Joining a Church Isn't Repentance: The Turnaround That Saves

Sermon outline

True repentance is a complete turning around from sin to God, and God answers it with regeneration, a miracle of new birth that gives you a new position, a new relationship and a new lifestyle, which you must also pass on to your children while they are young.

1. Why study Bible doctrine

   Even if you are already saved, doctrine puts tools in your toolbox so that you understand your faith and can explain it to others. It also keeps you from confusion when you hear false doctrine, because in the last days many will be deceived and fall away, and we want to be steadfast and know what we believe.

   “We want to be steady in our belief and to know what we believe.”

   • Romans 10:17
   • Hebrews 11:6
   • Matthew 24:24

2. Repentance: a complete turning around

   When the crowd at Pentecost asked what they must do, Peter's first word was repent. Repentance is not just a word but a deep sorrow over sin, a change of mind and a turning around to face God and follow Him. Jesus said no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again, so it is a mistake to think that joining a church, becoming religious or reforming yourself is repentance.

   “So it is a mistake to think that repentance is achieved by joining a church.”

   • Acts 2:38
   • John 3:3

3. Examples of true repentance

   The prodigal son came to himself in the pig pen and said he would arise and go back to his father's house. The tax collector repented and was willing to repay those he had robbed, and David, unlike other kings, was never ashamed to admit when he was wrong. Paul, who held the cloaks of those who stoned Stephen, was turned around on the road and became the apostle to the Gentiles.

   Illustration: Paul never walked with Jesus as the other apostles did, yet after his encounter he carried such a passion for the Gentiles that his journeys fill the maps at the back of our Bibles.

   “David was never ashamed to admit when he was wrong.”

   • Luke 15:11-24
   • Luke 18:9-14
   • Psalm 51
   • Acts 7:58
   • Acts 9:1-18

4. What brings people to repentance, and what follows

   The Hebrew word for repentance means a turning around, from darkness to light and away from idols and witchcraft, which believers must never consult. What brings people to repentance is the Word of God preached with power, together with the Holy Spirit, whose peace acts as the umpire in your heart. Repentance moves a person from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light and sets them free, so share your own testimony while the door is open in our country and let people see the fruits of repentance in your life.

   Illustration: Some countries in Europe do not allow you to share your faith, so while we have this window of opportunity here, start by telling people your own experience, then pray privately that the scales fall from their eyes.

   “It's the word of God preached with power.”

   • Acts 8:5-8
   • Colossians 3:15

5. Regeneration: God's response to true repentance

   Regeneration is a miracle, a complete new birth, a cleansing and a renewing of the mind that gives you a new position and a new relationship with God, who now lives in us as treasure in earthen vessels. Grace is God's unmerited favour that saves us and keeps working in us, but we do not get stuck on one truth: we walk by faith, call things that be not as though they were, and keep a balanced, reverent walk in the fear of the Lord. Study the Bible for yourself until no one can shake what you believe.

   Illustration: In his early days as a believer he would arrive at church an hour early and wait in his car, so hungry for the Word that he began studying the Bible for himself because friends who had been in church for 20 or 30 years could not answer his questions.

   “Regeneration is God's response to a person who truly repents.”

   • 2 Corinthians 5:7
   • Romans 4:17
   • 2 Corinthians 4:7
   • Jeremiah 1:12

6. Put off the old self and put on the new

   Reading Ephesians 4, he urges believers to put off the old way of life, speak truthfully, work honestly and keep unwholesome talk out of their mouths. Bitterness and offence give the devil a foothold, so do not let the sun go down on your anger. You are sealed for the day of redemption and God knows you by name, and when we walk in His forgiveness we walk in His blessing.

   Illustration: That day an elderly businessman told him how he had put his pension into about 70 shipping containers that now cost him money to store since COVID. Thinking the man did not know God, he simply told him he was doing more than okay, because God takes care of him.

   “So when we walk in the forgiveness of God, we walk in the blessings of God.”

   • Ephesians 4:22-32
   • Isaiah 49:16
   • Matthew 10:30
   • Romans 8:31

7. Don't neglect your children's biblical education

   Parents spend a great deal of time and money on formal education, which is good and necessary, but they must not neglect teaching children the Word. Other religions train their children from the formative years, and those early years become the building blocks of later life. Teach them to read and memorise scripture, to pray for what they want instead of simply buying it, to sow a seed and to tithe, so they grow up strong and free from peer pressure.

   Illustration: If a child is given a hundred rand, teach them to give ten rand to God. When they want something, kneel and pray together, show them Jesus' promise about asking in His name, and later buy it, so the child says that God answered their prayer.

   “We must catch them while they're young, while they're still fresh, while their minds are still like sponges.”

   • John 14:14