Repentance

“From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.’” -Matthew 4:17

These are the first words that Jesus said marking the beginning of His public ministry. It is important to see that the subject is repentance. Because as Orthodox Christians we believe that we have to live a life of repentance. Salvation is not something that happens in a moment, it is a continuing process, and without repentance, we cannot attain Salvation.

Let’s start with defining terms. The word repentance in Greek is metanoia, this word’s roots literally means, “change of mind.” Hence, repentance is the act of changing one’s mind. This repentance first begins when we decide that we want to follow Jesus Christ. From that point on, repentance causes us to enter into the spiritual war set before us, and this life of testing, so that in the end we are proved in our faith, that it was both by word and deed.

Today there are many, many denominations that teach there is no need for repentance and that we shouldn’t feel a sense of conviction after we sin. But however, the Holy Spirit is the One who causes us to have these feelings. These feelings then turn us toward repentance and make us to watch more carefully in our spiritual life that we wouldn’t enter into these sins again. It is like a master disciplining a servant through beating that the servant would become better in his service. Through this conviction of the Holy Spirit causing us to repent we become closer to God as we are able, through His grace, to overcome those sins. As St. Paul said to the Corinthians, “Now I rejoice, not that you were made sorry, but that your sorrow led to repentance. For you were made sorry in a godly manner, that you might suffer loss from us in nothing. For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted” (2 Corinthians 7:9-10).

In order to repent effectively we must have our focus directed to God. When we have God before us, we will not sin, just as it says in Psalm 16 (15 in the LXX), “I saw the Lord always before me, because He is at my right hand that I may not be shaken.” It is also like a young child walking. His father and mother try to help him walk, and he focuses on them, sees them walking, and as he is younger, he will fall more often, but when he gets older, more mature, he will stop falling as often, little by little. The falling here is sinning, and the maturing is like the maturing in the faith.

Repentance should be sealed by the Sacrament of Confession. The Sacrament of Confession is very misunderstood. The Sacrament itself is more properly called the Sacrament of Repentance. Because the core of this Sacrament is that the priest advises the person confessing concerning his sin and on how to overcome it, and what spiritual practices to go through to progress further in their spiritual life. The priests are pastors, and pastors are shepherds (that’s what the word pastor literally means). And just like a shepherd walking in a pasture with his sheep, when he sees his sheep going astray he goes to them and guides them back to be with rest of the sheep. The priests do the same thing in the Sacrament of Confession; they guide the believer back into the way of righteousness. Those ordained to the priesthood have received the Holy Spirit for this service, as our Lord said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained” (John 20:22-23). And again He said, “Assuredly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven” (Matthew 18:18). However, repentance must precede confession, because this is a spiritual journey, and nothing is automatic in the faith, you can’t push a button and reset everything. It needs effort.

There is much more to repentance, much deeper theology and application to life. But this article’s purpose is to give a small part of it for the sake of encouragement to repentance. But repentance is how any of us come to God, and it’s what causes us to become closer to Him. Repentance is a life, it isn’t a moment. This life of repentance causes us to move closer to God, every time we repent. The examples of repentance are so numerous because on a daily basis we have to make choices, and every time we make the right, godly choice, we repent, because we changed our mind concerning the other choice. We repent from our sins by focusing on God again, after we momentarily are distracted by the enemy’s schemes. Repentance is the grace which God gives us because His loving mercy. Let us keep God always before our eyes and repent, as the Psalms so often say, one instance which says, “My eyes are always toward the Lord for He shall pluck my feet out of the trap” (Psalm 25:15).

And glory be to God both now and ever and unto the age of all ages. Amen.