“The issue at hand is a great one, the chief doctrine of the Gospel, the forgiveness of sins” (Apology of the Augsburg Confession, Tappert, 184.10). That’s how Philip Melancthon, a contemporary of Luther, sized up the subject of repentance when he wrote the Apology (or Defense) of the Augsburg Confession in 1530-1531. It’s this very subject that John the Baptist spent his entire ministry proclaiming. His voice still rings clear today in the words of the text, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near” (Matthew 3:2).
But what exactly did John the Baptist mean by that? What exactly does God have in mind when he calls all people to repentance through John the Baptist and others? That is the question which God himself answers for us through John the Baptist in the text we are considering this morning. Our God is calling us to: Live in True Repentance. Live in true repentance 1) the kind that works on us from the outside in. Live in true repentance 2) the kind that changes us from the inside out.
The Greek word that God uses to describe true repentance is: metanoia. This is what that word means: “a change of heart, turning from one’s sins,” (UBS Dictionary), that also includes, “a change of mind leading to change of behavior” (Friberg Lexicon). It’s possible that the English word, “repent,” doesn’t fully summarize all of those thoughts for us. Perhaps a more comprehensive English term would be “convert.” When God calls us to true repentance he is calling for conversion, conversion from the people we are by nature - to become and remain his people by faith in his promises.
John the Baptist was well aware that this kind of radical change, this kind of true repentance, isn’t something that people can produce within themselves by nature. Why? Because even from the first moments of their lives all people conceived by sinful, human beings inherit a sinful nature from their parents. That means that even at the point of conception all people are spiritual wastelands – devoid of any true, spiritual life. This spiritual reality is reinforced by the physical surroundings in which God called John to address his hearers. John preached to them in the wilderness in Judea – a rough region of barren cliffs near the Dead Sea. Even John’s appearance is a stern sermon exposing the natural inclinations of the inbred sin of human nature that continually scorches the soul with the hot, arid breezes of selfish materialism. John was a living illustration of how little people really need for physical survival on this earth. His plain clothing and his Spartan diet were a powerful preaching against the natural, sinful preference that humans have to be consumed by the pursuit of earthly prosperity rather than focusing on amassing true and lasting treasure in heaven.
Clearly a radical change is necessary. John the Baptist understood plainly that the only way for this radical change, this conversion, this true repentance to take place is if God himself were to bring the change about. That’s exactly what God intends to do through his powerful tools – his Word and his Sacrament of baptism. Just as Isaiah foretold – John the Baptist made use of these powerful tools of God. Listen to what happened as he did , “People went out to him from Jerusalem and all Judea and the whole region of the Jordan ” (Matthew 3:5). A radical change took place in the hearts and lives of these people. They were drawn out into the desert, some coming from many miles away, to hear the spiritually empowering and enriching words of the living God. As they listened to this powerful message God transformed them from the outside in. As his Word entered their ears and spoke to their hearts something marvelous happened – they began confessing their sins! They fessed up to their guilt. That’s something that human beings won’t typically do – isn’t that why our courts are filled to overflowing today?! So what prompted them to do it? They wanted to experience this baptism for the forgiveness of their sins. They wanted God to work on them from the outside in as John applied the waters of baptism that gave and assured them that God had forgiven all their sins. Their hearts that were once nothing but a spiritual wasteland became places bursting with new spiritual life. That’s the life that God himself created and sustained in their hearts through his promises offered through water and his Word. That’s the life of faith! That’s a real conversion! That’s true repentance!
That’s exactly what God works in our lives through his powerful tools – his Word and his Sacrament of baptism. He’s brought forth spiritual life in our hearts that were once steeped in the deadness of unbelief. He’s watered our souls with his Gospel message in Word and sacrament causing the green pasture of faith to spring forth from the naturally barren wasteland of our hearts. He works on us from the outside in as he calls and empowers us to live a life of repentance.
And that’s what it is! It’s a life. That means that true repentance is not only something that God works in us – but it is also something that defines who we are by the way we live. Strictly speaking true repentance isn’t something we do – rather, it is something that affects and effects what we do. True repentance is something that changes us from the inside out.
True repentance – the kind that comes from God through his Gospel – can’t help but change us, both in the attitude of our hearts and the actions of our lives. That’s what makes John the Baptist’s exchange with the Pharisees and the Sadducees so striking and so scary at the same time. We would expect that John would be excited to see a group of religious leaders from the sects of the Pharisees and the Sadducees come to the wilderness to be baptized. But John’s reaction is just the opposite. Why? Because John recognized that the reason the Pharisees and Sadducees wanted to be baptized was nothing more than to retain their power and prestige as religious leaders in Judah. They were just going through the motions of repentance in order to bolster their positive religious public image. How could John be so sure? He was certain because he understood that these religious leaders held to false teachings and false beliefs that made a life of true repentance impossible. The Pharisees considered themselves to be really good people on their own – so they didn’t think that they needed a Savior. The Sadducees didn’t believe in life after death so the message of a Savior was really irrelevant to them. Both groups thought that they had God’s special pedigree as his chosen people since they could trace their human ancestry back to Abraham. Obviously these people had rejected God’s truth so there would be no reason for them to come to John in search of divine forgiveness. No they were here to boost their reputations!
