Repentance and Salvation
Several years ago, a couple attended the services of our church, but after a few months they stopped coming. They told me I said something in a sermon with which they strongly disagreed. What did I say that they found so troubling? I said that repentance was necessary for salvation.
How is that problematic? Did not John the Baptist preach, “Repent ye, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand?” (Mt. 3:2) Did not Jesus say, “Except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish?” (Lk. 13:3, 5) Did not Peter preach on the day of Pentecost, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins?” (Acts 2:38) Did not Paul preach on Mars Hill, “God… now commandeth all men everywhere to repent.” (Acts 17:30) In fact, it can be demonstrated that the two predominant themes of the apostolic preaching recorded in the book of Acts are repentance and the resurrection of Christ. How could someone who professes to be a Christian find preaching the necessity of repentance to be objectionable?
As odd as it may sound, some people think that the idea of repentance being necessary for salvation is a form of works-righteousness. Is preaching repentance preaching salvation by works rather than faith?
The strict definition of the word translated “repent” or “repentance” in the New Testament is, “to perceive afterwards.” It means “a change or reversal in mind or purpose.” Some conclude, based on etymology alone, that repentance means to change one’s mind. But etymology alone is sometimes insufficient in determining the meaning of a word. A word is also understood by its context — the way it is employed. The way repentance is regularly used in the Bible means more than an alteration of opinion. It is connected to issues of morality; to right and wrong. To repent means to acknowledge or admit wrongdoing, and to decide to turn from wrongdoing to do what is right.
But biblical or saving repentance is more than moral reformation; the turning over an ethical new leaf. Judas Iscariot “repented,” yet did not possess true saving repentance. (Mt. 27:3) Repentance is not a thief sorry he was caught, or the man who sent the IRS a check for $150.00 with a note that read, “If I can’t sleep, I’ll send you the rest.”
True saving repentance is accurately depicted by the Thessalonian Christians. Paul wrote that these people “turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God.” (1 Thess. 1:9) They turned to Christ and at the same time turned from sin. Their example shows that biblical repentance is not just turning from something to something. Had these people turned from idols to atheism, they would not have been saved. They turned in faith to Christ for pardon and in so doing turned from their sin.
In his systematic theology, Roland McCune defined repentance as “a change of mind away from sin and toward God… It is a change of view, feeling and purpose respecting God, sin and the sinner.” Repentance is a Holy Spirit produced change in disposition toward sin and toward Christ as Savior. And it is a foundational Christian truth necessary for salvation. (Heb. 6:1)
It has been said that faith and repentance are two sides of the same coin. True saving faith is penitent faith. True saving repentance is believing repentance. A penitent man without faith in Christ is lost. A man who professes to believe in Christ yet clings to his sin with no remorse is equally lost.
Some years ago, a man was convicted of murder and sentenced to death. As he waited on death row, his brother obtained a pardon from the governor of the state. The brother brought the pardon in his coat pocket to the prison. He asked his brother, “What would you do if you received a full pardon and you went free?” His guilty brother replied: “I would track down the judge who sentenced me and kill him. Then I would find the chief witness and kill him too.” The brother left with the pardon still in his pocket.
“Except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.”
David A. Oliver is the pastor of Ashley Baptist Church in Belding, MI.