Repentance Luke 3:7-18, Revelation 2:4-6, 14-16

Repent, repent, repent, for the Kingdom of God is at hand was before Christ first coming. Today repentance is still as it was then because we are to get ourselves prepared for Christ second coming. ‘Repent of your sins and believe in God because the Kingdom of God is near’ (Luke 21:31, Mark 1:15).

What does this repentance mean?

This word had sometimes terrified people, it is not meant to be because repentance simply means ‘changing one’s mind’. We need to be transformed by the renewing of our minds (Rom 12:2). i.e. we ought to be always thinking in line with what God’s word says because that is the reality of life. And because we are spiritual beings, therefore we ought to be thinking of what or who God says we are. If we think along such lines, we will see our life manifesting what God said we are…

Luke tell us of John the Baptist preparing the way of the Lord. The same cry of John still applies for us today. In order to get ourselves ready for the second coming of Christ, we must repent from our crafty way of doing things. It is very easy to justify one’s sin how? Some of us in our craft behaviour quote scripture to sort just as the devil did with our Lord Jesus.

In Revelation 2:4-6 John says we should go back in loving God and man as we did when we first became born-again. When we came to faith newly, there was an inner spark of righteousness within us. We need to rekindle that spark.

Some of us today claim we are of God but are we really… some of our deeds show otherwise, Revelation 2:14 says ‘some are yielding to the teaching of Balaam’ the teaching of Balaam was related to idol worshipping and sexual immorality. We must repent from all form of idol worship and focus our worship onto the true God ‘The Creator of heaven and earth’.

According to John’s warning, repentance is not just an outward thing/show, but we should truly give a practical change to our attitude, character, and behaviour towards others.

According to one author Tokunboh, ‘John was a pattern for Martin Luther King. Luther insisted that buying indulgences would not assure one’s salvation or guarantee one a place in heaven. Luther’s greatest text was ‘The righteous will live by faith (Gal 3:11). His words sparked Reformation.

John’s teaching for us today is to be content with what we have, for us to cultivate the attitude of being grateful and be thankful to God for everything. You see, to live a simple life or a grateful one, requires that we renew our mind-set.

Whether we have a little or a lot, repentance is all about the way of God’s Kingdom and contentment. Simplicity, sharing, gratitude in a life lived for Christ is what John the Baptist is teaching us.

The crowd then and today remained the same in that they were people of all works of life as we are today. An interesting question was asked, we are asking the same lines of questions, as to what we should do to repent?

John offers a solution in his answer, his answer was practical and realistic. Note John did not ask anyone to leave their job, neither did he condemned the kind of job they did as long as it was legitimate. In whatever kind of job, we do, we must make sure we do what is right before God and man.

For example, to the tax collectors, it was said they should cease from demanding more than the expected amount, to the army, they were to be content with their wages. Apart from these, there are many ways that people extort money from others.

I wonder the kind of ethical dilemmas we are faced with in our jobs or elsewhere? John is warning us to repent from all form of exploitation of others because such attitude can prevent one from gaining God’s kingdom. The truth is that if we are content, we will not extort things from others.

We as God’s children are to live a life of contentment, gratefulness, thanksgiving, and joy but this must be a conscious decision on our part to make. Rejoice in the Lord always is a powerful way to get our minds, change, it brings about a heart of gratitude to one’s inner-being. And it will help one to see only what God’s word says regardless of what one’s circumstances are

Like John, we are to shout in truth the trumpet of repentance in every God giving opportunity. We must in this trouble times tell of the love, goodness, and the grace of our Redeemer to all men. Don’t be afraid but be bold, be strong be prayerful and of good cheer knowing the Lord is more than able to help us if we stand firm in Him.

Note John did not set himself up as an ultimate authority, instead, he articulates the truth as he saw it, but he knew ‘One more powerful than him was to come. Nevertheless, we know, that same ‘Powerful One is to come again in His Majesty and Splendour to judge all men.

Therefore, friends, all these warnings are not there to frighten us instead it is to encourage and equip us to be ready in meeting with the King of kings, & the Lord of lords when He comes in His splendour.

May the Lord grant us the grace to accept where change is needed, to be content in Him and the courage to make the change by the renewing of our minds.

May the Lord, our Saviour, Redeemer, Sustainer grant us the grace that will be sufficient for us to keep enduring until He comes in Jesus name I pray Amen.