HelpFinder Bible - Flipbook - Page 288
page A286
Rejection continued
Jesus did not reject the sinful Samaritan woman; instead, he offered her living water.
• J O H N 8 :1 0 -1 1 | “Didn’t even one of them condemn you?” “No, Lord,” she said. And Jesus
said, “Neither do I. Go and sin no more.” (See note on Presence of God on page 963.)
God rejects the sin without rejecting the sinner.
• J O H N 6 :3 7 | “Those the Father has given me will come to me, and I will never reject them.”
The Lord accepts all who come to him in faith.
Relationships See Communication; Friendship; Marriage; Neighbors
Repentance See also Faith; Forgiveness; Salvation
R
Have you ever had the experience of driving in a strange city and suddenly realizing you
were going the wrong way on a one-way street? What you do next—make a U-turn and
change direction as fast as you can—is very much like the biblical idea of repentance.
Repentance is motivated by the realization that you have taken the wrong way in life.
The Bible calls this wrong way “sin.” Repentance is when you admit your sin and make
a commitment, with God’s help, to change your life’s direction. While not a popular
concept these days, repentance is essential because it is the only way to arrive at your
desired destination—heaven. Because of repentance, change is possible and you can
experience God’s fullest blessings, both now and for eternity.
What is repentance?
HelpFinder
• MAT T H E W 3 :2 | “Repent of your sins and turn to God.” (See note on page 862.)
• MAT T H E W 4 :1 7 | From then on Jesus began to preach, “Repent of your sins and turn to
God, for the Kingdom of Heaven is near.”
Repentance means being sorry for sin and being committed to a new way of life—that
of serving God. It means turning from a life that is ruled by your sinful nature and turning
to God for a new nature which comes when God’s Spirit begins to live in you. When God
forgives your sins, you will have a new sense of hope for the future.
• MAT T H E W 3 :8 | “Prove by the way you live that you have repented of your sins and turned
to God.”
• L U K E 1 9 :8 | Zacchaeus stood before the Lord and said, “. . . If I have cheated people on
their taxes, I will give them back four times as much!”
The evidence of true repentance is changed behavior.
• E X O DU S 9 :3 4 | When Pharaoh saw that the rain, hail, and thunder had stopped, he and
his officials sinned again, and Pharaoh again became stubborn. (See note on page 60.)
Repentance that produces no lasting change is insincere.
• 1 J O H N 1 :9 | But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins
and to cleanse us from all wickedness.
One of the first essential steps to repentance is confession, which means being humbly
honest with God and sincerely sorry for your sins—the ones you know about and the ones
you are unaware of. Confession restores your relationship with God, and this renews your
strength and spirit. When you repent, God removes your guilt, restores your joy, and heals
your broken soul. A heart that truly longs for change is necessary for repentance to be
genuine.
Why is repentance necessary?
• R O MA NS 3 :2 3 | For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard.
All people need to repent because everyone has rebelled against God and sinned.
• J E R E MI A H 3 :2 2 | “My wayward children,” says the Lord, “come back to me, and I will
heal your wayward hearts.” “Yes, we’re coming,” the people reply, “for you are the Lord
our God.”
