Peter and James

A Study in Gospel Repentance

Following the Olivet Discourse the Bible teaches that Jesus once more informed the
disciples of His death. Calvary was just ahead.

 Matthew 26:1-5 And it came to pass, when Jesus had finished all these sayings, he
said unto his disciples, 2 Ye know that after two days is the feast of the Passover, and
the Son of man is betrayed to be crucified. 3 Then assembled together the chief
priests, and the scribes, and the elders of the people, unto the palace of the high
priest, who was called Caiaphas, 4 And consulted that they might take Jesus by
subtilty, and kill him. 5 But they said, Not on the feast day, lest there be an uproar
among the people.

Despite the certainty of His death Jesus pressed on. And while most of the disciples made
preparations for the Passover celebration, one disciple made preparations for the Lord’s betrayal.

 Matthew 26:14-16 Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went unto the chief
priests, 15 And said unto them, What will ye give me, and I will deliver him unto you?
And they covenanted with him for thirty pieces of silver. 16 And from that time he
sought opportunity to betray him.

Later that night at the Passover meal Jesus let Judas know that He was well aware of what
He had done.

 Matthew 20:21-25 “And as they did eat, he said, Verily I say unto you, that one of you
shall betray me. 22 And they were exceeding sorrowful, and began every one of them
to say unto him, Lord, is it I? 23 And he answered and said, He that dippeth his hand
with me in the dish, the same shall betray me. 24 The Son of man goeth as it is written
of him: but woe unto that man by whom the Son of man is betrayed! it had been good
for that man if he had not been born. 25 Then Judas, which betrayed him, answered
and said, Master, is it I? He said unto him, Thou hast said.”

Once exposed to the Master’s knowledge Judas could not linger any longer in the
presence of goodness. John tells us he left the table and went out into the night. The irony is that
Judas was not alone at the table in as far as future great sin was concerned. No one less than Peter
would be involved in a heinous crime against Christ. And as with Judas, Jesus foretold what
would happen.

 Matt 26:31-35 Then saith Jesus unto them, All ye shall be offended because of me this
night: for it is written, I will smite the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock shall be
scattered abroad. 32 But after I am risen again, I will go before you into Galilee. 33
Peter answered and said unto him, Though all men shall be offended because of thee,
yet will I never be offended. 34 Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, That this
 night, before the cockcrow, thou shalt deny me thrice. 35 Peter said unto him, Though
I should die with thee, yet will I not deny thee. Likewise also said all the disciples.

Despite Peter's protests it would all happen as Jesus predicted. After an initial act of
bravery Peter dropped his sword and fled into the night.

 Matthew 26:56 But all this was done, that the scriptures of the prophets might be
fulfilled. Then all the disciples forsook him, and fled.

While Jesus was being escorted away Peter followed afar off. And soon, very soon Peter
found himself denying Christ—dare we say betraying Christ? Not once nor twice but three times.

 Matthew 26:47-50 Now Peter sat without in the palace: and a damsel came unto him,
saying, Thou also wast with Jesus of Galilee. 70 But he denied before them all,
saying, I know not what thou sayest. 71 And when he was gone out into the porch,
another maid saw him, and said unto them that were there, This fellow was also with
Jesus of Nazareth. 72 And again he denied with an oath, I do not know the man. 73
And after a while came unto him they that stood by, and said to Peter, Surely thou
also art one of them; for thy speech bewrayeth thee. 74 Then began he to curse and to
swear, saying, I know not the man. And immediately the cock crew. 75 And Peter
remembered the word of Jesus, which said unto him, Before the cock crow, thou shalt
deny me thrice. And he went out, and wept bitterly.

"Oh Peter, how could you do such a thing? Was not the black deed of Judas enough to
shock you into eternal faithfulness? "

 Matthew 26:47-50 And while he yet spake, lo, Judas, one of the twelve, came, and
with him a great multitude with swords and staves, from the chief priests and elders of
the people. 48 Now he that betrayed him gave them a sign, saying, Whomsoever I
shall kiss, that same is he: hold him fast. 49 And forthwith he came to Jesus, and said,
Hail, master; and kissed him. 50 And Jesus said unto him, Friend, wherefore art thou
come? Then came they, and laid hands on Jesus, and took him.

There are many parallels between the sin of Peter and the sin of Judas.

 Both men were Disciples of Christ.

 Both men had witnessed His power.
 Both men had heard His teachings.
 Both men violated His trust.

One man violated the Lord’s trust out of greed, the other out of fear. But the end result
was the same—Jesus was betrayed and abandoned to His enemies.
 Consideration of Repentance

There is the repentance of Judas.

 Matthew 27:3-10 Then Judas, which had betrayed him, when he saw that he was
condemned, repented himself, and brought again the thirty pieces of silver to the chief
priests and elders, 4 Saying, I have sinned in that I have betrayed the innocent blood.
And they said, What is that to us? see thou to that. 5 And he cast down the pieces of
silver in the temple, and departed, and went and hanged himself. 6 And the chief
priests took the silver pieces, and said, It is not lawful for to put them into the
treasury, because it is the price of blood. 7 And they took counsel, and bought with
them the potter's field, to bury strangers in. 8 Wherefore that field was called, The
field of blood, unto this day. 9 Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremy the
prophet, saying, And they took the thirty pieces of silver, the price of him that was
valued, whom they of the children of Israel did value; 10 And gave them for the
potter's field, as the Lord appointed me.

 Acts 1:18 Now this man purchased a field with the reward of iniquity; and falling
headlong, he burst asunder in the midst, and all his bowels gushed out.

There is the repentance of Peter.

 Matthew 26:75 And he went out and wept bitterly.

Now the question is this. Since both men betrayed Jesus and both men repented why did
one go to hell and the other go to heaven? The answer has to be this: there was a difference in
their repentance. And that leads us to consider The Doctrine of Repentance.
 Doctrine of Repentance

1. The word ‘repent” when used in a general sense means literally ‘to change one's mind.’ The
word is used this way of God.

 Genesis 6:6 And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved
him at his heart. 7 And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the
face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air;
for it repenteth me that I have made them.

2. When used of man, true spiritual repentance speaks of a sense of personal ‘guilt’ with the
hope of God's mercy. There is a sense of deep regret for the act of transgression committed.

 Matthew 26:75 And he [Peter] went out and wept bitterly.

3. Repentance demands a deep sorrow for sin and a turning away from it to obey God. There is
a fundamental change in one’s life.

 Matthew 9:13 But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not
sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance. (cf Luke
5:32)

4. In the Old Testament the classic case of repentance is that of King David, after Nathan the
prophet accused him of killing Uriah the Hittite and committing adultery with Uriah's wife,
Bathsheba. David's prayer of repentance for this sin is found in Psalm 51.

5. In the New Testament the keynote of John the Baptist's preaching was, "Repent, for the
kingdom of heaven is at hand" (Matt. 3:2).

6. To the multitudes John declared, "Bear fruits worthy of repentance" (Matt. 3:8; Luke 3:8). It
is not enough to simply say you are sorry.

7. When Jesus began His ministry, He took up John's preaching of the message of repentance,
expanding the message to include the good news of salvation: "The time is fulfilled, and the
kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe in the gospel" (Matt. 4:17; Mark 1:15).

8. In the preaching of Jesus the truth is revealed that repentance and faith cannot be separated.
By repentance, a person turns away from sin; by faith, a person turns toward God through
faith in the Lord Jesus Christ as personal Saviour. Such a twofold turning, or conversion, is
necessary for entrance into the kingdom

 Matt. 18:3 And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little
children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.

