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Now God loves you he's given his son. What do you have to do? You have to do something. What is it? First you have to repent of your sins I have studied this book for 20 years and according to the teaching of this book Not my own ideas this book There are three things that you have to do Before you can be forgiven of your sin and before you can get to heaven the first Jesus said except you repent ye shall likewise perish Repentance, what is that? I've heard a lot about repentance. You say what is it? All right, repentance is this I Recognize that I have broken the law of God. I Recognize that I have sinned I'm ready to acknowledge it. I'm ready to confess it But that's not all of repentance. It means that I also Must renounce my sins. I must be willing to give up my sins Does someone need to repent of their sins in order to be saved and Jonah chapter 3 kind of deals with this I want to answer this question repentance and Salvation does someone need to repent of their sins to be saved now today Many preachers and even very well-known preachers teach that someone must repent of their sins In order to be saved God is willing to have mercy upon you. He's willing to bestow his grace upon you He's willing to forgive you if you willing to repent of your sin and that phrase is used a lot Repent of your sins repent of your sins repent of your sins and Because that phrase is used so commonly repent of your sins because it's used so often people will assume People will assume that anytime they see the word repent or Repentance in the Bible that it is referring to repent of your sins in fact, many people believe that the only thing you can repent of is your sins, so I see the word repent and They assume repent of your sins that's repentance has that happened to you Are you sure that you've repented? I? Tell you if I wasn't sure that I had repented of my sins You couldn't drag me out of Madison Square Garden tonight till I was settled You know and sometimes, you know, we'll talk to someone we'll tell them Hey salvation is believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and not shall be saved salvation is faith in the Lord Jesus Christ You know and they'll say well no, well you got to repent of your sins in order to be saved You know, I've done this many times or I've told people show me that Show me in the Bible where it says that someone has to repent of their sins to be saved and they'll take me to a verse Like this go to Matthew chapter 4 It's not always this verse it's often this verse but they'll usually take me to a verse like this Matthew chapter 4 verse 17 Because someone will say well, of course, you got to repent of your sins to be saved I'll say oh show me that show me in the Bible where it says you have to repent of your sins to be saved Matthew chapter 4 verse 17 first sermon Jesus ever preached was repentance Scripture says he began to preach and to say repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand From that time Jesus began to preach and to say repent For the kingdom of heaven is at hand and they'll say see and I'll say I missed it Where does it say repent of your sins? To be saved. Oh, there was as repent that I see repent What I'm not seeing is where it says of your sins to be safe well It's talking about your sins when it says repent is talking about your sins because preachers say repent of your sins repent of your sins Repent of your sins so people get this idea anytime the Bible use the word repent It's of your sin Jesus took your place as a substitute now God says repent of your past sins believe in him trust in him commit your life Surrender your soul to him and thou shalt be saved Here's the problem with that go to Joe go back to Jonah chapter 3 the problem with assuming That every time you see the word repent It's in reference to your sin. The problem with that is that in the Bible The person who repents more than anyone in the Bible is God Almighty God himself Jonah chapter 3 verse 9. I'll give you one example multiple examples throughout the Bible Jonah 3 9 knows what the Bible says who can tell if God will turn and repent Turn away from his fears anger that we perish not notice verse 10 God saw their works that they turn from their evil way notice don't miss this and God Repented of the evil that he had said that he would do unto them and he did it not Those of you that will receive Christ Those of you that will accept him those of you that will trust him Those of you that promise to live for him from now on You are receiving him as your Lord and Savior. You're making sure that if you died you'd go to heaven By an act of repentance and faith. Well, every time he says repent it means you're proud of your sin Okay, the God repent of his sins God doesn't sin God is holy. God is without sin So when you have this assumption that every time you see the word repent, it must be of sin. You've got a wrong assumption Because the person who's repenting the most and the Bible is God who doesn't sin So there's a problem when you go to all these verses that say repent and then you add to it of your sin Because not every time the Bible use the word repent is it talking about repenting of your sin? Here's what you need to understand the word repent means to turn It means to rethink to reconsider or to change your mind Let me prove it to you look at verse 9 again who can tell if God notice the wording will turn and repent and Turn away from his fears anger that we perish not did you get your place there in 2nd Chronicles chapter 6? Look at verse 37 2nd Chronicles chapter 6 verse 37 notice what it says Here Solomon is talking about people repenting 2nd Chronicles chapter 6 verse 37 says this yet if They notice these words notice this word Yet if they be think Themselves in the land whether they are carried captive God here's that once God's judgment comes in there carried captive if they reconsider if they change their mind yet if they be think themselves in the land whether they are carried captive and Turn and pray unto thee in the land of their captivity saying we have sinned we have done amiss and have dealt Wickedly, what's what are they doing there? They're repenting because they be think because they turn see the word repent means to turn it means to be think it means to Reconsider it means to think again. It means to change your mind So look the phrase repent of your sins, here's what's interesting The phrase repent of your sins because you hear all these preachers are about repent of your sins repent of your sins repent of your sins You step across that line That has been drawn in the sand by our Lord Jesus Christ And he says repent of your sins. The interesting thing is that the phrase repent of your sins That you can't even find that phrase in the entire Bible You can find the word repent and repentance you can find the word sin But you can't find this sentence structure repent of your sins, you can't find that You can't find that syntax If you if you pull up like a like like a word like a Bible, you know Software where you can search different things. I use the Bible software e sword and on e sword It will allow you to put a phrase in there and you can you can you know choose To look for the exact phrase meaning I want to see if I can find this phrase in the Bible You put the words repent of your sins You you