Page 524 - Way of Life Encyclopedia of the Bible Christianity. Based on the King James Bible

REPAY - REPENTANCE

9:16; Mk. 2:21; Lk. 5:36). To rend the clothes typified starts this side of repentance makes a false beginning
repentance and shame (Le. 13:45; 1 Sa. 4:12; 13:31; which vitiates his whole Christian profession. When
15:32; 2 Ki. 18:37; Is. 36:22; Je. 41:5). true repentance was preached and emphasized, there
REPAY. To pay back; to return; to refund (De. 7:10; were not so many nominal professors of religion. To
leave out or minimize repentance, no matter what sort
Job 21:31; Pr. 13:21; Is. 59:18; Lk. 10:35; Ro. 12:19; of a faith you preach, is to prepare a generation of
Phile. 19). professors who are such in name only. I give it as my
REPEATETH. To gossip (Pr. 17:9). [See Whisperer.] deliberate conviction, founded on twenty-five years of
REPENT ONESELF. To repent (De. 32:36; Jud. 21:6; ministerial observation, that the Christian profession of
Joel 2:13). [See Repentance.] today owes its lack of vital godliness, its want of
practical piety, its absence from the prayer meeting, its
REPENTANCE. Bible repentance means turning to miserable semblance of missionary life, very largely to
God; it means a change of mind toward God that results the fact that old-fashioned repentance is so little
in a change of life (Mt. 3:1-2; Lk. 5:32; 13:1-3; 18:13; preached. You can’t put a big house on a little
Ac. 2:38; 5:31; 17:30; 20:21; 26:20; 2 Pe. 3:9). There foundation. And no small part of such preaching comes
are two types of repentance: (1) Once-for-all repentance from a class of modern evangelists who desiring more
by unbelievers unto salvation (Lk. 13:3; Acts 2:38). (2) for their own glory to count a great number of converts
Continual repentance by believers for sanctification (Re. than to lay deep foundations, reduce the conditions of
2:5, 16, 21-22). salvation by one-half and make the other half but some
intellectual trick of the mind rather than a radical
Definitions of Repentance spiritual change of the heart. Like Simon Magus, they
“Repentance is a change of mind that results in a believe indeed, but ‘their heart not being right in the
change of life” (Bruce Lackey). sight of God, they have no part nor lot in this matter.
“Repentance is ‘a change of mind Godward that leads They are yet in the gall of bitterness and in the bond of
to a judgment of self and one’s acts’ (1 Ki. 8:47; Eze. iniquity.’ Such converts know but little and care less
14:6; Mt. 3:2; 9:13; Lk. 15:7; Ac. 20:21; 2 Co. 7:9-10). about a system of doctrine. They are prayerless,
This would not be possible but for the thought of lifeless, and to all steady church work reprobate” (B.H.
mercy in God. It is the goodness of God that leads to Carroll, 1889).
repentance (Ro. 2:4)” (Concise Bible Dictionary). “Repentance is a godly sorrow for sin. Repentance is a
“Real penitence; sorrow or deep contrition for sin, as forsaking of sin. Real repentance is putting your trust
an offense and dishonor to God, a violation of his holy in Jesus Christ so you will not live like that anymore.
law, and the basest ingratitude towards a Being of Repentance is permanent. It is a lifelong and an
infinite benevolence. This is accompanied and followed eternity-long experience. You will never love the devil
by amendment of life” (Noah Webster, American again once you repent. You will never flirt with the
Dictionary of the English Language, 1828). devil as the habit of your life again once you get saved.
“The preacher who leaves out repentance commits as You will never be happy living in sin; it will never
grave a sin as the one who leaves out faith. I mean he satisfy; and the husks of the world will never fill your
must preach repentance just as often, and with as longing and hungering in your soul. Repentance is
much emphasis, and to as many people as he preaches something a lot bigger than a lot of people think. It is
faith. To omit repentance, to ignore it, to depreciate it, absolutely essential if you go to heaven” (Lester Roloff,
is rebellion and treason. Mark its relative importance: Repent or Perish)
You may make a mistake about baptism and be saved, “To repent literally means to have a change of mind or
for baptism is not essential to salvation. You may be a spirit toward God and toward sin. It means to turn
Christian and not comprehend fully the high- from your sins, earnestly, with all your heart, and trust
priesthood of Jesus Christ (He. 5 :11), but ‘Except ye in Jesus Christ to save you. You can see, then, how the
repent ye shall all likewise perish.’ So said the Master man who believes in Christ repents and the man who
Himself. Repentance is a preparatory work. For thus repents believes in Christ. The jailer repented when he
saith the Lord: ‘Break up your fallow ground and sow turned from sin to believe in the Lord Jesus
not among thorns.’ I submit before God, who will Christ” (John R. Rice, What Must I Do to Be Saved?).
judge the quick and the dead, that to preach faith Repentance Preached by Bible Preachers
without repentance is to sow among thorns. No harvest Those who do not preach repentance or who make
can be gathered from an unplowed field. The fallow light of it or who claim it is the same as faith or who
ground needs to be broken up. The most striking redefine it so that it has nothing to do with sin are not
instance on record of repentance as a preparatory work
was the ministry of John the Baptist. He was sent ‘to following the Bible pattern for evangelism. They are
make ready a people prepared for the Lord.’ He did it following a manmade program. The bottom line is that
by preaching repentance, and Mark says his preaching Bible preachers proclaimed repentance. If faith is the
was ‘the beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the same as repentance, this would make no sense. Those
Son of God.’ Here is the true starting point. Whoever who follow the Bible will preach repentance and will

524 Way of Life Encyclopedia of the Bible & Christianity