How Important is Repentance?
by Mihran Kulhanjian
My dear Friends,
How important is repentance? Jesus said to His disciples: "Then He said to them, “Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, 47 and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem" [Luke 24:46-47]. Jesus said this after His resurrection. Repentance is the first condition. As Christians we must preach what Jesus instructed; and He preached repentance and commanded His apostles [the twelve, the seventy-two and many others] to preach repentance. You see, God accepts everyone as they are, but if you are grateful for what God has done, you will change, you will turn from your sinful life, you will begin to live holy, you will repent.
An unrepentant sinner is an unbeliever in the true sense. You cannot keep on living in an unrepentant, sinful state and call yourself a Christian and follower of Christ. God will not leave you the way you are. But you must seek Him honestly with a true and pure heart. God wants you holy. He wants you to turn from your sin. He will not leave you the way He received you. Sin can and does destroy. Sin is filth to God. God has no tolerance for sin. This is why Jesus came. Jesus came to save sinners, to clean the filth from us, to wash us, to purify us so that we could have communion with God as the children of God.
By His death and resurrection Jesus did what nobody else could do. He did it all and there is nothing else to be done by Him. It is time for you to fully receive Him and receive all that God has in store for you. There is an afterlife. There is a Hell and there is a Heaven. You have a choice. God gave you free will to choose Him and glorification. Why would you want Hell and judgment. The unrepentant, unbelievers end up in Hell for eternity. This is no joke. Do not take this lightly. Hell is filled with billions of people who turned away from God and decided to live their own selfish and prideful lives. Seek Jesus today and know the truth behind salvation. There is only one way to God the Father and to Heaven, and that way is through Jesus Christ. Jesus is Lord.
Acts 2:37-38
37 Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Men and brethren, what shall we do?”
38 Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
Acts 20:20-21
20 how I kept back nothing that was helpful, but proclaimed it to you, and taught you publicly and from house to house, 21 testifying to Jews, and also to Greeks, repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.
The first message Jesus gave when He started His mission was on repentance:
Jesus said: "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel" [Mark 1:15].
And the last message Jesus gave to the church was on repentance:
"As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent. 20 Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. 21 To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne" [Revelation 3:19-21].
God wants the best for you. He does not want you to destroy yourself. Repent, and receive His promises and blessings and live holy. The alternative is unthinkable. Repent now! Turn to Jesus and believe.