From Subtle Warnings to Certain Grace: Why Repentance Matters

Eager to paddle while the lake was calm, I grabbed my board and set out, drifting across the glassy water. The sun was warm, the air still, and the dark, rain-heavy clouds lingered far off in the distance.

Until they didn’t.

A low rumble of thunder rolled across the lake. The wind picked up, awakening the once-quiet water, and I knew it was time to turn back. I reached the shore just in time—sliding my board onto the rack as the first drops began to fall.

Sometimes the warning signs in our spiritual lives seem just as subtle—until suddenly they’re unmistakable. Repentance is that awakening to sin, the decisive turning that draws us back into the safety of Christ.

The Message of Repentance

John the Baptist’s bold cry—and Jesus’ affirming echo—still rings out today: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matt. 4:17).

To enjoy fellowship with Christ, we must turn from sin. When teaching children, I’ve used the illustration of a U-turn—changing direction completely from where we were headed. Repentance is a “radical change of heart resulting in a radical change in the direction of one’s life.”[1] It is both birthed and sustained by God’s grace—necessary for our salvation and vital to our sanctification.

R.C. Sproul reminds us, “The word for ‘repentance’ in the Bible is metanoia, which means ‘a changing of the mind.’ We think differently as our minds are renewed.”[2] Scripture calls us to be “renewed in the spirit of [our] minds” (Eph. 4:23), to be “renewed day by day” in Christ (2 Cor. 4:16), to “set [our] minds on things above” (Col. 3:2), and to dwell on what is lovely, excellent, and praiseworthy (Phil. 4:8).

For Our Sin

“I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.” (Luke 5:32)

When we receive the gospel as truth, we are seated with Christ, saved, and sealed with the Holy Spirit—guaranteeing our inheritance (Eph. 1:13–14). Yet we still wrestle with sin, finding ourselves doing what we do not want to do (Rom. 7:19) because of its entangling effects (Heb. 12:1).

If we are to repent, we must first see our sin. That means regularly asking the Lord to search our hearts, seeking accountability in relationships with other believers, and staying under the faithful teaching of God’s Word so we are continually reminded of gospel truths.

But there’s also a subtle danger when God’s grace allows us to live moral lives—we may quietly begin to resemble the Pharisees, confident in our own perceived righteousness. Before we point out the speck in another’s eye, we must address the plank in our own (Matt. 7:3–5) and remember that the one without sin is the only one qualified to cast the first stone (John 8:7). The Lord calls us to bless, encourage, and admonish one another—but always prayerfully, humbly, and in love.

An Ongoing, Active Choice

“Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent.” (Rev. 3:19)

The church in Laodicea had grown comfortable—prosperous and in need of nothing. But their hearts had turned lukewarm. No longer seeing their spiritual poverty, they were urged to return to the Lord in repentance.

We can fall into the same trap. Routine, comfort, distraction, busyness, and apathy can dull our awareness of sin, drawing our attention to the urgent while neglecting the eternal. We need the same spiritual salve as the Laodicean believers—to see clearly, to be clothed in the garments of Christ’s righteousness.

“Repentance is not just the beginner course; repentance is lifetime learning.”[3] Praise be to God for His steadfast love and His presence with us, faithfully leading us into deeper fellowship with Him.

 Where has the Lord been gently—or urgently—calling you to turn back to Him this week?

---

1. Paul David Tripp, Instruments in the Redeemer’s Hands: People in Need of Change Helping People in Need of Change (Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R Publishing, 2002), 62.

2. R. C. Sproul, Truths We Confess: A Systematic Exposition of the Westminster Confession of Faith (Orlando: Reformation Trust, 2006), 217.

3. Matt Chandler and Michael Snetzer, Recovering Redemption: A Gospel-Saturated Perspective on How to Change (Nashville: B&H Publishing Group, 2014), 87.