REPENTANCE AND FAITH
T.P. Simmons
In the last chapter we noticed that conversion is made up of repentance
and faith. This brings us then in our study to the
consideration of these.
I. REPENTANCE CONSIDERED
ALONE
1. ORIGINAL WORDS
These two words are "metanoeo" (corresponding noun form
being "metanoia") and "metamelomai"(the noun form of which
does not occur in the New Testament). Only the former word is associated with
salvation. The latter word is used in Matt. 21:29 (in the case of the son that
first refused to obey his father's command to work in the vineyard, but "afterward ... repented himself and went ); Matt. 21:32;
27:3 (in the case of Judas); Rom. 11:29; 2 Cor. 7:8,10; and Heb. 7:21.
Concerning these two words, Thayer says: "That 'metanoeo' is
the fuller and nobler term, expressive of moral action and issues, is indicated
not only by its derivation, but by the greater frequency of
its use . . ."
2. TWO KINDS OF REPENTANCE
There is an evangelical repentance and there is also a legal
repentance. Legal repentance comes about wholly through fear
of the consequences of sin. This is the kind Judas experienced. Evangelical
repentance is accompanied by godly sorrow and is wrought in the heart by the
regenerating Spirit of God. It is evangelical repentance that we are
considering in this chapter.
3. THE CONSTITUENT ELEMENTS OF
REPENTANCE
(1) Sin Admitted-Conviction
Man must see himself as unlike God and in rebellion against God.
He must see the opposition between his condition and the
holiness of God. He must see that God abhors his condition and state. The
recognition of sin that enters into repentance unto salvation is concerned
primarily, not with the fact that sin brings punishment, but with the fact that
sin offends God. There is, of course, a fear of the eternal consequences of
sin; but this is not the primary thing.
This recognition of sin is conviction, and it constitutes the
intellectual element in repentance.
(2) Sin Abhorred-Contrition.
Godly sorrow enters into repentance. When
one sees himself as he appears before God he is brought to regret his sin and
to abhor it. This is the emotional element in repentance.
(3) Sin Abandoned-Conversion.
Repentance is not complete until there is
an inward abandoning of sin which leads to an outward change of conduct. This is
the voluntary or volitional element in repentance. Thus repentance concerns the
whole inner nature: intellect, emotion, and will.
4. REPENTANCE IS INWARD
While true repentance always manifests itself outwardly; yet
repentance of itself is inward, according to the meaning of the original. The
Scripture distinguishes between repentance and "fruits worthy of
repentance (Matt. 3:8; Acts 26:20).
5. REPENTANCE AND PENANCE
CONTRASTED
The Roman Catholic translation of the Bible (Douay Version)
substitutes "penance" for "repentance" as a translation of
"metanoeo." Thus we read from the Douay Version: "Do penance;
for the kingdom of heaven is at hand" (Matt. 3:2); "Except you do
penance, you shall all likewise perish" (Luke 13:5);
and "Testifying both to Jews and Gentiles penance toward God, and faith in
our Lord Jesus Christ (Acts 20:21). And of penance, the comment in the Douay
Version on Matt. 3:2 says: "Which word, according to the use of the
scriptures, and the holy fathers, does not only signify repentance and
amendment of life, but also punishing past sins by lasting, and such like
penitential exercises." Three things may be said concerning
this comment:
(1) It is absolutely false in saying that the "punishing of
past sins by fasting, and such like penitential exercises" is a part of
the meaning of the Greek word.
As already noted, the Greek word signifies
an inward change. "True repentance consists of mental and spiritual
emotions, and not of outward self-imposed chastisements. Even the pious life
and devotion to God which follows are described not as repentance, but as
fruits meet for repentance" (Boyce, Abstract of Systematic Theology, p.
384). "Metanoeo" is made of "meta," meaning
"after," and "noeo," meaning to perceive, to understand, to
think upon, heed, ponder, consider.