set it to choose to look for the exact phrase you hit enter says no verse is found Because that phrase repent of your sins isn't even in the Bible Isn't even in the in the word So here's the problem if repent of your sins means to turn from you know Means to turn from sins if you believe that in the context of salvation If someone has to repent of their sins in order to be saved the problem with that is that you're adding works to There is nothing for the saving of your soul except one thing That is the fact that Christ died and rose again And you must come and repent of your sins and receive him as your Lord and Savior Because the Bible defines it at works. Are you there in Jonah go back to Jonah chapter 3 verse 10 Jonah chapter 3 verse 10 Don't miss this and God Saw there notice what it says works God saw their works. What did they do that? They turned from their evil way See these people turn from their evil way They repented they decided to turn away from it and you say what's wrong with turning from your evil way nothing wrong with it but I just want you to notice that God calls it works and God saw their works that they turn from their evil way and here's the thing salvation is clearly not of works. I Mean Ephesians 29 for by grace you say through faith and that not of yourselves It is the gift of God not of works lest any man should boast Titus 3 5 not by works of righteousness, which we have done But according to his mercy, he saved us by the washing of regeneration and revealing of the Holy Ghost You say well pastor, you know, does repentance not play a role in Salvation go to Matthew 21 Matthew 21 because you know when when men like me preach these types of things then people fall So they accuse us, you know, the big false accusation in regards to this doctrine is they'll say oh that church doesn't believe in repentance They don't believe in repenting. No, wait a minute. We believe in and repentance the Bible teaches about repentance we just don't believe in adding works to salvation and Repenting of your sins is works and God saw their works that they turn from their evil way You say well then what about in regards to salvation? You know, what is repentance and regards television? Remember repentant means to turn To be think to reconsider to change your mind Matthew chapter 21 I'm gonna give you several verses on this notice what it says Matthew 21 verse 32 for John This is Jesus speaking for John came unto you in the way of righteousness and ye believed him not Remember, what must I do to be saved believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved In order to be saved you have to believe and when you believe not that's what condemns you That's what sends you to hell notice Jesus said for John came unto you in the way of righteousness and ye he's talking to the the Jews the Pharisees He says ye believe them not He says but the publicans and the harlots believed him He said you did not believe the public and the harlots They did believe notice and he when he had seen it repented not afterward Always you're talking about repenting of your sins. No repented not afterward What would if they would have repented what would have been the product of the repentance that he might believe him? See, this is what Jesus teaching. He's saying you did not believe But if you would have repented if you would have be thought it if you would have reconsidered and change your mind You would have decided to go from not believing to believing Why because what saves you believing? What condemns you not believing he says look ye believe them not but the public and the harlots believe them and ye when he had Seen it repented not afterwards that you might believe see in regards to salvation repentance is not repenting of your sin. That's works It's repenting of unbelief Mark chapter 1 verse 15 go there. You're there in Matthew next book over is mark Mark chapter 1 and verse 15 Mark chapter 1 and verse 15 says this and saying The time is fulfilled and the kingdom of God is at hand repent ye. Notice what he says though and believe the gospel Why because when someone repents in regards to salvation they have to go from unbelief to believe They have to go from the wrong belief to the right belief go to Acts chapter 19 Acts chapter 19 You're there in Mark you know past Luke John into the book of Acts they look when we walk up to a Catholic who believes that they're gonna go to heaven because they go to the Confessional booth because they got baptized because they keep the sacraments because they do their trust is in those religious acts When they get saved they have to repent and turn From what they were trusting in which was their works or their religion and they have to now no longer believe or trust in those things and believe in Jesus Christ that's repentance in regards to salvation and He repented not afterwards that you might believe him repent ye and believe the gospel acts 19 of verse 4 says this then said Paul Paul here speaking about John's ministry because when we we preach when we talk about this repentance issue people say what John preached repentance That is why he said unless you repent you will perish The Apostle Paul in his famous sermon in Athens said God now commanded all men everywhere to repent because he hath appointed a day In which he will judge the world Who should repent Everybody this is what the cross calls for The heart of the message of the cross is simple repent of perish Okay, well, let's see what John preached according to Paul then said Paul John barely baptized with the baptism or repentance He said it's true that he baptized with the baptism repentance What was he saying though saying unto the people that they should believe on him? Which should come after him that is on Christ Jesus See repentance in regards to salvation is you're believing the wrong thing. You're trusting Joseph Smith You're trusting Allah you're trusting whatever it is You're believing in and you got to quit you're an atheist and you got to quit believing that and believe and and now Repent in your mind choose to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ That's the teaching look repenting of sin Is works God saw their works that they turn from their evil way So we cannot add works to salvation But you say it does repentance play a role Repentance plays a role if you're trusting in and believing the wrong thing Then you have to turn from that belief system. You have to quit trusting that and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ Let me just say this because we're gonna deal with it here in the rest of the passage Repenting of sin does play a role in the Christian life And God wants Christians to repent of their sins Listen to me not to be saved that would be adding works of salvation But once you're saved God wants you to repent of your sins God wants you to get things right in your life. God wants you to Start living right and start living like him But if you're doing those things to be saved You're not even safe because you're trusting in the wrong thing or trust in your life. He will give you eternal life tonight You don't have to wait till tomorrow tonight You That's the good news, but you must receive it How do you receive it first by repenting of sin that means to turn to change? Your thinking to change your mind to change your attitude and to change your way of living