Repentance

Driving around lately, I see a lot of signs that say, “Repent, Jesus is coming again soon.”

This is a true statement which should not scare us, but give us an opportunity to examine ourselves and where we stand with our Maker.

For those of us who are saved through Christ, we should be working out our salvation each and every day seeking after God by communing with Him through prayer and time alone with Him, reading His word, and obeying Him by being doers of His word.  

A close relationship with God is vital because we strive every day to battle our adversary and his lies with one plan which is to destroy us.

We desperately need truth which we find in the Bible to help renew our minds to God’s ways and wisdom.

God tells us to meditate upon His word (Joshua 1:8) and keep it at the forefront of our minds (Deuteronomy 11:18), so at a moment’s notice we have truth to refute Satan’s lies.

God’s Call for Repentance 

For those who have not yet trusted Jesus Christ as LORD and Savior, God is calling you to repent and surrender to Him to receive eternal salvation and victorious living in this life.

Jesus was proclaiming that He in their very presence was the Messiah, the promised One, who would take away the sins of the world.

Jesus is the good news!

He tells us that He paid the price for all our sins—IF we commit to Him and follow Him going forward.

This Good News came to us and fulfilled His purpose on earth over 2000 years ago. He made a way for us to be forgiven and return to the Father in Heaven.

He died on the cross a humiliating, painful death—for our sins. HE paid the price that we could not.

He purchased us through His death.

Will we thank Him for what He did for us? Or will we continue to live our lives in selfish sin that brings defeat, sorrow, and death?

God First Loved Us

We are all a part of God’s creation and He loves us, but He doesn’t force us to love Him.

We must choose to love God of our own volition, otherwise it wouldn’t be true love.

God gives us free will to decide where we place our allegiance; either to Him or to this world and its ruler, Satan.

After Satan deceived Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, we inherited their sin nature, so God sent His Son Jesus to be the propitiation or scapegoat for us.

The first step in aligning our lives with God is to believe that Jesus is His Son who was sent to save us.

Jesus becomes our LORD and Savior when we invite Him into our lives and follow Him.

This means that we acknowledge our sins and repent or turn from them and commit our lives in obedience to Him.

Once we surrender to Jesus, we receive the Helper that lives within us and guides us on the path to obedience.

This Helper is the Holy Spirit.

Repentance: God’s Way to Victory

God knows all about you and wants to give you a victorious life with peace and profound joy.  

You need not be worried that you are not good enough for Jesus and His forgiveness.

Jesus is eager to take you just as you are right now. You don’t have to clean up your act for His love and forgiveness.

He tells us himself this very thing.

Jesus’ purpose was to come to save us from our sins!

None of us are perfect, but in need of the Savior. We have all sinned. (Romans 3:23)

It doesn’t matter what you’ve done wrong—drugs, immorality, theft, deception, slander, and yes, even murder.

These sins are not to be taken lightly and God knows whether we are truly repentant or not; but we are not to be held down because of them either.

Jesus died so that we could have life. (John 10:10)

He wants us to be free from sin, free to enjoy this life, free to serve Him, and free from eternal damnation.

If you are tired of hiding in shame, making excuses, and/or striving to overcome your sin on your own, just fall into Jesus’ arms in repentance.

He will accept you as you are no matter your past.

Once you commit your life to Jesus, the Holy Spirit will help you live a victorious life.

He will guide you, correct you, and give you wisdom to overcome your past and grow in faith.

Sometimes you will fail, but it’s ok; you only have to get back up, repent again, and continue to follow Jesus.

Keep abiding in Him and you will see that you will overcome your sin, and your perspective will change.

You may even sign up to serve God in helping others who will be struggling with the same sin you were able to overcome; simply because of your gratitude to Jesus for saving you and calling you to a better life.

So, I urge you to not put off accepting Christ any longer. The time is now.

A Warning to be Ready

We will be grateful if we’re ready and looking for Jesus’ return.

Let’s see what Jesus tells us about His second coming.  

There’s no need to explain further what Jesus tells us in the verses above. There is no ambiguity, but truth, and completely comprehensible.

I pray you make this most important choice of your life today.

Repent and surrender to the LORD Jesus.

Enjoy the beautiful song below.

If you want to have a relationship with God and are not sure how or where to start, see my previous posts Relationship with God and Relationship with God – Part 2.