Study 7: Repentance and Faith

Before you begin

Some people hear about grace and imagine that nothing further is required. Others hear the call to repent and believe and imagine they must somehow make themselves worthy before coming to Christ. Both thoughts are mistaken. Grace does not cancel the call to come, and the call to come does not make salvation a wage earned by human effort.

The Lord commands sinners everywhere to repent and believe the gospel. This call is sincere, urgent, and full of mercy. We are not told to wait until we feel better, become stronger, or sort ourselves out. We are told to come to Christ as needy sinners, turning from sin and entrusting ourselves to Him.

This study at a glance

Read these passages first

These passages help us see the nature of repentance and faith, and the urgency of responding to Christ.

What repentance is

Repentance is not merely feeling bad after we have done wrong, nor is it simply a vague wish to do better. True repentance is a grace of God whereby a sinner, out of a true sense of his sin and an apprehension of the mercy of God in Christ, doth with grief and hatred of his sin turn from it unto God, with full purpose of, and endeavour after, new obedience.

This means repentance involves the mind, the heart, and the will. We begin to agree with God about our sin. We grieve over it not merely because it hurts us, but because it is against Him. We forsake it and desire to walk in a new direction. Repentance is therefore honest, humbling, and practical.

What faith is

Saving faith is more than bare belief that certain facts are true. It includes knowledge and assent, but it does not stop there. True faith receives and rests upon Christ alone for salvation, as He is offered to us in the gospel. It is the empty hand that takes the gift. It is the heart leaning its whole weight upon the Saviour.

Faith therefore looks away from self. It renounces all hope of self-salvation and rests in Christ’s person and work. To believe is not to be strong in ourselves, but to rely upon One who is strong and sufficient. Weak faith may still be real faith if its object is Christ.

Why repentance and faith belong together

Scripture speaks of repentance and faith together because they describe one true conversion from two angles. We do not repent in a saving way if we merely turn from certain sins without turning to Christ. Neither do we believe savingly if we claim Christ while refusing His rule and making peace with sin.

Repentance without faith becomes despair or moral striving. Faith without repentance becomes empty profession. But where God is truly at work, the sinner turns from darkness to light and from self-trust to the Lord Jesus Christ.

What repentance is not

Many things may look like repentance without being the real thing. A person may fear consequences, feel ashamed before others, weep under pressure, or make temporary changes. Yet none of these by themselves amount to true repentance. Judas felt remorse, but did not return to God in faith. Saul admitted wrong at times, but loved his own honour still.

True repentance is not sinless perfection, nor is it the promise that we shall never struggle again. Rather, it is a real turning of heart toward God, a refusal to justify sin, and a sincere desire to be rid of it. Where it is genuine, it bears fruit over time.

What faith is not

Faith is not a vague optimism, a spiritual feeling, or a bare profession with no heart in it. Nor is it confidence in the strength of our own believing. Many tender souls look too much at their faith and too little at Christ. The safety of faith lies not in its size, but in its object.

The question is not first, “Is my faith perfect?” but, “Is Christ sufficient?” True faith may tremble, yet still cling to Him. It may be weak, yet real. The smallest hand may take a rich gift, and the weakest eye may look to a mighty Saviour.

How this fits with the 1689 London Baptist Confession

In harmony with the 1689 Confession, we may say that repentance unto life is an evangelical grace whereby a person, being by the Holy Spirit made sensible of the manifold evils of his sin, doth by faith in Christ humble himself for it with godly sorrow, detestation of it, and self-abhorrency, praying for pardon and strength of grace, with a purpose and endeavour by supplies of the Spirit to walk before God unto all well-pleasing in all things.

The Confession also teaches that the grace of faith, whereby the elect are enabled to believe to the saving of their souls, is ordinarily wrought by the ministry of the Word, and by it and the administration of baptism and the Lord’s Supper, prayer, and other means appointed of God, is increased and strengthened. Faith receives and rests upon Christ and His righteousness alone.

Why this response is urgent

The gospel does not call us to admire Christ from a distance. It calls us to come to Him. That call is urgent because life is uncertain, the heart grows harder under continued resistance, and none of us can presume upon another day. God now commandeth all men every where to repent.

Yet this urgency is not meant to drive us into panic, but into Christ. The door of mercy is open in the gospel. The command to believe is joined with a gracious invitation. The Lord does not mock needy sinners by calling them to come. He genuinely receives those who do come.

Why this matters personally

It is possible to understand much about Christianity and yet remain at a distance from Christ Himself. A person may agree that the Bible is true, that sin is serious, and that grace is necessary, and still refuse the humble act of coming to the Saviour. Repentance and faith bring the matter home to the soul.

There is comfort here as well as solemnity. The Lord does not tell us to cleanse ourselves first and then approach Him. He tells us to come, and in coming to find mercy. Repentance and faith are not the price of salvation, but the emptying and receiving by which ruined sinners lay hold of Christ.

You may be wondering

Reflection and response

These questions are here to help you think honestly before the Lord.

A simple prayer before moving on