I don’t want to do evil, but I do it anyway; I want to do good, but I don’t do it. I’m living in slavery, for the things I will to do, I can’t do, and the things I will not to do, I do. I am compelled to do what I hate; I am forced into doing what I don’t want to do. I am a man in prison; I would rather be outside; I would much rather sleep in; I want to read now or watch a cartoon; however, I am compelled to be inside; I am forced to wake up early and make my bed; I must clean rather than read books. I dream about having my own home and my own wife and my own children; but I am forced into laboring for another man’s family, for plans and objectives which are not mine. “Jesus answered them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin.” (John 8:34)
Does anyone say, “I wish not to be free?” Is it a good thing to be shackled? Why would anyone want chains about them? Which is better: obligation or free-will? Is not obligation slavery? And free-will, well… freedom? Are you free if you’re free to sin? Of course not! One is not free who is delivered from the oppression of nations, or masters, or principalities; no! For if he is free’d from these and sins, he is a slave to sin. There is no such thing as free to sin; there is such things as freewill, but there is no freedom in sin; "Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin.” (John 8:34) There is only freedom from sin; deliverance is from sin into true freedom.
How does repentance come about? I want it, but I don’t know how to obtain it. Furthermore, God’s wrath is against sin; He abhors it; and He will judge sin with eternal damnation. Why would anyone want sin? I affirm: if anyone wants sin, sin has deceived them. If sin were truthful, no-one would willingly choose it. If sin were truthful, it would say, “You can have me now, but you’ll have everlasting disgrace later; I am far less superior than anything, but anyway, I am now; you’ll need me again quickly later, for I am fleeting. There is no good in me, and if you taste me, you’ll taste sickness, pain, and burnings; the wrath of the Almighty is right behind me, and He has prepared a place ahead of me. Everyone who tastes me, tastes death; taste a little bit of me and I have full reign in you. Everyone who loves me, hates their own self.”
But instead sin lying says, “Surely you will not die; you will feel good; did not God create you for me and me for you? Besides, you will love me! Can anything this bad taste this good? If you feel bad later, I can speak to you more and relieve your guilt — I will give you more of me so that you will forget. I offer you wisdom and superior knowledge, others do not know what I know — I only offer you the best! Don’t you hear me already? Don’t you recognize the knowledge even in these sayings? Yes, the Almighty says, “Beware of me”, but I know what He really means. I am good; look how happy they are who taste me!”
So then, how does repentance happen? What is it? Repentance is change of mind. For example: A man goes down a wrong path, and sees many warning signs which say, “Dead End”; but he continues down the wrong path anyway. Later, he sees from a distance: the path is leading to death. Then he comes to his senses and changes his mind, and he turns back; he didn’t want to die, he wants to live. He didn’t believe the signs; he figured, “They’re old signs, very ancient writings; I know the way I’m going, the very way of my ancestors. Were they all wrong too?” But the truth came to him, and he came to his senses. He very well could have said to himself, “My eyes are deceiving me!” And continued down his way; but when he seen death from afar, he remembered the signs and came to his senses, “Even the distant sight of it terrifies me! The many signs were frightening, and I ignored them all! And they all sang the same dirge! How foolish am I! I will return back with my head laid low.”
We all have one face and one back. If we wish to change direction, from south to north, we must first put our back to the south and face the north. So we turn. If we had no back, but two faces, we wouldn’t need to turn around. We would just walk in the other direction. But we do not have two faces, so we must put our back to what we face, and face what we’ve turned our back to. Repentance is change. Change of what? Ways, actions, motives? Yes. “But how? I want to change, but I can’t. I want to do good, but I don’t. I don’t want to die; but I am following sin unto death!” Repentance is a change of mind.
When the mind is changed, then all the members which are governed by the mind also change. My hand does what my mind says; and my foot does the command of my head. I tell it, “Pick it up” and they do it; and I tell the others, “Go over there” and they go. I send the command and the left works with the right and the right with the left, and they accomplish my command — all according to my direction, which I supposed in my mind. So if I will for my members to change from doing one thing to another, the command must come from my mind. “But my mind is perverse! It is evil; there is no good thing it thinks. It is set on evil! And my members follow its direction!”
So then how does repentance come about? “How can I change my mind?” You cannot change your mind. There is nothing good in it; can that which is evil reform itself? Can dirty water purify? Our mind is sinful, so it can’t change itself; if it does, it is for the worse. Therefore, the message is not within ourselves, but it is outside; it is from Another. Words change the mind. Persuasion. Debate. Speaking. These are words which are consumed by the mind. Words are not for the stomach are they? No! Words are for the mind: whether spoken or read. The mind contains words: whether spoken or unspoken. So it is by words, our minds are changed. And if it’s not by our own words, then whose?
The Word of God brings about conviction, persuasion, and assurance. Namely, the Word of God concerning His Son, Jesus. He was sent for us, for our good; He loved us to death, even on the cross; His love is great for us, even though we’re sinners. He loved us to die for us, for our sins. He became the atonement for our sins to wash us from our sins. The message is received by faith, by believing the message of the cross, which purifies our minds and hearts. The love of God made known to all through the message of the cross of Christ, the gospel of peace. He has made peace with us through His Son Jesus Christ. He has justified us freely, apart from our works, by His blood on the cross; He makes us right with Himself through the sanctifying work of His sacrifice, through faith in His name.
