Day 3: Repentance: Decision Followed By Action

One of the insightful things on this teaching by Derek Prince is…

Repentance, as defined in the Bible, is not an emotion, it is a decision. It springs from the will.

The Greek word ‘to repent’ in secular language is always translated ‘to change your mind’, to change the way you think. So, first of all, repentance is changing your mind about the way you have been living.

The Hebrew word for repentance involves a result. It means literally ‘to turn around.’ You have been facing one way—the wrong way, with your back to God—so you turn 180 degrees to face God, and say, ‘God, here I am, tell me what to do and I‘ll do it.’

If we put the Greek and Hebrew definitions together, we have a complete picture of repentance: It is a decision followed by an action.

Some believers never really change their mind. They are still making decisions based on this point of view: ‘If I do this, what will it do for me?’ If someone has truly repented, that is not the way they think. Instead they think, ‘If I do this, will it glorify Jesus?’ How is this in your life?