For Repentance and Forgiveness
This is a scene of high drama … and
if you didn’t notice, no one could blame you because, once again, our reading
begins in the middle of the story! Acts 5 shows the Apostles standing trial
before the Sanhedrin - the same court that convicted Jesus and manipulated
Pilot to have him crucified.
Peter and John have been here
before – in Acts 4, after healing a paralyzed man in the temple. This time
they’ve been arrested with the other ten for preaching the Gospel – telling
everyone that Jesus had risen from the dead and saved them from sin and death.
Actually, they had been arrested the day before our reading takes place, and
they were put in prison (remember there was no due process at the time!). But
God had sent an angel to release them – so when the court summoned the Apostles
they expected to find them in prison. Instead, they found them in the Temple
telling everyone about Jesus – the very thing they had been imprisoned for!
The Apostles were brought to the
court, and there the court confronted them, “We strictly charged you not to
teach in this name, yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and
you intend to bring this man’s blood upon us.”
And this is where our reading
enters the narrative, as Peter, ever the spokesman of the group says, “We must
obey God rather than men.”
Brothers and sisters, there will
always be those who would stop the spread of the Gospel, who would silence
everyone who speaks of Jesus. It is no different today, as the Huffington Post
– and a slew of other media outlets – reported: Christianity was, once again,
the most persecuted religion in the world in 2016. Around the world, many of
our brothers and sisters in Christ suffer for the name of Jesus.
Why is that?
It is because our message around
the world is the same as the Apostles’ message to the court. “The God of our
fathers raised Jesus, whom you killed by hanging him on a tree. God exalted him
at his right hand as Leader and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and
forgiveness of sins.”
The world today rejects that
message – even as it did then. Many will say, “There is no God.” We will be
reminded that the dead don’t come back to life. Some will complain, “Don’t
blame me for Jesus’ death!” Others will balk at the idea of Jesus as their
leader, “There is no one over me! I am accountable to no one!” Again others
will balk at the need for a savior. And yet others see things like repentance
and forgiveness as useless religious babble.
Yet for us, this is the story of
our salvation. This is the living hope we have been born again into. This is
our source of hope and the heart of our joy: Christ crucified and raised to
free us from sin and death.
I have read many articles over the
years predicting the death of Christianity. Some speak of the need for the
church to become relevant to its time. And there are those who lament the lack
of growth of the church and see it as a sign of things to come. What is often
missed in those articles, however, is that:
1.
Jesus warned us that there would be opposition
and persecution. We shouldn’t expect this to be easy.
2.
He promised that the gates of Hell would not
prevail and the he would preserve his people. His power will prevail.
3.
We are not called to grow numerically, but to
grow in faith and in God’s Word and in obedience to Him. Sometimes those things
cause us to shrink numerically. Yet such growth and maturity often leads to
numerical growth as well.
4.
This message of repentance and forgiveness is
highly relevant – even today – even if some don’t think so.
Let me ask you. If I stopped
believing in gravity, would I then be able to fly?
Ridiculous! Right?
So, just because some look down on
repentance and forgiveness does not make them irrelevant. Our relationship with
God is rooted in these things. Repentance is an act of faith that turns away
from sin and seeks to live in God’s ways. It is the fruit that comes from being
forgiven and being reconciled to God. It is a sign that faith is real and
living in us. That is no trivial matter!
This is actually a description of
the whole Christian life. Christ has died and risen. You have an inheritance
that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading kept in heaven for you, who by
God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be
revealed. Our sins have been atoned for by Jesus’ sacrifice. How now shall we
live?
We should turn away from sin – and
all that separates us from Jesus. We should shun every form of wickedness. We
should change and become more and more like Jesus. Why? To earn a place in
heaven? NO! We turn away from sin in repentance because Jesus loved us so much
and he gave his life to save us! The change that takes place in our lives when
we turn from sin and turn to Jesus is repentance. My favorite definition for
repentance is to change the way we think and act because of what Jesus has done
for us.
And when we fall short? When we sin
despite our best efforts to do God’s will… what then? We live in forgiveness.
This is the heart of how people
become “right with God.” He forgives us. His blood is on us to cleanse us of
all our sins.
What does it look like when we live
lives of repentance and forgiveness? What does it look like when we shun our
sin for the sake and the power of the risen Jesus? What is different in your
life because of Jesus? What still needs to change in you? Where do you need the
power of Jesus’ forgiveness in your life?
I urge you to take this very
seriously. Examine yourself. Be clear eyed, and see your sin. Measure yourself
according to God’s Law in the Ten Commandments. But also remember whose you
are: Christ has redeemed you, purchased and won you by his innocent suffering
and death. You are His, and you are forgiven. Live in Jesus’ forgiveness and
let his forgiveness move you to turn away from sinful attitudes, behaviors, and
beliefs that you cherish in your hearts! Repent! Live in forgiveness!
The Word of God is intent upon
putting Jesus blood on all people – both in the sense of making us and our sin
the cause of Jesus’ death and also as the mark of forgiveness. Wear that mark
humbly and joyfully! Remember that Jesus has risen from the dead. He has saved
us! Now repentance and forgiveness are our way of life. And repentance and
forgiveness are our message to the people in our lives – whether they hate to
hear it or rejoice at the hope Jesus gives. Jesus died and rose to save them
from their sins, too. They can change through Jesus’ forgiveness, even as we
change in repentance and forgiveness. Amen.
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