Back to the Basics, Week 3: "Repentance."

This week, we continue our "Back to the Basics" series. The last two weeks, we've talked about what the gospel-- the "good news"-- is. The first week, in Luke 4, we talked about how the good news, is that God's kingdom is invading the earth. God's kingdom offers freedom from humanity's worst enemies-- sin, sickness, death, and the demonic. Jesus is Davidic, Messianic king of this kingdom. He is the one who earned the victory over those things, as a man just like us, through his death and resurrection. And as part of the good news, Jesus offers us freedom from these things, and victory over them. What he offers us, is a truly abundant life. Last week, in Ephesians 2, we talked about the good news using different imagery-- that of family. All people, apart from Christ, are strangers to God's family. You are outsiders, living without hope, not knowing God, having no access to God. But Jesus is the one who changes all of that. Jesus is the one who brings peace between people and God, reconciling us to each other, and to God. He is the one who gives us access to the Father, and gives us life. So that is the incredibly good news that Christianity offers. That is the gospel. Sometimes, Christians get confused about this. When they think about the gospel, they think about what they have to do. But the good news, is about what God has done for people through Jesus. It's at this point that we are ready to begin answering the question, "What do we have to do?". You understand, hopefully, that this is the good news that's being offered to you. You understand that God's kingdom is invading earth. That it's better to be on the inside of the kingdom than the outside. That it's better to be part of God's family, living in peace with him and each other. But how do you get in? God's kingdom has a gate. A door. What do you have to do, for the door to be opened to you? Or, if we use family imagery, there are adoption papers available to you. You can become God's sons and daughters. But what do you have to do, for those papers to be signed for you? The answer to this question is debated in churches. Let me very clear about this. What I'm going to teach in each of the next three weeks, in some circles, is controversial. There are Christians who strongly object to everything I'm going to teach. So what I'm going to do, is be very deliberate in how I teach you how you say "yes" to Jesus and to God's kingdom. I will teach you all of this in a way that makes it really obvious what the issues are. I'll present what I think the Bible very clearly teaches. I'll note the objections that some people make, and then I'll try to blow up those objections. I'm going to do all of this as a kindness to you, and as a protection for you. My goal is that, at the end of these three weeks, when you hear someone teaching a cruddy version of the gospel, you will recognize it for what it is, and not let yourself believe it. My goal is that you will become like my eight year old, who came home from church recently, and told us that his teacher taught them a bad gospel in Sunday school. When you hear it, you'll recognize it for what it is, and you'll know to reject it. You'll have discernment. So. What is it that you have to do, for the gate to God's kingdom to be opened to you? If you were in a small group, being asked this question, you'd maybe answer this in a dozen different ways, using dozens of different verses. Where do you even start? For me, the most logical starting point is the book of Acts. The book of Acts describes the evangelistic ministry of the early church, starting in Jerusalem, and then Judea, and then working its way over toward Rome. I think the author of Acts-- Luke-- has very deliberately written his book in a way to help the early church understand what the good news is, and how we say "yes" to Jesus if we hear the good news, as good news. Now, whenever people teach anything, the first time they expose their hearers to something new, they have to explain it fully. The first time I teach anything, I try to assume as little knowledge (preunderstanding) on your part as possible. I don't want to teach things in a way that goes over your head, and frustrates you. Once you are familiar with a topic, I can change how I teach. I can assume that you and I are on the same page, more or less. And when I teach on that topic for the second, or third, or hundredth time, I teach it in a way that's designed to remind and reinforce what you already know. What I don't do, because I'd never get anywhere, is try to teach you every part of every thing, every week. Now, when I do this, I'm doing what every teacher does. And we find Luke doing this in the book of Acts. The first time Luke summarizes the gospel in the book of Acts, he does so fairly fully-- more fully than he does, anywhere else in the book. He doesn't start from square one, because Acts is the second book of a two-part work-- Luke, and Acts, are like volume 1 and 2 of a single book. But he most fully explains the gospel, and how we respond to the gospel, the first time, in Acts 2:22-41. Then, after this, he summarizes it in a way that assumes that you, and he, are on the same page. Luke is a gifted writer, and teacher. He's not going to explain everything, in all its detail, every time the gospel is shared, in every single city, by every single apostle or missionary. This is unnecessary. It would bore you. And it would ruin a good story. So let's read the Acts 2:22-41. This is Peter's speech in Jerusalem, on the Day of Pentecost. The Holy Spirit has just come like a fire upon all the disciples. They've all been speaking in tongues. And the crowd is trying to figure out what is going on (NRSV): 22 "You that are Israelites,[a] listen to what I have to say: Jesus of Nazareth,[b] a man attested to you by God with deeds of power, wonders, and signs that God did through him among you, as you yourselves know- 23 this man, handed over to you according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of those outside the law. 24 But God raised him up, having freed him from death,[c] because it was impossible for him to be held in its power. 