Today in America the godless person is an arrogant, prideful person who places enormous confidence in human potential and ability. This godless person may or may not be religious. He or she may declare himself or herself to be an atheist, an agnostic, or a Christian. How can a religious person or a professed Christian be godless? A godless person has not and will not repent. The person who belongs to God repents. Repentance is the initial step toward relationship with God taken by the person who believes in Jesus. It will always be a part of his or her life as a Christian.
While Jesus stressed repentance, it is seldom emphasized today. Teachings focusing on repentance receive so little emphasis that most Christians do not know what it is.
Why? Repentance is the language and action of surrender. Americans do not surrender. American Christians do not surrender. If sustaining unity, harmony, love, peace, and kindness in a congregation involves surrender, many Christians will justify division, confrontation, hate, animosity, internal war, and contempt. Repentance may be godly, but it is un-American.
When did you last see an elder declare to a congregation, "I was wrong, and I am sorry! I will change now! My change will be obvious!" Or a deacon? Or a preacher? Or a ministry leader? Or a Christian of influence? Or a Bible class teacher? Or a member?
Faith is important, but our common concept of faith is accepting facts. That faith requires no surrender. You express faith, add a few new religious responsibilities to your life, and basically live like you always lived.
Baptism is critical, but our common concept of baptism is little more than the physical act of immersion. That act is a matter of yielding to divine authority. You yield to authority, add a few new religious responsibilities to your life, and basically live like you always lived.
Repentance is a different matter. When a person declares faith in Christ and yields to immersion, repentance is assumed. Typically, American Christians do not like the concept of repentance. It makes us "feel uncomfortable." Why? Repentance involves surrender.
Good servants surrender. They surrender life to the control of their master. American Christians make poor servants. They want to serve without surrendering. They reject surrender, and they despise control. Control occurs against their will, not in cooperation with their will. The Christian who serves God from his or her heart is unique. This uniqueness expresses itself in many ways. However, each unique quality is rooted in the surrender of repentance.
Read Luke 13:1-5
In Jesus' day (and before), Jewish people assumed "bad things" happened to Jewish individuals as an act of divine punishment [see John 9:1,2]. Deuteronomy's teachings was the source of this conviction [see Deuteronomy 27 and 28].
Offering animal sacrifices to God was among the most important religious rites in Judaism. In contrast, offering human blood to God would horribly insult God. How could these Galilean Jews be killed while bringing God sacrifices? What was the religious significance of their blood being shed at the same time the priests were killing their sacrificial animals?
Note Jesus' response:
They concluded that these Galileans were guilty of a terrible wickedness that deeply offended God. The fact that they were killed as their sacrifices died was confirmation that they were very evil people.
Jesus did not address his comments to the Galileans or to Pilate. He said nothing about either. He made no religious or political statement about what occurred. Obviously, neither the Galileans nor Pilate were foremost in Jesus' thinking and concern.
Jesus addressed his remarks to those who brought him the report. His concern was directed at their conclusion. If they concluded that these Galileans were guilty of a horrible wickedness or offended God in some special manner, their conclusion was wrong. He stated that the people who brought the report needed to repent as certainly as did the Galileans. Their need for repentance was equally great. If they failed to repent, they, too, would perish. The fact that they were alive and the Galileans were dead did not prove the Galileans were more sinful.
The additional calamity was the collapse of a tower in Siloam. That accident killed eighteen people. If they concluded that the eighteen who died were more wicked than all who were alive in Jerusalem, their conclusion was wrong. That is quite a statement. The Holy City was the home of God's temple. A common conviction: Jerusalem was home to the godliest people. The priests who offered sacrifices to God in God's temple resided in Jerusalem.
The people to whom Jesus spoke needed repentance as much as did the eighteen killed in the accident. Those listening to Jesus needed forgiveness as much as the eighteen killed in the accident. Both groups were sinful. Both groups were in total, desperate need of mercy. Only repentance would prevent perishing. [Someone may note this statement was made prior to Jesus' death and resurrection. On that basis they may suggest that baptism was not yet important. On that basis they may suggest that repentance became less important after Jesus' resurrection. If that occurs, note that many, including Jesus, came to John to be baptized. Read Mark 1:4. The coupling of repentance, baptism, and the forgiveness of sins began in the ministry of John.]
