The Characteristics of True Repentance

There is both indifference and hostility toward repentance even though it is a centerpiece of the Christian gospel to put it in perspective, that's not anything new. This disinterest this assault on the doctrine of repentance started long ago. The penalty for sin and salvation in Christ alone. No doubt you are familiar with those elements of the gospel message but what about the issue of repentance.

What exactly does it mean to repent and can you be a Christian without repenting. Those are essential questions and John MacArthur start answering them today in his message. The characteristics of true repentance on grace to you now before the lesson John here we are again with the new year stretched out in front of us and as our listeners gear up for 2022.

What would your prayer be for them in terms of their spiritual health and spiritual growth made obvious.

It is the general prayer that the people of God would grow in grace and the knowledge of Jesus Christ. That said, that's obviously our goal that believers would go from being spiritual children who know the father to spiritual young men who no sound doctrine to spiritual fathers who know him who is from the beginning. The deep knowledge of God. We pray that the believers who are listening to this ministry and in a part of our family would find the word of God to do its wonderful work in growing them into Christ likeness. That is our prayer, but as a part of that prayer would be more specific and say this. It seems to me that we all have to agree, the things are going to get better. You can't turn this thing around. This is the Titanic and there's a there's a rip in the side of the cultural ship and it's it's going down. We need to be manning the lifeboats in that sense and not rearranging the deck chairs is no sense in rearranging the furniture, there's no sense in being preoccupied with superficial things, even good things, but not the most urgent things.

If the ship is sinking the most urgent thing is to cry out to people about where to go, to be delivered from the impending doom and as I as I was saying yesterday. It's time for us to proclaim eternal judgment is coming and it can't be avoided unless you put your trust in Jesus Christ.

The church needs to stop trying to court the world and make the world feel good and accommodate the world and develop a kind of because I Christianity that is acceptable to the doomed people of the world and declare to them that they are headed for eternal judgment. That judgment is imminent and it is everlasting and that we need to cry out to them with a level of desperation as they sink into the darkness and warn them.

The only rescue is through this salvation is offered in Jesus Christ is the only lifeboat that can deliver you from the inevitable doom.

That's right. Salvation in Jesus Christ. The only way to permanent peace and everlasting joy. But what does it look like to receive salvation and how can you make sure you are preaching the same gospel, our Lord did find out now. As John begins his lesson on the characteristics of true repentance. There seems to be today a great indifference toward the matter of repentance. In some cases there is even a hostility toward the issue of repentance is not fashionable to preach a gospel that demands that men and women turn from sin, that kind of preaching is very rare today and very often frowned upon. There is both indifference and hostility toward repentance even though it is a centerpiece of the Christian gospel but to put in perspective that's not anything new.

This disinterest this assault on the doctrine of repentance started long ago.

In fact, we can go back. For example, to the year 1937, 1937, some 60 years ago, and in 1937 there was a formidable preacher in America by the name of Dr. Harry a Ironside Ironside wrote a book called except you repent and in it he said this, the doctrine of repentance is the missing note in many otherwise Orthodox and fundamentally sound circles today.

Further, he said there are professed preachers of grace, who like the antinomian's of old decried the necessity of repentance, lest it seemed to invalidate the freedoms of grace" Ironside, was recognizing in his day the dangers of an incipient easy believe is him. He said there were preachers of grace and certainly grace is a good subject to preach, who were like antinomian's that's a word that refers to people at a low regard for the law of God. They were like antinomian's of old and they thought that if you preach repentance, you are somehow invalidating the freedoms of grace and so for the sake of grace the preservation of grace.

They eliminated repentance, believing it to be an intrusion. Since that time in the 30s until this very day. There has been a continual effort to strip the gospel of repentance in the pragmatic movement which is inimitable to our times in the 80s and the 90s. This has also occurred because too much preaching about sin and repentance tends to irritate people and drive them away from responding to the gospel and so repentance has fallen on hard times in spite of the fact that it is at the very core of our Christian faith and of the very core of ours salvation personally. In fact, you go to the beginning of the New Testament and start reading. You read a few chapters and you arrive at the first preacher or maybe better. The last preacher of the Old Testament. The first preacher in the new John the Baptist and he has a simple message. It goes like this, repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

That was the one word that dominated John's preaching and when the Jews came to see me preach repentance and said bring forth fruit unto repentance.