 "Unless you repent," said Jesus, "you will all likewise perish" (Luke 13:3,5).
9. This is the negative, or judgmental, side of Jesus' message. The positive, or merciful, side is
seen in these words: "There is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who
repents" (Luke 15:10).

10. After Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection, His disciples continued His work of preaching the
necessity of repentance and faith.

 Acts 2:38 Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the
name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy
Ghost.

 Acts 26:20 But shewed first unto them of Damascus, and at Jerusalem, and throughout all
the coasts of Judaea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God,
and do works meet for repentance.

11. Repentance has many facets, some of which have more to do with the will than the emotions.
There is an old saying, “Actions speak louder than words.” Another saying declares, “I
cannot hear what you are saying because I am too busy watching what you are doing.”

 Repentance is a turning from wickedness and dead works.

 Acts 8:22 Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps the
thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee.

 Hebrew 6:1 Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on
unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and
of faith toward God,

 Repentance is a turning toward God and His glory.

 Acts 20:21 Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward
God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.

 Rev. 16:9 And when her masters saw that the hope of their gains was gone, they
caught Paul and Silas, and drew them into the marketplace unto the rulers,

12. Repentance will lead to eternal life.

 Acts 11:18 When they heard these things, they held their peace, and glorified God,
saying, Then hath God also to the Gentiles granted repentance unto life.
13. When a person truly repents there is a new ability to comprehend spiritual knowledge of the
truth.

 2 Tim. 2:25 In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God

peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth;

14. Repentance is associated with

 prayer

 1 Kings 8:47 Yet if they shall bethink themselves in the land whither they were
carried captives, and repent, and make supplication unto thee in the land of them
that carried them captives, saying, We have sinned, and have done perversely, we
have committed wickedness;

 belief

 Mark 1:15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand:
repent ye, and believe the gospel.

 baptism

 Acts 2:38 Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in
the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of
the Holy Ghost.

 and conversion

 Acts 3:19 Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted
out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;

15. Repentance is accompanied by

 humility

 Matthew 11:21 Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the
mighty works, which were done in you, had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they
would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.

16. Repentance is God's will and pleasure.

 Luke 15:7-10 I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that
repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance. 8
Either what woman having ten pieces of silver, if she lose one piece, doth not light a
candle, and sweep the house, and seek diligently till she find it? 9 And when she hath
found it, she calleth her friends and her neighbours together, saying, Rejoice with me;
 for I have found the piece which I had lost. 10 Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in
the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.

 2 Peter 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count
slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that
all should come to repentance.

17. Repentance is God’s command.

 Mark 6:12 And they went out, and preached that men should repent.

 Acts 17:30 And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all
men every where to repent:

17. Repentance is a gift of God’s sovereign love.

 Acts 5:31 Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for
to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins.

 Acts 11:18 When they heard these things, they held their peace, and glorified God,
saying, Then hath God also to the Gentiles granted repentance unto life.

 Romans 2:4 Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and long-
suffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?

 2 Timothy 2:25 In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God

peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth;

18. Apart from gospel repentance no one can be saved, sanctified, or have any peaceful assurance
of salvation.

 Luke 13:3 I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.

 2 Thessalonians 2:13 But we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren
beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation
through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth.
 Doctrine of Repentance Revisited

1. Gospel repentance does not belong to a Jewish dispensation in the past but is for men today.

 Acts 17:30 But God now commandeth all men everywhere to repent.

2. While there is nothing meritorious in a sinner's compliance with the righteous demand of
God to repent, it is his gospel duty to do so.

 Proverbs 28:13 He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and
forsaketh them shall have mercy.

 Isaiah 55:7 Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and
let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he
will abundantly pardon.

3. In Genesis 6:6 we first find the word "repent."

 Genesis 6:6 And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved
him at his heart.

4. While it is true that "God is not a man that He should lie, neither the Son of Man that He
should repent" (Num. 23:19; cf. also 1 Sam. 15:29; James 1:7), the Lord does condescend to
speak in our language as He does in Genesis 6:6 and also in the following passages.

 Psalms 78:65 Then the Lord awaked as one out of sleep, and like a mighty man that
shouteth by reason of wine.

 Psalms 87:6 The LORD shall count, when he writeth up the people, that this man was
born there. Selah.

 Isaiah 59:16 And he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no
intercessor: therefore his arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it
sustained him.

5. In Genesis 6:6 we discover the occasion for repentance or a change of mind is sin. The
realization of the exceeding sinfulness of sin brought divine repentance. The nature of
repentance consists in a change of view. A new decision is found in view of the deplorable
conditions which existed on the Earth and "it repenteth the Lord He had made man."

6. Genuine repentance is accompanied by a real sorrow after the manner of God.

 Genesis 6:6 And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved
him at his heart.
  2 Corinthians 7:10 For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented
of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death.

7. The fruit or consequence of repentance is to undo what has been done, to forsake or rectify
as far as possible that which is sorrowed over. The pattern is found in God.

 Genesis 6:7 And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of
the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it
repenteth me that I have made them.

8. The necessity for gospel repentance is rooted in the fact that the Law of God has been
broken.

 Rom 3:20 "by the Law is the knowledge of sin."

9. Here in part may lies a practical reason as to why repentance is no longer preached,
practiced, or even understood by a large part of society today or the Church. A new
generation has arisen believing that the Law of God has no place in this age of grace. If this
is true, and it is, can there be any wonder that our country and the nations of the Western
world are in moral and spiritual chaos? A particular teaching in the Church has united with
Communism and anarchy in a common contempt for the Law of God. Why should men have
respect for human laws if they are taught that the Moral Law of God has no rule and reign
over their lives today?

10. In contrast to popular theology of recent origin the Apostle Paul plainly affirms the need to
repent based on the knowledge of sin.

 Romans 7:7 "I had not known sin, but by the Law."

11. The exceeding sinfulness of sin is only exposed or made manifest when the Holy Spirit turns
the light of God's Law upon our conscience and heart.

 Romans 7:13 Was then that which is good made death unto me? God forbid. But sin, that
it might appear sin, working death in me by that which is good; that sin by the
commandment might become exceeding sinful.

A. W. Pink notes "Practical godliness consists in conformity of our heart and life to the Law
of God and in a sincere compliance with the Gospel of Christ". This is not legalism. It is the
antidote for anti-nomianism or lawlessness, which pervades our society and our churches.
The requirements of the Law are summed up in the Word of Christ.

 Deuteronomy 6:5 And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with
all thy soul, and with all thy might.

 Matthew 22:37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart,
and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
 The duty of man is to love God. The ground or reason for this love is became He is the Lord
our God. The measure or extent of this duty is to love God with all the heart. Sin is failure to
love God in this manner. As Mr. Pink states sin is saying, 'I renounce God who made me; I
disallow His right to govern me. I care not what He says to me, what commandments He has
given, nor how He expostulates: I prefer self-indulgence to His approval. I am indifferent to
all He had done to and for me; His blessings and gifts move me not: I am going to be lord of
myself.' Sin is rebellion against the Majesty of Heaven. It is to treat the Almighty with
contempt.

12. In contrast to sin repentance issues from a realization in the heart, wrought therein by the
Holy Spirit, of the sinfulness of sin, of the awfulness of ignoring the claims of God and
defying His authority.