(2) It denies the sufficiency of Christ's satisfaction for our
sins, in plain contradiction of the Scripture (Cf. Rom. 4:7, 8; 10:4; Heb.
10:14; 1 John 1:7).
Since Christ made a full satisfaction for
our sins, there is no punishment for us to endure, except the natural
consequences of sin. God chastens the believer when he sins, but He never
punishes him either in this life or the life to come. Punishment is
retributive, and is based on "an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth."
Chastisement is corrective, and is based on fatherly love. Christ left us
nothing to pay, and we can truthfully sing:
"Jesus paid it all;
All to Him I owe.
Sin had left a crimson stain;
He washed it white as snow."
(3) It implies that the temporal acts of the creature can atone
for sin. The Bible knows nothing of such a teaching. It teaches that Christ
alone could make an atonement. Even in eternity the souls in Hell will never be
able to atone for sin; for that reason there is no end to their punishment.
Surely, then, the song speaks the truth when it says:
"Could my tears forever flow;
Could my zeal no respite know;
These for sin could not atone,
Thou must save and thou alone."
6. REPENTANCE IS A GIFT OF GOD
The three following passages prove this:
"Him did God exalt with his right
hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, to give repentance to Israel, and remission
of sins" (Acts 5:31).
"And when they heard these things, they held their peace, and
glorified God, saying, Then to the Gentiles also hath God granted repentance
unto life" (Acts ll:18).
"The Lord's servant must not strive, but be gentle towards
all, apt to teach, forbearing, in meekness correcting them that oppose
themselves; if peradventure God may give them repentance unto the knowledge of
the truth" (2 Tim. 2:24,25).
The meaning of this is simply that
repentance is wrought in man by the quickening power of the Holy Spirit, as we
have already noted.
II. FAITH CONSIDERED ALONE
We have reference here to saving faith.
Hence we note:
1. SAVING FAITH DEFINED
Saving faith is trust in and reliance on the Lord Jesus Christ as
one's personal Saviour and sin-bearer. And, since salvation
includes sanctification as well as justification, saving faith brings about a
commitment of self to Christ.
2. SAVING
FAITH DISTINGUISHED FROM ITS COUNTERFEITS
This is mere belief in the facts of revelation as matters of
history, including belief in the existence of God and that there was a man
called Jesus who claimed to be the Son of God. It can be readily seen that such
belief has no saving value.
(2) Intellectual Assent.
This goes a step farther, bringing mental acceptance of the things
revealed of God and Jesus Christ. Thus one who believes in the existence of God
comes to believe Him to be such a being as the Bible
reveals Him to be, and one who believes that such a person as Jesus lived comes
to believe that He was the Son of God and that He died as a sacrifice for sin.
This is a step toward saving faith, but it is not such faith.
Campbellism teaches that saving faith is nothing more than the
foregoing. It relies on such passages as 1 John 4:15 and
5:1. But these passages must be understood in the light of all other Scripture,
and other Scripture certainly forbids that the belief spoken of in these
passages should be understood as being mere intellectual assent to the deity of
Christ. Saving faith is not merely of the mind (intellect), but of the heart
(emotions). See Rom. 10:9,10. The belief spoken of in the above passages is
such as is produced in the heart by an experimental knowledge
of Christ's power.
Then two facts as to the circumstances under which these
expressions were uttered throw light upon them.
A. The danger of professing belief in the
deity of Christ was such in apostolic days that none would do so unless
prompted by true faith in Him.
B. Christianity presented such a contrast to Judaism and Paganism
that none would believe in the deity of Christ without true faith in Him. Those
who had not this faith would regard Him as an imposter.
3. FAITH IS A GIFT OF GOD
This is proved by the passages already quoted that designate
repentance as a gift of God; for as we shall see,
repentance and faith are inseparable graces. Each one, when appearing alone in
the Scriptures, embraces the other; for, if this were not true, the passages
which mention only the one or the other would teach that one may be saved
without both repentance and faith.
