The Need For True Repentance

1.The TV is my shepherd, My spiritual growth shall want;

It makes me to sit down and do nothing for His Name’s sake.

2. It requires all my spare time; It keeps me from doing my Christian duty. It produces so many good shows that I must see; It restores my knowledge of the world.

3. It keeps me from the study of God’s Word. It leads me in the path of failing to attend worship and doing nothing for the kingdom of God.

4. Yea, though I live to be a hundred years old I shall view my TV as long as it works. It seems to be my closest companion; Its sounds and pictures they comfort me.

5. It provides entertainment for me and keeps me from doing important things with my family. It fills my head with ideas which differ from God’s will.

6. Surely, because of all the wasted hours there will be a lack of rewards at the Bema; Yet, because of His goodness and mercy, I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

I think that this is a very fitting illustration as we go into the message today. Repent!

Read Luke Chapter three verses 2b-6

Luke 3:7-14 7 Then he said to the multitudes that came out to be baptized by him, h“Brood 2of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Therefore bear fruits iworthy of repentance, and do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones. 9 And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore jevery tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”

10 So the people asked him, saying, k“What shall we do then?”

11 He answered and said to them, l“He who has two tunics, let him give to him who has none; and he who has food, mlet him do likewise.”

12 Then ntax collectors also came to be baptized, and said to him, “Teacher, what shall we do?”

13 And he said to them, o“Collect no more than what is appointed for you.”

14 Likewise the soldiers asked him, saying, “And what shall we do?”

So he said to them, “Do not 3intimidate anyone por accuse falsely, and be content with your wages.”

CPT: John the Baptist called for genuine repentance.

CPS: God calls for genuine repentance.

PSS: I want you to be genuinely repentant.

Genuine repentance calls for a genuine message. Verse 7

Ministers of the gospel of Jesus Christ have forgotten who it is that they preach. Jesus Christ is the one true God. He is the “GREAT I AM!” I have heard of churches where the pastor was forced to leave because he dared to mention hell in his sermons. Others have been asked to leave because they call sin sin. I can imagine the look on the faces of the leaders at one of today’s mega churches when a Pastor looked out into the congregation that was overflowing with visitors and yelled out “Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?” Not only would the deacons and the personnel committee call an emergency meeting to discuss the fastest way to remove the Pastor but many of the faithful Church members would swear they would never return because the Pastor was to judgmental. We see in the verses just prior to this that John had been traveling all over the area telling people to repent. The fact that he was preaching repentance tells us that he was preaching to sinners. So why would he insult the very people that he was trying to reach when they showed up to hear him? We find the answer in verse eight.

We must realize our need for repentance. Verse 8

There were people who showed up to hear John because they had heard of his preaching and they were curious but they did not fully understand what is was that was required of them. John probably recognized this because of a couple different reasons. First he had not personally told this group of people that he was speaking to about their need for repentance. When he asks them in verse seven who warned them to flee this question carries with it the idea that he was not the one who had told them. Also form his statement in verse eight it would seem that maybe he heard some of them boasting about the fact that they were Jews the sons of Abraham, as if they had no need of repentance. Many people across our country show up to church here about repentance and think to themselves ‘I have no need of repentance. My mother and father helped build this church.’ Or; ‘I have been reading the Bible for longer than that preacher has been alive.’