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Matthew 4:17 From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, REPENT: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

Salvation Begins With REPENT

In our text today we’re going to look at Jesus’ first public sermon, His first command to us all. This public proclamation is found not just here, but in

(Mark 1:14-15 KJV) … Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, [15] And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: REPENT ye, and BELIEVE THE GOSPEL.

Illustrative Opening: “REPENT”. You don’t hear this word much in modern preaching. By magic of the Internet I heard the late Pastor John MacArthur tell about a road trip he took one time. As he was driving, he saw a small sign that said “Handmade Quilts for sale, next home on the right”. John said, “My wife loves handmade quilts, so I decided to stop and see if I could buy her one”. Pulling into the driveway, he went up to the house, rang the door bell, and a woman came to the door. He explained he was interested in her handmade quilts. Inviting John in, the woman went in the back and – according to him – “Brought out the ugliest quilt I’ve ever seen”. He said, “The woman began to explain that this quilt was her pride and joy, years in the making. Every significant event in her life she saved a scrap of cloth, and sewed it into this quilt. And she was proud of it. What could I say? It’s like someone showing you an ugly baby. What can you say but, ‘Well, that’s a baby!’”. John told her that he’d like to look at another quilt, that this particular quilt “was the wrong color”. The lady responded, “Why, it’s EVERY color!” But she brought out another quilt, and he did end up buying that one.

But this wasn’t the end of the story. The woman’s husband was sitting nearby while this was going on, and all around him were religious books. Some were Mormon, others Jehovah’s Witnesses, several from Prosperity Preachers, then books from the Unity Network along with Universal Unitarianism and Billy Graham. John looked at the man and said, “You have quite a collection of books there”. The man replied, “Yes, and there’s GOOD IN ALL OF IT”.

This is the lie that modern Americanized Christianity would have us believe, that “There’s GOOD IN ALL OF IT”. Religious people take bits and pieces from here and there, sew them together into a crazy quilt, and then show it off, saying “Isn’t that beautiful?”. No, it’s not. When God looks at the crazy quilt of religion that many of us have sewn together, He isn’t impressed. What God says to us is not as diplomatic as John MacArthur was with this woman. God the Son says:

REPENT: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand
…. BELIEVE the Gospel.

What Does It Mean To “Repent”?

Matthew 4:17 FROM THAT TIME Jesus began to preach, and to say, REPENT

Word Study: The word translated “REPENT” is the Greek (μετανοέω, metanoeō). The word is a verb, and it has two parts, meta and noeō. The word noeō refers to the mind, whereas meta means to move or change. To “REPENT” is to allow yourself to experience a change of your mind’s perceptions and purposes. Our focal text starts out with:

FROM THAT TIME

If we want to understand what repentance is, these three words tell us to look at our context – at the things that happened BEFORE Jesus started preaching repentance. If we look at the context we’ll know what Jesus meant by “REPENT”.

1 REPENT means to LET GOD THE HOLY SPIRIT LEAD YOU.

Matthew 4:1 … Jesus was LED OF THE SPIRIT into the wilderness to be TEMPTED OF THE DEVIL …

Jesus, though God the Son (Hebrews 1:8; Titus 2:13), surrendered to the leading of the Holy Spirit. God followed God. Though Jesus was no sinner (for in Him was no sin (1 Peter 2:22)), He followed the will of God the Father and God the Holy Spirit. This is imperative for us who are sinners, who are not Christ. Every person born into this world outside of Christ are sinners.

Romans 3:23 ALL HAVE SINNED, and FALL SHORT of the glory of God

We are born into this world sinners. We are born into this world blind to God, but focused on ourselves.

(Ecclesiastes 7:20 LSB) Indeed, there is NOT A RIGHTEOUS MAN on earth WHO CONTINUALLY DOES GOOD AND WHO NEVER SINS.

