doing all they can to stay together, getting a job, having a few children, raising them, gaining weight and dying. It's just one step after another until the grave.
We laugh but we also know people who are living that way. We may be living that way. I hope not for marriage is so much more than that and so too is the Christian life.
When we repent and come to faith that is not to be the high moment of our walk with the LORD. It is rather to be a part of the opening act. It is simply the doorway that leads to a life of progressive love and holiness. Repentance leads us to begin our journey of learning and experiencing what it means to be one with God, one with oneself, one with others and one with the world.
One of the greatest people to live out the Christian life was the Apostle Paul. In Acts chapter nine we have the story of his repentance. We have the story of how the LORD revealed to Saul/Paul that he had been fighting against the LORD GOD HIMSELF. We read how Paul recognizes his rebellion and repented of his sin and unrighteousness. Paul comes to faith in the Jesus Christ as his Savior and LORD.
Now, if that was all to this life of repentance then that would be the last that we heard of the Apostle Paul. After all, he would have returned to Jerusalem and continued to be an obedient and good Pharisee. The only difference would have been that instead of persecuting Jesus he would have believed in Jesus. He might even on different occasions spoke up for the name of Jesus around his contemporaries.
But that is not the life we read about in the New Testament. Paul's repentance led him to an exciting life of what could be called authentic Christianity. He spent the rest of his life deepening his relationship with God, with himself, with others and with creation. As you read the rest of the book of Acts and his letters you can see a man growing in faith and character. You can see a man struggling with certain aspects of what it means to follow Jesus. You see a man who time and time again surrendered his own will to begin to live a life of progressive holiness.
Paul's life of repentance and righteousness was a lifelong journey. He was not a perfect man. But he was a man who had repented and by grace through faith experienced salvation. He was not a perfect man nor did he find himself in a perfect church. At times he found himself in danger and at other times he found himself at odds with the very people he had led to the Lord and taught. At times he found himself at odds with his mentors and with those he mentored. At times he found himself at odds with the leaders of the Early Church. At times he was guilty of creating tensions and discord among his contemporaries.
But in all of those times we read and watch how all those groups learned how to listen and follow the leadings of the Holy Spirit. We read and discover that all those groups allowed the Word, tradition, reason and experience to lead them to grow closer and closer to one another. We read and discover how Jesus' prayer in John 17 began to be fleshed out. We read and see how the Holy Spirit led each one to develop a life of righteousness, a life of virtue and holiness.
Martin Luther and others have concluded that the life of repentance is a messy life. It is a life of continual repentance and reorientation. That is to say the Christian life is one where we find ourselves reorienting (repenting) our hearts, minds and souls to the will of the Holy Spirit. We find ourselves allowing the Holy Spirit lead us into developing a life of Christ-like character and virtue.
The Christian Life is more than a singular event that happens in our lives. It is more than that moment when we repent of our sins and by grace are saved through faith. Repentance of our sins leads us to a life of spiritual formation. Repentance leads us to discover the many ways the LORD wants to renew us and restore us into His Image, His Character and His Virtue.
For example, Paul tells us in Romans 12:2 that part of what the Holy Spirit wants to do in our lives is to renew our minds. The Holy Spirit wants to transform the way that we think. It is more than an instantaneous or one day process. In fact, thinking or becoming like Christ does not come naturally. I love what N. T. Wright shares about this part of our adventure - " ... the steps it takes to get to that point (becoming like Christ - my words) involve hard decisions and hard actions, choices that run counter to the expectations, aspirations, desires, and instincts with which every human being comes equipped." (page 143)
This is the challenge and joy of the life of repentance and righteousness. This is the joy of becoming a disciple of Jesus and a member of the Body of Christ. We are invited to experience what it means to live together as a community of Christ followers. We are invited to learn what it means to actively live out a life of possessing and sharing agape love for Christ, for ourselves and for one another.
