Heb 6:1 Wherefore leaving the doctrine of the first principles of Christ, let us press on unto perfection; not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God, 2 of the teaching of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment. 3 And this will we do, if God permit.
The first foundational doctrine listed in Hebrews 6 is repentance from dead works. This is the beginning of our Christian experience. In our sinful nature we are only too happy to do all sorts of evil things that produce death, alienate our mind from God, and what we won't personally do we often will laugh at in others (Rom. 6:23; Col. 1:21; Rom. 1:32). Many even glory in their ability in sin. Some also attempt to gain favor with God by all sorts of man devised practices, but these too are dead works. Prior to his conversion the Apostle Paul excelled all his peers in all sorts of outward exercises, Bible knowledge and zeal for God, even to the point of persecuting those who opposed what he thought was right. When he met Christ he cast it all aside as refuse so that he could win Christ (Phi. 3:4-15).
Repentance is a change of mind. It is reconsidering of our former ways a dislike even to hatred of them and a turning to God. In order for repentance to take place we must first have reference point. We are born with a conscience, but we have the ability to silence it, and things that initially trouble us, no longer do so as we continue to practice them. Society places some constraints of culture, social norm and law upon us, but compared with God's Word it becomes apparent that no culture or society measures up to what God requires of mankind. The Word of God and the life of God as lived in the God-Man Christ Jesus shows what God truly requires of us. This reference point is given us when we are brought into contact with true Christianity. It can be given us as we see godly character manifested in the life of a believer, we see true righteousness, that is above all social and cultural norms and contrary to some of them or more commonly we hear the Gospel of Christ's life and death for us presented.
In any case conviction begins. This conviction is the work of the Holy Spirit which He works in the world (John 16:8). Repentance is only possible under the gracious ability given by the Spirit, He is the one that brings home the law of God in a personal way showing us it's righteousness, fitness and good and then personalizing its application so we see our personal failures to live up to God's standard. He also brings personal assurance of God's just anger with us for our sin and the judgment that will follow if we continue down this path.
Conviction is a work of God's grace and under the influence of this grace we are given something we did not have before, an opportunity to change. We receive the enabling ability of the Spirit to turn from our path of sin and to walk in another path that pleases God. We then have a choice. The path of righteousness will always involve some sacrifice and loss every sinner under conviction sees this. People either respond to the drawing of God or resist for reasons that are as unique and common as each man is to another.
A man with a reputation for piety may decide that his reputation is worth more to him than a real right standing with God and resist exposure (religious spirits especially work in and through people who value the praise of man as is seen throughout Christ's conflict with the religious of His day – John 5:41-44, Mark 12:14).
Haeckel renounced his earlier religious beliefs to gain notoriety as a scientist and was willing to falsify evidence having cast off the truth to support evolution and his own theory of recapitulation which earned him short scientific fame (which has been lost due to discovery of his fraud), but eternal reproach in the only history that really matters.
Judas sold Christ for a paltry sum, and then in regret never even used it but cast it away. The Spirit's drawing was no longer upon him however and repentance he never found, only the bitter remorse of the damned for the short time he remained.
Abe Lincoln was said to have replied at a revival meeting on being asked if he wanted to go to heaven, "I would rather go to the White House."
Henry of Navarre renounced his own religious convictions saying, "Paris is worth a mass." In so doing he began the reign of the Bourbon line of French kings which through their supreme selfishness, vanity and egotism brought odium not only on themselves but on the monarchy itself when their sins had reached their climax which resulted in the revolution. The notable exception in this degenerate line was the grandson of Louis XIV, who under the tutelage of Fenelon showed much promise and whose death before he could reign was perhaps God's keeping to Himself one of whom the world was not worthy.
The soldiery having crucified Christ turned their back to the cross and looked down on the ground as they cast dice for the clothes of the Saviour.
Some allow the hypocrisy of others to silence the voice of their own conscience as the Cherokee chieftain who on being read the sermon on the mount by a missionary who had recently rendered Matthew into Cherokee and being asked if he thought it was a good book replied, "it is a good book, I wonder that the whites lives are not better since they have such a good book." Condemning others for their failure to live up to God's standards never will justify our own failings however.
Others, praise God, do not silence the voice of the Spirit when it calls to them and through His enabling the renounce their sin, turn from it and turn to God. They repent. They save themselves from their own perverse generation. Rather than judging themselves unworthy of everlasting life, they see that since they are so unworthy they had better accept the offer of mercy the see, and forsake all that they can obtain it. This is true repentance. It is more than mere sorrow for sin, especially a sorrow that we will be punished, but a deep sorrow and turning from sin. It is accompanied not only by a sorrow for our state, but a just acknowledgment that we deserve judgment from God, and would have no cause for complaint should He send us to hell for our sins. From this comes a cry for mercy and a petition for help to change. All of this is entailed in repentance. Repentance does not end with being born again but it should flow in various degrees every time our failings are brought to our mind by the Spirit of God. Many times we sin in ignorance and can only repent when our sin is revealed to us. Sometimes only years later do we realize just how bad some of our behavior was and in shame we confess to the one who is faithful and just to forgive us and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we had the full depth of our perversity revealed to us – every seed of sin that will germinate or could given the right conditions – we would fall into despair.
Molinos in his Spiritual Guide mentions the false humility of some who confess more to justify themselves than to actually repent, and one sign that we are not truly repentant is our anger when others tell us our faults. It is amazing, but we can tell God that we are nothing but miserable sinners, and appear as contrite as we will, but let another treat us like a miserable sinner or tell us what we would freely say to God and we instantly take umbrage. David's true repentance even accepted the cursing of Shimei so long as it would result in his restoration to God. True repentance walks hand in hand with faith, it being very hard to see which precedes the other, because faith accepts all that God says and thus agrees and repentance forsakes all so that we may be filled with faith. We will look at faith in the next post.
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