One Of The Most Misunderstood Words In The Bible

It is the word, “Repent”

Sadly, the word "repent" is one of the most misunderstood words in the inspired Word of God. Most people think it means to turn from sin, or to be sorry for sin, or to be willing to turn from sin. But concerning salvation, repentance DOES NOT mean any of that. Repent means to change one’s mind. What must a person change their mind about to be saved? Is it change their mind about their sinning and to stop sinning (or be willing to turn from their sins)? NO, NO, AND NO. Well then, what must a lost person change their mind about TO BE saved? The context of the repentance verse will tell what the change of mind is about.

I think Michael P. Bowen, in his excellent defense of the Christian faith titled, I NEVER KNEW YOU, says it best:

I am at eternal odds with the false, counterfeit messages of salvation-by-works that are taught from virtually every pulpit today, on every television channel, and on every Christian radio station; however, I am not at eternal odds with the individuals who preach these counterfeit messages. My heart literally goes out to all of them because they simply do not understand Christ’s plan of salvation. They have been lied to by a crafty enemy named Satan, whose sole aim is to take as many people with him to the lake of fire as he can possibly manage to steal away from God using a counterfeit plan of salvation that appears so real, so genuine, and so holy that few ever realize they have been deceived by it. Oh reader, so many of today’s professing Christians who think they are going to heaven when they die are not going to make it to heaven as they had assumed because they’ve been lied to by today’s error-filled gospel messages.

SOURCE: Michael Patrick Bowen, I NEVER KNEW YOU, p. 17; © 2009, Xulonpress.com; Hard Copies Available

Repentance is not a separate act from faith, although they are not the same thing. Here is the best quote that I've found on repentance, by Pastor Harry A. Ironside (1876-1951):

“Which comes first, repentance or faith? In Scripture we read, 'Repent ye, and believe the gospel.' Yet we find true believers exhorted to 'repent, and do the first works.' So intimately are the two related that you cannot have one without the other. The man who believes God repents; the repentant soul puts his trust in the Lord when the Gospel is revealed to him. Theologians may wrangle over this, but the fact is, no man repents until the Holy Spirit produces repentance in his soul through the truth. No man believes the Gospel and rests in it for his own salvation until he has judged himself as a needy sinner before God. And this is repentance.” ('Except Ye Repent,' p. 16)

The only thing that we need to repent from to be saved is UNBELIEF. Do we have to realize our sinful condition to be saved? Yes, of course, but there is not one verse in the entire inspired Holy Bible which requires a person to forsake sinning to be saved.

Nor does the Bible give anyone God's permission to commit sin just because they are saved (Romans 3:31, 5:20, 6:1). Every time Jesus forgave someone and healed them He AFTERWARDS said to them, “Go and sin no more.” John 5:14, “Afterward Jesus findeth him in the temple, and said unto him, Behold, thou art made whole: sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto thee.” I personally think that this man had once commit a sin (perhaps a sexual sin) that caused his physical ailment. I humbly think the dear Lord was warning him not to do the same sinful thing again, lest he end up even worse off than before!

Repentance simply means “a change of mind.” Believers change our minds every day about all kinds of things, including the sins in our life. Repenting of sins throughout one's Christian life is solely a matter of DISCIPLESHIP, not SALVATION. It is a matter of growing in the Lord's grace (1st Peter 2:2), as we yield to the Holy Spirit's leading in obedience to the Holy Scriptures (2nd Corinthians 10:5; Galatians 5:22-25).

For example: Jesus said in Mark 1:15b, “Repent ye, and believe the gospel.” He told them that they needed to change their mind to believe the Gospel. What was the change of mind about? Well, what did they have to change their mind about to believe the Gospel? The change of mind was either about their unbelief or about the Gospel itself. But either way, if they changed their mind, it would cause them to believe the Gospel.

Acts 20:21 mentions "repentance toward God." That’s a change of mind toward God. Jesus is God (1st Timothy 3:16 KJV). To be saved, we must change our mind about who Jesus is, and put our faith in him. Jesus is God, “who is the Saviour of all men, specially of those that believe” (1st Timothy 4:10b).

A changed life is the FRUIT of the indwelling Holy Spirit, and NOT a prerequisite to salvation or a part of saving-faith. Proponents of Lordship Salvation place the cart before the horse and have it all backwards. They frontload the Gospel, requiring all the mature aspects of a believer's life upfront. This is not the Gospel, it is bad religion.

In Mark 1:4, John the Baptist speaks of “...repentance for the remission of sins”; NOT “repentance of sins.” Acts 20:21 reads... “Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ." Notice that Biblical repentance is “TOWARD GOD.” In Acts 11:21 we read, “And the hand of the Lord was with them: and a great number believed, and turned unto the Lord.” So you see, in the Bible “repentance” was always “TOWARD GOD,” never from sin. A man may have to repent from the denial of his sins, so that he will BELIEVE THE GOSPEL, but there is no Biblical requirement to “turn from sins” to be saved.

Consider the following quote by the mighty man of God, Dr. Harry Ironside (1876-1951)...

"Repentance is the recognition of my sinnership — the owning before God that I am as vile as He has declared me to be in His holy Word."

SOURCE: 'Except Ye Repent,' by Dr. Harry Ironside, chapter 3

This is vastly different than actually ceasing from one's sin to be saved, which is a false gospel. Pastor Ironside is correct — repentance is simply realizing that one is a guilty, dirty, rotten, hopeless sinner in God's eyes. This is why we need a Savior. Thankfully, Jesus paid the price with His own literal precious blood (1st Peter 1:18,19; Hebrews 9:12).

Repentance is the admission that I am as guilty a sinner as a holy God hath declared me to be in His Holy Word (Romans 3:19). This is Biblical repentance... turning to the Lord. To turn towards Jesus Christ in faith for salvation is to turn one's back against sin, even though the person may not be willing to forsake sin at the time of salvation. It is ludicrous for anyone to teach that a lost sinner must give up their sins to be saved. As we saw with Lot and Samson in the Old Testament, and Demas and Peter in the New Testament, not all believers always live for God. Jesus even called the apostle Peter, “Satan” (Matthew 16:23).

Christian author Michael Patrick Bowen states in his excellent book titled, “I NEVER KNEW YOU,” on page 114...

“Repent, as Christ meant it to be in terms of salvation, means to change your mind from trusting in what you can do for God to trusting only in what He can do for you.”

SOURCE: Michael Patrick Bowen, a quote from the awesome book, “I NEVER KNEW YOU” (Page 114)

The beloved Pastor Bob Gray Sr. of the Longview Baptist Temple church in Texas correctly preaches . . .

“Repentance means to change your mind—change your mind—change your mind about how you want to get to Heaven to what God says you've got to do to get to Heaven. If you've got to repent of all your sins, you're still headed for Hell tonight.”

SOURCE: Pastor Bob Gray Sr., a quote from the awesome MP3 sermon, 'Why You Should Be A Part Of A Growing Church'

Pastor Tom Cucuzza makes this tremendous helpful statement:

“The Devil is doing his greatest work behind pulpits. [I] hate to say it, but that's the truth; because people have the presupposition that when you come to church and somebody gets up to speak, that person is speaking truth. That's the way we've been raised.” —Pastor Thomas M. Cucuzza, “Important Truths Satan Does Not Want You to Know”

Lordship Salvation is a LIE STRAIGHT FROM HELL.