Repentance is Necessary to be Saved -- Jesus said so

Over the past year or so, on TV and the internet, I have heard and read many "Christian" teachings stating that you do not need to repent to be saved, but simply must believe in Jesus to be saved.  Many cite Rom 10: 9-10 (if you confess with your mouth Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God the father raised Him from the dead, you will be saved), or John 3: 16 (for God so loved the world... ).  You may have heard similar lessons preached.  However, it is always appropriate to compare scripture to scripture and not take a verse here or there out of context with which to create a "doctrine".

Some of these teachings give the example of the "good thief" on the cross next to Jesus, who the Bible, they say, does not record as having repented, yet Jesus told him that he would be with Him that day in paradise after the thief acknowledged Jesus and told Jesus to remember him when He came into His Kingdom.  Thus, they say, aha - repentance is not required for salvation.

This verbal exchange is recorded in Luke 23: 42-43, where the "good thief" says to Jesus, after first mocking Him, “Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom.”  Jesus then says to him, “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.”

I have never felt comfortable with that teaching on salvation without repentance.  Throughout the Old Testament in the Bible, there is much about repentance, or turning, from evil.  God frequently told the nation of Israel, through the prophets, to repent from their evil idolatry, and other abominations, or risk His wrath.

The New Testament gives the example of John the Baptist preaching the baptism of repentance to turn the hearts of the Jews to prepare them for Jesus.  Luke 23: 40-41 does indeed describe that the "good thief" repented in his heart.  After mocking Jesus, he said to the other thief on the cross, “Do you not even fear God, seeing you are under the same condemnation?  And we indeed justly, for we receive the due reward of our deeds; but this Man has done nothing wrong.”  I believe that was repentance.

The other day I was listening to the Gospel of Luke on my iBible.  When it came to Luke 11: 9, I heard the words "seek and you will find."  I stopped the playback at this point and thought about those words.  I decided to believe those words on the spot.  I knew right then in my heart that God WILL teach me His word and give me understanding regarding the end times, which I have been desiring and praying for, but I think He showed me something else that day in just a few chapters in Luke.

In Luke 11: 29 Jesus said, and I'm paraphrasing, that you Jews seek a sign but no sign will be given except the sign of Jonah.  Remember that Jonah preached repentance to the dreadful ancient Assyrians in their capital city of Nineveh.  By the way, every time I've ever read this scripture in Luke 11: 29 about the sign of Jonah, or heard it preached, it was said that this means (which it also does, I believe) that Jesus (as Jonah was in the fish) would be in the earth for 3 days and nights after He was crucified and died.  But this scripture where Jesus is speaking about the prophet Jonah also gives a message of repentance (which lesson I have never heard preached with regard to this verse in Luke 11).

Just after that, in Luke 11: 31 Jesus continues by saying that the Queen of the South will rise with this generation (those unbelieving Jews to which Jesus was speaking) at the Judgment to accuse this generation, because she came to seek the WISDOM of Solomon, and that a greater than Solomon (Jesus) was here.  In this context, Jesus is saying that it is WISDOM to repent.  I have never understood the use of this verse regarding the Queen of the South, but with God's revelation to me, this verse is simply reinforcing Jesus' statement that repentance is needed and therefore it is WISDOM (for eternal life) to repent.

Also, right after that, in Luke 11: 32, Jesus says that those of Nineveh who repented from Jonah's preaching (of the need to repent from their evil) will rise at the Judgment to accuse this generation (those unbelieving Jews to which Jesus was speaking), since those of Nineveh had repented of their deeds.

So, it's clear from these three almost consecutive verses in Luke 11 that Jesus is saying something quite simple, yet something which is necessary for salvation:  that one must repent and obey God to be saved, and to do so is wisdom.

This lines up perfectly with what Jesus says earlier in Luke 8: 21.  He said, "who are my mother and my brothers but those that hear the word of God and do it."  This requires turning from anything that does not line up with God's word.  It is also consistent with James 1: 22 which says to be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.

This also lines up with what Paul tells us in 2 Cor 7: 10, that "godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted.  But the sorrow of the world produces death." (Emphasis added)  Sorrow of the world means simply that one is sorry only after they have been caught, which produces not much true repentance.

In Luke 13 Jesus discusses how men from Galilee had been killed by Herod, and that their blood had been was mingled by Herod with the Jewish sacrifice so that it became an abomination.  Also in Luke 13 Jesus discusses how men of Jerusalem had been killed by the falling of the tower of Siloam.  Jesus makes the point that all of these men who were killed were sinners, but were no worse sinners than others in Israel at the time.  Jesus then stated that one MUST repent or die like those men, i.e. in their sins with no hope of salvation.

After His resurrection from the dead, Jesus spoke to His disciples and told them, as it recorded in Luke 24: 47, that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to ALL NATIONS.

So, from only these few select verses found in the Gospel of Luke, it is quite readily apparent that for the purpose of salvation, repentance is required.  This is a very awesome and compact message from our awesome God.

REPENT TO BE SAVED.  His mercy is given simply by asking.  God loves mercy and will grant it freely to a repentant sinner.

The "time of trouble" spoken of throughout the Old Testament is indeed just around the corner.  It is time to repent and to prepare your heart to seek the Lord to escape things to come and to be hidden in the time of trouble.  (Psalm 27: 5; Zeph 2: 3; Rev 3:10)


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