Hi & welcome back reader! I pray you're having a blessed day, and may the Lord Jesus Christ be your Perfect Peace!
Today, I'm gonna talk about what true repentance is & focus specifically on:
Who Said Repentance Is The Changing of Your Mind?
There is also a Reflection + Ending Scripture provided at the end of the post.
[You can now click the subtitles above to take you directly to a specific topic!]
Like I mentioned in previous posts, a Christian's #1 resource should be the Bible, and of course, I will show you these specifics in the Bible.
Supporting Posts:
Do You Know How To Repent?
Be honest, no judgement here. Repentance is turning from your sinful ways. It is the changing of the heart and mind you once had, when you were sinning. This is true repentance.
Many will say, "I have repented!", but commit the same sin in a week. You can confess your sins to The Most High, and ask Him to forgive you, but not actually repent. Hence, why some fall right back into that same sin. Many don't change or depart from their evil ways they had while they were sinning, and this is why they fall right back into the same sin.
Yet again, confessing your sins to God and asking for His forgiveness is NOT repentance. You have to renew your mind, depart from your wicked ways, & change how you previously done things, when you were in sin.
Repentance is the NEXT step after receiving God's forgiveness of your sins.
Who Said Repentance Is The Changing of Your Mind?
Exodus 32:14, "And the LORD repented of the evil which he thought to do unto his people." KJV Version.
Exodus 32:14, "So the LORD changed His mind about the harm which He had said He would do to His people." AMP Version.
Romans 12:2, "And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God." KJV Version.
I'm pretty sure we ALL are aware The Most High cannot sin. He is a perfect God without sin, so repentance must mean something different here. Look at the Amplified Version of Exodus 32:14, "the LORD changed His mind". Therefore, repentance is the changing of the mind you once had, when you were in sin.
I added Romans 12:2 because of "but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind". If you go to blueletterbible.org & enter Romans 12:2 into the search bar, you can see the meaning of each word in the scripture. I clicked the meaning of "renewing", & this came out:
Outline of Biblical Usage
I. a renewal, renovation, complete change for the better
You see? This particular part (Paul mentioned in the scripture) is talking about repentance. I love how Blue Letter Bible said, "complete change for the better" because that's what we are trying to do. We are repenting from our sins (changing & departing from our sinful ways), to live a better and holy-submitted life to Jesus Christ.
Also in the BlueLetterBible, the Greek word of repent is "metanoēo", and this is what it means:
Outline of Biblical Usage
I. To change one's mind, i.e. to repent
II. To change one's mind for better, heartily to amend with abhorrence of one's past sins
As you read the Bible, you'll come across phrases like "change your hearts" or "turn your hearts" (1 Kings 18:37) too, this is also the same as repentance, the changing of the mind. Let's take a dive into how the mind and heart are similar, shall we?
The Greek word of heart is "Kardia", and this is the definition of it:
Outline of Bibilical Usage
a. The soul or mind, as it is the fountain and seat of the thoughts, passions, desires, appetites, affections, purposes, endeavours
Do you notice how it says "the soul or mind"? The heart, soul, and mind are ONE. Therefore, when Christ gave the first-greatest commandment, Matthew 22:37, "Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind." KJV Version, He was reiterating Himself. Why do people reiterate themselves? To offer clarity and emphasis on an IMPORTANT matter.
Back to the topic at hand, repentance is the changing of the UNRIGHTEOUS & WICKED thoughts, passions, desires, appetites, affections, purposes, and endeavours, you had while you were in sin and submitting them to Jesus Christ, so His Spirit may purify them.
This is TRUE repentenace.
How Do I Renew My Mind As A Believer?
Matthew 5:29-30,"And if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell. (30) And if thy right hand offend thee, cut it off, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell." KJV Version.
1 Corinthians 15:33, "Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners." KJV Version.
1 Thessalonians 5:22, "Abstain from all appearance of evil." KJV Version.
James 4:7, "Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you." KJV Version.
In order to renew and change your mind, you need to know what to change it to. "Where do I find that information at?" In The Word of God. You have to study and meditate on The Word of God. Learn about the character of God: what He loves and what He hates. This will help you renew your mind.
Also, what are YOU doing to NOT commit the sin again?
How are YOU resisting the devil? How are YOU removing yourself from the sources of temptation? What are the triggers that make you want to sin? What does The Word of God say about the sin, you are wanting to commit?
You may have to get rid of friends, or even family, if they are a stumbling block in your walk of faith. You have to learn what situations, conversations, and media outlets to avoid. You won't be able to say the same (inappropriate) jokes you made when you were in sin. You probably can't stay out late at night, so you're not tempted to go to a party or a club. You can't watch all the movies & listen to all the songs you used to because it probably caused you to sin. You may have to leave a boyfriend or girlfriend, if they're still adamant on fornicating. All-in-all, becoming a Christian & practicing DAILY repentance comes with--sacrifice.
In addition, Don't be hesitant to ask God for His help! Ask The Holy Spirit to help you turn from your sinful ways, and to renew your mind. Ask Him to convict you of the scripture, and whenever you're about to do something foolish. This could be a "semi-dangerous" prayer, BUT VERY EFFECTIVE: Ask The I Am to feel about sin the way He feels about sin, and watch your mind be renewed. I say this is a "semi-dangerous" prayer because we live in world FULL of sin, and The Most High grieves at the wickedness in this world and you'll start to grieve too.
An EXAMPLE Prayer For Repentance
Dear Heavenly Father, I come before you as Your servant. Father, I need help. I need Your Holy Spirit to renew my mind and heart. You're a refining fire, and refinement I do need. Remove this impure mindset from me. Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. Let me feel about sin the way you feel about sin. Holy Spirit, help me turn from my wicked ways.
Whenever temptation comes my way, convict me heavily on what The Word of God says. Help me submit to You, so I can resist the devil, & he can flee. I want to please You, Most High. I know sin is in direct opposition of You, and I have no desire to be in opposition of A Consuming Fire.
I thank You Father. I give You praise. I bless Your Holy-Precious name. I ask for these things in the mighty name of Jesus Christ, Amen!
Reflection + Ending Scripture
I thank you for taking the time to read this blog post. I pray you use this information for the edification of yourself and others. I do pray that you learn how to TRULY repent from your sins. Repentance is renewing your heart and mind, so you DON'T commit the sin again, which in turn helps you depart from your sinful ways and avoid the sources of temptation. Change the mind you once had when you were in sin. The first thing my Savior, Jesus Christ, preached was repentance:
Matthew 4:17, "From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." KJV Version.
For further information, you can always contact me through the blog's email (tamarstestimony@gmail.com) or the blog's IG (@tamarstestimony). Bye-bye!