Through the conviction of the Word of the testimony of God, which He has given concerning His Son, our minds are changed, they are renewed, by continually setting our minds on Christ in the heavens. Remembering Christ crucified for us by which we are saved through faith. He died for us, shedding His blood, the Innocent for the guilty, to reconcile us to God by faith. God’s compassion and mercy towards man to die for us on the cross, loving us in shedding His blood for us. We must die for our sins, but Christ died in our stead to reconcile us to God, heavenward.
Repentance comes about by setting your mind on these things. And your members, being servants of your mind, will soon follow. Does our repentance precede God’s kindness? Rather God’s grace has appeared to all men, and, “the kindness of God leads you to repentance.” (Romans 2:4) Therefore, continue in the Word of Christ, setting your mind on Him, and the Word of God will renew and wash and cleanse your mind, granting you repentance to life with faith in the truth, through the true knowledge of Him; call upon His name with a pure heart, and He will deliver you.
Scripture: Setting the Mind on Things Above
“For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace, because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so, and those who are in the flesh cannot please God. However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him.” (Romans 8:5-9)
“Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth. For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory.” (Colossians 3:1-4)
“Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.” (Philippians 4:8)
“And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.” (Romans 12:2)
“But you did not learn Christ in this way, if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught in Him, just as truth is in Jesus, that, in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit, and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth.” (Ephesians 4:20-24)
Scripture: Sanctification by Faith
“To open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the dominion of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who have been sanctified by faith in Me.'” (Acts 26:18)
“Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth. As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world. For their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they themselves also may be sanctified in truth.” (John 17:17-19)
“But we should always give thanks to God for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God has chosen you from the beginning for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth.” (2 Thessalonians 2:13)
“Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless.” (Ephesians 5:25-27)
“Therefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people through His own blood, suffered outside the gate.” (Hebrews 13:12)
“But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption,” (1 Corinthians 1:30)
“He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit,” (Titus 3:5)
Scripture: God grants Repentance
"He is the one whom God exalted to His right hand as a Prince and a Savior, to grant repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins.” (Acts 5:31)
“When they heard this, they quieted down and glorified God, saying, "Well then, God has granted to the Gentiles also the repentance that leads to life."” (Acts 11:18)
“The Lord's bond-servant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged, with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will.” (2 Timothy 2:24-25)
“for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.” (Philippians 2:13)
“To this end also we pray for you always, that our God will count you worthy of your calling, and fulfill every desire for goodness and the work of faith with power, so that the name of our Lord Jesus will be glorified in you, and you in Him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.” (2 Thessalonians 1:11-12)
Scripture: We Turn to God and He Turns to us
"Therefore say to them, 'Thus says the LORD of hosts, "Return to Me," declares the LORD of hosts, "that I may return to you," says the LORD of hosts.” (Zechariah 1:3)
"From the days of your fathers you have turned aside from My statutes and have not kept them. Return to Me, and I will return to you," says the LORD of hosts. But you say, 'How shall we return?’" (Malachi 3:7)
"I have wiped out your transgressions like a thick cloud And your sins like a heavy mist. Return to Me, for I have redeemed you." (Isaiah 44:22)
“namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.” (2 Corinthians 5:19-20)
“Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.” (James 4:8)
Scripture: We Change our Mind and God Changes His Mind
“When God saw their deeds, that they turned from their wicked way, then God relented concerning the calamity which He had declared He would bring upon them. And He did not do it.” (Jonah 3:10)
“Do you see how Ahab has humbled himself before Me? Because he has humbled himself before Me, I will not bring the evil in his days, but I will bring the evil upon his house in his son's days." (1 Kings 21:29)
"Did Hezekiah king of Judah and all Judah put him to death? Did he not fear the LORD and entreat the favor of the LORD, and the LORD changed His mind about the misfortune which He had pronounced against them? But we are committing a great evil against ourselves."” (Jeremiah 26:19)
“Then Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the LORD, and said, "Remember now, O LORD, I beseech You, how I have walked before You in truth and with a whole heart, and have done what is good in Your sight." And Hezekiah wept bitterly. Then the word of the LORD came to Isaiah, saying, "Go and say to Hezekiah, 'Thus says the LORD, the God of your father David, "I have heard your prayer, I have seen your tears; behold, I will add fifteen years to your life.” (Isaiah 38:2-5)
"because your heart was tender and you humbled yourself before the LORD when you heard what I spoke against this place and against its inhabitants that they should become a desolation and a curse, and you have torn your clothes and wept before Me, I truly have heard you," declares the LORD. “Therefore, behold, I will gather you to your fathers, and you will be gathered to your grave in peace, and your eyes will not see all the evil which I will bring on this place." So they brought back word to the king.” (2 Kings 22:20)
“When he was in distress, he entreated the LORD his God and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers. When he prayed to Him, He was moved by his entreaty and heard his supplication, and brought him again to Jerusalem to his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the LORD was God.” (2 Chronicles 33:12-13)
"Now therefore amend your ways and your deeds and obey the voice of the LORD your God; and the LORD will change His mind about the misfortune which He has pronounced against you.” (Jeremiah 26:13)