(Lk. 13:1-5); --- “Now on the same occasion there were some present who reported to Him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices. And Jesus said to them, ‘Do you suppose that these Galileans were greater sinners than all other Galileans because they suffered this fate? I tell you, no, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish. --- Or do you suppose that those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them were worse culprits than all the men who live in Jerusalem? I tell you, no, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.”

I sincerely believe that today, we should hear more concerning God’s message of repentance. And yet, I suppose that repentance has got to be one of the most unpopular topics in all of God’s word (with the possible exception of Hell)!! We had almost rather hear anything than to hear someone preach from the pulpit, or read from the Bible and tell us of our need to repent. --- And yet, I’ve been told that over 969 times in the Bible in one form or the other, --- God has thundered “REPENT”!!

When Jesus Christ first came to this earth, just after His baptism and temptation, --- the very first message Jesus preached, was the message of repentance! (Mt. 4:17); --- “From that time Jesus began to preach and say, --- ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” --- And the last message our Lord gave to the church was “REPENT!” --- Many people think that Jesus’ great commission to the apostles, just before He ascended back to the Father was His last message; --- But that’s not the case!If you’ll go over to the book of Revelation, there you will find Jesus’ last message to the church! After giving messages to various churches, He gave His last message to the church in Laodicea, and that was a message of repentance. (Rev. 3:19) Jesus said; --- “Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline; therefore be zealous and repent. “ --- And it’s interesting to note; --- Out of the seven churches Jesus (by John) wrote to, five were told to repent or else!!

Now, let’s look at some background of the passage we read at the beginning in (Lk.13:) --- There were some Galileans who had been put to death by Pilate. --- And there were some other men (18 of them); who lived in Siloam, and as they were walking by this tower whichfell on them and killed them. --- And possibly the people were saying; --- “These must have been terrible, awful people!” --- “Look what happened to them; they died suddenly, so obviously they must have been awful sinners!” --- And the Lord said; --- “No, just because they died violently, don’t think they were worse sinners than other people; --- “but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish”

You know, I’m persuaded that many times we get things all wrong with our logic; --- We get to thinking that because everything seems to be running smoothly, that everything must be right between us and God! --- Just because no tower has fallen on us, we’re right with God! --- Just like these Jews felt comforted in their minds that they hadn’t had any catastrophe befall them, so all is just fine between them and God!

You see, they didn’t really understand what sin was; --- they had a rather low conception of sin. And I think this is what happens to many who claim to be Christians today. --- They look out into the world and say; --- “Look at them, look how sinful they are!! --- But not us!” --- Or they’ll see some poor soul have some bad things happen to them, and say; --- “O, they certainly must be wicked, vile people! --- But not us!!” 

A. And so, before we get too far into our lesson on repentance, I thought it might be wise for us to briefly review what the Bible teaches that sin is:

1. Sin is Missing The Mark

(Rom. 3:23) The Bible says; --- “ For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” --- You see, God has but one standard, and that is perfection. --- And if you and I don’t reach that standard, that makes us sinners in the eyes of God. --- Question; --- Is their anyone out there who can honestly say they’re as good as God? --- If not, then that makes you a sinner. --- You may say; --- “Well, that’s a mighty high standard!” --- Yes! Absolute perfection!! --- Jesus said; --- “Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Mt. 5:48)

What is so sad, is that most people are ego-maniacs; --- strutting their way to Hell, and all the while thinking their too good to be damned!! --- They fail to understand that God requires perfection; --- and that perfection is provided in and through the atoning blood of the Lamb of God, Jesus Christ!! 

And when we begin to realize that, we’ll stop lying down in the gutter along side some hypocrite and measuring ourselves by him; --- and saying; --- “I’m a little longer than he is!!” --- So what if you’re twice as long as he is?? --- “ For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” As stated above.

