Faith, Repentance, and Confession
I. Opening Prayer- Bill
II. Bill- In the last lesson, we saw how God feels about sin, identified specific sins, and learned the consequences of our sins. In this lesson, we begin to see ALL of God’s plans come together. Our goal is to find out how to be saved!
A. Realizing you have sinned and how deadly your sin is in God’s sight, how can you KNOW that you have been forgiven? The important question for every sinner is, “What must I do to be saved?” Let’s take a look at some that have asked that question.
1. Those responsible for Jesus’ Crucifixion were convicted of their sin and convinced that Jesus was the promised Messiah. In Acts 2:37 they cried out, “Men and brethren, what shall we do?”
2. The same question was asked by the jailer of Philippi in Acts 16:30. Paul and Silas had been arrested for casting the demon out of the girl who followed them daily. Men were using her to “pad their own pocketbooks” claiming she was a soothsayer. When the demon was cast out the girl was no longer of use to the men for making money so they had Paul and Silas arrested. At midnight, while Paul and Silas were singing praises to God and praying there was a great earthquake that shook open the gates of the jail. The jailer suspected that his prisoners had escaped and was getting ready to commit suicide when Paul spoke to him and let him know that they were still there. The jailer was so overwhelmed by their honor, faith and security that he was desperate to know the source of their confidence and hope. He asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”
3. As you faced your own sins in the last lesson, hopefully you are asking the same thing, “What must I do to be saved?” Let’s out what God’s answer is.
III. Bill- Let’s start with Faith in Christ.
A. God expects mankind to believe in Christ
1. What does John 3:16 say? (everyone say it)
2. How about John 3:36 “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.” Strong language.
3. The jailer we talked about a minute ago was told to “believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.”
4. So, we can see that God expects man to believe in Christ.
B. But WHAT IS faith? This is the critical question.
1. There are SO MANY misunderstandings about what is involved in faith in Christ.
a. Some people view faith as a Speculation. They think about what might be true. Certainly, there is NO certainty in this belief. THIS IS NOT BIBLE FAITH.
b. Some people view faith as Probability. This person tries to determine if there is greater evidence on the side of believing or not. So if he decides there is a 51% probability that Jesus might be God’s Son then he will believe but if he believes there is greater evidence on the side of disbelief then he won’t. There is NO certainty in Probability. THIS IS NOT BIBLE FAITH.
c. There are those that believe that faith is a “leap in the dark”. This person believes that he has very few pieces of evidence which don’t truly support his convictions but merely CHOOSES to believe. Kind of like belief in Santa Claus or the Tooth Fairy. There is no certainty here and THIS IS NOT BIBLE FAITH.
d. So what is Bible Faith? Hebrews 11:1 (read). “Substance of things hoped for.” Substance, foundation, assurance, guarantee. “Things hoped for” or What you EXPECT to happen. “The evidence of things not seen.”- evidence, proof, persuasion. There is certainty in genuine faith because it is based upon evidence. What evidence?
1. We KNOW that God can be trusted
2. He cannot and does not lie. Titus 1:2
3. It is a confidence that when He speaks, we must listen and obey.
4. Faith is trust in Christ as THE ONE who can save me from my sin against God.
a. It begins with the realization that I am a sinner.
b. It continues with the realization of just how horrible sin is.
c. It involves the realization that I MUST find an answer for my sin.
d. It includes a longing for Savior.
e. It acknowledges that God has promised me that Jesus is the Savior I need and is my ONLY answer for salvation.
f. Faith then moves into obedience to Christ.
5. Faith is Man’s response to God’s Word and promises. He promises Salvation to faithful men.
C. Bob- But is salvation attained at the point of belief? By faith only? Many have a false concept about faith. They consider “belief” not to be as strong as “faith.”
1. In the original Greek language, faith and belief are the same word.
2. If man is saved at the point of belief then the demons will also be saved. James 2:19 says, “You believe that there is one God. GOOD! Even the demons believe that and shudder.” The demons often confessed that Jesus was the Christ, the Son of God. Mark 1:24 says, “What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are- the Holy One of God!”
3. James clearly states that “faith only” will not save! James 2:24 says, “You see that a person is justified by what he does and not by faith alone.”
4. True Bible faith is obedience.
IV. Bob- Let’s look at Repentance and see how it involves obedience
A. Turn to Luke 13:3 (read) I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish.” It is a command of God.
B. But WHAT IS repentance?
1. Acts 3:19 tells us “Repent ye therefore, and be converted.” Converted means changed.
2. One of the clearest explanations of repentance is found in II. Cor. 7:10 which says, “Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death.” This verse talks of two kinds of sorrow
a. Godly sorrow- is a change of mind that leads to action. It’s a change we will never regret because it leads to salvation.
b. Wordly sorrow-It is being sorry that you were caught.
V. The last subject in this series deals with Confession. God commands confession of our faith. Matthew 10:32,33 says, “Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.” We are confessing that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God.
VI. A sinner desiring salvation must hear the Gospel, believe in Jesus as the One who can save him, repent of his sins, and confess his faith in Christ. But we must remember that these actions are not one time acts. These actions must continue the REST OF OUR LIVES!
Next week is our last week together. We will be looking at an indepth study on Baptism and Christian living.