REPENTENCE AND REMISSION OF SINS SAVES

According to Webster's Dictionary, "repentance" is defined as:  "The act of repenting, or the state of being penitent; sorrow for what one has done or omitted to do.  The Blue Letter Bible defines "repentance" as "a change of mind, as it appears to one who repents, of a purpose he has formed or of something he has done."  The Greek word, μετάνοια (metanoia), which appears twenty-four times in the New Testament, always refers to one having "a change of mind."

Jesus told His disciples the importance of repentance, when He said, "repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem" (Lk. 24:47).  He was clearly stating that remission was just part of the equation.  How important is repentance?  It is equal to remission!  So, what is remission? 

"Remission," as it is used here, means "forgiveness or pardon, of sins (letting them go as if they had never been committed), remission of the penalty (The Blue Letter Bible).  It is the "Good News," the Gospel, that Jesus "died for our sins according to the Scriptures; and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures" (1 Cor. 15:3-4). 

The Gospel is preached to the lost - the lost man believes what the Gospel says (he is a sinner, Jesus died in his place, and God raised Him from the dead to show His sacrifice was acceptable to God - Rom. 1:4) - the lost man changes his mind, that is, he repents and acknowledges Jesus Christ as his Lord!

One might ask, "what caused the man to have a change of mind?"  The answer is two-fold:  for one, the Gospel has the power to change one's mind (Rom. 1:16); and secondly, God Himself, in the Person of the Holy Spirit, convicts the lost man of his condition, and the truth of the Gospel.  Jesus said,

It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send Him unto you.  And when He is come, He will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:  of sin, because they believe not on Me; of righteousness, because I go to My Father, and ye see Me no more; of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged.  I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now.  Howbeit when He, the Spirit of truth, is come, He will guide you into all truth: for He shall not speak of Himself; but whatsoever He shall hear, that shall He speak: and He will shew you things to come" (Jn. 16:7-13). 

 

Excluding repentance from the equation, is, in effect, ignoring the work of the Spirit!