2. Sin is Transgression of God’s Law (Lawlessness)

The Book of God says plainly in (1 Jn. 3:4); --- “Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness.” (KJV says; --- Sin is transgression of the Law.”) --- God’s New Testament Law does have a healthy amount of “Thou shalts” and “Thou shalt nots”; --- And when you go against God’s Law, you sin, plain and simple!! --- Some people say, we “break” God’s Law. Oh no, you don’t break God’s Law, my friend, --- you are broken on them!! --- God’s Laws are immutable; --- they stand forever!! --- And when you transgress even one of them, you commit sin!

NOTE: Three standards of God’s Law (Bible authority); --1. Direct command: --- “And when He had taken some bread and given thanks, He broke it and gave it to them, saying, "This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” Lk.22:19; 1 Cor. 11:24-26) --- (another example); --- “When I teach that repentance and baptism are commanded of God, I am submitting to Jesus' Lordship and authority (I Cor. 14: 37). ---When others respond to this teaching, they are acquiescing to Jesus' authority.” *DM

2. Approved example: --- The early Christians met every first day of the week (Sunday) to observe the Lord’s supper (break bread- Acts 2:42; 20:7). Since every week has a “first day”, by approved example, we have Bible authority to humbly observe the Lord’s supper every Lord’s day (Sunday).

Compare (Exodus 20:8); --- “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.” ---
Under the Law of Moses, the Jews were commanded to keep every Sabbath (Saturday) holy.

3. Necessary inference: (necessarily implied) “We are told that when Jesus was baptized “he went up out of the water“ (Matt. 3: 16). --- “We are not expressly told he ever went into the water. However, to come out of the water, he had to go into the water - hence the necessary inference. --- (another example); --- (Heb. 10:25) Gives us a negative command; --- “not forsaking our own assemblies together, --) necessarily implies we can have a place to assemble, thus Bible authority for using the Lord’s treasury for building, buying or renting such a place. --- "do you know of any better way to arrive at authority?" (*DM) 
(Please note, --- DM represents quotes from an article by bro. Don Martin, by permission)

3. Failing To Do Good is sin (Sin of omission)

(Js. 4:17); --- “Therefore, to one who knows the right thing to do and does not do it, to him it is sin.”There was a story told about a soldier back in the Civil War who was reportedly court marshaled and shot. His crime? --- Picking a bouquet of flowers for his sweetheart! --- Why on earth would a man be shot for picking flowers? --- Because he was supposed to be on guard duty and while he was romancing, he let the enemy through!! --- You see; --- The sin of omission is just as bad as the sin of commission !! --- Another man went to his former boss in protest saying; --- “What did you fire me for, I didn’t do anything!” ---You might guess what the boss’s reply was; --“That’s why you were fired!!” --- And there’s a lot of us who haven’t done anything, and perhaps we ought to be fired off of God’s team! 

Sin is failing to do good. --- Sin is missing the mark. --- Sin is transgressing God’s Law; --- And the Bible gives us still another definition of sin;

4. Sin is Faithlessness (Sin of doubt)

(Rom. 14:23) Paul says; --- “But he who doubts is condemned if he eats, because his eating is not from faith; --- and whatever is not from faith is sin.” --- That is; --- If you have any course of action in your life that you’re not quite sure whether it’s God’s will, and you go ahead and do it anyway; --- You’ve committed sin!! --- Now, in reality the deed might not be wrong in and of itself; --- But if you think it’s wrong, and you don’t do it with the right attitude; --- “whatever is not from faith is sin.” --- Some of you might have some habits in your life; --- You say; --- “Just show me from the Scriptures where it’s wrong, and I’ll quit!” --- What you ought to say is; --- “Until I’m certain it’s right with God, I’ll leave it alone!” --- The Bible says; --- “whatever is not from faith is sin.” --- Rom. 10:17), “Faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.” --- In other words, if it’s doubtful, it’s wrong!! 

