I saw this picture today and it reminded me of my rock climbing class in college. The final exam was to climb a 100 foot cliff face up in the Rockies and then repel down backwards! It was amazing and the Lord gave me the strength to do it just like the guy in the picture! It was so cool! It was like military training. Plus just about every Coloradoan has tried rock climbing at least once, so I’m glad I got to do it!
Was it scary with the heights and being tied to a rope and trusting the guy at the other end with my life? Yes, but I pressed on and made it to the top and did the repelling back down with ease! Life can be scary. We all know this. The evil one loves to play on our fears and he loves trying to put roadblocks in our way. Just when things seem to be going great, something else comes our way. It is like that for all of us because that is the way it is in the whole world. This is a fallen world ruled by an evil prince, so it is imperfect and we have trouble here.
Roadblocks
I have been having one of those days where the evil one tries to put up roadblocks and discourage me. I had a very strange person who I’ve never seen before get on my blog today and make comments under one of my older posts that were way out of line! This man actually falsely accused me of adding works to preaching the Gospel because I say what Jesus said, that people need to repent!
Yes, he actually equated “repentance” with “works” and falsely accused me of adding works to receiving Jesus by faith. I know, it’s very weird and it still boggles my mind! People, the message Jesus preached was a message of repentance!
“From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.”
Jesus speaking in Matthew 4:17
So, now that it is clear Jesus said to “repent,” here is a great verse from Paul who explains repentance very well.
“Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death.”
2 Corinthians 7:10
Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to Jesus. Repentance is not works. It is a change of mind that leads us to salvation in Jesus! The word repentance in the Greek literally means “a change of mind” or a “change in the inner man.” It is an attitude of the heart towards God in admitting that you are sinful and you need a Savior. It means to turn away from your sin and receive Jesus as your Lord and Savior. “Change your mind” or “repent” of going your own sinful way and turn 180 degrees and go God’s Way, which is to believe in Jesus Christ for your salvation. That is real change on the inside! That is what repent means. I truly hope that is clear to everyone. It has nothing to do with working for your salvation, give me a break! In all of my time following Jesus since 1996 I have never heard anyone say repenting is like works! Jesus calls us to repent, period.
Here is the Greek root of the word “repentance”:
“Strong’s Concordance
metanoia: change of mind, repentance
Original Word: μετάνοια, ας, ἡ
Part of Speech: Noun, Feminine
Transliteration: metanoia
Phonetic Spelling: (met-an’-oy-ah)
Short Definition: repentance, a change of mind
Definition: repentance, a change of mind, change in the inner man.
HELPS Word-studiesCognate: 3341 metánoia – literally, “a change of mind” (“after-thought”); repentance. See 3340 /metanoeō (“repent”).”
The New Testament was written in Greek. You must understand this word repentance! Jesus called all people to change their minds about living sinful lives. He called them to turn to Him and be saved! We all need forgiveness of sins and only Jesus offers that! Repent, Jesus said, for the kingdom of heaven is near!
I could not believe what the guy was saying when I saw his comments! I have made it very clear from the day I started this blog on 8-10-2018 that we are saved by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone, and not by works! There is nothing a person could do to earn salvation. That is why Jesus Christ had to die for our sins–so we could be forgiven and reconciled back to God! If we could earn our salvation by good works, then Jesus would have died for nothing. But He did not die for nothing! He died to forgive the sins of the entire world!
I had to set that man straight and I had to be firm. I forgive him, but I pray the Lord convicts him and helps him understand the simple truth of the Bible. I also pray he repents for coming on my blog and falsely accusing me in the comments section under my post.
Anyway, the Lord handled it. It was very discouraging, but I am okay. Nothing gets me down for too long since I’m flowing in the power of the Holy Spirit!
The Lord encouraged me tonight!
The Lord brought that verse in Joshua to my mind tonight. He lifted me up because I heard him whisper, “Do not be afraid, do not be discouraged. I am with you.” After that, I found that verse pin and I started writing this post! Amen! Thank you Jesus! The Holy Spirit is so awesome!
Do not be afraid tonight! Do not be discouraged! For the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go!
If you have questions…
If anybody has any questions about what I believe or you think you might have misunderstood me in any of my posts, please just send me a nice respectful email through my contact page. I would be happy to answer any questions you might have.
If you falsely accuse me of something or come at me hard with ill intent, I will defend myself in the Lord and defend His Truth. I will rebuke any lies or hatred that comes against me and I do that by the authority and power that Jesus Christ gave me when I received Him as my Lord and Savior. I am fulfilling Matthew 28:18-20 on this blog and I intend to finish the work the Lord has given me to complete. I am a tender and compassionate man, but if you test me, you will soon realize I am also one of God’s lions.
“From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it.”
Matthew 11:12
Not timid men, not scared men. No! Forceful men lay hold of it. I love you all in Christ and I take preaching God’s Truth very seriously as I will be held accountable to God for what I preach. I know the authority that has been given to me by Jesus to preach the Gospel to the world, and I am going to move forward in the power of God in that mission. I am putting my hand to the plow, and by the power of the Holy Spirit I will never look back! No false accuser is going to slow me down either!
Thank you to all my cool brothers and sisters from all over the world that encourage me daily!
Thank you to all my cool brothers and sisters out there that encourage me every day! I love you all! I appreciate you and I really do read your blogs and I love them! I need your prayers and I look forward to having fellowship with you every day!
It has been a roller coaster day with the joy from my friend’s forgiveness this morning and then the discouragement of the false accuser this afternoon. I am greatly encouraged though because my God reminded me that He is with me and He told me to not be afraid or discouraged! I love you I AM! Thank you Jesus for all you have done for us! Thank you for paying the price for all of our sins!
Grace and peace to you all!
P.S.
Just to be very clear one more time. We are saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ alone, not by works! We absolutely cannot earn our way into Heaven by any kind of good works–and repentance is not “works”! We repent in order to turn to Jesus for our salvation. Repentance is not a work, it means changing your mind about living your own sinful life and choosing instead to believe in Jesus. I have been very clear about this because God’s Word is very clear on this. We are saved by faith in Jesus Christ alone and that salvation is a free gift of God’s grace. That is as clear as it gets folks!
More verses regarding repentance:
Luke 13:3
Acts 2:38
Acts 3:19
Matthew 3:8
1 John 1:9
Luke 5:32
“For its by grace you have been saved, through faith–and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God–not by works, so that no one can boast.”
Ephesians 2:8-9
Ryan Callahan's Blog 
Ryan, It’s very unfortunate he chose to comment the way he did. Hopefully, now, he understands the difference in works and repentance. It sounds to me like he came with his own misconception about works, not from anything you have preached. You definitely make it clear in all your posts that you can not work your way into Heaven. He certainly knows where you stand now, and who you stand with! It is so good to hear you weren’t discouraged for long . That you heard Jesus whisper do not be afraid or discouraged is so amazing!! He is always there! I LOVE THAT!!!
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Amen Mom! Yeah, the guy was pretty confused. Hopefully he understands now. I’m glad the Lord used me to set him straight. Love you guys!
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Excellent post!
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Thank you for your encouragement Valerie! God bless you!
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