REPENTANCE AND REMISSION

On the day of His Resurrection from the dead, Jesus joined two disillusioned disciples who were leaving Jerusalem and heading to Emmaus (Luke 24:13-53).  Jesus asked them why they were so troubled, and they told Him about the Crucifixion of the One they had trusted to be the fulfillment of the prophecies concerning Israel's Messiah.  He then proceeded to teach them from the Law and the Prophets, "the things concerning Himself."  After Jesus "vanished out of their sight," they returned to Jerusalem to tell "the eleven" about their encounter with Jesus.  While they were discussing their experience, Jesus appeared, and He repeated what He had told the two, but this time, He added the things concerning Himself from the Psalms.  (Ex:  Gen. 3:15; Isa. 53; Ps. 22)

Near the end of His meeting with His followers, Jesus made this remarkable statement; He said, "...Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day:  and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem" (Luke 24:46-47)!  It is remarkable because it is the only record we have of Jesus including "repentance" as part of the message His disciples were to proclaim in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and throughout the world (Mt. 28:18-20; Mark 16:15; Acts 1:8).  However, earlier in His ministry, He told His disciples to call upon Israel to repent (Mt. 3:2; 4:7; Mark 6:12; Luke 13:3, 5); and in Mark 1:14-15, "...Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the Gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the Gospel."

"Remission" is from the Greek ἄφεσις (aphesis), which occurs 17 times in 16 verses in the Greek concordance of the KJV.  Basically, it is the message of the Gospel, in that, it means "the forgiveness or pardon of sins" (1 Cor. 15:1-4).

"Repentance" is from the Greek μετάνοια (metanoia), which occurs 24 times in 24 verses in the Greek concordance of the KJV.  It means "a change of mind, as it appears to one who repents of a purpose he has formed or of something he has done."  In relationship to salvation, it means that one has changed his mind concerning Jesus, and has called upon Him as his Lord (Rom. 10:8-17).  Paul actually describes this change this way:  "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new" (2 Cor. 5:17).

In other words, Jesus wants everyone to know that He paid our "debt" which we  all owe because we are all sinners, and the "wages of sin is death" (Rom. 3:23); He died in our place!  Paul wrote:  "And that He died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto Him which died for them, and rose again" (2 Cor. 5:15).  This last verse includes both remission and repentance!

JESUS DIED FOR US!

OUR RESPONSE SHOULD BE THAT OF  GRATITUDE AND SURRENDER!