And then again, here’s one we never hear discussed too often;

5. Human Goodness (When it becomes a substitute for obeying the gospel) is sin. --- (Isa. 64:6) The prophet of God says; --- “For all of us have become like one who is unclean, And all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment;”

Some of you may have seen the old film strip series called, “When The Books Were Opened”, by David Roper. --- In this film depiction concerning Judgment Day (Rev. 20:12); --- There was this one character (fictional) named “Miss Brown”; --- Sweet little ole Miss Brown, a spinster who always went about doing good; --- Why, everybody knew her good works far outweighed the bad. --- But, Miss Brown’s trouble was that; --- This was her religion! --- She never put much stock in “church-Going”, or trusting in God and His word; --- Then came the Judgment Day!! --- Sweet little ole Miss Brown, “UNPREPARED” little Miss Brown!!

Just like “Sweet Little Miss Brown”; --- You can not do anything, even if it seems good, if you are not in fellowship with God; --- and have it to be good! --- As a matter of fact, the worse form of badness, is human goodness, when that human goodness is a substitute for giving your heart and soul to Jesus Christ in total and humble submission!! --- God said that when you are not following in His ways; --- Even your righteousness becomes as filthy rags!!

6. Unbelief is sin (Simular to 4. Above)

(Mk. 16:15-16) Jesus commanded His apostles; --- “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved; but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned..” 

In (Jn. 16:7-11), again Jesus speaking; --- “But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you. And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment; concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me; and concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father and you no longer see Me; and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged.” 

--- Concerning SIN, because they did not BELIEVE in Me! --- 

Now, having a fairly clear concept of what God calls sin; --- This kind of places us all in a pretty unsteady position doesn’t it?? Everyone of us have sinned and fallen short of the glory of Almighty God!! --- All we like sheep, have gone astray!” (Rm. 3:23 & Isa. 53:6)

--- And this is the reason we need to REPENT OR PERISH!! ---

B. Now, let’s get back to our text in (Lk.13:), and I would like to point out for your study some aspects concerning REPENTANCE:

1. Manner Of Repentance (What is repentance?)

In order to better understand what repentance IS; --- It would be helpful first of all for us to understand what repentance IS NOT: --- Repentance is not conviction alone!! --- To help us better understand this, we have but to go back to th Old Testament book of (1 Sam. 15:); --- And here we’re reminded of the story of King Saul. --- King Saul was supposed to have taken a certain course of action which the Lord had commanded him; --- and he failed to carry out that command; --- and Saul laments to Samuel in (Vs. 24); --- “I have sinned; --- I have indeed transgressed the command of the LORD and your words, because I feared the people and listened to their voice.” --- Now, here’s a man truly convicted of his sin! --- Can you imagine how Saul must have trembled? --- Someone says; --- “Surely, that must have been repentance!” --- But, it wasn’t repentance! --- (Vs. 34) continues; --- “Then Samuel went to Ramah, but Saul went up to his house at Gibeah of Saul. Samuel did not see Saul again until the day of his death; for Samuel grieved over Saul. --- And the LORD regretted that He had made Saul king over Israel.” (KJV says; The Lord repented that He had made Saul king) --- You see, It wasn’t Saul who repented, but rather God had repented that He ever made Saul king! (WHY?) Because Saul had a conviction of sin, but he didn’t do anything about it!! --- So don’t you ever let your conviction of sin make you feel like you have repented!! --- There may be many people who come and hear the word of God preached and be convicted of their sins; --- But dear soul, conviction alone is not repentance!! ---Nor is the CONFESSION of sin repentance!! --- Many times people have “come forward”, or have prayed privately saying; --- “I have sinned!” --- Well, that’s what Saul said! --- And we can read about what Pharaoh said after the plague of hail, in (Ex. 9:27); --- “Then Pharaoh sent for Moses and Aaron, and said to them, ‘I have sinned this time; --- the LORD is the righteous one, and I and my people are the wicked ones.” --- Pharaoh surely confessed sin, but confession of sin is not repentance!! 

