Repent and Believe

Announcer:

This is Today With Derek Prince. The internationally recognized Bible teacher and author presents to you Keys To Successful Living.

On yesterday’s program Derek Prince illustrated how we as Christians must repent from the dead works in our lives before we can move on in faith. Today in his continuing message ‘Through Repentance To Faith’ Derek focuses on the importance of responding to God when He draws us to repentance in our lives. Be sure to listen at the end of today’s broadcast for our address and this week’s special offer.

Derek Prince:

Now, we have no record whatever that Esau ever committed fornication but his attitude in God’s eyes was just as bad as fornication. What was his attitude? For one little bowl of soup he despised his birthright. He had the birthright as the elder son. All the inheritance could have gone to him. But just because he was physically hungry and could smell that delicious soup which Jacob had prepared—this is very vivid to me because I lived amongst the Arabs for some time and they make exactly what Jacob made, soup of lentils. They call it in Arabic surabit addis (phonetic). It has the most delicious smell, it permeates the house. And I can picture Esau coming back from his hunting, tired, hungry and he just smells this delicious smell. And Jacob says, the bargainer that he was, ‘Listen, you sell me your birthright, I’ll give you the pottage, the soup.’ And I suppose Esau thought what good will my birthright do to me now, I’m hungry. I’ll just take what I’ve got offered to me. And it says Esau despised his birthright and he made God extremely angry. And later on through the prophet Malachi God said, ‘Jacob I have loved, Esau I have hated.’ That’s a very solemn thought. If you deliberately despise the grace of God and the inheritance which He offers you in Jesus Christ and turn away for some cheap, temporary pleasure of this world, you make God very angry.

And then it says, going on with that story:

“For you know that afterward when he wanted to inherit the blessing he was rejected [rejected by God] for he found no place of repentance, though he sought it diligently with tears.”

Now the Greek makes it clear. He wasn’t seeking the place of repentance, he was seeking the blessing. But he was rejected because he found no place, no way to repent. And I do believe that in this life a person can pass the place of repentance and never be able to get back. I want to urge upon you, this is a very, very solemn thought. Far too little is said today in many congregations and many denominations about the need for repentance. But without true repentance there can never be true faith. You’ll always have a wobbly up and down experience, in one day and out the next, because you haven’t laid the first foundation stone which is repentance, a decision of the will to turn away from self-pleasing and doing your own thing to turn back to God, to face up to God and say, ‘God, here I am. Tell me what to do and I’ll do it.’ That’s repentance.

There are some of you here today who have never truly repented. I want to suggest to you it’s the source of many of your problems, your up and down experiences. You feel good one day, have a wonderful meeting in the church, you think it’s wonderful. The next morning something else happens and you’re down. You’ve never really laid the first foundation stone. All you have is a wobbly edifice which one day will collapse.

Now I want to emphasize that repentance must go before faith. There is no true faith without repentance. This is emphasized all through the New Testament. In Matthew chapter 3 we read about the ministry of John the Baptist who was sent to prepare the way for the coming of the Messiah, Jesus. And what was his message in one word? Repent. In other words, repentance was essential before the Messiah could come. Repentance prepared the way for the coming of Messiah. Until God’s people, Israel, had been through this experience of repentance they could not be ready to meet their Messiah. In Matthew 3:1–3 it says:

“In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, and saying, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. For this is He who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah, saying, ‘The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare the way of the Lord. Make His path straight.’’”

How did he prepare the way of the Lord? By calling God’s people back to repentance. And repentance is the only way we can prepare for the Lord to come into our hearts and lives. And then when John had finished his course Jesus Himself, in fulfillment of John’s prophetic word, came to continue the ministry of the gospel. And it says in Mark 1:14–15:

“Now after John was put in prison Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe the gospel.’”

Repent and believe. You cannot truly believe unless you have first repented. The first word of command that ever came from the lips of Jesus was not believe but repent.