He was followed by the one he told the people was coming, the Messiah, Jesus and Jesus message was the same as John's, Jesus came and preached repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. He called sinners to repentance. In the 14th chapter of acts. There is a sweeping ministry of Paul that begins in Paul like Peter preached repentance, you find it all through the book of acts.

Paul wrote the book of Romans in chapter 2 verse four, talked about repentance, wrote to the Corinthians 2nd Corinthians chapter 7 talked about repentance. It was the message not only of the Gospels and the message of the book of acts and the message of Paul. It was also the message of Peter in his epistle.

Second Peter 39 the Lord is not slow about his promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance for all to come to repentance.

Repentance is a requirement. In fact, Jesus said in Luke 13 he said it twice, once in verse three and again in verse five unless you repent you will all likewise perish. Perish. Repentance then is a crucial element.

We cannot understand the gospel.

We cannot rightly believe the gospel. We certainly cannot proclaim the gospel unless we understand the matter of repentance and the widespread diffidence toward repentance causes me to want to draw dependent repentance, as it were up out of the darkness a little bit and shine the light on it so that we can understand the centrality of it and the significance of it. When you go back in the history of the church and I'll give you a little bit of a flow so that you know I'm a standing and some FastCompany when I exalt the doctrine of repentance. When you go back in the history of the church you find a great concern about the matter of repentance. It was clear for example, in the second century. In the year 151.

A man named Clement lived. He wrote an epistle, a second of his epistles that he wrote in this epistle.

He expresses grave concern about the doctrine of repentance being at the center of the Christian gospel. Now he was only about 50 years after the writing of the last New Testament book which would've been the book of Revelation written about 90 60 54 years later or so Clement writes this. Let us not merely call him Lord, for that will not save us, for he says not everyone who says to me Lord Lord will be saved, but he who does what is right and thus brothers. Let us acknowledge him by our actions by our actions. And that's exactly the issue. There must be something in the life that is dramatically different. It's not enough to say something there must be a turning, there must be a change. It was in the middle of the 17th century. In the 1640s that we moved to another monumental moment century after the Reformation began in the great minds of the church got together to form what is known as the Westminster shorter catechism the 17th century. They wrote that catechism.

It was edited and updated through the years, a 1674 version of the Westminster shorter catechism asked this question. What is repentance on the life this is what they said in the Westminster shorter catechism. Here's the answer, repentance onto life is a saving grace whereby a sinner out of a true sense of his sin and apprehension of the mercy of God in Christ does with grief and hatred of his sin turn from it onto God with full purpose of an endeavor. After new obedience."

As just a great state. I don't how one could improve on it even though it is in excess of 300 years old.

The Westminster shorter catechism then asked to further questions. What is the turning from sin, which is part of true repentance.

The answer comes the turning from sin, which is a part of true repentance consists in two things, one interning from all gross sins in regard of our course in conversation that your life and speech to in a turning from all other sins in regard of our hearts and affections so said the catechism a true repentance consists interning from external sins of conduct and turning from in eternal sins of affection and heart attitude, then the question came does such a truly does, such as truly repent of sin never return again under the practice of the same sins which they have repented of the question is is this like a once for all thing and once you repented, you never go back. Here's the answer, such as have truly repented of sin do never return. Under the practice of it, so as to live in a course of sin as they did before and where any after repentance. Do return unto a course of sin.

It is evident, a sign that there repentance was not of the right kind to some have truly repented of their sins although they may be overtaken and surprised by temptations so as to fall into the commission of the same sins which they have repented of yet they do not lie in them but get up again and with bitter grief. The whale them and return again unto the Lord's great definition. Great statement. Repentance, then summarizing consist chiefly of two things turning from sin and forsaking it and turning to God.

We know that someone is truly done that because it shows up in their life in their course and conversation on the outside in their affections and in their heart on the inside. Do they ever send the sins of which they have repented not as a constant course of life. If they do, then there repentance was not of the truest kind, but it is possible as so well said for some to have truly repented of their sins and still be overtaken and surprised by temptations so as to fall into the commission of the same sins which they repented of yet they do not lie in them but get up again and with bitter grief. The whale them and return again unto the Lord. That's repentance can preach the gospel without preaching.

