Essays
A Turning To God
A TURNING TO GOD
A host of prophetic utterances scattered all throughout the Old Testament are replete with a call for REPENTANCE. God spoke through the prophet Ezekiel saying: Therefore I will judge you…each according to his conduct. Repent and turn away from all your transgressions, so that sin may not become a stumbling block to you (Ezk.18:30-32). The New Testament opens with this same message. John the baptizer’s exhortation was short and to the point - - Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand (Mt.3:1-2). When Jesus began His ministry at the age of 30 (Lk.3:23), His
message reiterated that of John and the ancient prophets: Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand (Mt.4:17). And Jesus charged the twelve apostles to proclaim the same, which they did (Lk.24:47 and Mk.6:12). Peter’s first gospel sermon on the day of Pentecost was met with contrition on the part of his hearers. His directive to those who asked, “What shall we do?” included a call to repentance: Repent and let each of you be bap-tized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins…" (cf. Acts 2:38 with Acts 3:19)..
When confronted by hard-hearted, legalistic and self-righteous Jewish leaders, Jesus gave them a stark reminder of what was expected of them. Jesus shamed them by contrasting them with those of Nineveh who repented at the preaching of Jonah (Mt.12:41). Tragically, they failed to realize that One greater than Jonah was standing in their midst. Here, in this four-chapter book called Jonah, a book that can be read from start to finish in less than twenty minutes, we find two fleshed-out, full-color illustrations of the meaning of repentance. We see it both in the life of Jonah and in the lives of the Assyrian residents of wicked Nineveh. Essentially, repentance is a turnabout in attitude from rebellion to obedience.
Repentance involves a change of disposition. As the apostle Paul notes, the kind of sorrow God wants makes people change their hearts and lives (2Cor.7:10). As the brief account of the conversion of Zaccheus records (Lk.19:1ff), this change of disposition also bring about a change of po-sition. As to Zaccheus’ new-found status, Jesus declared: Today salvation has come to this house… (Lk.19:9). Is your house in good standing?
Terry Siverd / Cortland Church of Christ