Now listen to the wise man in (Prov. 28:13); --- “He who conceals his transgressions will not prosper, But he who confesses and forsakes them will find compassion.” --- God’s wisdom tells us it’s not enough to simply confess our sins! --- And the sands of time is chocked about with spiritual shipwrecks; --- Those who come ever so close to repentance, yet miss it all together!!

Conviction alone is not repentance!! --- Confession alone is not repentance!! --- And may I submit for your consideration; --- 

Contrition over sin is not repentance!! --- Someone says; --- “Well, I was so sorry for my sins, so I know in my heart, I’ve repented!” --- Friend, you could be very sorry for your sins and still have not repented. --- How sorry could you be? --- Sorry enough to go out and commit suicide and yet not have repented!! --- Judas was! ---Judas had such remorse and contrition over his sin that he literally committed suicide; --- He took his own life, that’s how sorry he was!! (Mt. 27:3-8)

But sorrow for sin; --- contrition for sin; --- And being heart-broken over sin IS NOT and CAN NOT BE REPENTANCE!! --- Let’s look at what Paul had to say about this, in (2 Cor. 7:10); --- “For the sorrow that is according to the will of God produces a repentance without regret, leading to salvation, but the sorrow of the world produces death.” --- Judas had the worldly type sorrow, which led to his suicide. --- Notice: “sorrow that is according to the will of God produces a repentance --” but it is not repentance! --- Though you may sit through a sermon and be convicted of sin; --- Though you may “come forward” and confess your sin; --- And though you may weep bitter tears and be crushed in spirit by remorse over your sins; --- You still have not repented!!

Now listen; --- This is very important!! --- For Jesus said; “Unless you repent, you will perish!!” (Lk. 13:5) Remember? --- Now that’s important, isn’t it? --- Therefore, we must understand exactly what repentance is!!

If God has said 969 times throughout the Bible; --- “REPENT!” --- If the first sermon Jesus preached was “Repent!” --- And His last message to the church was “Repent!” --- Than it behooves us to listen carefully!! --- What is repentance???

Repentance is: --- Conviction of sin; PLUS Contrition for sin; PLUS Confession of sin; PLUS CONVERSION FROM SIN!! --- Repent means to be converted! --- It means to TURN!! 

It means not only to be broken over your sin, --- But to be broken FROM your sin!! --- The Greek word “metanoeo” = repent, and “metanoia” = repentance both carry the idea; “To think differently/ reconsider (feel compunction) and (reformation). From Strong’s Concordance. --- In our language today, we might say, “Reverse gears”.

The Bible warns us time and time again! --- For instance, God said in (Ezek. 14:6); --- “Therefore say to the house of Israel, ‘--- Thus says the Lord GOD, Repent and turn away from your idols and turn your faces away from all your abominations.” And in (Isa. 55:7); --- “Let the wicked forsake his way And the unrighteous man his thoughts; And let him return to the LORD, And He will have compassion on him, And to our God, For He will abundantly pardon.” --- Repentance is TURNING FROM your sins; --- Anything short of that, is short of repentance!!

And when you turn from your sin in true repentance, it is not to be a temporary turning. --- We have seen some who may think they’ve repented, but they have only deceived themselves!! --- They’re like the sow returning to the mire! --- In (2 Pet. 2:20-22), Peter is describing the terrible condition of those who, at one time obeyed the gospel, became Christians; --- And now they’ve again allowed themselves to become entangled in, and overcome by sin. --- Peter says; --- “For if, after they have escaped the defilements of the world by the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and are overcome, the last state has become worse for them than the first. For it would be better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than having known it, to turn away from the holy commandment handed on to them. It has happened to them according to the true proverb, ‘A DOG RETURNS TO ITS OWN VOMIT,’ and, ‘A sow, after washing, returns to wallowing in the mire.”

