Thursday, February 14, 2013
Acts 3:18-19 But those things which God foretold by the mouth of all His prophets, that the Christ would suffer, He has thus fulfilled. Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord.
THE NEED FOR A CHANGE OF DIRECTION
It was necessary for the Christ to suffer and die. It was predicted in such beautiful chapters as Isaiah 53 and Psalm 22, and so it was fulfilled. Earlier in Acts 3 Jesus is called the Prince of life, the Holy One and the Just, and yet He was put to death with an unsurpassed glee, and even cursed by God.
For this reason Peter urged the people present on Pentecost to repent. To repent is literally to have a change of mind. When we study that word in Scripture we find a further definition, that it is to have sorrow over sin, and also to have faith in Jesus for the forgiveness of that sin. The Law of God can bring about contrition and sorrow over sin, and then in Christ there is that blessed forgiveness as we are shown that He is the object of trust for salvation. In Peter's sermon he presented both of these thoughts. Regret what you have done, turn around from your wicked ways, but turn to Jesus who is the promised Messiah, who gives life even though you sentenced Him to death.
These are words for you and I to take to heart as well. Every sin caused Jesus to suffer. You and I are just as responsible for crucifying Christ -- even though we were not part of the angry Jewish mob or part of the Roman army. Sin in which we took joy and pleasure caused Christ pain. Thoughtlessness and lack of caring about the things of God -- these iniquities also needed to be paid for.
God says to us, "You turn." Repent. Turn from sin, and turn toward God. Change your mind and way of life from destruction to life. Without repentance there is no room for Jesus. If we do not want to admit that we are wrong, if we think we don't need Jesus or don't want Jesus, or have no sorrow over sin, this is an attitude of death. In Lent we remember that Jesus fulfilled the prophecies of suffering for our sake, and this drives us to see sin for what it is, and the high price that was paid for it.
