Repent?

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In modern Christianity today, especially among churches, ministers, evangelists, publications, videos, podcasts, radio, etc., it is common to use the phrase "repent." Often the call is to go out to the sinner to repent. Have we gotten this word confused?

 

In the Old Testament, the most common Hebrew word for repent is נָחַם nāḥam (naw-kham'), which means to console oneself, repent, regret, comfort, or be comforted.

 

In the New Testament, the most common Greek word for repent is μετανοέω metanoeō (met-an-o-eh'-o), which always means to change one's mind. The idea is to change direction — to think differently. So the use of the word "repent" by modern Christianity has missed the point. It's a missed connection, because when someone stands up and tells you to repent, or when someone tells the sinner that they must repent, they don't mean to change your mind. They don't mean to think differently, as the Scriptures say. They mean it as "stop sinning" — to repent of your sins, that is, to turn away from sin. And albeit that is good, that is not what the word "repent" means. In modern times we have made the word "repent" mean something it doesn't mean — and not what the Bible means it to mean.

 

The Bible means it this way: when it says to repent, it means to change your mind. Let's look at it this way. Say, for example, you go into a jewelry store and you are looking at some gold rings or necklaces, and you see one and pick it up. The salesperson comes by and says, "Do you see anything you like? Can I help you with something?" And you say, "Yes, I like this piece very much, but I'm really not sure — I'm thinking it over." About that time, another customer comes into the store and they're looking around and asking for help. The salesman says to you, "Go ahead and look these over; I'm going to help this other customer and I'll be back." He helps the other customer, comes back, and says to you, "So do you like that piece, or have you changed your mind?"

 

That is what it means to go from one thing to the other in the saving knowledge and understanding of the Lord Jesus Christ. When it says to repent and believe the gospel — when it says to repent and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ — what it means is that you, as a sinner, are changing your mind. You go from not believing in Jesus, you change your mind, and you begin to believe, and therefore fully embrace the person of Jesus Christ and believe on Him. That is what the true word "repent" means.

 

If you want to tell somebody to stop sinning — which is impossible for any human being to do completely, and will never happen until we are in glory in our new glorified bodies with the Lord Jesus Christ — but if you are telling somebody who is unsaved, or if you are telling a Christian that they are sinning and need to stop, you need to say to them, "You need to confess your sins." Especially for Christians, because we have 1 John 1:9: "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."

 

So you want to tell this person, and encourage this person, to stop the sin, confess the sin, and draw closer to God. But to use a word that has naturally been declared in the Bible to mean "change your mind" does not align with telling somebody to stop their sin and confess their sin. This is very important, and we should understand it fully.