Can you imagine anything more elegant to discuss in a Bible topic, than a dog who vomits and then turns right around and eat that which he has regurgitated upon the ground?? --- Hard thought, but that’s a dog trick! --- Or can you imagine a sow or pig that has been taken from the filthy wallow; --- Taken from the mire, and scrubbed until it’s pink; --- And imagine spraying “Porky” with a fine perfume and tying a beautiful bow around it’s neck; --- And then you let it loose anywhere near a wallow, and you know what’s going to happen!! --- That ungrateful swine is going straight back to wallowing in the mire!! --- That too, is a pig trick!

Now, not only does the apostle Peter clearly show the high possibility of a Christian losing his soul; Losing his salvation; --- But he also shows people who had a synthetic repentance! --- It depicts one who is half-hearted in his repentance. --- And half-hearted repentance is not genuine repentance!! ---
What happens to so many people who seem to repent, and then before you know it, they’re right back in the ways of the world; --- sinning the same old sins!! --- I heard one preacher call these types “Alka-Seltzer Christians” ; --- You plop them in water; --- They fizzle for a little while; --- And then they disappear! --- Only trouble is; --- they leave us with a headache!!

Now, not only is repentance to be permanent; --- But friends, it’s to be complete!! --- There are some who only partially repent. --- But when you repent, you don’t just repent of one particular sin, like lying, stealing and “hang the rest”! --- You are to repent of everything you know to be sin in your life or you don’t repent at all!!

Let’s suppose we’re going to have a wedding ceremony; --- Suppose Johnny and Susie are going to get married. The preacher asks Johnny; --- “Johnny, will you keep yourself from all others? --- And will you keep yourself for Susie alone, so long as you both shall live? --- In other words, will you be faithful to her? --- And suppose Johnny says; --- “Well, I’ll be 95% faithful!” --- Wouldn’t that be good enough? --- I don’t think it would be good enough for Susie, either, do you? 

You see; --- What God is saying; --- “I don’t want your 95%!!” --- “I want you; --- all there is of you!!” --- It doesn’t take much of a man to be a Christian; --- But friend; --- It takes all of him!! Listen to (Ezek. 14:6) again; --- “ Thus says the Lord GOD, Repent and turn away from your idols and turn your faces away from all your abominations.” --- Forsake all the unrighteous things!!

Many Christians are like the little girl who knelt by her bed one night and prayed; --- “Dear God, please help me to be good; --- not too good, --- but just good enough to keep me from getting spanked!” --- I’m convinced that there are too many children of God out there, just like that! --- “Dear Lord, I want somehow to hold my sin with one hand; --- But somehow be able to do a half-way job of repentance, so that I won’t get “spanked”, because I want to go to heaven.” --- That is; --- “I want to hold on to God with one hand and cling tight to the world of sin with the other!! --- God says it just doesn’t work that way!! --- Some people have never truly repented!!

Now please don’t mis-understand me; --- I am in no way implying that one must be sinlessly perfect as Jesus was perfect, in order to be a Christian and go to heaven on that great day!! --- I’m not saying that at all; --- I believe that that there will be times that we will be overtaken in some sin but when we repent of that and turn from it, if we have already taken the steps to become a Christian, then God will see us as perfect in His eyes through or because of the sacrifice of His perfect son on the cross. --- So what I am saying, is that you’ve got to have the right heart in the matter. --- You’ve got to be honest with God and with yourself ! --- And I’m saying that repentance and faith are the heads and tails of the same coin.

Illustration: I’m heading in a certain direction, straight for Hell; --- because my back is toward God and my face is toward my sin and it‘s worldly pleasures! --- And upon being convicted by the gospel, I say; --- “O Father, I’m sick and tired of hurting you by my sins; --- I’m in sin and rebellion, and I’m wrong!! --- Therefore, I choose against my sins, --- I REPENT!! --- I then turn my back on sin and I turn my face toward Jesus Christ in baptism to wash away every sin; --- I then rise up to walk in newness of life, faithful and obedient until death. (Rom. 6:3-6; Acts 2:38; Rev. 2:10 ect.)

