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Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven Has Come Near

In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” This is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah: “A voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.’” (Matthew 3:1–3)

God gave John the Baptist an important job: to prepare people for Jesus. John’s message was simple. He didn’t hand out checklists telling people, “Straighten out your life! Jesus is coming!” He knew Jesus was going to do something much deeper than make people look religious and moral. He wanted to address the condition of their heart, not their actions. To prepare for Jesus, repentance comes first.

Repentance is an action, not a fickle feeling. It’s not just apologizing, feeling guilty, or being sorry for getting caught. Repentance is turning away from our wrong thoughts and actions and turning toward Jesus. When we repent, we are deeply saddened over our sin and the hurt it has caused. We are grieved that our sin breaks our relationship with God. We apologize and ask for forgiveness. It doesn’t mean we suddenly become perfect. We understand we can’t make things right or fix it without Jesus. We need to ask Jesus to help us change our hearts and our behavior by his Spirit.

John taught [us] we can’t just do our best to be good Christians or try to clean up our lives before we ask God into it. We can’t jump into doing good things for Jesus and skip repentance. The religious people in Jesus’ day wanted a gold star for their good deeds, but Jesus turned everything upside down. “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick,” he said. “I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners” (Mark 2:17). Our relationship with Jesus starts with acknowledging that we need him. Apart from Christ, we can’t honor God or be in right relationship with him. 

We [must] ask him to forgive our sins and make us like him.

Reflect on these questions after reading 2 Corinthians 7:2–16.

• How would you define repentance?
• What do you need to repent of? In what areas do you need God’s strength to help you change?
• Have you ever experienced “godly sorrow” over a sin? If so, describe the situation.
• According to 2 Corinthians 7:10, what is the result of repentance?

Pray

Today’s prayer comes from Psalm 25:5–8, 11, 20–21.

Lord, guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior. Remember your great mercy and love, not the sins of my youth and my rebellious ways. According to your love remember me, for you, O Lord, are good. Because you are good and upright, you instruct sinners in your ways. For the sake of your name, Lord, forgive my sin, though it is great. Guard my life and rescue me; do not let me be put to shame, for I take refuge in you. May integrity and uprightness protect me, because my hope, Lord, is in you! In Jesus’ name, amen.