25 For David says concerning him, 'I saw the Lord always before me, for he is at my right hand so that I will not be shaken; 26 therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced; moreover my flesh will live in hope. 27 For you will not abandon my soul to Hades, or let your Holy One experience corruption. 28 You have made known to me the ways of life; you will make me full of gladness with your presence.' 29 "Fellow Israelites,[d] I may say to you confidently of our ancestor David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. 30 Since he was a prophet, he knew that God had sworn with an oath to him that he would put one of his descendants on his throne. 31 Foreseeing this, David[e] spoke of the resurrection of the Messiah,[f] saying, 'He was not abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh experience corruption.' 32 This Jesus God raised up, and of that all of us are witnesses. 33 Being therefore exalted at[g] the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that you both see and hear. 34 For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he himself says, 'The Lord said to my Lord, "Sit at my right hand, 35 until I make your enemies your footstool."' 36 Therefore let the entire house of Israel know with certainty that God has made him both Lord and Messiah,[h] this Jesus whom you crucified." 37 Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and to the other apostles, "Brothers,[i] what should we do?" 38 Peter said to them, "Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 For the promise is for you, for your children, and for all who are far away, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to him." 40 And he testified with many other arguments and exhorted them, saying, "Save yourselves from this corrupt generation." 41 So those who welcomed his message were baptized, and that day about three thousand persons were added. What does Peter tell people they have to do, if they want in to God's kingdom-- if they hear the good news about Jesus, as being good news? Peter tells them that they have to do three things. (1) "Believe in Jesus." Now, Peter doesn't actually use this phrase here. I'm cheating. Peter starts off by talking about who Jesus is. Jesus is the one who is responsible for this day of Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit was poured out on the disciples. Jesus is the one who was crucified, and rose from the dead, and ascended to heaven. Jesus is at the heart of the good news. And everywhere else in the book of Acts, Luke simply summarizes the entirety of what Jesus did, and how you respond to Jesus, by saying, "believe in Jesus." (2) "Repent." (3) "Be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ." Peter then tells them, if they do these two things-- since they already "believe in Jesus" after hearing his words-- then their sins will be forgiven, and they will receive the Holy Spirit. Now, some of you, seeing this list, are maybe super uncomfortable. Some of you think my list should only have one item. Others, possibly two. But the vast majority of you think it's for sure not three. Well. That's why I'm teaching this. So my plan is devote one week to each of these three things-- "believing in Jesus," "repenting," and "being baptized in Jesus' name." I'm not sure I'm going to be able to pull off "believing in Jesus" in one week. But I'll do my best. This morning, I'm going to start with the second item on the list-- "repent." One of the really weird debates found among Christians, has to do with whether or not people need to repent in order to be saved. Some will tell you that repentance isn't necessary-- all you really have to do to be saved is "believe in [the Lord] Jesus." It used to be, historically, that there was no debate about this in the church. For almost 2,000 years, the church has taught that repentance is a core part of the gospel message. And people who rejected this idea were given an ugly label-- "antinomianism." Basically, "antinomianism" is a way of describing the view that you can still plan to live however you want, and God will save you regardless. God will love you unconditionally. You can be wicked, and God doesn't care. I mean, He'd prefer if you obey, but whether you obey or not is entirely up to you. And it makes no difference to how God treats you. This understanding of the gospel has a label-- everything has a label. And the label for this is "free grace theology." It's become more and more popular in churches. It's not hard to find pastors, and Sunday school teachers, who openly teach this. It's not hard to find curriculum for kids that pushes this hard-- that's basically Awana, in a nutshell. At the heart of "free grace theology" is the idea that God requires nothing from you, for you to be saved. When you come to Jesus, you come empty-handed. You come, not to give anything, or turn from anything. You come, only to receive. When "free grace" people share the gospel, they often use some form of the "ABCs." "A"== Admit