I have been thinking about repentance. Peter on the Day of Pentecost told his listeners that “Each of you must repent of your sins and turn to God and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” [Acts 2:38 NLT]
According to Strongs Lexicon the Greek word translated “repent” means “I repent, change my mind, change the inner man (particularly with reference to acceptance of the will of God).”
To repent is to change our minds. How we think always governs how we act. True repentance also means we change our actions.
Too often we think that repentance is limited to AFTER we sin. I think that repentance is a way of life for the Christian. It is changing our minds BEFORE we sin … when we first entertain those thoughts that will lead us away from God.
The Holy Spirit doesn’t wait until AFTER we sin to warn us. He warns us at that first inkling of temptation. If we heed His warning, we can avoid heading down the wrong path.
To glorify God, we must live a lifestyle of repentance – constantly changing our minds as soon as a thought of sin enters.