Our Lord's Sermon on the Mount shares with us what it means to live a life of righteousness. Jesus' sermon shares with us what a life of continual repentance/reorientation looks like, smells like, sounds like and feels like. It shares with us the lifelong goal that the LORD has for all of us. None of us can reach that goal through our own efforts. It is only through co-partnering with the Holy Spirit that we can live that life that Jesus made possible through his death and resurrection.
After what happened in the Garden of Eden we need to understand that the LORD did not give up on us or on our earth. After the Resurrection the LORD was not finished with us or our planet. The Lord sent His Holy Spirit to help us redeem, renew and restore both humanity and our world.
Way back in the Garden of Eden the LORD gave Adam and Eve a mission. They were to inhabit our planet. They were to be the caretakers of the earth. They were to expand the garden to compass the whole earth. They were not created to be lazy but to co-partner with the LORD to create a place of righteousness and holiness.
Well, we all know that we messed all that up. But Jesus came to give a new mission - that of the Great Commission. Once again we are given a global mission. One that if done will renew, redeem and restore not just humanity but the whole world. Listen again closely to the words of the Great Commission:
"Go therefore and make disciples of all nations; baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age."
Have you ever sat down and thought what that truly means? What it would mean if the Great Commission came to fruition? What would happen if all nations would become disciples of Jesus Christ? What would happen if all nations would be walking in the Holy Spirit? What would happen is that all nations would be in the process of continual repentance (reorientation of one's mind, heart and life) and spiritual formation? What would happen is life on this earth would be transformed and the LORD would recreate our world through the fires of the Holy Spirit.
We must reject this idea that history is doomed. We must reject this idea that things have to get worse and worse and worse. May be one day it has to be that way but right now, today we can decide as God's forgiven, blood washed, grace filled and Spirit filled people that we are going to do our best to grow into the image of Christ and promote that image. We can commit today that we are going to do our best through the power and presence of the Holy Spirit to fulfill this Great Commission.
Jesus did not die on a cross for our world to go to Hell. Jesus did not raise from the dead, defeat Hell, death and the grave for the Body of Christ to go into retreat. Jesus did not pour out His Holy Spirit for that Holy Spirit to cower in some corner. It is time that we as the Church of Jesus Christ realize that in Christ we can do all things and that means making disciples of Jesus all around us.
To do otherwise is to deny Christ. To do otherwise is to say that in light of the Cross, the Resurrection and Pentecost that the Devil still has more power and is in control. That simply is not the truth.
This morning we have a liar in our world. That liar is the Devil and he is tempting us to believe that in these days be they the last days or not that the Church cannot grow, it cannot experience the supernatural power of God and that it cannot transform this world for Jesus Christ. He has got us so focused on some crazy idea that the world has to get worse and worse that we are causing it to happen without him having to do anything. So many people are convinced that the Church as to get smaller and smaller and eventually die out.
That is not true. It was not true 2,000 years ago and it is definitely not true today. The same Jesus who rose from the dead is in heaven right now sitting at the right hand of the Father making intercession for us. The same Holy Spirit that fell on Pentecost is alive and well today. The Holy Spirit is doing everything possible to help people repent of their sins and by grace through faith receive the LORD's redemption, renewal and restoration.
The question is are we the type of people that God can call to repent, to be forgiven and filled with His Holy Spirit? Are we the people that God can use to transform our world? Are we willing this morning to surrender everything over to the LORD JESUS? Will we allow the Lord to have our sins and our lives? Will we allow the LORD to cleanse us and put within us His Holy Spirit?
As we close this morning we want to give anyone the opportunity to come forward, to repent of your sins and to accept the Lord's salvation through grace alone. We want to give anyone the opportunity to come and repent of any sin or attitude that right now the Holy Spirit is addressing in your life. We want to give anyone the opportunity to come and commit to the LORD that you will co-partner with His Holy Spirit to fulfill the LORD's Great Commission.
Altar call - or Lord's Supper
To any who want to use this sermon or ideas from it may the LORD bless you today. May the LORD anoint you this week as you prepare your heart, mind and soul to bring God's Word to His People. May the LORD watch over you and bring you peace, comfort and love. Thanks for doing all you can for the LORD and His Kingdom!
