Page 37 - GRACE
P. 37

GRACE, Exploring Its Riches



                               change and asked Peter what they had to do to experience
                               that  change.  The  focus  of  the  large  audience  was
                               repentance.

                               There is an urgent need in our churches and Christian
                               conferences today to go beyond delivering an impressive
                               message  or  music,  creating  a  beautiful  atmosphere  for
                               people to feel welcome and expecting them to belong to our
                               churches. We need to bring people to the point where they
                               take a decision for what they have heard in our meetings.
                               And the most important decision is not for membership or
                               becoming financial partners, but for the people to repent
                               from the way of the world, choose the higher way of the
                               Lord  and  embrace  grace  to  live  the  higher  life  of  Jesus
                               Christ. Many need this repentance in a lot of our churches.


                                            The Fruits of Repentance


                               There are many things repentance will produce in the lives
                               of those who genuinely experience it. When John started
                               with the message of repentance he also served a caveat with
                               it: fruits must accompany true salvation.


                                     “In those days John the Baptist came preaching in
                                     the wilderness of Judea, and saying, “Repent, for
                                     the  kingdom  of  heaven  is  at  hand!”  Then
                                     Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the region around the
                                     Jordan went out to him and were baptized by him
                                     in the Jordan, confessing their sins. But when he
                                     saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming

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