Our lives today is filled with distractions, temptations, and moral shortcomings.
There is a call within us for repentance and transformation that remains as urgent as ever.
This is a call from our consciousness or the righteousness within us that urges us to live a life not merely of faith and belief in Jesus but living a true Christian life inspired by Jesus’ teachings and learnings of true discipleship.
The Biblical Call to Repentance
Repentance is not a one-time act but a lifelong posture of the heart.
“Repent of your sins and turn to God, for the Kingdom of Heaven is near.” (Matthew 3:2)
“The time has come,” he said. “The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!” (Mark 1:15)
In both the above verses, John the Baptist and Jesus proclaim the same message of repentance and transformation.
There seem to be a sense of urgency shown in the word ‘is near’ and ‘come near’ in both the verses.
Jesus wants to show that the ‘Kingdom of God, is near, as close as your hand. It wasn’t a far off future event to come or happen as they must have imagined.
The moment was now and immediate.
To encounter and experience the Kingdom was now, so don’t let it pass away.
Repent
Repent and transform was the message of Jesus’ teachings but Jesus is saying that entering the ‘Kingdom of God’ will not happen for them in their present condition and way of living, they had to change their direction and way of living to experience the kingdom.
So Jesus’ message for them and also us would mean that we just not have a feeling of regret or should feel sorry for our sins.
It’s a good starting point to feel sorry for our sins but we need to expand it to our actions. We need not just a change of mind but also a change of our deeds and acts and it would mean that we do not repeat or live those sins again. We put an end to them all.
Repentance would mean a change in direction, choosing righteousness over sinfulness.
Repentance would not mean that it’s the only point or a rule to attain the Kingdom of God, it is beyond in how we are geared to be in God’s Kingdom. (all washed and cleansed in mind and spirit)
We cannot come to the Kingdom of God unless we leave our sins and the sinful life.
In the Holy Bible we find many instances when God had instructed the people through the prophets to repent for their sins.
In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. (Acts 17:30)
Why Repentance is Necessary
A life of sin is not a life of a Christian.
Sin is the reason of our going away from God, the reason of our separation with God.
When we sin we choose the enemy, the evil one over God.
It was our sin for which Jesus accepted to die on the crucifix, and our committing sin is only piercing the nail still deep.
To repent is to choose God and His will for our life.
Repentance and transformation is finding freedom and recognizing that sin had held us in its cage (John 8:34) and the word in Jesus had become flesh to set us free (Galatians 5:1).
Transformation: The Fruit of Repentance
Repentance and transformation are at the core of every Christian discipleship.
We might think we are not worthy like the chosen twelve by the Lord starting with Peter and the other apostles, but we as Christians are to live and honor the will and teachings of Jesus.
So with repentance we have to have a life of transformation.
The fruit of Repentance is a transformed life.
It’s blessed to repent and be remorseful of one’s sins but it becomes virtuous when we live a transformed life, opposite to what we lived when in sin.
When we live a life of repentance and transformation, it’s a complete reorientation of a life towards God.
The life now seem worthy of breathing.
Also transformation is the evidence of a life surrendered to Christ.
If to repent for our sins is chosen, then its effect or fruits would be that the Holy Spirit will work to have a transformed self of a person.
This is not a self-improvement process, it is a divine and supernatural occurrence where the power of the Holy Spirit brings a renewed heart, mind and a spirit that lives regenerated and holy.
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!
(2 Corinthians 5:17)
The old filled with the sin is dead and now the new in the spirit lives.
Yes sin is old, and the new is spirit.
Repentance and transformation also work in unison wherein repentance is not simply a human effort, it is a grace filled response to God’s invitation.
Further transformation is the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit, molding and shaping the believers to be like Christ thus a true Christian.
Practical Steps for Repentance and Transformation
How can we live out repentance and transformation in our modern times?
1. Cultivate a Heart of Daily Repentance
- Begin each day with self-examination (Psalm 139:23-24).
Seek God in all humbleness, accepting your weaknesses towards sin, Surrender yourself completely.
Keep your accounts of right and wrong with God very short and not live it for days inside you.
Confess your sins and shortcomings every day.
Tell God your sins and wrongdoings. Regret over them.
- Scriptures
God speaks to us in the Scriptures.
Find your support in the scriptures, when down because of your sins. There are words of comfort and repentance in the Holy Bible. E.g. Psalm 51
- Build a Spiritual Wall Around You
Let the mantle of God’s grace and protection always keep you safe and worthy.
- Prayer
Prayer is your daily bread. Connect yourself with God in prayers every day.
Pray without ceasing. (1 Thessalonians 5:17)
- Bible Study
Bible is your blue print. Find yourself to be the characters in the Bible and just how God’s mercy and forgiveness saved you then and will save you even today.
- Practice Self-Control
When in temptations, practice self-control by walking away from the ways of the enemy.
In this moment of the devil’s play, find refuge in the word ‘Jesus’ and try to be in His presence spiritually.
- Trust in God’s grace and mercy.
- God’s Grace and Mercy
When you truly will to surrender for all your undoings before God, then the transformation in you becomes God’s work.
And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.
(Philippians 1:6)
A Transformed Life in Christ
Jesus’ call for repentance and transformation remains the same even today as it was two thousand years ago.
Christian faith has its seed in the gospel of living a life that is free of sin and a life in communion with God’s will.
Our times are laced with temptations, sins, and moral short-comings. Jesus understands it all.
Keep living your hope always in Jesus, no matter how many times you fall into the snares of the enemy, for you the belief and the act should be to not live long into that sin but repent immediately with a will to not commit the sin again.
When living a life to the will and teachings of Christ would be a true transformed life.
Repent, turn to Christ, and allow Him to transform your life.