Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.
Our church, The Hampton Roads Church, begins a 40 day journey tomorrow as we read through and LIVE through the New Testament.
While I've read through the Bible using an annual reading plan, I've never read through the New Testament in just 40 Days. It's not an overwhelming commitment — just 25 minutes a day if I read it out loud, about half that time if I read it silently. However, I fear that such a goal has the potential to leave me inwardly focused — exactly opposite what the Holy Spirit intends for me as I read His power packed pages.
“Repent and be baptized every one of you 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, ESV).
Peter presents this prescription for sin to an audience that has been “cut to the heart” and wanted a solution, asking “Brothers, what shall we do?” (Acts 2:37, ESV) Since sin both ruins our life and separates us from God, Peter prescribes a two-fold solution, addressing the two big problems of sin: how to stop it and how to be forgiven of it.
Together, repentance and baptism deliver the comprehensive solution, as we stop sinning and receive forgiveness for all sins. Here is good news indeed! But repentance without baptism only reforms us, and does not redeem us (redemption is the forgiveness of sins – Colossians 1:14, Ephesians 1:7). And baptism without repentance is merely a bath.
(This is the first of a series posts on Repentance's connection to Belief, Fruit, Turning to God, and Baptism.
He said, “The time is fulfilled and the kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the gospel!” (Mark 1:15)
Jesus begins his public ministry with this proclamation to repent and believe. Does He, in fact, mean to place repentance before belief? So which comes first, repentance or belief/faith? If repentance, then how can you turn toward God before you believe in Him? If faith, then how can your mindset shift from unbelief to belief before you’ve repented? More than a “chicken or the egg” exercise, this question challenges one’s understanding of both repentance (Gr: metanoia) and belief (Gr: pistis).
Consider the other New Testament passages which mention both repentance and faith:
Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.” (Mark 8:34, NIV)
A basic rule of Bible interpretation (exegesis): A verse cannot mean NOW what it could never have meant THEN. So what did this group of committed disciples and potential followers hear as Jesus called them to "take up the cross"? Some common contemporary takes on crossbearing include: