Course Correction!
According to Biblehub.com, HELPS word studies, the word repentance in the New Testament is:
3340 metanoéō (from 3326 /metá, “changed after being with” and 3539 /noiéō, “think”) — properly, “think differently after,” “after a change of mind”; to repent (literally, “think differently afterwards”).
A change of mind… I think of repentance as our spiritual steering wheel. It is the gift God has given us to be able to change course when we need to. As we are traveling through life as a believer in Jesus Christ, we all come to places that require correction. We may be reading a Bible passage and the Holy Spirit may speak to us about sin in our lives that God wants to deal with. We may be listening to a pastor teach, something he says pricks our heart and we take that to God in prayer. Sure enough, that was the Holy Spirit we were feeling in that church service and God wants to make a change in our lives. Maybe it’s a friend, or some other life circumstance. Maybe God gave you a warning dream. Maybe you get words of knowledge and wisdom. I’ve had God teach me Biblical principals through really strange things like TV and movies, my hobbies, sometimes through complete strangers that aren’t even believers, nature, His creation and how it works… I could go on. The Lord will speak to you in the way you have the faith to hear from Him. I believe He is God, this is His creation, and He can speak through anything. But, just to make sure I’m understanding right, I always check it against His Word. God will never contradict His Word no matter how He is speaking to you. What do you do when you are faced with one of these messages? Do you listen and test it? (1 Thessalonians 5:19–22) Then what? If I test it and see that it is from God, then I believe Him, and because I believe Him, I repent. I change my mind, which produces a change in my behavior. I turn around and go the way God is directing me. I use my spiritual steering wheel. It a beautiful gift the Lord has given us, this ability to repent and correct course. He didn’t give it to us as a means to earn salvation, or as a means of trying to keep salvation, it was never meant to try and earn the rapture as a reward. It is the fruit of a submitted spirit. We believe God is the highest authority as our Creator, so we believe He has the right to give us directions. We believe He is good and has only good in mind for us, so we trust Him. (Romans 8:28) We trust what He says and we choose to do what He wants rather that what our flesh nature wants. This is what Paul was saying in Galatians chapter five.
So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the flesh craves what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are opposed to each other, so that you do not do what you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity, and debauchery; idolatry and sorcery; hatred, discord, jealousy, and rage; rivalries, divisions, factions, and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us walk in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying one another.
Galatians 16:26
I used to think repentance meant listing all my sins off in prayer and saying sorry and promising to do better. I really believed this was what God wanted from me. I never felt clean, I just felt hopeless. It was the same old prayer everyday. I felt stuck, like I wasn’t really getting anywhere. What God wanted was for me to humble myself and trust Him to save me. The thing is, that doesn’t stop after we are saved and our sins are atoned for by Jesus’ blood. God still expects us to listen to Him when He speaks to us. He still expects us to humble ourselves before Him and obey His commands. Yes, our sins are 100% atoned for. Yes! You are saved and safe in Jesus Christ! AMEN! God does not accept “sorry” for atonement for sin. He wants you to come to the throne of grace and get help in your time of need. He wants you to humble yourself to the point that you can hear your God when He speaks and be willing to obey Him, not out of fear, but out of trust in His ability to lead you. He knows you. He knew everything about you before you were ever born. He knew all the things you would ever be, do or say. He knows your future. So, if we believe all that, then we should also believe Him when He warns us not to follow our flesh nature. We should believe Him when the Holy Spirit nudges us and brings to our awareness the things that need to change. I cannot in good conscience say I believe God has saved me by the blood of Jesus Christ and then ignore all the other teachings of the Bible. I cannot say that I am saved by grace through faith, but then not have the faith to believe the other warnings and Words from God. That would make me a liar and a hypocrite. You see, I have experienced both the “You can lose your salvation, because you can choose to walk away” fear mongering, and the polar opposite, “You are saved, the Lord no longer sees your sin, therefore He’s not going to chasten you for evil that you do. Don’t worry about it anymore. Live your life and do what you want. Your sins are covered.” I have lived and believed both of these lies. They are just the opposite sides of the same evil coin. Both of them are steeped in unbelief. They both choose to believe parts of God’s Word, and then ignore or twist the rest of it. That is a fact. It is exactly the tactic Satan has used from the beginning. Give them a tiny bit of truth, mixed with lies, so they will swallow the whole thing. They will think they have the truth, but really, we are using what little they have to get them bogged down in sin. We fall for it, because we are human. We take that little bit of truth, and instead of asking God about the whole idea being presented to us, we just assume the whole idea is true. Never assume anything.
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The Bible says “knowledge puffs up.” (1 Corinthians 8:1) It means “to make proud.” Pride is a spiritual blindfold. When we are puffed up in what little bit of knowledge we have, we become blind to the lies that accompany it. This is why the church is in such a broken state. All these denominations got a little bit of truth, mixed with human opinion, which is not the same as truth from God, but they can’t see it because of their pride. My husband has a saying, “Be careful what you are convinced of.” Amen.
Humility … repentance (course correct) … salvation … humility … repentance (course correct) … growth in Christ …
If you observe the way God does things, you will begin to notice His patterns…
1. Humility- See the truth of who you are in relation to God. Be willing to see it. The whole ugly truth of it. You won’t see it if you are steeped in pride. Don’t let pride win, it will keep you blind and stuck.
2. Repent- When you see the truth God is presenting to you, believe Him and change your mind. Course correct! Go to the throne of grace and get help in your time of need. Jesus is waiting there. He loves you. Go boldly! He will never turn you away.
Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to what we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who was tempted in every way that we are, yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
Hebrews 4:14–16
3. Salvation and Growth in Christ are the fruits that come from this pattern. All God wants from you is for you to see the truth and BELIEVE HIM.
“But to all who did receive Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God — children born not of blood, nor of the desire or will of man, but born of God.”
John 1:12–13
*All scripture taken from the Berean Standard Bible