13. Repentance is a holy horror and hatred of sin, a deep sorrow for it, an acknowledgment of it
before God, and a complete heart forsaking of it.

14. Not until this is done will God pardon us.

 Leviticus 23:29 For whatsoever soul it be that shall not be afflicted in that same day, he
shall be cut off from among his people.

 1 Kings 8:47-50 Yet if they shall bethink themselves in the land whither they were carried
captives, and repent, and make supplication unto thee in the land of them that carried
them captives, saying, We have sinned, and have done perversely, we have committed
wickedness; 48 And so return unto thee with all their heart, and with all their soul, in the
land of their enemies, which led them away captive, and pray unto thee toward their
land, which thou gavest unto their fathers, the city which thou hast chosen, and the house
which I have built for thy name: 49 Then hear thou their prayer and their supplication in
heaven thy dwelling place, and maintain their cause, 50 And forgive thy people that have
sinned against thee and all their transgressions wherein they have transgressed against
thee, and give them compassion before them who carried them captive, that they may
have compassion on them:

15. No change in dispensation has wrought any change in the character of the thrice-holy God.
His claims are ever the same.

 The Prophets taught repentance

 Psalms 32:3-5 When I kept silence, my bones waxed old through my roaring all the day
long. 4 For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me: my moisture is turned into the
drought of summer. Selah. 5 I acknowledged my sin unto thee, and mine iniquity have I
not hid. I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the LORD; and thou forgavest the
iniquity of my sin. Selah.
 Proverbs 29:13 The poor and the deceitful man meet together: the LORD lighteneth both
their eyes.
 Jeremiah 4:4 Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, and take away the foreskins of your
heart, ye men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem: lest my fury come forth like fire,
and burn that none can quench it, because of the evil of your doings.

 Ezekiel 18:30-32 Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to
his ways, saith the Lord GOD. Repent, and turn yourselves from all your transgressions;
so iniquity shall not be your ruin. 31 Cast away from you all your transgressions,
whereby ye have transgressed; and make you a new heart and a new spirit: for why will
ye die, O house of Israel? 32 For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith
the Lord GOD: wherefore turn yourselves, and live ye.

 Hosea 5:15 I will go and return to my place, till they acknowledge their offence, and seek
my face: in their affliction they will seek me early.

 Joel 2:12-18 Therefore also now, saith the LORD, turn ye even to me with all your heart,
and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning: 13 And rend your heart, and not
your garments, and turn unto the LORD your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow
to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil. 14 Who knoweth if he will
return and repent, and leave a blessing behind him; even a meat offering and a drink
offering unto the LORD your God? 15 Blow the trumpet in Zion, sanctify a fast, call a
solemn assembly. 16 Gather the people, sanctify the congregation, assemble the elders,
gather the children, and those that suck the breasts: let the bridegroom go forth of his
chamber, and the bride out of her closet. 17 Let the priests, the ministers of the LORD,
weep between the porch and the altar, and let them say, Spare thy people, O LORD, and
give not thine heritage to reproach, that the heathen should rule over them: wherefore
should they say among the people, Where is their God? 18 Then will the LORD be
jealous for his land, and pity his people.

 John the Baptist preached repentance.

 Matthew 3:2 And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

 Luke 1:16-17 And many of the children of Israel shall he turn to the Lord their God. 17
And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the
fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a
people prepared for the Lord.

 The Lord Jesus preached and illustrated repentance.

 Mark 1:15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye,
and believe the gospel.

 Matthew 5:3 Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
  Luke 4:18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the
gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to
the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,

 Luke 5:32 I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.

 Luke 13:3 I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.

 Luke 13:5 I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.

 Luke 15:17-20 And when he came to himself, he said, How many hired servants of my
father's have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger! 18 I will arise and go
to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before
thee, 19 And am no more worthy to be called thy son: make me as one of thy hired
servants. 20 And he arose, and came to his father. But when he was yet a great way off,
his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him.

 When risen from the dead, Christ commissioned His servants to preach repentance.

 Luke 24:7 Saying, The Son of man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be
crucified, and the third day rise again.

 Acts 5:31 Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to
give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins.

 Repentance was given to spiritual Israel and forgiveness of sins. On the Day of Pentecost
Peter did not say that the people were to do nothing but rest upon the finished work of
Christ. Rather, he preached repentance.

 Acts 3:19 "Repent ye therefore and be converted that your sins may be blotted out!"

 When Paul was converted he was sent to preach the Gospel to the Gentiles.

 Acts 20:21 Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God,
and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.

 Acts 26:20 But shewed first unto them of Damascus, and at Jerusalem, and throughout
all the coasts of Judaea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to
God, and do works meet for repentance.

16. The time does come when those who will not repent cannot repent. To those who shut their
eyes, stopped their ears, hardened their hearts, and gave themselves up destruction in the
days of the Prophets (Isa. 6:10), of Christ (Matt. 13:15) and of the Apostles (Acts 28:27) was
the judgment pronounced that repentance would not be given to them "Lest they should see
with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and be converted, and I
should heal them," (Mark 4:12).
17. The nature of repentance is not always clearly understood.

 Luke 13:3 I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.

 Trembling beneath the preaching of God's Word does necessitate true repentance.
Felix "trembled" but he was not converted.

 Acts 24:25 And as he reasoned of righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come

Felix trembled, and answered, Go thy way for this time; when I have a convenient
season, I will call for thee.

 Being "almost persuaded" does not elicit genuine repentance. Agrippa illustrates
this.

 Acts 26:28 Then Agrippa said unto Paul, Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian.

Jesus spoke of those who were persuaded of the gospel message and then perished.

 Matthew 13:20-21 But he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that
heareth the word, and anon with joy receiveth it; 21 Yet hath he not root in himself, but
dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by
and by he is offended.

 A person may be conscious of his evil doing and acknowledge the same without
being converted with authentic repentance as Pharaoh confessed his sins.

 Exodus 10:16 Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron in haste; and he said, I have
sinned against the LORD your God, and against you.

 Humbling the heart beneath the mighty hand of God is not repentance. A solemn
example of this is Ahab who was sorry he had killed Naboth.

 1 Kings 21:27-29 And it came to pass, when Ahab heard those words, that he rent his
clothes, and put sackcloth upon his flesh, and fasted, and lay in sackcloth, and went
softly. 28 And the word of the LORD came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, 29 Seest thou
how Ahab humbleth himself before me? because he humbleth himself before me, I will
not bring the evil in his days: but in his son's days will I bring the evil upon his house.

While the repentance of Naboth was right and reward by God it was not genuine for in the
next chapter he is rebelling against God again.

 Confessing sins is not repentance. Thousands have gone foreword to an altar or a

mourners bench and then backwards into the same sin.
  2 Peter 2:22 But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, The dog is
turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the
mire.

 A person may even do works meet for repentance and yet remain impenitent as
Judas confessed his sins to the priest returned the money and then committed soul
murder.

 Matthew 27:3-5 Then Judas, which had betrayed him, when he saw that he was
condemned, repented himself, and brought again the thirty pieces of silver to the chief
priests and elders, 4 Saying, I have sinned in that I have betrayed the innocent blood.
And they said, What is that to us? See thou to that. 5 And he cast down the pieces of
silver in the temple, and departed, and went and hanged himself.