There is no gospel without repentance, the great British Puritan Thomas Goodwin wrote this where morning for offending God is lacking where it's absent. There is no sign of any goodwill yet wrought in the heart toward God, nor of love to him without which God will never accept the man great state. If you don't see morning for offending God in the life of an individual's is good when there is no sign of any goodwill yet wrought in the heart toward God, nor of love to him. So where you have true repentance. There is bitterness and there is sadness moving a few hundred years later we come to the great preacher of London Charles Spurgeon and he said it is strongly as possible. Listen to what Spurgeon said from his pulpit about repentance. There must be a true and actual abandonment of sin and turning on to righteousness in real act and deed in everyday life repentance, to be sure must be entire how many will say, sir, I will renounce this sin and the other but there are certain darling lusts, which I must keep and hold both servers in God's name.

Let me tell you it is not the giving up of one sin, nor 50 sins which is true repentance.

It is the sole renunciation of every sin and remember this repentance is not something that you can do on your own. It is a grace God grants second Timothy 225 says God grants repentance. Acts 1118 Peter said that God had granted repentance to the Gentiles is the grace of repentance that God works in the heart. It is the companion to belief from his first message to his last Jesus himself called sinners to repent. He called sinners to turn from their sin was more than just that they would change their mind about who he was, was that they would turn from sin, and follow him. And then when he gave the great commission were familiar with Matthew's account of the great commission about going into all the world and baptizing in teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you may even be familiar with Mark's version, but it's Luke's version of the great commission. It's important for us to Luke 2447 Jesus said, repentance should be preached when you go preach repentance preach repentance call on sinners to turn from their sins. Religion without repentance is meaningless. Repentance is absolutely at the very heart of the Christian gospel now for just a few moments. Let me talk about repentance by way of a biblical understanding just several things to think about number one.

Repentance is an element within saving faith try to say these things in a brief and concise way that captures the idea.

It is an element within saving faith is not the same as believing are people today who would want to take repentance and make it nothing more than a synonym for believing they they think it means nothing more than just changing your mind about who Jesus is now believing that he's God, but repentance is not just another word for faith. It's not just another word for believing, but it is inseparable from believing it isn't the same as but it is inseparable from, they go together as the theologian Louis Burke offset his complimentary parts of the same process there back to back. Like two sides of the coin.

They are inseparable but they are required for true salvation. What does repentance mean what what is it, it is as an element of saving faith best understood to be a turning it literally means to have an afterthought, and be thinking one way and change your thought that's that would be the simplistic meaning of the components of the work.

However, the biblical meaning is much beyond an afterthought, even secularly it came to mean a turning a transition of stopping and going in the opposite direction from a biblical standpoint, it always appears as a specific turning from sin toward God turning from sin toward God is a changing your mind about your life about your sin, it always speaks of a change of purpose, a change of direction specifically connected with a turning from sin toward God from sin toward righteousness in the sense that Jesus used it. He was calling for a repudiation of the old sinful life and a turning to God or a new and righteous life in first Thessalonians. There is a very simple and straightforward expression of repentance.

In chapter 1 verse nine where Paul commends the Thessalonians as true believers because they turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, they turned to God, which meant they turn from the evils of idols to serve God. That's repentance it's turning from sin to God is an essential element of saving faith, though it is not the faith itself. It is an inseparable component in saving faith. Secondly, it is a redirection of the will. The best way to understand.

I think now that you know it is an element of saving faith is to see it as a redirection of the will faith apprehend something is true repentance redirects the will, where the will has hanker after sin where the will has pursued lost the lust of the flesh, the less the eyes part of life where the will has been driven toward those things that fulfill the flesh.

Those things that allure in the world where there is real repentance associated with saving faith. The will is completely redirected is not just being sad about your sin is not just feeling sorry that you got caught. There is in genuine repentance remorse there is in genuine repentance of bitterness and a sorrow and a hatred of sin, but there is also a redirection of the human will. That is to say you could be very sorry about your sin very sad about your sin feel awful about your sin adjuster to wallow in that that does not constitute repentance. Repentance is when the will is redirected and all of a sudden the dominant choices and the purposeful choices of life are toward righteousness and virtue, and what is good and holy just in pure, that's repentance. It is an element of saving faith in that it is a sorrow over sin. It is also a redirection of the will and that that sorrow turns into the longing to make choices toward righteousness. Some people say we know, if you tell sinners to repent.

