Repent and Believe the Gospel

1. Repent
Repentance means being truly sorry for one's current sinful condition and the act of breaking and turning away from such sinful lifestyle through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ for remission and forgiveness of sins (John 3:16; Acts 16:31; Romans 10:9-10).

It is a determined decision to live a righteous life dedicated to the glory and honour of God (Titus 2:11-12)

Without repentance there is no salvation, neither is there forgiveness of sins. Godly repentance is not an emotional action. It is an action that stems from the heart as a result of the Holy Spirit's convictions.

2 Corinthians 10:7 "For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of..."

Proverbs 28:13 "He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy."

Acts 2:37 tells us that the multitude who were listening to the sermon on the day of Pentecost by Peter the apostle 'were pricked to their heart' and asked him what they are to do. To which Peter replied as follows in the next verse "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."

Part of the Holy Spirit's work is to convict the world of sin, righteousness and judgement (John 16:. The conviction of sin leads to repentance. Repentance is essential before the salvation experience. As seen in 2 Corinthians 10:7 and Proverbs 28:13 above and the passages below this paragraph, without repentance from an individual there can be no salvation for that individual. Many therefore who profess to be saved are not actually saved because based on the true meaning of salvation, they must repent of their sins before salvation can take place in their lives. Many therefore in most of our churches today can best be described as unrepentant 'believers'. It is important to note that many pastors and leaders in the church of today fall under this category of unrepentant believers. The reason we have a lot of sinners in the church, rather than saints.

Matthew 3:1-2
In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea, And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

Matthew 4:17
From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

Mark 1:15
And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.

When sending out His 12 disciples in Mark 6, His mandate to them was to preach repentance. Mark 6:12 "And they went out, and preached that men should repent."

The early apostles preached the same gospel in Acts 3:19 "Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord.

2. Believe the Gospel
It is the person who has repented of his or her sins and has been forgiven who is able to believe the gospel. When a person believes the gospel, it implies that he or she has accepted the Person of Christ as Lord and personal Saviour. Such a person will identify with and accept the teachings of Christ, the early apostles and the prophets as written in the Bible. He will build upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the Chief Corner Stone (Ephesians 2:20). He will not select and choose the Word of God to obey and those to remove. He will know that "All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works." (2 Timothy 3:16-17).

The one who believes the gospel will live in sanctification (not walk into it) as the Word of God thoroughly washes and sets him or her apart for a continual walk with God and work for God (John 17:17; Ephesians 5:26-27; 2 Corinthians 3:18; 1 John 1:7).

The one who believes the gospel will not compromise God's righteous standards, neither will he love the world nor the things that are there unto (1 John 2:15-17; James 4:4; John 15:18-20; Matthew 10:22; Luke 6:26; John 16:2). He or she will be willing to suffer for His Name's sake and pay the ultimate price if need be (Matthew 5:10-12; Acts 7:54-60; Acts 21:13).

Conclusion
Somebody who has truly repented and believes the gospel will no longer live in sin, because sin no longer rules nor has dominion over him (Romans 6:14). He remembers at all times that he has been purchased with a price and must therefore glorify God in his body and his spirit which now belong to God (1 Corinthians 6:20).

A life of righteousness becomes the rule not the exception. Whenever he sins and the Holy Spirit convicts him of such sins, he is always willing to repent and turn away from such, no matter how gratifying and innocent looking such sins might appear. He makes no excuses for them and is always eager to be restored into fellowship with the Holy Spirit.

Do you say that you are a believer and yet you practise sin? But you are very sad with the state of affairs in your life. It is time for you to go to the cross of Christ for grace. Be determined never to go back to the world. Are there relationships that have to be severed? You must be willing to severe same immediately. Are there places you go to that make you to compromise your Christian faith? You must stop going there. Is it your job that makes you to sin against God? Then you stop doing that job. There is nothing in the world that is worth keeping at the detriment of our salvation. Our Lord Jesus Christ forewarns us in the following passages:

Mark 9:43
And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched:

Matthew 10:37-39
He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me. He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it.

Mark 8:36-37
For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?

Brethren think on these things. Like the Lord Jesus Christ says in John 13:17 “If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them.”

God bless you.