The most common idea about repentance is that it means being sorry for your sin. That’s definitely a part of it, but when you look at John’s message, it just doesn’t go far enough. It says in Mark 1 that John is the voice in the wilderness, the one who cries, “prepare the way for Yahweh, make his paths straight!”
John here is depicted as the forerunner, the herald who brings news of the king, who tells the people to prepare themselves, to prepare the way.
The original listeners would have known that when a king comes into the land, the people were responsible for making a straight path for him. When a king came, you actually had to build a road for him. You had to take down any obstacles in the path; you had to build bridges across the chasms, because the king wanted a straight path, a clear path.
You say, “God doesn’t’ fit into my life. I have no space for him.” Then build a road. Re-arrange your life so that what is most important is in its place.
This is a fundamentally different thing than a simple, “say you’re sorry…” John isn’t looking for people who are merely ready to say that they are sorry (because sometimes saying sorry is just a way to get someone off your back); he is looking for people who are ready to try a completely different way of living.
To repent does not just mean to be sorry. It has the notion of a 180-degree turn. To repent means to turn, to change, as The Message puts John’s message: “Change your life. God’s kingdom is here.”
Lord, may my repentance today make a straight path for you in my life. Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment