A few posts ago I really hammered down on my belief that a professed faith in Jesus Christ is the only way to salvation and an eternal life with God, our Father.
That post began an exchange with "Anonymous", and the distinction between faith in Jesus Christ, and needing to have repentance in conjunction with that faith.
I believe that professed faith alone is enough for eternal salvation.
"Anonymous" believes that without repentance, salvation is incomplete.
I think this is a GREAT discussion, and I invite any of you to join in!
Read here for the background.
To be clear, I do believe that repentance is part of the life of a Christ follower.
However, I see repentance as a gift (Acts 5:31).
When I realize the need for repentance, and I humble myself to repentance, I am separated from my sin as far as the east is separated from the west (Psalm 103:12).
PS: If this post interests you, I encourage you to also read this post.
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9 comments:
Well, my friend, this is indeed an interesting discussion! "Anonymous" is as passionate as you are, and I think you BOTH are right. Let me explain.
I think that when an unbeliever comes to the place where they are ready to make a decision for Christ, it requires that they come to the end of themselves, so to speak. They have to be at a point where they realize that they are, in fact, sinners and that there is nothing they can do to wipe their slate clean by themselves. In the Acts passage that you quote (5:31), it does say that "God exalted him (Christ) to his own right hand as Prince and Savior that he might GIVE repentance and forgiveness of sins to Israel (us). That shows repentance as a gift bought with Christ's blood, just like forgiveness. However, if you look up the word "repentance" in the Easton Bible Dictionary, this is what you find regarding the original Greek for "repentance":
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"Metanoeo, meaning to change one's mind and purpose, as the result of after knowledge. This verb, with (3) the cognate noun metanoia, is used of true repentance, a change of mind and purpose and life, to which remission of sin is promised.
Evangelical repentance consists of (1) a true sense of one's own guilt and sinfulness; (2) an apprehension of God's mercy in Christ; (3) an actual hatred of sin (Psalm 119:128; Job 42:5, 6; 2 Corinthians 7:10) and turning from it to God; and (4) a persistent endeavour after a holy life in a walking with God in the way of his commandments.
The true penitent is conscious of guilt (Psalm 51:4, 9), of pollution (51:5, 7, 10), and of helplessness (51:11; 109:21, 22). Thus he apprehends himself to be just what God has always seen him to be and declares him to be. But repentance comprehends not only such a sense of sin, but also an apprehension of mercy, without which there can be no true repentance (Psalm 51:1; 130:4).
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This is DEEP in the wondrous mysteries of God...He gave us the GIFT to be able to recognize our sin and repent of it, so that we can fully receive the completion of that gift - forgiveness. I love the last two sentences from Easton's, which, to me, is the very epitome of salvation. To God, the work is done, and He already sees and declares us to be coheirs with Christ. Our part of the completion of that work is to stop and recognize that which keeps us from seeing ourselves the way God does...our sin. In order to even begin to grasp the mercy, we have to, at least on some level, see the sin and take responsibility for it. It's impossible to truly take hold of the mercy and forgiveness offered, if you're still lugging around the sin.
I believe that, like John 3:16 says, "whosoever believes in Him will have everlasting life." But I think that if you're TRULY at a place of complete submission and surrender of your life to God, you HAVE to also be at the point where you realize that you're bankrupt by your own efforts and blunders. You are naturally in a repentant place. So, in my opinion, they go hand in hand...you can't truly be repentant without grasping mercy; the fact that you can't do anything to save yourself. Conversely, you can't really grasp mercy unless you are at the end of yourself, you're making a mess of things and recognizing your need for help!
Once you have that initial time of repentance and acceptance of mercy, the Holy Spirit comes to reside in you, continuing to bring to light the areas that need to continue to be confessed. The more we delve into God's righteousness and holiness, the more we are motivated to strive for it ourselves and live more sanctified lives. Certainly, we are saved from that initial "sinner's prayer" and profession of faith, but the fruit of our ever-deepening walk will show outwardly by our continued pursuit of holiness.
Thanks for this very stimulating discussion...:o)
Melinda excellent and well communicated. I have found that when I talk to people about Christ and try to make a point or share the good news, generally, you cannot change somebody’s mind and that it will take the power of the Holy Spirit to do the intererior work on their soul. All we can do as Christians is spread the good news that people need Christ. The bad thing is that most people think they are good enough to make it to heaven on their own and do not understand that we are by nature children of wrath and enmities of God. Until one understands that, one will never realize they need a savior.
Thank you,
Thank you, Anonymous, for your kind words. For the record, I do want you to know that I know Amy personally and well. I have absolutely NO DOUBT of the validity of her salvation; that girl is the real deal. I also agree 100% with her (as I believe you do) - there is NO OTHER WAY TO HEAVEN AND ETERNAL LIFE THAN THROUGH JESUS CHRIST, AND THE WORK GOD DID THROUGH HIM ON THE CROSS. I want to be perfectly clear that belief in Jesus as the Son of the Living God is essential, REQUIRED, to receive salvation. My agreement with your stance is this: While one can believe that a good guy named Jesus was murdered on a cross without cause, it is the belief in Him as the sacrifice for our SIN that is key. BIG difference in "belief". If we are believing Him as the Risen Lord and surrendering our lives to him, we are, at that moment, in a state of awareness of our sin - we have to be, or else we wouldn't see the need for a Savior. We come with humble, REPENTANT hearts, acknowledging our helplessness to cleanse ourselves from the sin that separates us from God. Therein, at the time of TRUE BELIEF of Jesus as Savior, there is naturally a time of TRUE REPENTANCE. Belief and repentance join together in one cataclysmic moment that changes our lives and hearts, literally, forever.
P.S. I agree with Amy...you really SHOULD let us know who you are! :o) Thanks for the conversation!
Melinda~
Wow. Thank you so much for jumping into this conversation! As I was having these back and forth blog conversations, I realized that I was getting too close to the conversation, and needed to back up and look at faith/repentance/salvation from a larger perspective. Your comments are EXACTLY what I needed to do that.
Thank you for also seeing me as the 'real deal'. When you and I first met, I believed in Jesus, but I was more in line with 'being a good person' was enough for salvation. It has been an AMAZING journey, and you, as well as so many others, have been a wonderful mentor to me as a friend, a Christ-follower, and as a Mom.
Thank you, my friend!
Repentance, (Turn from your sin) mentioned over 1053 times in the bible is so very importance. I found just a couple more verse’s that I thought pretty much say it all and I promise Amy this will be the last you hear from me on the subject.
Acts 3:19 - Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord
Acts 17:30 Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent,
Luke 13:3 “I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish."
Luke 13:5 “I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish.” Repeated twice
Isaiah 55:6-7 Seek the LORD while He may be found, Call upon Him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his way, And the unrighteous man his thoughts; Let him return to the LORD, And He will have mercy on him; And to our God, For He will abundantly pardon. (The word isn’t use but it sure is stated)
Luke 24:46-47 Then He said to them, “Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the 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 to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.
Just for the record, I will again say, I have never thought that repentance was not important. It is VITALITY important in our walk with Christ. As I said in earlier 'comments', I honestly do not think that you and I disagree. For me, repentance (which I also agree is the turning from sin) is as continuous as prayer. Once I realized the OPPORTUNITY to have Christ alive and in my life, I was humbled, repentant, began an entirely new and rich prayer life with God, thru His son, Christ Jesus. For me, it all, like God, His Son, and the Holy Spirit, are separate, but one.
It has been a GREAT conversation, and I hope you will join in on other posts!
I have to say I think there are too many "Christians by name only" out there. They think that if they just call themselves a Christian they are saved, when in reality they live a very "un-christian" and care free life style. If you truly convert and accept the gift of Christ I think repentance is a must reaction, otherwise I think you missed the boat. Just my very quick 2 cents.
From Mark Main
I will use the term "Repentant Heart"(knowing you are a sinner and can not fix it yourself and turning from your old ways), as opposed to "Legal Repentance" (sorrow merely to avoid punishment).
Having a "Repentant Heart" leads you to TRULY accept Jesus as your one and only Savior, etching your name in "The Lamb's Book of Life."
But it is not the "Repentant Heart" that saves, only the shed blood of Jesus can wash away your sins.
Keeping a "Repentant Heart" is part of being a true "Disciple" of Jesus.
Jesus said ("Come Follow Me!) He was asking people to turn away from their old lives and literally follow him, walk with him, be like him. But just following him did not save them. They needed total "Faith" in Jesus as the Messiah to be saved. Jesus had to suffer so we could be saved.
I believe a "Repentant Heart" is a gift from God allowing you to humble yourself and accept THE GIFT OF SALVATION.
So go be a Disciple and "Walk in the dust of THE Rabbi, Jesus." It is not easy, but the reward is worth it.
Repentance and Faith – turning and trusting. Amy I believe you are right; we have come 360 degrees and are saying just about the same thing. It took some twisting and turning but I believe God opened this door to open some eyes (mine included) for better understanding of what repentance and faith are all about.
For our next blog shell we tackle Evangelism, the Sovereignty of God and man’s free will, one of my favorites. Okay maybe not now but possibly some time down the road.
Thanks to all who joined the blog and contributed to the discussions, it has been a pleasure and hopefully beneficial to others who may read it. If it helps lead one other person to Christ then we have done a good thing.
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