18. Repentance is even more than conviction of sin or terror of wrath to come. In Acts 2 the
Bible reveals that individuals were already under such terrors when they were still
commanded to repent. Their legal terror did not produce saving repentance in which there is
an evangelical judging of self and a mourning over sin out of a sense of God's grace and
goodness.

 Acts 2:37-38 Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto
Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do? 38 Then Peter
said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for
the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.

19. What then is repentance? A. W. Pink helps Christians to understand evangelical repentance.

We would say that: Repentance is a supernatural and inward revelation from God, giving
deep consciousness of what I am in HIS sight, which causes me to loathe and condemn
myself, resulting in a bitter sorrow for sin, a holy horror and hatred for sin, a turning away
from or forsaking of sin. It is the discovery of God's high and righteous claims upon me, and
of my lifelong failure to meet those claims. It is the recognition of the holiness and goodness
of His Law, and my defiant insubordination thereto.

It is the perception that God has the right to rule and govern me, and of my refusal to submit
unto Him. It is the apprehension that He has dealt in goodness and kindness with me, and
that I have evilly repaid Him by having no concern for His honor and glory. It is the
realization of His gracious patience with me, and how that instead of this melting my heart
and causing me to yield loving obedience to Him, I have abused His forbearance by
continuing a course of self will.

Evangelical repentance is a heart apprehension of the exceeding sinfulness of sin. It is the

recognition of the chief thing wherein I am blameworthy, namely, in having so miserably
failed to render unto God that which is His rightful due.
 True repentance is always accompanied by a deep longing and a sincere determination to
forsake that course which is displeasing to God. With what honesty could any man seek
God's pardon while he continued to defy Him and would not part with that which He
forbids? Would any king pardon a traitor, though he seemed never so humble, if he saw that
he would be a traitor still?

True, God is infinitely more merciful than any human king, yet in the very passage where He
first formally proclaimed His mercy, He at once added "that will by no means clear the
guilty" (Ex. 34:5-7), i.e. guilty hearted, those with false and disloyal hearts toward Himself,
who would not be subject to Him in all things, and declined to have their every thought
brought into captivity to obedience unto Him (2 Cor. 10:5).

God's mercy (Psa. 130:4) is never exercised as the expense of His holiness. God never
displays one of His attributes so as to dishonor another. To pity a thief, while continuing a
thief, would be folly, not wisdom. Well did the Puritan Thomas Goodwin say, "Resolve either
to leave every known sin and to submit to every known duty, or else never look to find mercy
and favor with God" (cp. Deut. 28:19,20).

20. Biblical repentance presupposes several things.

 Biblical repentance presupposes a recognition and acknowledgment of God's claims

upon us as our Creator, Governor, Provider, and Protector. Thus repentance does
presuppose that a supernatural enlightenment has been given.

 1 John 5:20 And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an
understanding, that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in
his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life.

 Biblical repentance presupposes a hearty approval of God's Law and a full consent
to its righteous requirements.

 Romans 7:12 "The Law is holy, and the commandment is holy, and just, and good"

It cannot be otherwise for God is its Author.

 Biblical repentance presupposes that the Moral Law was never repealed.

 Jesus said, "Think not that I am come to earth to destroy the Law, or the prophets: I am
not come to destroy, but to fulfill it" (Matt. 5:17,18).

Jesus condemned the Pharisee because they pretended that their rules and regulations
surpassed the Law.
 Matthew 5:20 For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the
righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of
heaven.
That the Moral Law of God was never to be repealed is taught in the Psalms.

 Psalms 119:142 Thy righteousness is an everlasting righteousness, and thy law is the
truth.

 Psalms 119:144 The righteousness of thy testimonies is everlasting: give me

understanding, and I shall live.

 Psalms 119:152 Concerning thy testimonies, I have known of old that thou hast
founded them forever.

 Psalms 119:160 Thy word is true from the beginning: and every one of thy righteous
judgments endureth for ever.

Christ did not die to disannul the Law so that now it wholly ceases to be a rule of life
to believers but rather to recover His people unto conformity thereto. Though men
love their corruptions, God sitteth as king forever (Psa. 29:10) and will assert His
crown rights (Luke 19:27).

 Titus 2:11-13 For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men,
12 Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly,
righteously, and godly, in this present world; 13 Looking for that blessed hope, and
the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;

 Psalms 29:10 The LORD sitteth upon the flood; yea, the LORD sitteth King for ever.

 Luke 19:27 But those mine enemies, which would not that I should reign over them,
bring hither, and slay them before me.

Only a regenerated man can repent and delight in the Law of God after the inward
man.

 Romans 7:22 For I delight in the law of God after the inward man.

By righteousness believers establish the Law that all the world might become guilty
before God.

 Romans 3:31 Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we
establish the law.

 Romans 1:17 For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it
is written, The just shall live by faith.
  Romans 3:19 Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who
are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become
guilty before God.
Without God's Moral Law there is no sin and no need to repent.

 Romans 5:13 (For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when
there is no law.

If the Law were wholly repealed to the point that it has no present operative force what is
the need to argue as Paul does that "by deeds of the Law there shall no flesh be justified in
His sight"? (Rom. 3:20). It would have been sufficient to say that a repealed Law could
neither justify nor condemn anyone. Instead, the Apostle shows that the Law requires a
"patient continuance in well doing" and threatens "tribulation and anguish upon every
soul of man that doeth evil" (Rom. 2:5,7).

21. The New Testament speaks in a uniform manner teaching that those who do not repent have
no saving interests in Christ's righteousness by faith are under the wrath of God and the curse
of the Law as though He had never died.

22. Christless sinners who are really awakened by the Holy Spirit to see and feel what a dreadful
state they are in want to repent when they realize they are under the wrath of God and the
curse of His Law because they have broken it! But this argument could not be made if the
Law had been repealed.

 Romans 7:9-11 For I was alive without the law once: but when the commandment came,
sin revived, and I died. 10 And the commandment, which was ordained to life, I found to
be unto death. 11 For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it
slew me.

23. God the Father, as the Governor of the world, gave the Law. God the Son magnified it by
expounding its purity, by obeying its precepts, and by enduring its penalty. God the Holy
Spirit honors the Law by pressing upon the sinner its holy demands and using it as a
schoolmaster to bring the soul to Christ by showing the necessity for repentance.

 Isaiah 42:21 The LORD is well pleased for his righteousness' sake; he will magnify the
law, and make it honourable.

 Galatians 3:24 Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we
might be justified by faith.

24. It is the special secret sovereign work of the Holy Spirit to impress upon the hearts of the
elect the Law of God so that it is their very nature to repent and to love God with all their
hearts so that might serve Him without servile fear in holiness and righteousness all the days
of their lives.
  Hebrews 8:10 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after
those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their
hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people:

 Luke 1:74-75 That he would grant unto us, that we being delivered out of the hand of our
enemies might serve him without fear, 75 In holiness and righteousness before him, all
the days of our life.

25. True repentance presupposes a honest and broken hearted acknowledgment of wicked failure
to keep God's righteous Law. Unfortunately, it is this enforcing of the infinite glory of God,
of His governmental supremacy, of His holy Law, of His righteous claims, of His demand
for loving obedience that is left out of much of the professing Church even today due in large
part to Dispensational and other forms of teaching.

26. There are three kinds of repentance spoken of in Scripture.

 The Repentance of Desperation illustrated in the lives of Esau, Pharaoh, Ahithophel,

and Judas.

 The Repentance of Reformation such as Ahab manifested and the people of Nineveh
under the preaching of Jonah.

