Repent

From that time Jesus began to preach and say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
– Matthew 4:17

Some of us might be able to remember a time when we were on the lookout for someone to come. Perhaps in school your teacher had stepped out of the room temporarily, obviously expecting the students to behave in the most appropriate way. Of course, that didn’t always happen. If the class had seriously devolved into antics, you might have posted a sentry near the door to provide an early alert to the teacher’s return. If you have no memories of such instances, your childhood was more tame than mine.

It is common for behavior to be different depending on whether persons of influence are present or absent. Teachers, bosses, police: the list could go on. We tend to fly a bit more straight in their presence. As it is with these people of influence, so it is with God. Yes, we know that God is never really absent. It’s not like we believe we are doing things that God fails to notice. Still, if it were announced that Jesus himself were going to show up in our home, our community, or church in the next hour, you know we would change both our schedules and our behavior. In a broad sense, all of this falls under the concept of repentance.

In the gospels, the baptism and wilderness temptation of Jesus are the common markers of the beginning of his ministry. Both Matthew and Mark present the initial prophetic word of Jesus’ ministry as a call to repentance. It seems appropriate to include this among the teachings of Jesus because it touches everything else Jesus taught. Think about it. Repentance means to turn, to turn away from one thing and toward another. A.W. Tozer said that “repentance isn’t only sorrow for past sins, it is also a determination to now do the will of God as He reveals it to us.” Conviction is the weight of sorrow we feel for wrongs we have committed. Repentance is the determined act of exchanging the wrong actions of the past for right ones in the future.

In the years to follow, Jesus would teach on a variety of topics. Those topics would include things like loving others, the virtue of forgiveness, holiness of heart, mind and body, the use of money, the use of power, faithful stewardship of resources, trust, the words we speak, and an assortment of other things. Each of these topics we will unpack as they come in the gospel accounts. Regardless of the topic, the teaching of Jesus always calls us to repentance. If there was no need for repentance, there would be no need to teach. For example, if we were all loving each other perfectly, Jesus would not have to teach us what perfect love looks like. The same is true for any other topic. Whatever Jesus is teaching about, he is calling us to repentance, to turn and align our hearts and actions with his authoritative word.

The urgency, of course, is that the Kingdom of heaven is at hand. To paraphrase, Jesus is near and wants to know how we’re doing. Let me offer an analogy. One of the areas where we often struggle is in the area of forgiveness. If you or I do not have a sense of urgency, it is easy to let our spirits stew in resentment. However, if we knew that Jesus was going to check in with us tomorrow, and that he would surely ask if we have reconciled with that friend or loved one (as he expects), it is much more likely that we would pick up the phone tonight and extend an olive branch. Urgency has a way of compelling repentance.

It is possible that we think of repentance in limited terms, like action reserved for those who have fallen into some state of gross immorality. In reality, repentance is a word that we always need to keep before us. The only exception I could imagine would be those who have achieved the utmost level of Christian completeness, those who can make it through every day without the slightest thought, let alone action, that deviates from pure Christlikeness. My guess is, that’s not you. Don’t worry; it’s not me either. Therefore, our word for this and every day is to repent. The Kingdom is at hand!

See you along the Winding Path.