David Bahn – Reflections

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Acts 11:1-18

Now the apostles and the brothers who were throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles also had received the word of God. ² So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcision party criticized him, saying, ³ “You went to uncircumcised men and ate with them.” ⁴ But Peter began and explained it to them in order: ⁵ “I was in the city of Joppa praying, and in a trance I saw a vision, something like a great sheet descending, being let down from heaven by its four corners, and it came down to me. ⁶ Looking at it closely, I observed animals and beasts of prey and reptiles and birds of the air. ⁷ And I heard a voice saying to me, ‘Rise, Peter; kill and eat.’ ⁸ But I said, ‘By no means, Lord; for nothing common or unclean has ever entered my mouth.’ ⁹ But the voice answered a second time from heaven, ‘What God has made clean, do not call common.’ ¹⁰ This happened three times, and all was drawn up again into heaven. ¹¹ And behold, at that very moment three men arrived at the house in which we were, sent to me from Caesarea. ¹² And the Spirit told me to go with them, making no distinction. These six brothers also accompanied me, and we entered the man’s house. ¹³ And he told us how he had seen the angel stand in his house and say, ‘Send to Joppa and bring Simon who is called Peter; ¹⁴ he will declare to you a message by which you will be saved, you and all your household.’ ¹⁵ As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell on them just as on us at the beginning. ¹⁶ And I remembered the word of the Lord, how he said, ‘John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’ ¹⁷ If then God gave the same gift to them as he gave to us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could stand in God’s way?” ¹⁸ When they heard these things they fell silent. And they glorified God, saying, “Then to the Gentiles also God has granted repentance that leads to life.”

Jesus’ first sermon as recorded in Mark’s gospel is simple: The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the good news! (Mark 1:15) When Peter preached to the multitude on Pentecost, the people asked, “What shall we do?” Peter answered, “Repent and be baptized…” (Acts 2:38). The call to repentance is a constant in the Old and New Testaments. The Old Testament prophets were constantly calling God’s people back to him.

“Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways, declares the Lord God. Repent and turn from all your transgressions, lest iniquity be your ruin. Cast away from you all the transgressions that you have committed, and make yourselves a new heart and a new spirit! Why will you die, O house of Israel? For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Lord God; so turn, and live.” – Ezekiel 18:30-32

Jeremiah, Isaiah, Joel, Elisha, and many others express this same thought.

Many time people think of repentance as a negative thing. It’s more about stopping an evil activity, or feeling sorry for something we’ve done wrong. We imagine that repentance is regret over something we’ve done or failed to do. And that’s part of it. But there is much, much more to repentance.

Repentance is a two-fold process. Part of it is contrition: feeling sorry for our sins, having remorse over what we’ve done or failed to do. But there is a beautiful second part to repentance, and that’s faith. In other words it’s more than feeling sorry. It’s also feeling hopeful and relieved, restored; recognizing and believing we’ve been forgiven and redeemed.

Notice how God expresses it through the prophet Ezekiel: “For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Lord God; so turn, and live.” This is the thought behind the conclusion of the Jewish people who questioned Peter’s involvement with the Gentiles. They recognize God’s grace given to the Gentiles: “They glorified God, saying, “Then to the Gentiles also God has granted repentance that leads to life.”

Repentance happens in the heart of a person when the Holy Spirit moves us to acknowledge our need for forgiveness and salvation, and to believe that Jesus has provided that for us by his grace. Repentance is a gift of God.

Next time you feel sorry for your sins, thank God for the Holy Spirit’s work in your heart to recognize your sins. But don’t stop there. Believe the good news of Jesus Christ. And thank God for the fullness of the Holy Spirit’s work to bring you to the repentance that leads to life.