Read Acts 2:1-40
The only correct explanation of the coming of the Spirit and the tongues was, "This is God's work as He keeps His promise." Drunkenness was no explanation. [A person could not drink enough new wine to be drunk that early in the day.] The only adequate, correct explanation was the prophesy of Joel. The evidence that God had begun His promised work of the last days was the outpouring of His Spirit.
Jesus' miracles and power demonstrated that God was with him. These people witnessed God's power as it was expressed in Jesus' deeds. People killed him, but that act did not prove that people were stronger than God. God knew that people would kill Jesus, and Jesus' death occurred in accordance with God's plan. Godless men executed Jesus by crucifixion, but they were responsible for Jesus' death. They did not drive the nails, but they caused the execution.
God resurrected Jesus from death. In that act, God ended the power of death (putting an end to the "agony," literally "the birth pangs" of death) [see Hebrews 2:14,15]. They (the apostles) were witnesses of Jesus' physical resurrection. God exalted Jesus to His right hand, and God poured out the Holy Spirit to keep His promise.
They should know without doubt that God made the Jesus they crucified to be Lord and Christ. "Lord" declared his position of all power or authority [Matthew 28:18] and Christ (the Greek word) or Messiah (the Hebrew word) declared him to be the one God promised Abraham that He would send [see Genesis 12:3b and Galatians 3:8].
Some were pierced in their heart (or stricken in their conscience) and asked, "What shall we do?" Being responsible for the death of God's Son, the Christ, was the most serious crime against God that could be committed. Commonly, according to the Old Testament law, serious offenses against God received strict justice (death). When they realized the significance of their actions, they were consumed with guilt and fear in anticipation of God's justice.
Peter instructed those who inquired (who obviously believed what Peter said about Jesus' identity, resurrection, and position) to repent and be baptized. If the believer repented and was baptized, his sins (including the sin of urging Pilate to execute Jesus--incredible!) would be forgiven (rather than receiving divine justice!). He also would receive the Holy Spirit as a gift, a gift promised to the next generation and to those who had not yet heard about Jesus Christ.
[Suggestion: These closing thoughts are given to challenge your Bible students to open their minds and understanding to the importance of repentance. For decades we have stressed the importance of baptism. Rarely, if ever, did the teacher or preacher intend for people to believe that baptism of itself (excluding faith and repentance) saved. Rarely, if ever, did the teacher or preacher want anyone to believe that the power of forgiveness was in the act. When this emphasis on baptism began (over a hundred years ago), most people involved in those discussions had faith in Christ. Most of them were concerned about holding a biblical perspective.
Because that was the situation then, today many Christians assume that is today's situation. That is an incorrect assumption. Many people do not have faith in Christ. Many people who profess faith in Christ do not biblically understand what it means to trust God's work in the Christ. As a result, too commonly, people in the church conclude that all conversion involves is the physical act of baptism. A failure to repent is one (of several) basic reasons for significant spiritual struggles in the church.
The objective of these statements is simple: to awaken Christians to the importance of personal repentance.]
The following thoughts are shared to challenge you to look at this text and think. Baptism is not enough to save a person. Baptism in the name of Jesus Christ is not enough to save a person. Baptism in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins is not enough to save a person. Baptism in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins is not enough to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit [see Acts 5:32 and 1 Corinthians 6:19,20].
The person who believes that God made Jesus Lord and Christ must combine repentance and baptism. Peter did not say that baptism separated from repentance would give a person forgiveness of sin and the gift of the Holy Spirit. Peter said to the believing listeners that the combination of repentance and baptism resulted in the forgiveness of sin and the gift of the Holy Spirit. The combination of repentance and baptism provided special benefits to those who believed that God made the resurrected Jesus both Lord and Christ.
Some questions for prayerful consideration: Have you repented? Of what? Do you repent? Of what? The generic prayer, "Lord forgive me of my sinful acts and omissions," is not a magical spiritual formula. Read 1 John 1:5-10. As we mature in our awareness of sin, we must repent.
Link to Student Guide
Quarter 3, Lesson 2