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              The Gospel has two themes: Repentance and the Kingdom of God. John the Baptist, Jesus Christ and the Apostles preached the same message: a call for people to repent in order to be saved. The great commission that was given to every child of God was to make unbelievers surrender their lives to Jesus Christ through the preaching of repentance and the kingdom of God (Mathew 28:18-20). We know that we are reconciled with God through Jesus Christ, but we ignore that without “true repentance” we cannot be reconciled with God. Most of modern Christians have a definition of repentance that is completely unbiblical.

             Repentance is not only about acknowledging and confessing your sins, nor praying for forgiveness or being broken over your sins. The term repentance comes from the Greek word “metanoeo“ which means “change”. Repentance can be biblically defined as the state of brokenness over sin and a feeling of such sorrow that a radical change takes place in one’s life. Contrarily to what some people believe, true repentance is not only about feelings, but also about actions. Repentance is more an action than a feeling. When people asked to John the Baptist what they should do in order to be saved, he did not tell them to merely feel guilty, regretful or sorrowful over their evil ways or sins; but he told them to turn away from their evil ways (Luc 3:1-14). Today, many of whom come to Christ don’t understand this and think that repentance has to do only with the condition of their heart. In other words, they think that repentance is limited to the heart’s state of anguish, regret and sorrow over their wrongdoings. Crying over a sin can be a sign of repentance, but not its evidence. The only evidence of repentance is the complete change, or the abandon of the evil ways. So if we have cried over and confessed our sins without abandoning or turning away from them, then we have not truly repented.

             In order for repentance to be complete and true, it has to meet certain requirements which are well enumerated in 2 Chronicle 7: 14. In the process of repentance, we should first acknowledge our wrongdoings because we cannot have remorse or guilt over something that we consider as right or just. This is why it is crucial for us to admit that we were wrong before God whenever our ways or deeds are against the Word of God. So, we have to be totally convicted of our wrongdoings to the point that we become sorrowful (2Corinthiens 7:9-10). Secondly, after acknowledging our wrongdoings, we must then confess them all before the Lord Jesus Christ. Confession is saying sincerely and precisely the things that you have done against God’s will. It’s true that God knows everything and even the deep things of our hearts, (Hebrew 4:13) yet we still have the duty and obligation to confess using our mouth. Spiritually speaking, confessing is also a way of exposing the work of the devil; by doing so, we set ourselves free from the captivity of our sins. The only way for someone to release his or her heart, is to speak out the things that dwell in it. Thirdly we ought to radically turn away from those wrongdoings. In other words, we must get away from anything, any situation, any environment, and anyone that was causing us to commit those sins. Many Christians meet the first two- requirements, but neglect or fail to meet the third one, which is in fact the true essence of repentance. Just as partial obedience is disobedience, repentance without these three requirements is not considered as godly and true repentance in God’s sight. For instance, if a product has to be made out of ten elements and one decides to make it out of nine elements only, then the product made will not be the same as the one that was intended to be made with ten elements.

            Many Christians have a poor condition and quality of life and do not experience the powerful manifestation of God regardless of their dedication and important contribution to God’s Kingdom because they have not yet truly repented. Some people cry so much over their sins, confess them, yet don’t turn away from them. God in his goodness hates to see His children suffering, but His righteousness does not allow Him to reach out to a child who doesn’t want to abandon his or her old wicked ways. The fact that one constantly falls into the same sin, is evidence that one has not truly repented. Someone who has truly repented of a sin does not repeat it as a dog that returns to its own vomit or as a sow that, having washed, returns to her wallowing in the mire (2 Peter2:22). We need to understand that the Word of God is conditioned. So in order for God to reach out to you, you must first put yourself in certain conditions that will enable Him to act on your behalf. The Word of God gives us all the instructions that we need to put ourselves in these conditions. I perfectly understand that the grace of God is not given through works, but we have to put ourselves in certain conditions that will allow the grace of God to apply to us. We know this because God command us to confess and repent of our sins before He can embrace us. Everyone has the capacity to repent of any sin. Repenting is not a matter of power, but a matter of decision and taking action for radical change. 2 Chronicle 7:14 gives the proof that God cannot even hear our prayers if we do not sincerely repent.
              We must understand that we have in us all the potential given by God to repent. God empowers only those who repented to keep His statues, but our repentance is not up to Him, but to us.
Isaiah 55: 6-8 : Seek the LORD while he may be found; call on him while he is near. Let the wicked forsake his way and the evil man his thoughts. Let him turn to the LORD, and he will have mercy on him, and to our God, for he will freely pardon.”For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the LORD.