Peter concluded his second preaching of the gospel message in Acts by calling for his listeners to turn away from sin.
When God raised up his servant, Jesus, he sent him first to you people of Israel, to bless you by turning each of you back from your sinful ways. Acts 3:26 (NLT)
The Greek word normally translated as “repentance” is metanoeo, which simply means to change the mind.
The gospel brings us to the realization that life depends on our declaring allegiance to Jesus the Lord. Trying to be our own “lord” and run things on our own leads to heartbreak and death. We were created to be dependent beings who rely on God for everything. Adam and Eve decided to go it on their own, which is the essence of sin, and brought all of us into bondage to sin and Satan. The gospel announces that God is willing to forgive our rebellion and welcome us back into his eternal family, if we will simply acknowledge Jesus’ right to rule and surrender ourselves to him. When we do this, every Jesus accomplished on our behalf by dying for our sins and rising again becomes a source of great joy to us.
When we have such a change of mind, we are said to “repent.”
Repentance is a gift. (Acts 5:31, 2 Tim. 2:25) The Holy Spirit opens our hearts and minds and motivates us to take this critical step. True repentance will eventually change how we live. As Peter said, we will turn back from sinful ways.
Sin carries with it the sentence of death. It always breeds sorrow and destruction. When we turn away from sin, it opens the door to God’s blessings in our lives. Jesus is the fountain of life, fulfillment, and joy. The gospel restores us to our heavenly Father, from whom all blessings flow. (James 1:17)
The devil tells us that following Jesus will ruin our lives and steal all our fun. Adam believed the devil. Who are we going to believe? Our eternity can be filled with regret and pain or the joy of the Lord.
You will show me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore. Psalm 16:11 (NKJV)
