Repent! The Forgotten Doctrine of Salvation...Continued from page 3

On the other hand consider Judas who betrayed the Lord for the price of a slave. When he realized his error, he returned the money to the high priests and tried to cancel the deal, but it was too late (Matthew 27:1-10). The older versions say Judas repented, but the newer versions more accurately record that he was filled with remorse. Later he ended up committing suicide.
What made the difference between these two men? Both knew they had done wrong, both felt deep remorse. Yet one was forgiven and the other was not. Why? Surely the crucial point must be that the prodigal son cried out to his father for forgiveness while Judas did not. He confessed his sin — but not to God — and that made the difference between heaven and hell.

III. Repentance AppliedRepentance is the doorway to heaven and there is no other entrance. That’s a bold statement to make — yet I believe it is entirely biblical. If we fail to preach repentance, we are leaving out a vital part of the gospel message. Our failure in this regard has produced an anemic gospel, stripped of its power to change human lives. But there is more to repentance than the initial act of coming to Christ for salvation. Repentance is to be part of our daily walk with God. It is foundational to a growing Christian life. When Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses to the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany in 1517, he began with this crucial statement: “When our Lord and Master, Jesus Christ, said 'Repent,' He called for the entire life of believers to be one of repentance.” In a sense the entire Protestant Reformation hangs on those simple words. If you are a Christian, repentance ought to be part of your daily life.
When Paul said that by the Spirit we should “put to death the deeds of the flesh” (Romans 8:13), he was talking about repentance.When he said, “If we would judge ourselves, we would not be judged” (I Corinthians 11:31), he was talking about repentance.When Peter said to his readers, “Rid yourselves of all malice and deceit” (I Peter 2:1), he was talking about repentance.When James said, “Wash your hands, you sinners” (James 4:8), he was talking about repentance.When John said, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (I John 1:9), he was talking about repentance. The words are different but the meaning is the same.
One reason revival does not come is that we take our sins too lightly. Repentance is hard work. It demands we stop excusing ourselves. It means looking at life from God’s point of view. The reason we don’t want to repent is because we know our lives would have to change, and that makes us uncomfortable.
The doctrine of repentance is not given to heap more guilt upon us. It is given to free us from guilt. We drift and slide away from Christ precisely because we don’t want to repent. Repentance means a genuine change of mind about ourselves and the way we’ve been living. It’s costly. It’s not easy. Things are going to change if we repent. But if we dare to obey God when it isn’t easy, if we break up the hard soil of our hearts, God will plant within the seeds of joy and peace. Repentance is not opposed to grace; true repentance leads us on to grace where we are forgiven and restored to fellowship with God.
When I preached this, a friend commented that anyone who thinks repentance is opposed to grace doesn’t understand either one. I think he’s right.
What Repentance Looks LikeWhat does repentance look like in practical terms? Here are five statements that help us answer that question: I know I have repented when…