While these Pharisees and Sadducees considered repentance to be nothing more than going through some ritualistic motions – John’s words and actions are a demonstration of just how fully and completely true repentance changes people from the inside out. We hear the fruit of true repentance coming from his lips as he speaks the truth of God’s law to them to knock them from their false sense of spiritual security when he ways, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee the coming wrath? Produce fruit in keeping with repentance” (Matthew 3:7-8). In essence John is calling them children of the devil because of their empty actions, their false pretenses, and their outright hypocrisy. He also exposes the emptiness of their “spirituality” that was nothing more than a twisted sense of nationalistic pride in disguise when he says “And do not think you can say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham” (Matthew 3:9).
John isn’t fooling around when he tells them, “The ax is already at the root of the tree, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire” (Matthew 3:10). The teachings of the Pharisees and Sadducees weren’t innocent little mistakes – they were faith-destroying, repentance-preventing errors. That is why John speaks the harsh condemnations of God’s law to them. John’s words are an example of some of the fruit that is in keeping with repentance. He was preparing these people for the reality that lay ahead. John is warning these Pharisees and Sadducees that when the Son of God does come either they will be on his side by the power of his Spirit at work in baptism and in his Word or they will be against him because they have rejected the gracious invitation offered by his Spirit in the gospel. Either their lives will be marked by the fruits of true repentance as evidence that his Spirit has baptized their hearts through his Word or they will face the fire of his judgment because they have rejected his Spirit as seen in the lack of the fruits of repentance in their lives. In this way Jesus uses his Word like a winnowing fork. By the power of his Spirit at work in his Word Jesus separates those who are truly repentant from those who are not, and by their fruit they shall be known. All whose lives are marked by true repentance shall find peace and safety as Jesus gathers them together into his heavenly kingdom, but all who fail to produce fruit in keeping with repentance by remaining in unbelief and impenitence shall face the unquenchable fire of Jesus’ judgment.
But what does all of this mean for us? After all – the reason we’re here is because we’ve come to confess our sins to our Savior and seek his forgiveness. The reason we attend this particular church is because we are confident that here God’s pure Word is preached and taught and that here his sacraments are properly administered. What’s more is that as WELS Lutheran we rejoice in the proper, biblical understanding of the distinction between God’s law and gospel. We know God’s law convicts us of our sin and kills off the control of our sinful nature over our lives, and we know that his gospel is what creates and strengthens true repentance in our hearts and lives. For that reason we know that the reason we’ll be in heaven doesn’t depend on how much time give in service to our congregation, or how much money we donate to support this congregation, or how much work we do to invite others to attend this congregation. The only reason we’ll be in heaven is because Jesus died in our place and rose again to assure us that he has conquered death.
In fact that’s why we have every reason to give thanks because our certainty of heaven isn’t dependent on us – but depends completely on Jesus. But have there been times that we’ve used this wonderful confidence to conveniently forget our Savior’s call to LIVE in true repentance that is filled with the fruits of repentance? Have there been times that we’ve used the gospel as a shield to hide our unwillingness to serve, or our lack of generosity when it comes to our giving, or our lack of zeal when it comes to sharing the good news of the gospel by setting up the false pretense that we wouldn’t want to give anyone the impression that we think we could work our way into heaven? Could that be the reason why we aren’t gathering funds more quickly for the down payment for our new building? Is that the reason why it’s such a struggle to involve more people who are willing to give of their time and energy in service to this congregation? Could that be the reason why we don’t have more visitors with us from week to week?
My dear friends, that’s not living in the gospel. That’s abusing the gospel. That is why we need to hear those shocking words of the threats of eternal damnation. Through those words our Savior moves us to relive our baptism on a daily basis where he drowns the control of our sinful flesh with all its laziness, greed, and apathy. In reliving our baptisms the Apostle Paul reminds us of this precious truth recorded in his letter to the Romans, “Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life” (Romans 6:3,4). By virtue of our baptism we have been crucified with Christ. That means all of our guilt – it died with him! Through baptism we have been raised to live a new life – a life that loves to serve him, a life that loves to give to him, a life that lives to love him!
That’s what it means to live a life of true repentance! It’s that reality, that confident truth, that causes us to produce fruit in keeping with true repentance! And not just produce it – but actually abound in producing the fruit of true repentance. May our gracious Savior strengthen us in this kind of living throughout our lives to the glory of his name! Amen.
