Matt 3:1 Now in those days John the Baptist appeared, preaching in the wilderness of Judea (2) And saying, Repent, for the kingdom of the heavens has drawn near.
The first significant word in [Matthew 3:2] is the word "repent." John began his ministry with this word. To repent is to have a change of mind issuing in regret, to have a turn in purpose. In Greek the word translated repent means to have a change of mind. To repent is to have a change in our thinking, our philosophy, our logic....Before we were saved, we all were under the direction of our fallen mentality. We were far away from God, and our life was in direct opposition to His will. Under the influence of our fallen mentality, we went farther and farther astray from God. But one day we heard the preaching of the gospel telling us to repent, to have a turn in our thinking, philosophy, and logic. This was just my experience when I was saved. I was like a young horse running in my own direction. Actually I was not taking my direction, but the Devil's direction, for the Devil was directing me through my fallen mentality, driving me far away from God. But one day I heard the call to repent--to have a change in my philosophy, to have a change in my logic and thought. Praise the Lord, I underwent a great change!...All [believers] have made this kind of turn, which is called conversion. When we were converted, we turned our back upon our past and turned our face to God. This is what it means to repent, to experience a change of our mind.
Bible verses are taken from the Recovery Version of the Bible and Words of Ministry from Witness Lee, Life-study of Matthew, 1986, pp. 106-107. Both are published by Living Stream Ministry, Anaheim, CA. Please visit us at www.emanna.com. Send comments to: [email protected].
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