 The Repentance of Salvation based upon an evangelical conviction of sin.

 Acts 11:18 When they heard these things, they held their peace, and glorified God,
saying, Then hath God also to the Gentiles granted repentance unto life.

 2 Corinthians 7:10 For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be

repented of: but the sorrow o f the world worketh death.

27. There is a contrast to be noted between a legal conviction in the soul and an evangelical
conviction leading to gospel repentance.

 Legal conviction fears hell while evangelical repentance reveres God.

 Legal conviction dreads punishment while evangelical repentance hates sin.

 Legal conviction informs the mind, while evangelical repentance melts the heart.

 Legal conviction excuses itself and claims the finished work of Christ as a basis to
continue in sin while evangelical repentance makes no excuses and has no reserves but
cries, "I have dishonored Thy name, grieved Thy Spirit, and abused Thy patience."

28. There is discernable fruit when gospel repentance is genuine.

 There is a real hatred of sin as sin, not merely its consequences.

 Ezekiel 14:6 Therefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Repent,
and turn yourselves from your idols; and turn away your faces from all your
abominations.
 Ezekiel 20:43 And there shall ye remember your ways, and all your doings, wherein ye
have been defiled; and ye shall lothe yourselves in your own sight for all your evils that
ye have committed.

 Psalms 119:104 Through thy precepts I get understanding: therefore I hate every false
way.

 There is a deep sorrow for sin.

 2 Corinthians 7:9-10 Now I rejoice, not that ye were made sorry, but that ye sorrowed to
repentance: for ye were made sorry after a godly manner, that ye might receive damage
by us in nothing. 10 For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented
of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death.

 Matthew 26:75 And Peter remembered the word of Jesus, which said unto him, Before
the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice. And he went out, and wept bitterly.

 Leviticus 16:29 And this shall be a statute for ever unto you: that in the seventh month,
on the tenth day of the month, ye shall afflict your souls, and do no work at all, whether it
be one of your own country, or a stranger that sojourneth among you:

 Joel 2:12-13 Therefore also now, saith the LORD, turn ye even to me with all your heart,
and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning: 13 And rend your heart, and not
your garments, and turn unto the LORD your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow
to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil.

 Galatians 5:24 And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and
lusts.

 There is a confessing of sin.

 Proverbs 28:13 He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and
forsaketh them s hall have mercy.

 Psalms 32:3-4 When I kept silence, my bones waxed old through my roaring all the day
long. 4 For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me: my moisture is turned into the
drought of summer. Selah.

 There is an actual turning away from sin.

Charles Spurgeon on Repentance

 Psalms 7:12
~*~
If he turn not, he will whet his sword;
he hath bent his bow, and made it ready.

Repentance to be sure must be entire. Many will say, 'Sir, I will renounce this sin and the
other, but there are certain darling lusts which I must keep.' O sirs, in God's name let entreat
you: it is not the giving up of any one sin, nor fifty sins, which is true repentance; it is the solemn
renunciation of every sin. If thou dost harbor one of these accursed vipers in thy heart, thy
repentance is but a sham; if thou doest indulge in but one lust and dost give up every other, that
one lust, like one leak in a ship, will sink thy soul. Think it not sufficient to give up thy outward
vices, fancy it not enough to cut off the more corrupt sins of thy life: it is all or none, which God
demands. 'Repent,' says He and He bids you repent, He means repent of all thy sins, otherwise He
can never accept thy repentance as being real. He says,

"Guild thee as thou wilt, O sinner, I

abhor thee! Aye, make thyself gaudy,
like the snake in its azure scales,
I hate thee still, for I know thy venom,
and I will flee from thee when thou
comest to Me in thy most specious garb."

All sin must be given up, or else you shall never have Christ: all transgression must be
renounced, or else the gates of heaven must be barred against thee. Let us remember this, that
repentance to be sincere, must be entire. True repentance is a turning of the heart, as well as the
life; it is the giving up of the whole soul to God to be His for ever; it is a renunciation of the sins
of the heart, as well as of the crimes of the life. Ah, dear hearers, let none of us fancy we have
repented when we have only a false and fictitious repentance; let none of us take that to be the
work of the Spirit which is only the work of poor human nature; let us not dream that we have
savingly turned unto God, when perhaps we have only turned to ourselves; let us not think it is
enough to have turned from vice to virtue; let us remember it must be a turning of the whole soul
to God, so as to be made anew in Christ Jesus; otherwise we have not met the requirements of the
text.
Lastly, upon this point, true repentance must be perpetual. It is not my turning to God
during today that will be a proof that I am a true convert; it is forsaking my sins throughout the
whole course of my life, until I sleep in the grave. You must not fancy that to be upright for a
week will be a proof that you are saved, it is a perpetual abhorrence of evil. The change which
God works is neither a transitory nor superficial one; not a cutting off the top of the weed, but an
eradication of it; not the sweeping away of the dust of one day, but the taking away of that which
is the cause of the dust. You may today go home and pretend to pray, you may today be serious,
tomorrow honest, and the next day you may pretend to be devout; but yet, if you return--as
Scripture has it, like the dog to its vomit and like the sow to its wallowing in the mire--your
repentance shall but sink you deeper into hell, instead of being a proof of Divine grace in your
heart.
~*~
 Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you,
will seek to enter in, and shall not be able.

~*~
Luke 13:24

To learn by heart that which others say from the heart-- to get the outline of a believer's
own experience-- this is a thing so simple that instead of wondering there are hypocrites, I often
marvel that there are not ten times more. And then again, the graces--the real graces within-- are
very easy to counterfeit. There is a repentance that needs to be repented of, and yet approaches
near as possible to true repentance. Does repentance make men hate sin? They who have a false
repentance may detest some crimes. Does repentance make men resolve that they will not sin? so
will this false repentance, for Balaam said. 'If Balak would give me this house full of silver and
gold, I will not go beyond the word of the Lord.' Does true repentance make men humble
themselves? So does false repentance, for Ahab humbled himself before God, and yet perished.
There is a line of distinction so fine that an eagle's eye hath not seen it; and only God Himself,
and the soul that is enlightened by His Spirit, can tell whether our repentance be real or no.

Doctrine of Repentance in Summary

1. The nature of repentance is not always clearly understood.

 Luke 13:3 I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.

 Trembling beneath the preaching of God's Word does necessitate true repentance.
Felix "trembled" but he was not converted.
 Acts 24:25 And as he reasoned of righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come
Felix trembled, and answered, Go thy way for this time; when I have a convenient
season, I will call for thee.

 Being "almost persuaded" does not elicit genuine repentance. Agrippa illustrates
this.

 Acts 26:28 Then Agrippa said unto Paul, Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian.

Jesus spoke of those who were persuaded of the gospel message and then perished.

 Matthew 13:20-21 But he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that
heareth the word, and anon with joy receiveth it; 21 Yet hath he not root in himself, but
dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by
and by he is offended.

 A person may be conscious of his evil doing and acknowledge the same without
being converted with authentic repentance as Pharaoh confessed his sins.

 Exodus 10:16 Then Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron in haste; and he said, I have
sinned against the LORD your God, and against you.

 Humbling the heart beneath the mighty hand of God is not repentance. A solemn
example of this is Ahab who was sorry he had killed Naboth.

