12 Repentance and Faith

What Must I DO to be Saved?

Foundational Doctrines

Text:  Psalm 51:1-13

Introduction:

1.      The last six weeks a clear progression of thought has emerged:

a.      Adam willingly chose to sin, passing on a sin nature to all in the human race that would follow him (The Fall of Man)

b.       Because man’s sin nature excludes him for providing any salvation for himself, God had to be incarnated in a manner that would keep Him from inheriting a sin nature (The Virgin Birth).

c.       Since Jesus Christ is God without sin, He is uniquely and exclusively qualified to be the world’s Savior (The Atonement for Sin).

d.       Salvation would be made available to man on the merit of God’s grace, not man’s works (Grace in the New Creation).

e.      Since man’s effort, status, race or ability is irrelevant to his salvation, any man, woman, boy or girl can be saved (The Freeness of Salvation).

f.        Once salvation has been appropriated, God, in a judicial statement, declares that individual to be righteous (Justification).

g.       Now this week we ask a simple question like the Philippian jailer put to Paul and Silas: “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” (Repentance and Faith)

2.      Repentance and faith are not synonymous but inseparably related.

a.      Like two sides of the same sheet of paper.

b.       Like two sides on the same coin. . . 

You can no more have faith without repentance than you can have a coin without both sides.

3.      In the passage we read this morning there is a pattern of Godly repentance.

a.      This song was written by King David after his adulterous affair with Bathsheba. (2 Samuel 11:1-12:24)

b.       At first David thought he could hide his sin.

c.       When approached by his friend and spiritual confidant he admitted his guilt.

d.       In fact, David was filled with remorse because he sinned against the God whom he, at one time, loved with all his heart.

4.      Our conversion results from

a.      Belief in the truth of the gospel

b.       Followed by repentance from our sin and sinful ways.

c.       And full reliance/faith in the crucified and risen Messiah for justification and newness of life.

I.       Without repentance there is no salvation.

A.      There must be a turning from sin.

1.      Repent means “to turn from.”

2.      Jesus preached repentance from sin.

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

Luke 13:1-5 (NKJV)
1 There were present at that season some who told Him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices.
2 And Jesus answered and said to them, “Do you suppose that these Galileans were worse sinners than all other Galileans, because they suffered such things?
3 I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish.
4 Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, do you think that they were worse sinners than all other men who dwelt in Jerusalem?
5 I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish.”

B.      Notice God’s pattern for repentance

1.      David’s expressed awareness of his sins (vs. 1-3). He refused to face up to his sins until the prophet Nathan’s charge pricked his conscience.

2.      He offered heart-felt confession of sins (vs. 4-5). He acknowledged to the Lord both the specific sins of which he was guilty and his inherently sinful condition.

3.      David showed a true attitude of contrition, reflected by his mention of “a broken spirit” and “broken and contrite heart” (v. 17).

4.      He uttered a prayer for pardon of sins (vs. 7-9), beseeching God to “cleanse” and “wash” him and to “blot out” all his iniquities.

5.      David sought profound inner renewal (vs. 10-12). So he prayed, “Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit with in me” (v. 10). The verb bara (“create,” cf. Gen 1:1, 21, 27) suggests that the radical change of heart is God’s work alone (cf. Ezekiel 11:19; 36:26).

6.      David experienced the joy that comes from deliverance from sin and its consequences (v. 12).

II.    Salvation is by faith

A.      Faith is not merely belief.

1.      We believe in propositional truth. This truth is the object of our belief.

2.      Our faith is in a person – Jesus Christ. He is the object of our faith.

a.       This faith requires knowledge. It is NOT a belief without knowledge.

b.       Based upon the truth we trust in the person of Jesus Christ without reservation.

B.      Faith is not works.

1.      There is nothing we do to merit salvation. We simply believe in Jesus Christ as Savior.

Ephesians 2:8-9 (NKJV)
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,
9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.

a.       Not righteous works.

b.       Not religious works or ceremonies.

2.      Faith is proven by our actions.

C.     Faith is trust in an unseen person.

1.      It is on the basis of sound evidence that has been seen or heard.

2.      Through belief in the propositional truths of the scripture we come to place our faith in the Messiah.

3.      It is wholehearted commitment and loyalty to the person of Jesus Christ.

Conclusion: 

1.      In our conversion from sinners to saints there are two inseparable aspects:

a.      The positive side includes belief of the Gospel and faith in Christ.

b.       The negative side involves repentance for sin and renouncing other spiritual masters (or lesser lords/gods).