This is proved by passages which teach
that our coming to Christ and believing on Him are the result of the working of
God's power. See John 6:37, 65; Eph. 1:19, 20. This is further proved by the
fact that faith is a fruit of the Holy Spirit (Gal. 5:22).
4. FAITH HAS NO MERIT IN ITSELF
Faith is merely the channel through which God's justifying and
sanctifying grace flows into the soul. Faith is no more meritorious than the
act of receiving a gift is meritorious. Faith in no way is a substitute for our
obedience to the law, nor does it bring about a lowering of the law so that we
can meet its demands. Faith is once referred to as work in the Scripture (John 6:29), not that it is of the law, but only that man is
actively engaged in its exercise. "As a gift of God and as the mere taking
of undeserved mercy, it is expressly excluded from the category of works on the
basis of which man may claim salvation (Rom. 3:28; 4:4, 5, 16). It is not the
act of the full soul bestowing, but the act of the empty soul receiving.
Although this reception is prompted by a drawing of the heart toward God,
inwrought by the Holy Spirit, this drawing of the heart is
not yet a conscious and developed love: such love is the result of faith (Gal.
5:6)" (A. H. Strong Systematic Theology, pp. 469,470).
5. FAITH IS NECESSARILY EXPRESSES ITSELF IN WORKS
Faith is a dynamic principle. It gives
rise to love; and, therefore, works (Gal. 5:6). Faith that does not express
itself in works is a dead faith, which is just another way of saying that it is
spurious or unreal (Jas. 2:17).
6. FAITH IS DISTINGUISHABLE FROM HOPE
Faith and hope are very much akin; but the two terms are not
synonymous. Faith and hope differ in the following ways:
(1) Faith is trust; hope is expectation.
The difference here is narrow, but is such a difference as is
common between various somewhat similar terms. Both faith and hope involve
"the idea of trust, but with the use of different prepositions (Boyce). We
"trust In" as an act of faith. We "trust for" in hope.
(2) "Faith is reliance upon something
now present as known or believed, Hope is looking forward to something in the
future (Boyce.)
(3) Christ is the object of faith; while salvation, freedom from
sin, glorification, and Heaven are the objects of hope.
(4) Hope results from faith, and, therefore, cannot be faith. See
Rom. 5:2-6; 15:4-13; Gal. 5:5; Heb. 11:1.
7. THE GROUND OF FAITH
Christ, objectively revealed to the mind and heart is the ground
of faith. This is implied throughout the Bible, and it is unmistakably taught
in Rom. 10:11-17. We read there that "faith cometh by hearing," and
we find also there the question (implying an impossibility): "How shall
they believe on him of whom they have not heard." The Bible knows nothing,
absolutely nothing, about a so-called secret faith that can
exist apart from knowledge of Christ, such as some Hardshells teach.
In the Old Testament Christ was revealed, not only through types
and shadows, but through prophets, such as Isaiah. And we are told plainly that
the gospel was preached to Abraham and to Israel (Gal. 3:8;
Heb. 4:2).
III. REPENTANCE AND FAITH
CONSIDERED TOGETHER
Repentance and faith are inseparable synchronous graces. We have
reference here, of course, to that repentance (signified by
"metanoeo" and "metnaoia") which is unto salvation, and not
to the kind (signified by "metamelomai") that Judas experienced.
That repentance and faith are synchronous or simultaneous is
evident from the fact that when a man is quickened into life there can be no
lapse of time before he repents, nor can there be any
before he believes. Otherwise we would have the new nature in rebellion against
God and in unbelief. Thus there can be no chronological order in repentance and
faith.
Another thing which shows the inseparableness of repentance and
faith is the fact that the Scripture often mentions only one of them as the
means of salvation. Because of this fact we must think of
each one, when used alone, as comprehending the other.
In repentance and faith, as we have already pointed out in another
chapter, the will is brought to choose righteousness as an ultimate end.