that you are a sinner. You don't live toward God the way you should. "B"== Believe that Jesus died on the cross for your sins, paying the penalty for them, and that he rose from the grave. "C"== Confess Jesus as Savior. Do this, and free grace theology people tell you that you have been forgiven, and cleansed, and received salvation and eternal life. Now, I would argue that there's all kinds of problems going on here. And I would say that these problems, are big problems. This is not the kind of thing that Christians should just agree to disagree about. And so, when I'm teaching this morning about repentance, understand that I'm doing so in part as a reaction to free grace theology. I'm going to pick on one of the problems of this view-- the "A" of admitting that you are a sinner. Hopefully, I will make it really obvious to you that "free grace theology" is both wrong, and dangerous. It's not about "admitting" you are a sinner. It's about "repenting" from sin. It's about "turning" from sin, toward God. Let me say one more thing, before diving in. It's possible, this morning, that some of you aren't really saved. You find yourself looking around the room, thinking I'm talking about someone else. But maybe it's you. Maybe all you've ever heard is a really inadequate gospel. Maybe you think you're inside the kingdom, and you aren't. My strong preference is that you become part of God's family. And my hope is that this will push you in the right direction, toward Jesus. -------------------------------------------- So let's do this. When we read the NT-- the synoptic gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke), Acts, and Paul, in particular-- we don't find people ever being told that they have to "admit" their sins, or "confess" their sins, to be saved. At least, not to the best of my knowledge. We find two other verbs being used, instead: "repent," and "turn." People are constantly told that they have to repent to be saved. So what I'd like to do this morning is not very complicated. We are just going to work our way through Luke, and Acts, and I want you to hear how often people are told they have to repent from their sins to be saved. And, just as important, I want you to see who tells people this. Who thinks it's important, that people repent from their sins to be saved? I'm going to keep this simple, and use the NRSV (because it's usually my preferred translation, FWIW). John the Baptist: Luke 3:1-8: 3 In the fifteenth year of the reign of Emperor Tiberius, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was ruler[a] of Galilee, and his brother Philip ruler[b] of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias ruler[c] of Abilene, 2 during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the wilderness. 3 He went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, 4 as it is written in the book of the words of the prophet Isaiah, "The voice of one crying out in the wilderness: 'Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. 5 Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough ways made smooth; 6 and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.'" 7 John said to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, "You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Bear fruits worthy of repentance. Do not begin to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our ancestor'; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham. Acts 13:23-24: 23 Of this man's posterity God has brought to Israel a Savior, Jesus, as he promised; 24 before his coming John had already proclaimed a baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel. John's entire message, in a nutshell (in the synoptics, not in the gospel of John), was a call to repentance. And we see in Luke 3 that repentance leads to good works-- good fruit. Jesus Luke 13:1-9: 13 At that very time there were some present who told him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. 2 He asked them, "Do you think that because these Galileans suffered in this way they were worse sinners than all other Galileans? 3 No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish as they did. 4 Or those eighteen who were killed when the tower of Siloam fell on them-do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others living in Jerusalem? 5 No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish just as they did." 6 Then he told this parable: "A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came looking for fruit on it and found none. 7 So he said to the gardener, 'See here! For three years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree, and still I find none. Cut it down! Why should it be wasting the soil?' 8 He replied, 'Sir, let it alone for one more year, until I dig around it and put manure on it. 9 If it bears fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.'" Luke 24:44-49 (This is the Great Commission in the Gospel of Luke): 44 Then he said to them, "These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you-that everything written about me in the law of Moses, the prophets, and the psalms must be fulfilled." 45 Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures, 46 and he said to them, "Thus it is written, that the Messiah[n] is to suffer and to rise from the dead on the third day, 47 and that repentance and forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. 48 You are witnesses[o] of these things. 49 And see, I am sending upon you what my Father promised; so stay here in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high." When Jesus commissions his disciples in Luke, he commands them to proclaim "repentance" to all the nations, starting in Jerusalem. The message that John the Baptist proclaimed, and Jesus proclaimed, is also the message the church is supposed to proclaim. "All nations" need to be told to repent. Peter: Acts 2:38: 37 Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and to the other apostles, "Brothers,[i] what should we do?" 38 Peter said to them, "Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 For the promise is for you, for your children, and for all who are far away, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to him." 40 And he testified with many other arguments and exhorted them, saying, "Save yourselves from this corrupt generation." 41 So those who welcomed his message were baptized, and that day about three thousand persons were added. Acts 3:17-26: 17 "And now, friends,[e] I know that you acted in ignorance, as did also your rulers. 18 In this way God fulfilled what he had foretold through all the prophets, that his Messiah[f] would suffer. 19 Repent therefore, and turn to God so that your sins may be wiped out, 20 so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that he may send the Messiah[g] appointed for you, that is, Jesus, 21 who must remain in heaven until the time of universal restoration that God announced long ago through his holy prophets. 22 Moses said, 'The Lord your God will raise up for you from your own people[h] a prophet like me. You must listen to whatever he tells you. 23 And it will be that everyone who does not listen to that prophet will be utterly rooted out of the people.' 24 And all the prophets, as many as have spoken, from Samuel and those after him, also predicted these days. 25 You are the descendants of the prophets and of the covenant that God gave to your ancestors, saying to Abraham, 'And in your descendants all the families of the earth shall be blessed.' 26 When God raised up his servant,[i] he sent him first to you, to bless you by turning each of you from your wicked ways." Acts 5:27-32: 27 When they had brought them, they had them stand before the council. The high priest questioned them, 28 saying, "We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name,[c] yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and you are determined to bring this man's blood on us." 29 But Peter and the apostles answered, "We must obey God rather than any human authority.[d] 30 The God of our ancestors raised up Jesus, whom you had killed by hanging him on a tree. 31 God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior that he might give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. 32 And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey him." Acts 11:1-18: 11 Now the apostles and the believers[a] who were in Judea heard that the Gentiles had also accepted the word of God. 2 So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised believers[b] criticized him, 3 saying, "Why did you go to uncircumcised men and eat with them?" 4 Then Peter began to explain it to them, step by step, saying, 5 "I was in the city of Joppa praying, and in a trance I saw a vision. There was something like a large sheet coming down from heaven, being lowered by its four corners; and it came close to me. 6 As I looked at it closely I saw four-footed animals, beasts of prey, reptiles, and birds of the air. 7 I also heard a voice saying to me, 'Get up, Peter; kill and eat.' 8 But I replied, 'By no means, Lord; for nothing profane or unclean has ever entered my mouth.' 9 But a second time the voice answered from heaven, 'What God has made clean, you must not call profane.' 10 This happened three times; then everything was pulled up again to heaven. 11 At that very moment three men, sent to me from Caesarea, arrived at the house where we were. 12 The Spirit told me to go with them and not to make a distinction between them and us.[c] These six brothers also accompanied me, and we entered the man's house. 13 He told us how he had seen the angel standing in his house and saying, 'Send to Joppa and bring Simon, who is called Peter; 14 he will give you a message by which you and your entire household will be saved.' 15 And as I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell upon them just as it had upon us at the beginning. 16 And I remembered the word of the Lord, how he had said, 'John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.' 17 If then God gave them the same gift that he gave us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could hinder God?" 18 When they heard this, they were silenced. And they praised God, saying, "Then God has given even to the Gentiles the repentance that leads to life." "If then God gave them the same gift that he gave us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could hinder God?" When they heard this, they were silenced. And they praised God, saying, "Then God has given even to the Gentiles the repentance that leads to life." Jesus had commanded his disciples in Luke 24 to proclaim repentance to all nations, starting in Jerusalem. And now, in Acts 11, we see this playing out the way Jesus commanded. Peter is still proclaiming the same message-- a message of repentance, and forgiveness-- but the message is being proclaimed to Gentiles. Paul: Acts 14:8-18: 8 In Lystra there was a man sitting who could not use his feet and had never walked, for he had been crippled from birth. 