The Apostle quoted and summarized Psalm 14:1-3 and Psalm 53:1-3 when he wrote:

(Romans 3:10-12 LSB) as it is written, “THERE IS NONE RIGHTEOUS, NOT EVEN ONE; [11] THERE IS NONE WHO UNDERSTANDS, THERE IS NONE WHO SEEKS FOR GOD; [12] ALL HAVE TURNED ASIDE, TOGETHER THEY HAVE BECOME WORTHLESS; THERE IS NONE WHO DOES GOOD, THERE IS NOT EVEN ONE.”

We are born into this world fallen creatures, separated from God by our enslavement to sin and self. When Nicodemus came to Jesus by night, our Lord told this holy man:

(John 3:3, 5-7 LSB) … Truly, truly, I say to you, UNLESS ONE IS BORN AGAIN he cannot see the kingdom of God.” … [5] Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, UNLESS ONE IS BORN OF WATER AND THE SPIRIT he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. [6] “That which has been born of the flesh is flesh, and THAT WHICH IS BORN OF THE SPIRIT IS SPIRIT. [7] “Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’

Repentance is not something we can do for ourselves. God must open our eyes to our need for the Savior. But once He does so by His Spirit, we REPENT when we surrender to Him, when we give ourselves to Him.

When the Apostles (who were Jewish) saw the Gentiles receiving the Gospel, the Bible says:

(Acts 11:18 LSB) {they} glorified God, saying, “Well then, GOD HAS GRANTED TO THE GENTILES THE REPENTANCE [that leads] to life.

It is “God Who brings His people to REPENTANCE and forgives their sins” (Acts 5:31). The Apostle Paul told his student Timothy that when he was preaching:

(2 Timothy 2:23-26 LSB) But refuse foolish and ignorant speculations, knowing that they produce quarrels. [24] And the Lord’s slave must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged, [25] with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps GOD MAY GIVE THEM REPENTANCE leading to the full knowledge of the truth, [26] and THEY MAY COME TO THEIR SENSES [and escape] from the snare of the devil, HAVING BEEN HELD CAPTIVE BY HIM to do his will.

God must open the eyes of our hearts. He must awaken us to our need. When He does, we respond to His call and follow Him. This is repentance.

“REPENT” Means To Let God’s Scripture Lead You – Not Your Heart

God’s Word reflects God’s Will for our lives. While Jesus was in the wilderness, the devil repeatedly tempted Him to “follow your heart”.

“Follow your heart” is what the devil told Jesus in the wilderness THEN, and what the devil tells us TODAY.

Jesus was hungry, having been 40 days without food. The devil says:

Matthew 4:3 … If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.

Now it’s certain that Jesus could easily have turned stones to bread. Jesus turned water to wine (John 2:1-11). Sure, He could do this. But just because He CAN do it, SHOULD HE do it? When tempted, Jesus went to the Scripture. Jesus quoted Deuteronomy 8:3, saying:

Matthew 4:4 Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every Word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.

Those who have repented follow God’s Word. They refer to the Scripture, and live their lives by it’s teaching. Each time Jesus was tempted by Satan, He responded with “It is written”. The repentant follow God’s Word.

Then the devil appealed to Jesus’ pride. He took Jesus to Jerusalem, and put our Lord on the highest point of the Temple. The devil told Jesus:

(Matthew 4:6 KJV) If thou be the Son of God, cast Thyself down: for IT IS WRITTEN, He shall give His angels charge concerning thee: and in [their] hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.

Since Jesus referred to Scripture, Satan referred to Scripture. He quoted Psalm 91:11-12, twisting scripture to try and get Jesus to obey his evil desire. But Jesus refused, saying:

(Matthew 4:7 KJV) Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.

Those who have repented honor God in their lives. They don’t twist the Scripture so as to gain, but seek the glory of God in all they do. In the end, Satan told Jesus

“All the earth I will give You if You fall down
and worship me” Matthew 4:9

Those who have repented do not worship themselves, nor this world. They seek to worship and glorify God.

