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. Living
Hope Fellowship Church
Basic Bible Study Course
REPENTANCE
LESSON
#4 (Part #1)
You must
humble yourself and repent to be saved. Webster's Dictionary
says that in religious usage, to REPENT is to feel so contrite
over one's sins as to change, or decide to change, one's ways.
The Father
draws you and you hear the gospel. If you believe the message
of repentance unto salvation, then you must acknowledge your
need for God and confess your sins to him. You are sorry and
you call upon him in prayer, asking God to forgive you. As
Christians, we are to continue in Christ and grow in grace
(1 Timothy 4:16 & 2 Peter 3:18). a. Our salvation comes through
Jesus. He is the mediator between God and us. In his mercy,
God draws us to him by his spirit. Read Luke 24:46-47.
Jesus
saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no
man cometh unto the Father, but by me. John 14:6.
For there
is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man
Christ Jesus; 1 Timothy 2:5.
No man
can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw
him: and I will raise him up at the last day. John 6:44.
For God
so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that
whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting
life. John 3:16. b. It is God's goodness and longsuffering
that leads us to repentance. It is by God's mercy and grace
we get saved. Read Ezra 9:13, 2 Peter 3:9, and Psalm 119:124.
(4) Or
despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance
and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth
thee to repentance? (5) But after thy hardness and impenitent
heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of
wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God; Romans
2:4-5.
(8) For
by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves:
it is the gift of God: (9) Not of works, lest any man should
boast. Ephesians 2:8-9.
c. The
Bible says that all have sinned. Therefore, since all have
sinned, all must repent. Read Romans 11:32.
For all
have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Romans 3:23.
For the
wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Romans 6:23.
For we
must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every
one may receive the things done in his body, according to
that he hath done, whether it be good or bad. 2 Corinthians
5:10.
d. The first message Jesus preached was repentance. Read Matthew
4:17 and Mark 1:15.
e. The
twelve apostles preached repentance. Read Mark 6:7-13.
f. The
first message on the day of Pentecost was REPENT (Acts 2:38).
g. God
commands repentance. Read Acts 17:30.
h. Preachers
are required to preach repentance of sins until the world
ends. God does not lie (Numbers 23:19) nor does he change
(Malachi 3:6). His Word does not change (Psalm 119:89). Read
Matthew 28:16-20 and Philippians 1:6.
(38)
Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one
of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins,
and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. (39) For
the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all
that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall
call. Acts 2:38-39.
(13)
For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be
saved. (14) How then shall they call on him in whom they have
not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they
have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?
Romans 10:13-14.
I. God
gave his only begotten Son that men would repent of sin and
turn back to him. There is great joy in heaven when sinners
repent. Read Luke 15, Luke 5:32, Luke 15:7, and Luke 15:10.
GODLY
SORROW
(10)
For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be
repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death. (11)
For behold this selfsame thing, that ye sorrowed after a godly
sort, what carefulness it wrought in you, yea, what clearing
of yourselves, yea, what indignation, yea, what fear, yea,
what vehement desire, yea, what zeal, yea, what revenge! In
all things ye have approved yourselves to be clear in this
matter. 2 Corinthians 7:10-11.
In verse
11 it speaks of seven things that show that godly sorrow has
produced true repentance in your life. They are:
1. CAREFULNESS-Because
you "sorrowed after a godly sort", you are going to be more
careful to be right and do right. Sin causes suffering and
guilt is miserable.
2. CLEARING
OF YOURSELVES-You came out from under the condemnation of
the devil and the guilt of sin because you were sorry and
repented. True repentance will lead you to complete deliverance
from the devil. You can be restored to a clear mind and clean
heart.
3. INDIGNATION-You
are angry with yourself for sinning and angry with the devil
for deceiving you. The devil wants us all in hell.
4. FEAR-You
are afraid to sin again because you know the power of God
and if He had not drawn you to repent (John 6:44), you would
have continued in sin and would have gone to hell. Luke 12:5
says, "But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear: Fear him,
which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea,
I say unto you, Fear him."
