Turn Around

How often do we experience true repentance?

Dictionary.com says repentance is, “to feel such deep sorrow for sin or fault as to be disposed to change one's life for the better.”

Several other definitions describe simply a feeling of sorrow or regret for some wrong. This is the only one that had an action attached to it - to change one’s life for the better.

Repentance is not just feeling bad about something you did.

It’s not wallowing.

It’s not holding a grudge.

It means turning around and doing something different.

Repentance is recognizing when my actions have rejected my loving Father, hurt myself, and hurt the people who love me most. Then it’s allowing that sorrow to cut so deep that you can’t help but change your life in response.

“They were scorched by the fierce heat, and they cursed the name of God who had power over these plagues. They did not repent and give him glory.” - Revelation 16:9

That last line really struck me. The action associated with repentance is to give God glory. That is the root and reason for everything we change when we repent.

Dictionary.com says the reason for change is to better yourself, but as Christ followers, our reason for change is to magnify the glory of God. Then, in His goodness, He betters us by teaching us to look more like Christ.

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Imagine with me for a moment that you’re walking down a dark hallway. There’s a light on in the room at the end of the hall. As you walk closer, it gets brighter and you can see more clearly. But if you walk away from the room, you lose visibility and trip over things as it gets darker. If you want to see clearly again (and there’s not a light switch in your hallway), you have to turn around and walk back toward the room with the light.

If darkness is the absence of light,

If evil is the absence of good,

If sin is acting apart from God,

…then Repentance is turning around to face the light, to do good, to seek God.

“Those who look to him are radiant, and their faces shall never be ashamed.” -Psalm 34:5

God doesn’t ask us to live in shame. That’s why He has given us the gift of repentance. He gave us a way to escape the shame cycle - just by looking to Him. And when we look at Him, He makes us radiant.

Of course it doesn’t stop at turning around. You have to move toward the light. Take action. Pursue it.

That could mean changing old habits, asking forgiveness to mend broken relationships, or getting rid of some things completely.

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Let’s look at some biblical examples of what repentance looks like.

“therefore I despise myself, and repent in dust and ashes.” - Job 42:6

Job repented in humility and sorrow. Repentance reminds us that we are not God. We are made from dust by the God who created the universe and keeps it running smoothly. Check out Job 38-40 if you want to be thoroughly humbled and reminded just how small we are in this big universe.

"Bear fruit in keeping with repentance.” - Matthew 3:8

Matthew spoke of bearing fruit in repentance. Fruit is evidence of an inward change. True repentance isn’t just saying “i’m sorry” asking for forgiveness and then going about life the same way. It’s a heart change that’s going to lead to new fruit. It requires you to change.

“Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first.” - Revelation 2:5

Repentance is returning to where we started with God. Again, it’s action. Stop what you’re doing. Go back to what you did before when you were close to God. If you’ve walked away from the light, turn around and go back to it!

“I’m baptizing you here in the river turning your old life in for a kingdom life. The real action comes next: The main character in this drama - compared to him I’m a mere stagehand - will ignite the kingdom life within you, a fire within you, the Holy Spirit within you, changing you from the inside out. He’s going to clean house - make a clean sweep of your lives. He’ll place everything true in its proper place before God; everything false he’ll put out with the trash to be burned.” - Matthew 3:11-12 The Message

“and Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." - Acts 2:38;

Repentance makes room for the Holy Spirit to move and act in our lives. We already established that sin is acting apart from God, so it just makes sense that repentance invites the Holy Spirit to reside in us so we can act in partnership with God.

I love how the Message translation says that the Holy Spirit comes to clean house. Repentance postures our heart so we are ready to let go of all the old junk so He can bring in new and better things.

So next time you find yourself far from God, whether it’s in a big way or a little moment, just turn around.