REPENT Will Cause You To LIVE YOUR OUTWARD LIFE PLEASING TO GOD

Matthew 4:12 Now when Jesus had heard that JOHN WAS CAST INTO PRISON, he departed into Galilee

Jesus was not the first Preacher of Repentance in the New Testament. The first Preacher of Repentance was John the Baptist. Outside of Jesus, there was no greater Preacher than John. How do I know? Because Jesus said “Among those born of women there has not anyone greater than John the Baptist” (Matthew 11:11). It was prophesied by

Isaiah 40:3 The voice of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make His paths straight (see also Luke 3:4-6)

John the Baptist was the Preacher who paved the way for the coming of the Messiah, Jesus Christ. Jesus was able to better preach REPENTANCE because John was the FIRST PREACHER of REPENTANCE.

When crowds came out to be baptized by John, he told them was the fruit of repentance is. Repentance brings about an inward change that is shown in outward fruit. Think of a fruit tree.

A PEAR tree inwardly makes PEARS outwardly.
An APPLE tree inwardly makes APPLES outwardly.
A GRAPE VINE inwardly makes GRAPES outwardly
The fruit tree that will not bear fruit is CUT DOWN.

John told the crowds:

(Luke 3:7-9 LSB) So {John} was saying to the crowds who were going out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? [8] “Therefore BEAR FRUIT IN KEEPING WITH REPENTANCE, and do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham for our father,’ for I say to you that from these stones God is able to raise up children to Abraham. [9] “But indeed the AX IS ALREADY LAID AT THE ROOT OF THE TREES; therefore, EVERY TREE THAT DOES NOT BEAR GOOD FRUIT is cut down and thrown into the fire.

As John preached “REPENT”, the crowd asked “What should WE DO?” John replied:

(Luke 3:11 LSB) The man who has two tunics is to SHARE WITH HIM WHO HAS NONE; and he who has food is to do likewise.

If you have repented, if you are following Jesus, you should not be heartless nor stingy. You will not hoard that which God has given you, but will share with others. Jesus illustrated this with the Parable of the Sheep and the Goats. In Matthew chapter 25 Jesus was explaining the Kingdom of Heaven. Then Jesus explained His return to this earth, when He will rule and reign during the Millennial Kingdom. Jesus said:

(Matthew 25:32-33 KJV) And before Him (Jesus) shall be gathered all nations: and HE SHALL SEPARATE THEM ONE FROM ANOTHER, as a Shepherd divideth [his] sheep from the goats: [33] And HE SHALL SET THE SHEEP ON HIS RIGHT HAND, but THE GOATS ON THE LEFT.

Now, how will Jesus determine the “sheep” from the “goats”? Jesus tells the “sheep”:

(Matthew 25:34-40 KJV) Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: [35] For I was an hungred, and ye gave Me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave Me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took Me in: [36] Naked, and ye clothed Me: I was sick, and ye visited Me: I was in prison, and ye came unto Me. [37] Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we Thee an hungred, and fed [Thee]? or thirsty, and gave [Thee] drink? [38] When saw we Thee a stranger, and took [Thee] in? or naked, and clothed [Thee]? [39] Or when saw we Thee sick, or in prison, and came unto Thee? [40] And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, INASMUCH AS YOU HAVE DONE IT UNTO ONE OF THE LEAST OF THESE MY BRETHREN, YE HAVE DONE IT UNTO ME.

Those who are sheep are loving to those in need. Their outward fruit is beneficial. They are not greedy, but they live as children of God, doing good even to the enemy for Christ’s sake. But then, what of the goats? How does Jesus determine the goats?

The GOATS look like children of God, but the fruit of their life is selfishness. They ignored those in need, and hoarded what they had.

Jesus puts the goats on His left side, and says:

(Matthew 25:41-45 KJV) Then shall {Jesus} say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels: [42] For I was an hungred, and ye gave Me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave Me no drink: [43] I was a stranger, and ye took Me not in: naked, and ye clothed Me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited Me not. [44] Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we Thee an hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto Thee? [45] Then shall he answer them, saying, VERILY I SAY UNTO YOU, INASMUCH AS YE DID IT NOT TO ONE OF THE LEAST OF THESE, YE DID IT NOT TO ME.