 1 Kings 21:27-29 And it came to pass, when Ahab heard those words, that he rent his
clothes, and put sackcloth upon his flesh, and fasted, and lay in sackcloth, and went
softly. 28 And the word of the LORD came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, 29 Seest thou
how Ahab humbleth himself before me? because he humbleth himself before me, I will
not bring the evil in his days: but in his son's days will I bring the evil upon his house.

While the repentance of Naboth was right and reward by God it was not genuine for in the
next chapter he is rebelling against God again.

 Confessing sins is not repentance. Thousands have gone foreword to an altar or a

mourners bench and then backwards into the same sin.

 2 Peter 2:22 But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, The dog is
turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the
mire.

 A person may even do works meet for repentance and yet remain impenitent as
Judas confessed his sins to the priest returned the money and then committed soul
murder.
  Matthew 27:3-5 Then Judas, which had betrayed him, when he saw that he was
condemned, repented himself, and brought again the thirty pieces of silver to the chief
priests and elders, 4 Saying, I have sinned in that I have betrayed the innocent blood.
And they said, What is that to us? See thou to that. 5 And he cast down the pieces of
silver in the temple, and departed, and went and hanged himself.

2. Repentance is even more than conviction of sin or terror of wrath to come. In Acts 2 the
Bible reveals that individuals were already under such terrors when they were still
commanded to repent. Their legal terror did not produce saving repentance in which there is
an evangelical judging of self and a mourning over sin out of a sense of God's grace and
goodness.

 Acts 2:37-38 Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto
Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do? 38 Then Peter
said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for
the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.

3. What then is repentance? A. W. Pink helps Christians to understand evangelical repentance.

We would say that: Repentance is a supernatural and inward revelation from God, giving
deep consciousness of what I am in HIS sight, which causes me to loathe and condemn
myself, resulting in a bitter sorrow for sin, a holy horror and hatred for sin, a turning away
from or forsaking of sin. It is the discovery of God's high and righteous claims upon me, and
of my lifelong failure to meet those claims. It is the recognition of the holiness and goodness
of His Law, and my defiant insubordination thereto. It is the perception that God has the
right to rule and govern me, and of my refusal to submit unto Him. It is the apprehension
that He has dealt in goodness and kindness with me, and that I have evilly repaid Him by
having no concern for His honor and glory. It is the realization of His gracious patience with
me, and how that instead of this melting my heart and causing me to yield loving obedience
to Him, I have abused His forbearance by continuing a course of self will.

Evangelical repentance is a heart apprehension of the exceeding sinfulness of sin. It is the

recognition of the chief thing wherein I am blameworthy, namely, in having so miserably
failed to render unto God that which is His rightful due.

True repentance is always accompanied by a deep longing and a sincere determination to

forsake that course which is displeasing to God. With what honesty could any man seek
God's pardon while he continued to defy Him and would not part with that which He
forbids? Would any king pardon a traitor, though he seemed never so humble, if he saw that
he would be a traitor still?

True, God is infinitely more merciful than any human king, yet in the very passage where He
first formally proclaimed His mercy, He at once added "that will by no means clear the
 guilty" (Ex. 34:5-7), i.e. guilty hearted, those with false and disloyal hearts toward Himself,
who would not be subject to Him in all things, and declined to have their every thought
brought into captivity to obedience unto Him (2 Cor. 10:5).

God's mercy (Psa. 130:4) is never exercised as the expense of His holiness. God never
displays one of His attributes so as to dishonor another. To pity a thief, while continuing a
thief, would be folly, not wisdom. Well did the Puritan Thomas Goodwin say, "Resolve either
to leave every known sin and to submit to every known duty, or else never look to find mercy
and favor with God" (cp. Deut. 28:19,20).

4. Biblical repentance presupposes several things.

 Biblical repentance presupposes a recognition and acknowledgment of God's claims

upon us as our Creator, Governor, Provider, and Protector. Thus repentance does
presuppose that a supernatural enlightenment has been given.

 1 John 5:20 And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an
understanding, that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in
his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life.

 Biblical repentance presupposes a hearty approval of God's Law and a full consent
to its righteous requirements.

 Romans 7:12 "The Law is holy, and the commandment is holy, and just, and good"

It cannot be otherwise for God is its Author.

Without God's Moral Law there is no sin and no need to repent.

 Romans 5:13 (For until the law sin was in the world: but sin is not imputed when there is
no law.
If the Law were wholly repealed to the point that it has no present operative force what is
the need to argue as Paul does that "by deeds of the Law there shall no flesh be justified in
His sight"? (Rom. 3:20). It would have been sufficient to say that a repealed Law could
neither justify nor condemn anyone.

Instead, the Apostle shows that the Law still requires a "patient continuance in well
doing" and threatens "tribulation and anguish upon every soul of man that doeth evil"
(Rom. 2:5,7).

5. The New Testament speaks in a uniform manner teaching that those who do not repent have
no saving interests in Christ's righteousness by faith are under the wrath of God and the curse
of the Law as though He had never died.

6. Christless sinners who are really awakened by the Holy Spirit to see and feel what a dreadful
state they are in want to repent when they realize they are under the wrath of God and the
 curse of His Law because they have broken it! But this argument could not be made if the
Law had been repealed.

 Romans 7:9-11 For I was alive without the law once: but when the commandment came,
sin revived, and I died. 10 And the commandment, which was ordained to life, I found to
be unto death. 11 For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it
slew me.

7. God the Father, as the Governor of the world, gave the Law. God the Son magnified it by
expounding its purity, by obeying its precepts, and by enduring its penalty. God the Holy
Spirit honors the Law by pressing upon the sinner its holy demands and using it as a
schoolmaster to bring the soul to Christ by showing the necessity for repentance.

 Isaiah 42:21 The LORD is well pleased for his righteousness' sake; he will magnify the
law, and make it honourable.

 Galatians 3:24 Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we
might be justified by faith.

8. It is the special secret sovereign work of the Holy Spirit to impress upon the hearts of the
elect the Law of God so that it is their very nature to repent and to love God with all their
hearts so that might serve Him without servile fear in holiness and righteousness all the days
of their lives.

 Hebrews 8:10 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after
those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their
hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people:

 Luke 1:74-75 That he would grant unto us, that we being delivered out of the hand of our
enemies might serve him without fear, 75 In holiness and righteousness before him, all
the days of our life.

9. True repentance presupposes a honest and broken hearted acknowledgment of wicked failure
to keep God's righteous Law. Unfortunately, it is this enforcing of the infinite glory of God,
of His governmental supremacy, of His holy Law, of His righteous claims, of His demand
for loving obedience that is left out of much of the professing Church even today due in large
part to Dispensational and other forms of teaching.

10. There are three kinds of repentance spoken of in Scripture.

 The Repentance of Desperation illustrated in the lives of Esau, Pharaoh, and Judas.
  The Repentance of Reformation such as Ahab manifested and the people of Nineveh
under the preaching of Jonah.

 The Repentance of Salvation based upon an evangelical conviction of sin.

 Acts 11:18 When they heard these things, they held their peace, and glorified God,
saying, Then hath God also to the Gentiles granted repentance unto life.

 2 Corinthians 7:10 For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be

repented of: but the sorrow o f the world worketh death.

11. There is a contrast to be noted between a legal conviction in the soul and an evangelical
conviction leading to gospel repentance.

 Legal conviction fears hell while evangelical repentance reveres God.

 Legal conviction dreads punishment while evangelical repentance hates sin.

 Legal conviction informs the mind, while evangelical repentance melts the heart.

