Before we go further, it is worthwhile to dig a little deeper into the meaning of repentance. The word itself “means a change of heart either generally or in respect of a specific sin.” This meaning is shown clearly by the way Paul uses the word in his defense before Agrippa:
Therefore, O King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision, but declared first to those in Damascus, then in Jerusalem and throughout all the region of Judea, and also to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, performing deeds in keeping with their repentance. (Acts 26:19-20, emphasis added).
In these verses, Paul is explaining the origin of the message he has been preaching, for which he is on trial. His message and mandate come from heaven. What is that message? The gospel message, Paul says, calls sinners to repent and turn from their evil ways towards God. The image of turning from sin vividly conveys the truth about our spiritual lives. Without repenting of our sin, we are headed down a path towards Hell. Repentance is the act of stopping in our tracks and turning around to head the opposite direction. We stop walking in darkness, about-face and head towards the light. We put an end to our sinning and start living holy and righteous lives. Paul says that before repenting, “you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked… and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind” (Ephesians 2:1-3).
Notice how Paul describes sinners as walking in their sin. A life of rebellion against God is not stationary; it is headed down the path to eternal damnation. Only by repenting of our sins can we change the direction we are walking in our spiritual lives and begin on the path to eternal life.
This imagery is found throughout the Bible. There are only two paths, or two directions, that a person can walk in life: either they are going towards the one true God or they are fleeing from him in sin and unbelief. One of the most memorable places that the Bible explains this is Psalm 1, which contrasts a righteous man with a wicked man. A person who does not “walk” in the counsel of those who are evil, but rather delights in meditating on God’s word, is blessed.
Those who “walk” in the way of the wicked are not blessed but cursed. The Psalmist says, “Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous; for the LORD knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish” (Psalm 1:5-6). There are only two ways we can travel in this life. We can journey down the road of the wicked or of the righteous. The wicked will be punished for their sins in the final judgment because they never repented. Only those who repent of their sins and walk the narrow path have hope of God’s forgiveness (Matthew 7:13-14).
So far we have focused on the call to repent of our sins, but even if we do turn from sin there is still a problem. How is it possible for God to forgive sinners who have violated his holy nature and law? God cannot overlook sin or ignore it without compromising his justice. The answer to this dilemma comes, in part, by understanding the other side to repentance. If repenting is turning away from sin, in the act of repenting we are necessarily turning towards something or someone else. Christians turn away from sin in repentance and at the same time turn towards Christ in faith. It is because Christians have faith in Christ that God can forgive sinners without contradicting his perfectly just nature.
Footnotes
Theological Dictionary of the New Testament Vol. IV, ed. By Gerhard Kittel, trans. Geoffrey W. Bromiley, (Eerdmans, Grand Rapids, 1967) 626.