I can not turn FROM my sins, unless I turn TO Jesus Christ and His truth; --- And I can not truly turn to Jesus Christ except I turn from my sins!! --And THIS friends, is the Manner Of Repentance !!

Now, let us consider next; --- 

2. The Motive of Repentance (Why should we repent?)

The first and most obvious answer is; --- It’s a command of God!! (Acts 17:30), In Paul’s address to the Athenians, he points out the fact; --- “Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent.” --- Do you know of any better reason for repentance?? --- The command from God!! --- The rich man is poor; ---The moral man is wicked; --- And a wise man is but a fool until he humbly comes to Christ in faith and repentance!! --- And I care not how good you think you are; --- If you think you are good enough to enter the gates of heaven without repenting, you’re ignorant of two things; --- You don’t understand the wickedness of your heart; --- And you don’t begin to comprehend the holiness of Almighty God!!

Jesus said; --- “Unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.” ; --- God has declared; --- “all people everywhere should repent.” --- Have you repented??

Another motive for repentance, we might look at it as a call of conscience!! --- You are never going to rest easy until you repent. --- Ever wonder why it is we see so many frustrated Christians? --- And “frustration” is not a word that should be a tagged on God’s people! --- When this happens, you don’t have the happiness and joy that Christians should possess, and your conscience bothers you, or at least it should!! I think this poem is fitting; ---

“No torture the poets name can match the fierce un-utter able pain he feels; --- Who, day and night, devoid of rest, --- carries his own accuser within his breast!”

Oh! The pity, when you don’t have peace with God! --- It’s as Jesus Himself said; --- “If your eye is clear, then your whole body will be full of light.” (Mt. 6:22) --- One way of looking at this; --- If you come clean with God; --- His glory will shine through you!!

Please bear with me as I tell this little story to make a spiritual application: --- There was a little white rat that some scientists were performing some phycological studies on; --- They put this rat in a maze, and at the other end of that maze was a little door; --- That rat would run through the maze, push the door open and waiting on him would be a reward of some cheese! --- Oh! That little rat loved to work that maze; --- and you know how much rats love cheese! --- And when he learned to do it, he got that maze down to a science. --- Then these fiends rigged up a gadget that when the rat pushed open the door; --- rather than getting his beloved cheese, he got a blast of cold water, right in the snoot!! --- And that poor rat would run through the maze expecting cheese; --- cold water! --- Next time, cheese, cheese, cold water, cheese, cold water etc.; --- And finally they kept this up until they caused that rat to have a complete nervous collapse!! --- He had a nervous breakdown!! --- He wanted the cheese, but he couldn’t stand the cold water. He just didn’t know what to expect!!

Now, here’s my point; --- There’s a lot of Christians out there who crave after the devil’s “cheese”; But they can’t tolerate God’s chastisement; --- God’s discipline!! --- They’re so frustrated, and so caught between two choices!! --- Look what the Spirit says to the Hebrews in (Heb. 12:5-8); --- “and you have forgotten the exhortation which is addressed to you as sons, --- ‘MY SON, DO NOT REGARD LIGHTLY THE DISCIPLINE OF THE LORD, NOR FAINT WHEN YOU ARE REPROVED BY HIM; --- 
FOR THOSE WHOM THE LORD LOVES HE DISCIPLINES, AND HE SCOURGES EVERY SON WHOM HE RECEIVES." --- It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline? --- But if you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate children and not sons.”

But I would like to bring your attention to a much higher motive for repentance; --- The conditions at calvary!! --- It makes no matter what Jesus did; --- No matter how high the price He paid for you on the cross; --- Jesus’ suffering and death was in vain without repentance on your part! --- Every agony, all the shame the sinless Son of God suffered; --- was to no avail, unless you repent!! --- For Jesus said; --- “unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.”

Now there’s a lot of folks who have never truly repented! --- They’ve “come forward” and have asked God’s and the brethren’s forgiveness; --- Some have even taught Bible classes; --- They attend most services. --- And everyone says; --- “Oh! How faithful brother or sister so-in-so is!” --- But, in their hearts, they have never truly repented!! --- And need I remind you what the God of heaven said to the prophet Samuel (1 Sam. 16:7); --- “for God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.” --- They’ve fooled most everyone, but they can not fool God!!

A certain $20 bill got into circulation (counterfeit)--- It did a lot of good; --- It bought some food to feed a poor family; --- Then that $20 bill bought some medicine to make a little child well; --- Then that same $20 was contributed to a local congregation to help carry on the mission of the Lord’s church in that area!! --- But then one day right after that last transaction, it ended up at the bank; --- and the banker took one look at it and refused it!! --- Why? --- Because it was fake; --- it was a counterfeit!!

And there’s a lot of folks who claim to be Christians, and they go about doing lots of good; --- But when they come to that heavenly “Banker”, on that great day; --- He will say; --- “You are not real!!” “You fooled a lot of people and perhaps even yourself; --- You even seemed to do a lot of good while on earth; --- “Depart from Me; --- I KNOW YOU NOT!!” --- This is what a lot of “do-gooders” will hear on that great and final day; --- “Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter.--- Many will say to Me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?' --- ‘And then I will declare to them, --- 'I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS” (Mt.7:21-23). 

May I remind you, it was not Earl Wilburn who said; --- “unless you repent, you will all likewise perish!” --- But the very Son of God gave this dire warning!! --- And no matter who you are, or what you have done; --- HAVE YOU REPENTED???

3. What is Repentance??

Some get the mistaken idea that repentance is something you do once, and then forget about it!! --- Nothing could be farther from God’s truth. --- Now, having said this, there is a sense where you repent a “blanket repentance” of all past sins; --- Just as when you’re baptized into Christ, you can receive a “blanket forgiveness” of all past sins, no matter how filthy they might be. --- The very Jews who were responsible for crucifying our Lord, asked; --- “What shall we do?” (for forgiveness); --- And Peter’s inspired response was; --- “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 2:38). 

This initial act of faithful obedience adds one to the Lord’s church and makes him a Christian at the same time. (Acts 2:47) --- But afterwards; --- you are to live a life of continual faith and repentance! --- However, the loving Father does give recognition to the fact we will all have faults and will sin from time to time. --- Speaking to Christians, the apostle John says; --- “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar and His word is not in us.” (1 Jn. 1:9-10) --- It is most important to realize; --- To confess sin does not only mean to “admit“ sin; --- but more than that, it also means we are to agree with God about our sins!! 

And what does God say? --- For instance, I may lose my temper toward my wife, my children, my cat or anybody!! --- God says; --- “Be patient, be more tolerant, be long suffering and forebearing!” And God says; --- “Earl, you’re wrong, you have sinned and “unless you repent, you will all likewise perish!” 

And dear brother or sister (Christians), if you have just one sin in your life; --- you need to get over on God’s side (look at it from God’s point of view), saying; --- “Yes, I have sinned, I’m wrong and stand condemned; --- I REPENT AND TURN AWAY FROM THIS SIN!! !! --- And the very moment you do; --- “He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

C. Heaven is not just an expression of sentiment; --- Heaven is real; --- Just like God is real!!  Heaven is a wonderful, joyous eternal home prepared for those who love and obey God!! --- And it may be much closer than we might realize; --- Therefore Judgment and Hell may be much closer than some of us are prepared for!! --- Jesus said; --- “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. --- For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? --- Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Mt. 16:24-36)

(2 Pet. 3:9) The apostle Peter adds; --- “The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance. “

Dear ones, God is not willing that any one of you should die and be assigned to an eternal hell in the judgment!! --If you do, it will be so against God’s expressed wishes and will be what you deserve!!

                                                       Humbly and lovingly submitted;

Questions and comments more than welcomed: ewilburn@austin.rr.com

Please don't delete this from your files, as who knows that while you may not at this time be moved by these scriptures but perhaps in time you might want to refer back to this and come to know better the love of the Lord. --- ew