Illustrate: Those who are repentant bring forth good fruit, fruit that honors the Lord Jesus Christ. I’ve been reading Henry and Richard Blackaby’s book, Developing A Christ Centered Church. Henry, his wife Marilyn and their son Richard visited what he called “a famous Church in our denomination. It boasted a large congregation that was steeped in history and great preaching. The Church had participated in our mission work in Canada”. Blackaby was invited to speak that day, and wrote:

“Marilyn and Richard found a pew near the front so I could join them when I finished. Suddenly, an older woman approached Marilynn. My wife thought, ‘The people at this Church are so friendly! Here comes someone to welcome us’. Then the woman, noticeably irritated, shared that she had sat in that very spot for twenty eight years! She clearly intended for my wife and son to vacate her pew of choice. … {My wife} smiled warmly at the woman and declared, ‘Well, I can certainly see why you sit here; it has a wonderful view! The woman grumbled and noisily found a seat one pew back. … When the Pastor introduced me … asking Marilyn and Richard to stand … the displaced woman gasped when she realized she tried to expel her Pastor’s guests!”

When Blackaby left that Church, he prayed:

“Lord, it doesn’t matter how large our Church grows or how many mission Churches we start if our people don’t reflect your character!”

When we repent and turn our lives over to the Holy Spirit, He not only saves us, but we become

(Ephesians 2:10 ESV) … His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

We’re not done with John’s definition of “REPENT”. When the:

(Luke 3:12 LSB)… TAX COLLECTORS also came to be baptized, and they said to him, “Teacher, WHAT SHOULD WE DO?”

Tax collectors were hated by the Jews because they often added additional fees to what they collected, then pocketed the fees. John didn’t tell them to stop being tax collectors. He said:

(Luke 3:13 LSB) Collect NO MORE THAN YOU HAVE BEEN ORDERED TO.

Those who have repented, and belong to the Kingdom of God, are to do their jobs honestly. You should not be stealing from the company. And John told the soldiers who sought baptism:

(Luke 3:14 LSB) Do not take MONEY FROM ANYONE BY FORCE, or EXTORT [anyone], and BE CONTENT with your wages.

If your faith does not show in your secular life, then your faith does not honor God. True repentance surrenders the life to God. True repentance brings about a genuine, God given change that shows in how you live your life.

Jesus Came To Lead Us To Repentance

As Jesus preached:

(Matthew 4:17 KJV) Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

He called sinners to come to Him. Jesus said “I have not come to call the righteous, BUT SINNERS TO REPENTANCE” (Luke 5:32). Pastor John Piper wrote:

“Repenting means experiencing a change of mind so that we can see God as true and beautiful and worthy of all our praise and all our obedience. This change of mind also embraces Jesus in the same way. We know this because Jesus said, “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God” (John 8:42). Seeing God with a new mind includes seeing Jesus with a new mind.”

When Jesus began to preach “REPENT”, He did so from Capernaum. This was a fulfillment of

(Isaiah 9:2-4 LSB) The people who walk in darkness Will see a great light; Those who live in the land of the shadow of death, The light will shine on them. [3] You shall multiply the nation, You shall make great their gladness; They will be glad in Your presence As with the gladness of harvest, As men rejoice when they divide the spoil. [4] For You shall shatter the yoke of their burden and the staff on their shoulders, The rod of their taskmaster, as at the battle of Midian.

The monster that holds America in its grip today is darkness, it is sin. Sin has enslaved us as a nation. No political party can fix us. We need to hear the Voice of Jesus, Who said “Unless YOU REPENT, you will ALL LIKEWISE PERISH” (Luke 13:5). We are all born broken. We must all be born again. That only comes when we repent, and come to Jesus as Lord and Savior. If we will not repent and follow Jesus, His message is simple:

Woe to you (Matthew 11:21)

Our Lord Jesus suffered on the Cross of Calvary, and on the third day rose from the Grave so that …

Luke 24:47 REPENTANCE and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in His Name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem

Repent! He is walking through this room today, just as He walked by the Sea of Galilee. Jesus says “Repent. Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men ” (Matthew 4:19). To repent is to follow Jesus. Will you follow Him today?