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Repentance. Really?

In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, and saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!”
Matthew 3:1-2 NKJV

Honestly. We would think the old Bible word repent would not have much to do with a new beginning or a time of refreshing for us. However, think again. I mean literally, think again.

Let’s look first at what repentance isn’t. It’s not trying harder. It’s not feeling bucketloads of guilt. It’s not making resolutions we rarely keep, nor is it living under a cloud of guilt when we fail for the millionth time.

Instead, repentance is translated from the old Greek New Testament word Metanoeo, which means changing the way we think. Meta, that word we derive transformation from, thinking of the lowly caterpillar and its metamorphosis into a lovely butterfly. And Noeo, translated the mind.

So. At the core of transformation, at the core of repentance, is changing the way we think. John the Baptist got this. He called people to live new lives by exchanging their less-than thoughts for God’s over-the-top thinking. And through the ages, John extends the same invitation to us—to have a thought life overhaul for God’s thoughts. About us. About Him. About the world around us. Now that’s something new. Something powerful. Then, a change to live a new way is possible.

It’s challenging to walk into something new, do something new, or be someone new when our thoughts are going in the other direction, usually off a cliff or in a downward spiral somewhere. Right? Instead, we must ask what does Jesus say about me, my life, my goals, my heart, my relationships...well, my—everything?

The quickest, surest, and most profound way we encounter the transformation of our thoughts is by experiencing Christ through His Written Word—the Bible. When we open its pages for ourselves, we invite the life breath of His Holy Spirit, who wrote it, to literally breathe His oxygen into us. Then, our patterns of thinking begin to change. That’s what this living Book can do (Hebrews 4:12). Even just one verse at a time.

Then, couple God’s Word with His felt presence—also through the Holy Spirit—and we discover that change is possible. The old is passing away, and His newness is replacing it.