 Legal conviction excuses itself and claims the finished work of Christ as a basis to
continue in sin while evangelical repentance makes no excuses and has no reserves but
cries, "I have dishonored Thy name, grieved Thy Spirit, and abused Thy patience."

12. There is discernable fruit when gospel repentance is genuine.

 There is a real hatred of sin as sin, not merely its consequences.

 Ezekiel 14:6 Therefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Repent,
and turn yourselves from your idols; and turn away your faces from all your
abominations.

 Ezekiel 20:43 And there shall ye remember your ways, and all your doings, wherein ye
have been defiled; and ye shall lothe yourselves in your own sight for all your evils that
ye have committed.

 Psalms 119:104 Through thy precepts I get understanding: therefore I hate every false
way.

 There is a deep sorrow for sin.

 2 Corinthians 7:9-10 Now I rejoice, not that ye were made sorry, but that ye sorrowed to
repentance: for ye were made sorry after a godly manner, that ye might receive damage
by us in nothing. 10 For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented
of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death.
  Matthew 26:75 And Peter remembered the word of Jesus, which said unto him, Before
the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice. And he went out, and wept bitterly.

 Leviticus 16:29 And this shall be a statute for ever unto you: that in the seventh month,
on the tenth day of the month, ye shall afflict your souls, and do no work at all, whether it
be one of your own country, or a stranger that sojourneth among you:

 Joel 2:12-13 Therefore also now, saith the LORD, turn ye even to me with all your heart,
and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning: 13 And rend your heart, and not
your garments, and turn unto the LORD your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow
to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil.

 Galatians 5:24 And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and
lusts.

 There is a confessing of sin.

 Proverbs 28:13 He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and
forsaketh them s hall have mercy.

 Psalms 32:3-4 When I kept silence, my bones waxed old through my roaring all the day
long. 4 For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me: my moisture is turned into the
drought of summer. Selah.

 There is an actual turning away from sin.

Charles Spurgeon on Repentance

Psalms 7:12
~*~
If he turn not, he will whet his sword;
he hath bent his bow, and made it ready.

Repentance to be sure must be entire. Many will say, 'Sir, I will renounce this sin and the
other, but there are certain darling lusts which I must keep.' O sirs, in God's name let entreat
you: it is not the giving up of any one sin, nor fifty sins, which is true repentance; it is the solemn
renunciation of every sin. If thou dost harbor one of these accursed vipers in thy heart, thy
repentance is but a sham; if thou doest indulge in but one lust and dost give up every other, that
one lust, like one leak in a ship, will sink thy soul. Think it not sufficient to give up thy outward
vices, fancy it not enough to cut off the more corrupt sins of thy life: it is all or none, which God
demands. 'Repent,' says He and He bids you repent, He means repent of all thy sins, otherwise He
can never accept thy repentance as being real. He says,

"Guild thee as thou wilt, O sinner, I

abhor thee! Aye, make thyself gaudy,
like the snake in its azure scales,
I hate thee still, for I know thy venom,
and I will flee from thee when thou
comest to Me in thy most specious garb."

All sin must be given up, or else you shall never have Christ: all transgression must be
renounced, or else the gates of heaven must be barred against thee. Let us remember this, that
repentance to be sincere, must be entire. True repentance is a turning of the heart, as well as the
life; it is the giving up of the whole soul to God to be His for ever; it is a renunciation of the sins
of the heart, as well as of the crimes of the life. Ah, dear hearers, let none of us fancy we have
repented when we have only a false and fictitious repentance; let none of us take that to be the
work of the Spirit which is only the work of poor human nature; let us not dream that we have
savingly turned unto God, when perhaps we have only turned to ourselves; let us not think it is
enough to have turned from vice to virtue; let us remember it must be a turning of the whole soul
to God, so as to be made anew in Christ Jesus; otherwise we have not met the requirements of the
text.
Lastly, upon this point, true repentance must be perpetual. It is not my turning to God
during today that will be a proof that I am a true convert; it is forsaking my sins throughout the
whole course of my life, until I sleep in the grave. You must not fancy that to be upright for a
week will be a proof that you are saved, it is a perpetual abhorrence of evil. The change which
God works is neither a transitory nor superficial one; not a cutting off the top of the weed, but an
eradication of it; not the sweeping away of the dust of one day, but the taking away of that which
is the cause of the dust. You may today go home and pretend to pray, you may today be serious,
tomorrow honest, and the next day you may pretend to be devout; but yet, if you return--as
Scripture has it, like the dog to its vomit and like the sow to its wallowing in the mire--your
repentance shall but sink you deeper into hell, instead of being a proof of Divine grace in your
heart.
Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you,
will seek to enter in, and shall not be able.

~*~
Luke 13:24

To learn by heart that which others say from the heart-- to get the outline of a believer's
own experience-- this is a thing so simple that instead of wondering there are hypocrites, I often
marvel that there are not ten times more. And then again, the graces--the real graces within-- are
very easy to counterfeit. There is a repentance that needs to be repented of, and yet approaches
near as possible to true repentance. Does repentance make men hate sin? They who have a false
repentance may detest some crimes. Does repentance make men resolve that they will not sin? so
will this false repentance, for Balaam said. 'If Balak would give me this house full of silver and
gold, I will not go beyond the word of the Lord.' Does true repentance make men humble
themselves? So does false repentance, for Ahab humbled himself before God, and yet perished.
There is a line of distinction so fine that an eagle's eye hath not seen it; and only God Himself,
and the soul that is enlightened by His Spirit, can tell whether our repentance be real or no.

Doctrine of Repentance

1. In the early 1970's, a young man stood on a street corner of Chicago and pointed a finger
at people who passed by. He shouted one word at them: REPENT! REPENT!

2. As the people hurried by, there were looks of concern and confusion. What did the man
mean? Repent? Of what?

3. In religious terms, we might sense what was happening. For centuries, the church has
been calling upon people to repent.
4. Historically, the church has defined the word to mean, "to change one's mind" and, "to
feel sorrow for sin." Today, the word has been reduced to mean nothing more than
"faith."

5. However, it is now obvious that the simple definitions do not go far enough. The
behavior of the professing church does not match its belief. Perhaps, in the words of
Augustine, "we need to repent of our repentance."

6. Charles Allen has written that, “It is so much easier to whittle God down to our size
instead of repenting, changing our way of living, and being Godly ourselves.”

7. From the life of David comes an example of a man who truly repented of his great sins
and found favor with God and with man once more.

8. We can be inspired and challenged by David. We must confess that we too are great
sinners. Our sin is compounded by the fact that so often our repentance is silly,
superficial, simplistic, and false. The problem with the counterfeit is that it is so close to
the real thing but it is not.

9. It is possible to embrace a counterfeit form of repentance in the name of religion.

10. Once it was easy for the church to recognize counterfeit repentance. The Reformation
began, in part, to protest the selling of indulgences.

11. Now, time has passed and the Protestant church finds itself guilty of indulgences. We do
not sell the gospel, we simply cheapen it with theological concepts such as the carnal
Christian doctrine which says it does not matter how a person lives, they are just
backslidden, not unconverted.

12. We tell each other not to judge but the Bible tells us that the Church must judge righteous
judgment.

13. The Church must mark those who cause division. The church must remove the splinter in
the brother's eye. The Church must rebuke before all those who sin. The Church must cut
off the offensive hand and pluck out the offending eye. Sin must be dealt radically.