5. VEHEMENT
DESIRE-You repented and are a new creature in Christ. You
have great joy and a hunger for the things of God. "Blessed
are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for
they shall be filled." Matthew 5:6.
6. ZEAL-God
gives you a zeal to serve Him. Give him your life and your
best. Romans 12:11 says, "Not slothful in business; fervent
in spirit; serving the Lord;"
7. REVENGE-You
want revenge on the devil for making you miserable and for
trying to get you into hell. It's time to help destroy his
kingdom. We are followers of Christ and He came to destroy
the works of the devil. Read 1 John 3:8.
TRUE REPENTANCE
is not just feeling conviction, not worldly sorrow, not reformation,
not being religious, not just mentally accepting salvation.
Read Psalm chapter 51 for an example of true repentance. Read
also Luke 15:11-24 about the prodigal son.
1. Acknowledge
your sin.
For I
acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me.
Psalm 51:3. (sinner speaking)
I will
go and return to my place, till they acknowledge their offence,
and seek my face: in their affliction they will seek me early.
Hosea 5:15. (God speaking)
2. Godly
sorrow for sin. Refer back to 2 Corinthians 7:10-11.
3. Confession
of sin.
(5) This
then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare
unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at
all. (6) If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk
in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: (7) But if we walk
in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one
with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth
us from all sin. (8) If we say that we have no sin, we deceive
ourselves, and the truth is not in us. (9) If we confess our
sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and
to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (10) If we say that
we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not
in us. 1 John 1:5-10.
My little
children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not.
And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus
Christ the righteous: 1 John 2:1.
He that
covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth
and forsaketh them shall have mercy. Proverbs 28:13.
4. Forsaking
of sin. Read Proverbs 28:13 again.
Let not
sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey
it in the lusts thereof. Romans 6:12.
(16)
Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings
from before mine eyes; cease to do evil; (18) Come now, and
let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be
as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be
red like crimson, they shall be as wool. Isaiah 1:16 & 18.
5. Hatred
of sin. Read Ezekiel 36:31.
Wherefore
I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes. Job 42:6.
Ye that
love the Lord, hate evil: he preserveth the souls of his saints;
he delivereth them out of the hand of the wicked. Psalm 97:10.
6. Fruit
of repentance. Fruit of repentance is manifested when you
are truly sorry. You will change. We are saved by faith, not
works, but your works show the change Jesus made in you when
he made you a new creature. Read Romans 6:6, 1 Corinthians
15:51-52, Colossians 3:9-10, Hebrews 4:13, Ephesians 4:22.
Bring
forth therefore fruits meet for repentance: Matthew 3:8.
But wilt
thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead? James
2:20.
Therefore
if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things
are passed away; behold, all things are become new. 2 Corinthians
5:17.
And that
ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness
and true holiness. Ephesians 4:24.
7. Restitution
given when possible. Read Leviticus 6:1-7 and Luke 19:8-9.
8. Water
baptism should follow repentance. If you have repented and
believe that God has forgiven your sins, you should obey Christ.
Read Luke 3:3.
He that
believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth
not shall be damned. Mark 16:16.
TIME TO
REPENT
God is
merciful to sinners in giving them a space to repent. God
knows every situation and is a righteous and a fair judge.
Read 1 Corinthians 10:12-13.
a. NOW
is the time to repent.
(For
he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the
day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is the
accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.) 2 Corinthians
6:2.
b. God
gives a space to repent.
And I
gave her space to repent of her fornication: and she repented
not. Revelation 2:21.
c. Some
harden their hearts by continuously rejecting the call of
God to repent. When God quits dealing with you, he cuts you
off and then you are unable to repent. It is God that draws
you to salvation (John 6:44). After you die, it is too late
to repent. Read Proverbs 29:1 and Romans 1:28.
For ye
know how that afterward, when he would have inherited the
blessing, he was rejected; for he found no place of repentance,
though he sought it carefully with tears. Hebrews 12:17.
And as
it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:
Hebrews 9:27.
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Hope Fellowship, Inc.
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