Today, I’m not just preaching—I’m meddling. Because what I want to talk to you about is the most difficult, most personal, most necessary part of coming to Christ: repentance. You see, if I’m going to answer the call to New Testament Christianity, I can’t just understand a concept, or follow Christ—I’ve got to make a change. And not just any change, but the change that God wants me to make.
This world we live in tells us that sin is relative, that truth is personal, and that no one has the right to call anything wrong. But God doesn’t leave that up for debate. Jesus didn’t say, “If you’ve done worse than others, you’d better repent.” He said, “Unless you repent, you will all likewise perish” (Luke 13:3,5). That’s not karma. That’s not a coincidence. That’s a loving Savior warning me that every soul has a sin problem—and every soul has to deal with it.
So let me ask you: have you truly repented?
Paul gives me the clearest picture of repentance in 2 Corinthians 7:8–11. When he wrote the first letter to the Corinthian church, he didn’t hold back. He confronted sin. He brought sorrow. But when they received it, they didn’t get mad—they got right. And in his second letter, Paul rejoices—not because they were made sorrowful, but because their sorrow led to repentance. That’s the kind of sorrow God wants. That’s the kind of sorrow that saves.
Real repentance involves three things:
- Devastation – a broken heart over sin (vv. 8–10)
Paul uses the word sorrow seven times. That’s not a surface-level feeling. That’s deep emotional distress. Godly sorrow doesn’t just feel bad because of consequences—it feels convicted because of sin itself. When I see my sin for what it is, I see the cross for what it is—and I realize: I put Him there. Jesus was crushed for my iniquities. And when that truth pierces my heart, I’m not angry with the preacher who told me. I’m heartbroken over what I’ve done.
That’s what David felt in Psalm 51. That’s what Peter’s audience felt in Acts 2. That’s what I need to feel before I can ever truly repent. Without sorrow, there’s no transformation. Judas felt remorse—but he didn’t repent. He regretted his actions, but he didn’t change what he was doing. Godly sorrow goes further.
- Direction – a total turnaround of life (vv. 9–10)
Repentance is not just emotion—it’s action. It’s a change in mindset that leads to a change in behavior. It’s not enough to feel bad; I’ve got to do something different. Paul defines repentance as a turn—a turning from sin to God. That’s why John the Baptist said, “Bear fruits worthy of repentance.” You’ve got to show it.
And what drives that change? It’s the goodness of God. When I look at the cross, when I remember what Christ suffered, when I see the mercy that He extended to me, I can’t stay in my sin. I don’t want to. The gospel doesn’t just inform me—it transforms me. It leads me away from sin and into the arms of a God who gave everything to save me.
- Demonstration – visible fruit that proves my repentance (v. 11)
Paul says repentance produces something. And he lists seven signs of their change: urgency, defense, indignation, fear, longing, zeal, and avenging of wrong. That’s not passive. That’s not half-hearted. That’s a radical, obvious transformation. The Corinthians didn’t just say “we’re sorry”—they showed it. They cleaned house spiritually. They made things right.
Real repentance means I stop making excuses. I stop blaming others. I stop justifying what God condemns. I stop calling evil good. And I started taking sin seriously. I started pursuing holiness. I show fruit. And when I do that, people can see that I belong to Jesus—not because I said a prayer once, but because I changed direction.
Friend, I need to be real with you: repentance is the hardest part of God’s plan of salvation. Hearing the Word is easy. Believing in Jesus? Still easier. But to change my life? To deny myself? That’s the hardest thing God asks of me—and the most necessary.
If I just keep dragging around the old man of sin, I’m slowly dying, spiritually rotting. I might still go through the motions—I might even feel alive—but I’m being poisoned inside. Paul says in Romans 6 that I need to bury that old man in baptism and rise to walk in newness of life. Not a slightly improved life. Not sin-mostly-contained life. New life.
So let me ask again: Have you truly repented?
Have you been devastated by your sin? Have you changed direction? Have you demonstrated that change in the way you live?
Because New Testament Christianity is not about cleaning up on Sundays—it’s about dying to sin and living for Jesus every day. And if you haven’t made that change, you need to. Not someday. Not eventually. Today.
This is the change God wants from you.
So make it.
This third lesson dives into 2 Corinthians 7:8-11 and goes over a difficult topic when coming to Christ: repentance. Change from a life of sin is a requirement from God that no one is exempt from acting upon (Acts 7:30-31). Join Neal Pollard as he discusses the 3 elements of repentance and what it requires from us.