9 He listened to Paul as he was speaking. And Paul, looking at him intently and seeing that he had faith to be healed, 10 said in a loud voice, "Stand upright on your feet." And the man[c] sprang up and began to walk. 11 When the crowds saw what Paul had done, they shouted in the Lycaonian language, "The gods have come down to us in human form!" 12 Barnabas they called Zeus, and Paul they called Hermes, because he was the chief speaker. 13 The priest of Zeus, whose temple was just outside the city,[d] brought oxen and garlands to the gates; he and the crowds wanted to offer sacrifice. 14 When the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of it, they tore their clothes and rushed out into the crowd, shouting, 15 "Friends,[e] why are you doing this? We are mortals just like you, and we bring you good news, that you should turn from these worthless things to the living God, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and all that is in them. 16 In past generations he allowed all the nations to follow their own ways; 17 yet he has not left himself without a witness in doing good-giving you rains from heaven and fruitful seasons, and filling you with food and your hearts with joy." 18 Even with these words, they scarcely restrained the crowds from offering sacrifice to them. Part of "repentance" is "turning." You turn from idols, toward the living God. Acts 17:22-31: 22 Then Paul stood in front of the Areopagus and said, "Athenians, I see how extremely religious you are in every way. 23 For as I went through the city and looked carefully at the objects of your worship, I found among them an altar with the inscription, 'To an unknown god.' What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you. 24 The God who made the world and everything in it, he who is Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in shrines made by human hands, 25 nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mortals life and breath and all things. 26 From one ancestor[i] he made all nations to inhabit the whole earth, and he allotted the times of their existence and the boundaries of the places where they would live, 27 so that they would search for God[j] and perhaps grope for him and find him-though indeed he is not far from each one of us. 28 For 'In him we live and move and have our being'; as even some of your own poets have said, 'For we too are his offspring.' 29 Since we are God's offspring, we ought not to think that the deity is like gold, or silver, or stone, an image formed by the art and imagination of mortals. 30 While God has overlooked the times of human ignorance, now he commands all people everywhere to repent, 31 because he has fixed a day on which he will have the world judged in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed, and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead." "All people everywhere" are called to repent, because the day is coming when Jesus will judge everyone. And what Gentiles have to repent of, first, is idolatry. You have to stop worshipping idols, and turn to the one living God. Acts 20:17-35: (These are my life verses). 17 From Miletus he sent a message to Ephesus, asking the elders of the church to meet him. 18 When they came to him, he said to them: "You yourselves know how I lived among you the entire time from the first day that I set foot in Asia, 19 serving the Lord with all humility and with tears, enduring the trials that came to me through the plots of the Jews. 20 I did not shrink from doing anything helpful, proclaiming the message to you and teaching you publicly and from house to house, 21 as I testified to both Jews and Greeks about repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus. 22 And now, as a captive to the Spirit,[c] I am on my way to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there, 23 except that the Holy Spirit testifies to me in every city that imprisonment and persecutions are waiting for me. 24 But I do not count my life of any value to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the good news of God's grace. 25 "And now I know that none of you, among whom I have gone about proclaiming the kingdom, will ever see my face again. 26 Therefore I declare to you this day that I am not responsible for the blood of any of you, 27 for I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole purpose of God. 28 Keep watch over yourselves and over all the flock, of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God[d] that he obtained with the blood of his own Son.[e] 29 I know that after I have gone, savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. 30 Some even from your own group will come distorting the truth in order to entice the disciples to follow them. 31 Therefore be alert, remembering that for three years I did not cease night or day to warn everyone with tears. 32 And now I commend you to God and to the message of his grace, a message that is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all who are sanctified. 33 I coveted no one's silver or gold or clothing. 34 You know for yourselves that I worked with my own hands to support myself and my companions. 35 In all this I have given you an example that by such work we must support the weak, remembering the words of the Lord Jesus, for he himself said, 'It is more blessed to give than to receive.'" (1) Repentance is something both Jew and Gentile have to do. (2) When you repent, it's not just about repenting "from" sin or idolatry. Repentance is also a repentance "toward" God. Acts 26:12-18: 12 "With this in mind, I was traveling to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests, 13 when at midday along the road, your Excellency,[c] I saw a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, shining around me and my companions. 