Word of the Week: Repentance

“Repentance”
re-pent-ance [ri-pen-tns] –noun

Definition: Feeling remorse for past sins against God, resulting in a sincere desire to change one’s future behavior.

For the first few years that I was a Christian, I was confused about the word repentance. At the time I was unknowingly confused, but looking back I really had no idea what the word truly meant. I understood that repentance meant that I needed to feel regret for my past sins. But what I didn’t understand is that true sorrow leads to a drastic change away from sin and towards God. The awesome thing about repentance is that God wipes away our past sins and is delighted that we’re making conscious decisions against sin. True repentance is not something that can be artificial. According to Romans 2:4, it’s God’s kindness that should lead us to repentance and it’s not something we can create in ourselves.

There’s no question that our sins anger God. He hates sin! But there’s nothing that makes Him happier than to see us completely turn away from our old self and make a new future in Him. We deserve the wrath of God and judgment for every sin we’ve ever committed. But Ephesians 2:4-6 says: “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together in Christ – by grace you have been saved – and raised up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly place in Christ Jesus.” What a glorious God we have that shows grace to us despite our pasts!

To a non-Christian, the word repentance probably sounds pretty “religious.” It’s not used too much outside Christianity. But the best way that we can teach people about repentance is to live it out! Share with others the things that God has taken you out of and has brought you to repent of. When others see us (Christians) repent of our sins and make a complete one-eighty away from sin and towards God – they will not be able to mistake it for anything but repenting of our sins to Him!

Acts 3:19 “Now repent of your sins and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped away.”

by Kyle Ackerit