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REPENT
Merriam Webster says repent means “to turn from sin and dedicate oneself to the amendment of one’s life; to feel regret or contrition; to change one’s mind,” Those three definitions are good and you don’t choose one or the other. They go together.
The problem lies in doing those three. Your carnal (sarx), religious mind is gung ho. It volunteers to manage the project. It will help you turn from sin and amend your life. It will go into mourning over past sins and even hold you in a state of constant condemnation if you like. Alternately, it can flippantly say, “I’m sorry,” while it continues to sin. It can employ New Age or positive mental attitude techniques to change your mind. None of that creates the transformation God has planned for you.
The Greek word for “repent” is μετανοέω (metanoeō), which is derived from two parts: meta (meaning “after” or “beyond”) and noeō (meaning “to think” or “to perceive”). Together, it essentially means “to change one’s mind” or “to have a new mind.”
Since you know something about how God is transforming you, repenting is a transformation from your carnal mind to a new mind, the Mind that is Christ in you. The old carnal mind can’t simply have a new way of looking at things or a new attitude. It must die away and be replaced by a brand new Mind, Christ in you. Christ is in your spirit. Now, the battle is for your mind. God will fully redeem your body later.
How? The way is simple. Stop listening to your carnal mind that follows your flesh, demonic entities, and the fleshly and demonic ideas of the culture. Stand in God’s Presence. Let His glory, His essence, His being overwhelm you. Listen to His voice so faith comes. And yield to the power His grace so it does His works and says His words through you. That’s as simple as it gets. That’s how you repent. It will change how you think and how you act in every aspect of life. You will begin to think, speak, and act with the authority and power of the living God.
Ask God to answer these questions.
- What does “repent” mean?
- Why can’t your mind just decide to stop sinning on its own?
- What is a carnal mind?
- What does it mean for your old mind to die?
- How can Christ be in you?
Bonus Questions
- What does it mean to stand in God’s Presence?
- How can you listen to God’s voice?
- Since grace is God’s power to do His will, how can you move by the power of His grace?
- How does God change the way you act by changing what you are?
- How does God change the way you think by changing what you are?
- What does it mean for you to think, speak, and act with God’s authority and power?
SEEKING GOD
audio recording for reflection: |
- Pray for the Lord to protect you and keep you in His presence and His presence only.
- Direct your mind toward the Lord only.
- Ask God what He want’s to talk about.
- You can ask God any questions. In all of this, be led by the Holy Spirit. God promises that He will answer you if you ask Him.
- Do not edit or change what God says even if you don’t understand it.
- Reject the lies and receive the truth.
- Take notes.
- Transfer your notes to your journal without editing what God said to you.
Keep in mind that God doesn’t want you to ever disconnect from Him. He wants to flow through you constantly in knowledge, wisdom, and love.
Search Engine Exercise:
Type “What does the Bible say about knowing God?” into a search engine and find websites like biblestudytools, sunshynegray, or openbible (my favorite) that list many Bible verses on the topic. Use the ones that take input from the users rather than those that are trying to cherry-pick Scripture to prove some point. As you go through the verses listed, you will find that some are on the topic and others don’t fit very well. This is a great place for discussion about which ones fit and why. Let the Holy Spirit lead you in this. (Romans 8:14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.) Take what you learned, your notes or what you produced and videotape yourself. Become a kid influencer for Christ with your own social media platform by uploading your video as God leads. 