I remember being in a meeting in Southeast Asia, let me say, where a certain preacher had preached a message on healing. He’d spoken very eloquently about God’s will and plan to heal and quoted some of the promises about healing. But he had not said one word about repentance. Then he called the people forward and most of them came from a background of idolatry and they had no idea what they had to do to receive what God was offering. I know because I got involved in counseling them, Ruth and I together. It was such a lesson to me. With all his good intentions and his sweet language he had totally confused those people because he’d given them the impression that they could come to God without repenting. He never used the word repent once in that message. I don’t say this to criticize a preacher, I just say this because I learned a lesson and I’m afraid there are many, many people in many, quote, ‘gospel churches’ and ‘gospel services’ who are confused because all they’re being told is what God will do for you but they are not being told what God requires from you. The first thing He requires is repent: change your mind, turn around, make an 180-degree turn and face up to God and say, ‘God, tell me what to do and I will do it.’ That’s repentance.

Now if we look on to the end of Jesus’ ministry, His message never changed. In Luke 24, after His resurrection Jesus gave instructions to His disciples. In Luke 24:46–47. Remember, this is after the resurrection, just before He left this world.

“Then He said to them, ‘Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Messiah, the Christ, to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations beginning at Jerusalem.’”

Notice the message, repentance and then remission or forgiveness of sins. But no forgiveness without repentance and that is the message that was to begin in Jerusalem and be preached to all nations. Repentance, then forgiveness through His name.

And then when the church came into being in public view on the Day of Pentecost, the great outpouring of the Holy Spirit, and a multitude of Jews gathered and wanted to know what was going on, and Peter stood up and preached that famous message from the 2nd chapter of Acts. And then at the end they were convicted and they said to Peter, ‘What are we to do?’ This is the first time the church as such had been asked by sinners what must we do. Let me read this. Acts 2:37:

“Now when they heard this [that was Peter’s message] they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, ‘Men and brethren, what shall we do?’”

And I want to tell you that if you ever come to the place where you sincerely want to know what God wants you to do and you’re willing to do it, God will not leave you in any doubt as to what He wants. His difficulty is not telling you, His difficulty is bringing you to the place where you want to know and do it. And as soon as these people under real conviction of sin said to the apostles, ‘Men and brethren, what shall we do?’ Peter as the spokesman of God and the church gave them a clear, precise, practical answer.

“Then Peter said to them, ‘Repent.’
What comes first? Repentance, that’s right.
‘Let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.’
There’s a three-stage promise.
Number one, repent.
Number two, be baptized in water.
And number three, receive the Holy Spirit.”

I don’t believe God’s program has ever changed. I believe that’s exactly what God wants sinners to do today. I believe that’s the message the church should be proclaiming. Repent, be baptized in water and receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

And in places where that message is preached, it happens exactly as it did on the Day of Pentecost. People repent, they’re baptized and they receive the Holy Spirit. I’ve seen this happen many times, many times coming up out of the water at baptism they are filled with the Holy Spirit. Why should we water down the message? We have no authority to do that.

Announcer:

In our program tomorrow Derek Prince continues his message ‘Through Repentance To Faith,’ and continues to share why repentance is so vitally important and should not be taken lightly when God begins to turn us. This week’s message is available on audiocassette No. RC4162, and also on video. Our special offer this week is Derek Prince’s book Faith To Live By, which is a resource for every Christian who wishes to obey Scripture and receive the promises of a faith filled life.

To receive your copy of ‘Through Repentance to Faith’ write today and include a contribution of $5.00 or more for the audio cassette RC4162 or $14.95 for the video teaching. Include a gift of $5.00 or more for the book Faith to Live By.

Derek Prince also welcomes your letters and your prayer requests. Our mailing address is Derek Prince Ministries, Box 19501, Charlotte, North Carolina 28219. That’s Derek Prince Ministries, Box 19501, Charlotte, North Carolina 28219. In Canada write to Derek Prince Ministries, Box 8354, Halifax, Nova Scotia, B3K 5M1. The Canadian address again is Box 8354, Halifax, Nova Scotia, B3K 5M1,and please give us the call letters of this station when you write.

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