14. In short, the Church must remind itself not to indulge sin but to find a way to forsake it.

15. The Biblical way is through repentance. But what is true repentance?

16. One way to answer that question is to draw a comparison and contrast between
counterfeit repentance and evangelical repentance.
 Doctrine of Counterfeit Repentance

John Colquhoun
1748-1827

1. The first and most common form of conviction for sin is legal in nature. Legal repentance
arises when the Law of God is violated, its penalty is perceived as being eminent, and there is
a desire not to suffer that penalty. The only refuge from the curse of the Law, as seen by the
sinner, is to lay a foundation of hope on which is placed resolutions, reformations, promises,
duties and other self righteous schemes.
2. By the works of the Law the soul seeks to be justified and yet, "by the works of the Law no
flesh shall ever be justified (Rom. 9:31,32)."

3. Counterfeit repentance proceeds only from a sense of danger and a dread of wrath. The
sinner is terrified of the dreadful consequences of his transgression (Isa. 59:9-12). As a
result, many sin and repent, and repent and sin, all their lives. Why? Because the conscience
is pacified so that false penitents return with the dog to his vomit (2 Pet. 2:22), until some
new alarm revives the conscience and the process is repeated.

4. In false penitence the sinner is chiefly affected with his outrageous and open sins. It is not so
much his view of the abominations themselves that fills him with regret and distress but his
prospect of punishment for them in time and in eternity. This was the position of Cain after
he killed Abel. "My punishment is greater than I can bear" He cried. "Mine iniquity is so
great, it cannot be forgiven" (Gen. 4:13). Cain did not say, "My iniquities are greater than I
can bear," and thereby confess innumerable sins. Cain only said that his one iniquity was bad
as if he were guilty only of the sin of murder (Gen. 4:13).

5. Judas acted just the same. "I have sinned in that [specifically] I have betrayed innocent
blood." (Matt. 27:4) It was not for his covetousness, hypocrisy and other sins that Judas was
sorry but for the ONE sin only.

6. There is no salvation in legal repentance and no deliverance from the power of sin. Why?
Because the essence of sin has not been seen. God does not forgive on the basis of legal
repentance but heart felt, evangelical repentance.

7. Consider a courtroom scene. The Judge on the bench wants to know if the Court offers
pardon, will the person go back to the crime. Image a Ted Bundy asking the Court for mercy,
acknowledging that he has broken the Law, and then, when the Court is about to show mercy,
Bundy declares openly, "I plan to return to my murders."

8. There will be no mercy from a wise judge but only a just judgment. People who come to
Christ without a sense of the sinfulness of sin are secretly declaring that they will revolt
against mercy and grace. The time will come when this must stop and it will stop as the
Court says, “No more mercy, no more grace. Only a just and severe judgment.”

9. False penitence most often is based upon discouragement and despondency. The sinner may
be afraid that God will never pardon and accept such sinful rebels as themselves. By taking
this position, the righteousness of Christ is slandered and the grace and mercy of God is
limited. The soul flees from the mercy of God while pretending to flee to it.

10. Counterfeit repentance springs from hostility to God and to His holy love. If there is an effort
to change, the motive is the same as that of a slave who knows he must obey a tyrannical
master. While the outward behavior conforms to the master's wish, the heart longs to
embrace other things. Secretly, wicked works will be performed
 Colossians 1:21 And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by
wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled

11. False repentance produces only a partial and external reformation. Rest is soon given to a
troubles conscience so that some lust that is loved can be embraced.

12. Counterfeit repentance is only temporary, and it wears off with those convictions of
conscience, which have occasioned it.

13. It is possible to quiet the conscience and speak peace to the soul so that distress and terror
on account of sin ceases. Self can promise there will be some sort of reformation "in the
morning." Or, there is the formal performance of some religious duty.

14. True repentance is more sorry that the love of God has been abused than that the letter of
the Law has been violated.

15. True repentance does not rely upon resolutions and reformations but upon the mercy of
God. "There is forgiveness with Thee, says the Psalmist (130:4), That thou mayest be
feared."

16. True repentance relies upon the blood of Jesus Christ to purify the soul from many sins
and prays for Divine grace.

 Psa 51:2, 10 Wash me thoroughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my
sin...Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.

17. True repentance is a sincere mourning for sin, a loathing of ourselves in our own sight
for it, and an earnest desire of deliverance from the power and practice of it.

18. True repentance is characterized by sin becoming the heaviest burden and the object of
the greatest abhorrence and dread so that the soul cries out, “I acknowledge my
transgressions and my sin is ever before me” (Psa. 51).

19. The sincere penitent mourns for and hates ALL of his lusts, whether of the flesh or of the
mind, and longs to be completely delivered from them. He is willing that none should be
spared, not even a right hand or a right eye.
20. In true repentance, the believer is more deeply affected with the secret and fond sins
which he formerly delighted to commit.

21. In true repentance the believer is most affected with a spiritual view of all his secret evils,
the sin of his nature in general, and the unbelief and legal temper of his heart in particular.

22. There is salvation only in true repentance (Acts 2:37; Rom. 7:8-13). True repentance is
when the soul comes to Christ and pleads for mercy for having deliberately violated the
Law because finally, the soul realizes the sinfulness of sin (Isa. 44:22; Eph. 1:6).
  Acts 2:37 Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto
Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?

 Romans 7:8-13 But sin, taking occasion by the commandment, wrought in me all
manner of concupiscence. For without the law sin was dead. 9 For I was alive without
the law once: but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died. 10 And the
commandment, which was ordained to life, I found to be unto death. 11 For sin,
taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it slew me. 12 Wherefore
the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good. 13 Was then that
which is good made death unto me? God forbid. But sin, that it might appear sin,
working death in me by that which is good; that sin by the commandment might
become exceeding sinful.

 Isaiah 44:22 I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions, and, as a cloud,
thy sins: return unto me; for I have redeemed thee.

 Ephesians 1:6 To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us
accepted in the beloved.

23. The true penitent does not yield to despairing thoughts of redeeming grace. He rises
beyond the highest mountain to ascend to Mt. Zion knowing that God can bear him upon
eagle's wings. He must go to Mt. Sinai but move from there to Mt. Calvary.

24. True repentance springs from a love for God and a love for His Holy Law. It is not the
slave who fears the master but the Son who fears to hurt the Father.

25. The true penitent does not mourn because the Law is severe. He believes that the La is
holy, just, and good. He grieves because he is carnal and sold under sin.

26. True repentance is a total change of heart, and a universal turning from sin to God. He
does not renounce one lust and retain another, nor content himself with devotional duties,
in the neglect of strict honesty, and unfeigned benevolences; neither can he rest till by the
grace of God, he has his conversion experience so that..

27. His repentance produces heavenly-mindedness, humility, meekness, charity, patience,

forgiveness of injuries, and self denial; and it is accompanied by all the other graces and
fruits of the Holy Spirit.

28. True repentance brings on internal change of the will and affections as well as of the
outward conduct; a change which is lasting.

 2 Corinthians 7:10 For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be

repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death.

29. And repentance itself is lasting for the behavior realizes that he carries in his heart a body
of sin.
30. A man may mourn bitterly for sin and yet not more spiritually for it. True mourning for
sin is manifested by the honor that sin dishonors God and wounds Christ, and grieves the
Holy Spirit, and deprives the soul of the image of God.

31. The conclusion of true repentance is to forsaken open sin, abhors secret sin, and turns
from all sin by God's grace.