If you preach repentance you're asking to do some they can do and so they say are you asking people to to do some pre-salvation work to get their life in order so that God will save them. Is this called a repentance or call the people to stop sitting on the spot and if you'll just stop sinning and start doing what's right God will save you not on your life who could do that in the leper changes spots. No, the heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked nobodies going to change that no human you can't do that repentance is not a pre-salvation attempt to set your life in order. Repentance is a component of saving faith, which, like saving faith is a great gracious work of God, but we call on sinners to repent, because that work is not apart from their response, we call them to believe we call on them to repent. Because that's what the Bible tells us to do we give invitations to sinners to turn their back on their sin and to embrace Christ with wholehearted devotion now, this redirection of the will has some components. First of all its intellectual is intellectually begins with the recognition I want you to get this because very important. It begins with the recognition of sin as an affront to God.

You're not going to get redirected until you understand the seriousness of cenobite. I don't mean just that sin messes up your life and boost up your your life and create complications in this world and causes stress and anxiety, know that although it does do that you really will come to a true repentance when you understand more than a personal consequence of sin. When you understand the divine consequences when you understand that you are an affront to a holy God, and there are immense consequence to that effrontery. That's what has to be contained in understood and proclaimed in the gospel that a sinner is not just messing up his own life in Jesus can fix it but a sinner has put himself in enmity with the holy God and the consequences are frightening and terrifying.

When I begin to understand elects intellectually that my sin is my sin and it is an affront to a holy God, and that I am personally and singularly responsible for my guilt, don't blame anybody.

No one is to blame, but you when I come to the recognition that I am a sinner and that that has immense and eternal consequences before holy God. And I want to avoid those consequence and I want blessing for cursing. Then I'm intellectually prepared for repentance, then it becomes emotional goes from being intellectual motion to produce a sorrow and shame and then that begins to move the will that it becomes volitional finally brings about a turning as God works it in the heart, a willingness not only a willingness but I believe a determination to abandon stubborn patterns of sinful disobedience and pursue the will of God pursue the will of Christ. As such, it produces a transformed life coming up to the modern time in history we read from Martyn Lloyd Jones. Repentance means that you realize you're guilty, file a sinner in the presence of God that you deserve the wrath and punishment of God that you are hell bound. That means you begin to realize at this thing called sin is in you that you long to get rid of it that you turn your back on it in every shape and form you renounce the world, whatever the cost the world in its mind and outlook as well as its practice and you deny yourself and take up the cross and go after Christ.

Your nearest and dearest in the whole world may call you a fool or say you have religious mania. You may have to suffer financially, but it makes no difference that is repentance. It launches you into a new disposition and a new life as possible because of the cross is not join me in prayer. Father, we realize that repentance is not something we just did when we were say. But it's an ongoing reality in our lives as the catechism says there are times when we are tempted. We are surprisingly fallback in the very patterns of sin we had repented of but we hate those patterns and we rise again and return to you. Thank you for working at work in our hearts through the cross. Through faith in the crucified Christ that that repentance becomes a transforming and were made in the new creations and old things passed away and everything is new. I pray for the repentance of those have not yet truly repented who have not abandon everything and willingly forsaken offer Christ. They would do that thank you that you receive repentance. Sinners through the sacrifice of your son, who died for the repent or's bless us now as we contemplate this great reality of the cross. You're listening to Grace to you with John MacArthur's lesson today showed you the characteristics of true repentance, and our friend, a quick reminder this is the last day to make a tax-deductible donation for 2021 know that any financial support you send will translate into verse by verse teaching in your community and in so many other neighborhoods around the world. So before 2022 begins. Consider making a donation and helping us take biblical teaching to spiritually hungry people every day of the new year. Get in touch today to be tax deductible for 2021. Your credit card donation needs to be made online before 11:59 PM Pacific time tonight to make your gift. Just go to TTY.org that's TTY.org you can also donate by check. Just make sure it's postmarked today December 31 mailing address is grace to you.

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Again, that's box 4000 panorama city, CA 91412 when you visit TTY.remember that you can download any of John's more than 3500 sermons, including today's lesson on the characteristics of true repentance. You can also tap into a wide range of other Bible study to that includes daily devotionals our blog with articles by John and the staff sermon transcript and streaming video agrees to you television will find all of that and more@ourwebsitetty.org now for John MacArthur and the entire staff here at Grace to you. I'm Phil Johnson. Wishing you, God's richest blessings in the new year and make sure you tune in Monday and all of next week. As John shows you how to live for God's glory be here for a brand-new year of unleashing God's truth one verse at a time on racing. You