Romans 2:4 states, Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?

Today there are very few sermons on repentance. There are many sermons on salvation, but not many on repentance. I can't remember when I have heard a sermon on repentance. I don't believe I have ever preached a sermon on repentance. I may have, but it's been a long time ago. This is to my shame.

Actually, whenever we preach about believing in Christ as your personal saviour, repentance is always implied. Whenever we preach about having faith in Christ so that you can be saved, repentance is implied. You can't separate faith for salvation and repentance. When a person has true heart repentance, he automatically will have saving faith. Also when you truly believe with your heart the Lord Jesus, you will have repentance.

Repentance is as old as the gospel, and actually a vital part of the gospel. Today, the gospel - the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ - is preached and the doctrine of repentance is left out. The result is not salvation.

There are many people who "believe" in Jesus, but continue in their lost condition. The reason? They have never repented of being lost, they have never really repented of what they are; therefore, their "believe" is not a true belief. It is a belief of the facts of the gospel, but not a belief in a personal Saviour that has personally forgiven them of what they are. There is a difference between repenting because of what you are and repenting because of what you have done. There is a difference between repenting because of what you have done, and repenting because you got caught.

What you have is: "Easy Believism."

1. Many people "believing" the gospel, but not turning from their wicked condition.

2. Many people turning from their sins, without turning from their sinfulness. (In other words, people, by the strength of the flesh, try to stop doing things that are considered bad, but they never recognize that they themselves are wicked, notwithstanding the things they do are bad.) There is a lot of "moral, external, fleshly, rehabilitation," (which is called "salvation") without an "internal, spiritual, reconciliation" of the sinner to a most holy God. Much of modern religion is a "pick yourself up by your bootstraps" religion, which will eventually land many professional religionists in an everlasting hell.

3. Many churches are filled with lost people trying to live right. They don't have the will or ability to study their Bibles, or really get down to business in praying to God or really getting into the worship services and worshipping God. They have a lot of trouble trying to apply the truths of the Word of God to their own lives - they've never really been saved, just convinced.

4. The end result is religion that don't mean anything to anybody. It is a "Sunday religion, which is forgotten on Monday". There is no real application of spiritual truths in the lives of the professed believers. Those that are truly saved become discouraged because the lives of those "saved" people around them. Churches are constantly in confusion, families are confused. In short, you have what you now see around you.

Repentance has always been preached as an integral part of believing. Repentance is caused by a person seeing (in the spirit) that the judgment of God is upon them.

I. Definition.

A. Bible - to have another mind. This involves action which comes from the spirit of man, initiated by the Holy Spirit of God. Understand: the Bible states that repentance is a change of mind. A person who doesn’t have a change of mind about himself, or his actions hasn’t repented, and is therefore lost. A person who continues in sin after stating he is saved, is still lost, regardless of what he says. Repentance involves a change of mind, which produces a change of will, which produces a change of living. Repentance that does not change the mind, does not change the will, will not produce a change of living, and is not true repentance.

B. We have power to live right only after we have truly repented of our sins. We do not live right, then have the power to repent and ask God’s blessings upon us.

1. John 8:10,11 – The woman taken in adultery was forgiven by Jesus Christ, then she had the will, power, and ability to go and sin no more.

a. Repentance comes before living right, not after.

b. We do not live right, therefore earn the right of God’s forgiveness.

c. Christ forgives us of the sin we have already committed when he sees repentance in our heart.

d. Luke 22:60-62 – When Jesus looked on Peter with eyes of compassion, not with vengeance or hatred, Peter remembered his guilt and the words of the Lord, and went out and wept bitterly.

2. Romans 2:4 states, Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?

a. This is the only time in the book of Romans the word "repentance" appears.

b. In the Greek – Romans 11:29 declares the gifts and calling of God are without repentance, but that is a completely different Greek word, which means there is no repentance.)

C. Why doesn’t repentance appear in the book of Romans – the greatest explanation of salvation in the Bible?

1. Some form of the word "believe" appears many, many times in Romans.

2. This is because believe and repent are inseparable.

3. Believing is not a simply head knowledge, but involves a "turning toward".

D. The word "repent" is not found in the gospel of John, but "intellectual" belief because you can't trust your emotions or your intellect.

1. If there is true believing, there is also a true turning from sin because believing is accepting another.

2. The word believe means to think to be true, to be persuaded of, to credit, place confidence in.

3. To really believe in Christ means you put your confidence in him.

E. The word "confess" means "to say the same thing as another, i.e. to agree with, assent"

1. In order to confess, or agree with God, we must also agree with God about sin, and about ourselves.

2. If we agree with God about sin and about ourselves, we will not remain with ourselves, but will hate sin and sin in us, just as God hate sin and sin in us.

3. Notice two different "ways to confess":

a. Romans 10:9 means agreeing with God. That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.

b. Romans 14:11 means "acknowledge openly and joyfully." For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God.

c. There is a vast difference in the time and the situation of these two confessions.

F. Dictionary definition of repentance – To amend or resolve to amend one's life as a result of contrition (broken down with sorrow for sins.)

1. It is possible to have sorrow for a particular sin without having another mind toward that sin.

2. True repentance does involve sorrow, but there is a difference between Godly sorrow that there is sin, and sorrow because a person got caught in sin.

II. Proper repentance.

A. Compare Matt. 27:3-5 and Luke 22:62.

B. Matt. 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.

1. Judas repenting but found no relief.

2. He continued to regret his sin.

3. Judas repents of a sin, but not of being a sinner.

4. Judas didn’t get an "relief" when he confessed his one sin.

5. This is shown by the fact that he went out and hung himself.

6. His guilt drove Him to suicide.

7. As long as people repent of particular sins, they don't repent of being a sinner in the first place.

C. All are alike sinners, and all should repent.

1. Luke 13:1-5 - Don't think you don't need to repent because some catastrophe hasn't happened to you. There were present at that season some that told him of the Galilaeans, whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. 2 And Jesus answering said unto them, Suppose ye that these Galilaeans were sinners above all the Galilaeans, because they suffered such things? 3 I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish. 4 Or those eighteen, upon whom the tower in Siloam fell, and slew them, think ye that they were sinners above all men that dwelt in Jerusalem? 5 I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.

2. Acts 17:30 - Paul preached on Mars Hill, declaring that God commands all to repent. And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent:

D. Compare Acts 2:38 (repent) and Acts 16:31 (believe). Paul and Peter preached the same message - you can't separate repentance and belief.

1. II Peter 3:9 - The earth is not destroyed because God is waiting for his people to repent and believe and receive the salvation He has for them.