14 When we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew[d] language, 'Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It hurts you to kick against the goads.' 15 I asked, 'Who are you, Lord?' The Lord answered, 'I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. 16 But get up and stand on your feet; for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to appoint you to serve and testify to the things in which you have seen me[e] and to those in which I will appear to you. 17 I will rescue you from your people and from the Gentiles-to whom I am sending you 18 to open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.' Repentance is a matter of "turning" from darkness to light, from the power of Satan "to" God. So when we step back, and look at Luke-Acts as a whole, what do we see? We see that John the Baptist, Jesus, Peter, and Paul are all consistent in telling everyone that you have to repent from your sins-- turn from them-- in order to be forgiven and saved. I would say, that's a pretty good list of people. If John the Baptist, Jesus, Peter, and Paul, all agree on something, I find myself wanting to agree with them. If Jesus commands all people to be told to repent, I find myself wanting to obey him. But a few of you are maybe unpersuaded. You think John the Baptist, Jesus, Peter, and Paul did it wrong. You think you know a better way to explain the gospel. If this is you, it's probably because you think you have three Ace cards. So let me try to counter your objections, before you can make them. And let me just say, these aren't hypothetical objections. What I'm about to present, is something I've heard argued by a different pastor, at a different church. (1) Objection #1: "Not everyone in the book of Acts is told they have to repent to be saved." (A) Cornelius, in Acts 10:43: 43 All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name." Counter: Cornelius is a special case in the book of Acts. He is representative of a group of people called "God-fearers." This group is made up of Gentiles, who live faithfully toward God. They worship the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. But they haven't taken the step of being circumcised. Let's read Acts 10:30-35: 30 Cornelius replied, "Four days ago at this very hour, at three o'clock, I was praying in my house when suddenly a man in dazzling clothes stood before me. 31 He said, 'Cornelius, your prayer has been heard and your alms have been remembered before God. 32 Send therefore to Joppa and ask for Simon, who is called Peter; he is staying in the home of Simon, a tanner, by the sea.' 33 Therefore I sent for you immediately, and you have been kind enough to come. So now all of us are here in the presence of God to listen to all that the Lord has commanded you to say." 34 Then Peter began to speak to them: "I truly understand that God shows no partiality, 35 but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him. This is Cornelius. He is already someone who fears/reveres God, and does what's right. What Cornelius still needed, was Jesus. And so Luke focuses on what's missing-- the "believing on Jesus" part of it. And let's look how his story ends. Acts 10:47-48: 47 "Can anyone withhold the water for baptizing these people who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?" 48 So he ordered them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they invited him to stay for several days. Luke makes sure to end the story with two extra facts. First, Cornelius was baptized. Second, Cornelius showed hospitality to them-- which is the first mark of true disciples. (B) The jailer in Philippi, in Acts 16:31 (#Awana theme verse, after carefully deleting the last line): 31 They answered, "Believe on the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household." Paul says nothing to the jailer about his sin, right? All the jailer is told to do, is "believe on the Lord Jesus." He doesn't have to confess sin, or repent from it. He doesn't have to be baptized. Just, "believe on Jesus." It's the perfect verse, as long as you cut off the end. There's a reason Awana digs halfway through the book of Acts, before it finds a verse it actually likes about salvation. The argument then goes, since nothing is said about sin, people don't have to confess their sins or repent from them, or turn to God in obedience, in order to be saved. They can still worship other gods; they can still have sex with the temple prostitutes in Corinth. You can be a Muslim and a Christian. You can have an idol in your living room, and Jesus in your heart. As long as you believe in Jesus as well, you are saved. In that pastor's own words, "You figure out that other stuff as you go." There are three main problems with this. (1) It assumes that Luke will always woodenly summarize all three parts of the gospel message ("repent," "believe," be baptized) in every summary he gives of the gospel message. But let's reread Acts 2:38: 38 Peter said to them, "Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Peter doesn't actually tell people, in Acts 2:38, to believe in Jesus. He tells people you have to do two things, not three, to be forgiven and receive the Holy Spirit: (1) repent, and (2) be baptized. Do you not have to believe in Jesus, to be saved? No. Peter just talked about Jesus in great detail in the verses before this. These people now "believe in Jesus." They are asking what else they have to do to be saved, and so Peter tells them-- repent, and be baptized. In the same way, the Philippian jailer isn't told he has to anything else. We don't hear him being told to be baptized. But Luke makes sure to include the details that he was baptized. And we don't hear him being told to repent. But the hospitality he shows to Paul and Silas, is proof that he repented (Acts 16:15, 33). The jailer's story, sounds like that of Cornelius (Acts 10:47-48). Luke is a gifted writer. He's not going to bore you by woodenly repeating all three parts of the gospel, every time. He gives the gospel to you at the start, fully, in Acts 2. Then, after that, he can be more selective, because he knows that you, and he, are on the same page. All people are called to repent (Acts 17:30; 20:21), to "believe on" Jesus, and to be baptized. Objection #2: "Forgiveness of sins comes through "believing on Jesus," not through repentance. So you don't have to repent to be forgiven. Acts 10:43: All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name." So the argument then goes, if forgiveness comes through "believing in Jesus," then repentance and baptism are unnecessary. Acts 2:38: 38 Peter said to them, "Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Acts 3:19: 19 Repent therefore, and turn to God so that your sins may be wiped out, Acts 11:18: When they heard this, they were silenced. And they praised God, saying, "Then God has given even to the Gentiles the repentance that leads to life." What do you have to do, to have your sins forgiven? Again, we aren't supposed to pick out one verse, and play off that one verse against the rest of the book, or filter the verses we don't like through one verse. If you want to be forgiven, you grab the message of the entire book: you repent, "believe in" Jesus, and get baptized. You don't try to splice the gospel message into three parts, and reject two of them. Objection #3: "Repentance" means to "change your mind" about something. He doesn't mean changed behavior. You don't have to "do" anything to be saved; you just have to fix your thinking. The Greek word for "repentance" comes from two other Greek words, that separately mean "a changed mind." So some people argue that repentance is a matter of a changed mind. It's not actually about "doing" anything. This argument is based on a misunderstanding of how words get their meaning. If you want to know what a word "means," you look at how it's used in context. You don't look at the parts of the word. Let's take two English words. "Butterfly." Do you know what a butterfly is, because you know what "butter" and "fly" mean? Or do you know a butterfly through the study of biology? A second English word: "Understand." This is made of two English words, right? Does that help, at all? Should we picture ourselves standing underneath something, in a posture of learning? We know what words mean, through studying how they are used (the key guy in this, is James Barr, The Semantics of Biblical Language. A more accessible book is by Moises Silva, Biblical Words and their Meaning). So let's talk about repentance. When John the Baptist, Jesus, Peter, and Paul call people to repent, they are calling on them to turn from sins, and idolatry, and turn to the living God. Paul isn't calling people to change their minds about idols. He's calling them to abandon them, throw them away, and serve the one true God. The call to repent, and turn, is the same basic call we find in the OT. Ezekiel 33:10-20: 10 Now you, mortal, say to the house of Israel, Thus you have said: "Our transgressions and our sins weigh upon us, and we waste away because of them; how then can we live?" 11 Say to them, As I live, says the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from their ways and live; turn back, turn back from your evil ways; for why will you die, O house of Israel? 12 And you, mortal, say to your people, The righteousness of the righteous shall not save them when they transgress; and as for the wickedness of the wicke d, it shall not make them stumble when they turn from their wickedness; and the righteous shall not be able to live by their righteousness[a] when they sin. 13 Though I say to the righteous that they shall surely live, yet if they trust in their righteousness and commit iniquity, none of their righteous deeds shall be remembered; but in the iniquity that they have committed they shall die. 14 Again, though I say to the wicked, "You shall surely die," yet if they turn from their sin and do what is lawful and right- 15 if the wicked restore the pledge, give back what they have taken by robbery, and walk in the statutes of life, committing no iniquity-they shall surely live, they shall not die. 16 None of the sins that they have committed shall be remembered against them; they have done what is lawful and right, they shall surely live. 17 Yet your people say, "The way of the Lord is not just," when it is their own way that is not just. 18 When the righteous turn from their righteousness, and commit iniquity, they shall die for it.[b] 19 And when the wicked turn from their wickedness, and do what is lawful and right, they shall live by it.[c] 20 Yet you say, "The way of the Lord is not just." O house of Israel, I will judge all of you according to your ways! When we read Luke and Acts, I don't think the gospel message is very complicated. If you want to be saved, and forgiven, and receive the Holy Spirit, one of the things you have to do, is repent. You turn from your sin, and your idolatry, toward the Father. And if you've never made that kind of commitment-- if you've never really turned from sin toward God-- today is a good day to do so. 6